No download link for extensions under Version History

[neildarlow]

Describe the bug
New, direct-download, installation instructions indicate that users should choose an OS-appropriate version from the Download link under the Version History section of the extension's listing in the marketplace. No such link exists and the previous download link in the sidebar of the extension listing has been removed.

To Reproduce
Steps to reproduce the behavior:

1. Sign in to VSCode Marketplace
2. Search for an extension e.g. PlaformIO IDE
3. Notice no download link in right sidebar or under Version History
4. You cannot download an extension

Expected behavior
Following the revised installation instuctions (take C/C++ as an example) you should now be able to download the extension from the Version History link.

Screenshots
If applicable, add screenshots to help explain your problem.

Desktop (please complete the following information):

• fedora Silverblue
• Mozilla firefox
• 134.0.1

Smartphone (please complete the following information):

• Device: [e.g. iPhone6]
• OS: [e.g. iOS8.1]
• Browser [e.g. stock browser, safari]
• Version [e.g. 22]

Additional context
Add any other context about the problem here.

[Neelima10735584]

Thank you very much for your feedback.

We are constantly reviewing features on the VS Marketplace with the goal of improving key features and removing features that are not key to the developer workflow. Based on our data and analysis, "Download Extension" was not part of the inner developer flow that we are constantly trying to optimize, so we decided to no longer support it.

VS Code allows right click context menu to download a vsix in the extension search view, example image”

Regards,
VS Marketplace Team

[ilkkapoutanen-61n]

As I also commented in #1138, this is not useful advice in environments where VS Code runs on a machine with no internet, and the machine with internet cannot run VS code at all for one reason or another. I work with one such environment, along with many colleagues, and this change is blocking all extension updates and new extension installs.

[neildarlow]

This was the push I needed to switch from VSCode to Zed.

On 28 January 2025 14:47:21 GMT, Ilkka Poutanen ***@***.***> wrote: As I also commented in #1138, this is not useful advice in environments where VS Code runs on a machine with no internet, and the machine with internet cannot run VS code at all for one reason or another. I work with one such environment, along with many colleagues, and this change is blocking all extension updates and new extension installs. -- Reply to this email directly or view it on GitHub: #1135 (comment) You are receiving this because you authored the thread. Message ID: ***@***.***>

-- Sent from my Android device with K-9 Mail.

[isidorn]

@ilkkapoutanen-61n thanks for your feedback. To understand your setup better, why the machine with internet can not run VS Code? In what kind of enterprise do you work?

[ilkkapoutanen-61n]

No worries @isidorn ! The environment that has internet connectivity is managed and ephemeral, so any extension update might start with having to first get vs code itself (in order to use its download function, as described in the workaround). Using the portable zip installer makes this technically possible I guess, but it seems to me like a lot of work for what used to be achievable with a few clicks.

Then there is of course a whole process for transferring material between environments which I won't describe here.

[jjATL]

Regarding these comments:

Based on our data and analysis, "Download Extension" was not part of the inner developer flow that we are constantly trying to optimize, so we decided to no longer support it.

VS Code runs on a machine with no internet

To understand your setup better, why the machine with internet can not run VS Code? In what kind of enterprise do you work?

I too am working in a similar environment. Our developer PCs do not have direct access to the internet. The internet is accessed via a special virtual machine (TightGate), which only runs a browser and allows to retrieve files downloaded in that VM via secure copy (SCP). For security reasons, there is no way at all to have VSCode installed in a PC or VM which has direct access to the internet.

I have been working in different companies, which apply the same rules. This is no weird edge case, and I am surprised it needs explaining.

Without the download button, I have to open VSCode on my personal PC at home, after work, get the link, send it to me via email or whatever.

Please bring back a simple way to download VSIX files from the VS Marketplace webpage.

[iabbott]

Same here. We work in an effectively airgapped environment and use a bastion server to download the VSIX files before transferring them to our internal systems. Moving the ability to download only from within the application is a retrograde step and does not reflect the secure environments that many companies use. Please restore this download link behaviour.

[prasoon2211]

I'm sorry for my bluntness here but this seems like a clear-cut attempt to halt the growth of VSCode competitors like Cursor (no affiliation, just a very happy user)

[conartist6]

Yeaaaaah no question in my mind that the way they really meant to phrase that was "the feature was worth almost nothing to us, but it was helping our competitors so we deleted it". I notice there was no response at all to the comment about needing this to switch to Zed.

[isidorn]

Thank you for your great feedback.

One of the main reasons for the removal of the Download Extension button was that it was not supporting pre-release extensions, and was a constant source of user confusion. E.g. users want to download the latest release version of the extension, but the button downloads the highest version, which is the pre-release version. Also platform specific extensions dropdown was highly confusing. Having the Download Extension button in VS Code - both of those problems get fixed, the right platform gets auto-picked, and the release / pre-release is respected.

Same here. We work in an effectively airgapped environment and use a bastion server to download the VSIX files before transferring them to our internal systems. Moving the ability to download only from within the application is a retrograde step and does not reflect the secure environments that many companies use. Please restore this download link behaviour.

Similar as @neildarlow and @jjATL - this scenario makes sense. We will consider this and I expect us to provide a workaround in the next couple of weeks.

I'm sorry for my bluntness here but this seems like a clear-cut attempt to halt the growth of VSCode competitors like Cursor (no affiliation, just a very happy user)

The terms of use of Marketplace prevent it from being used by non Visual Studio family of products. To my knowledge, Cursor connects to open-vsx already today (I just double checked and that is indeed the case) - so I do not think that product is directly affected by this change.