VS Code / JetBrains

This article covers how to install the two major development tools on Ubuntu 26.04: Visual Studio Code and JetBrains IDEs.

Visual Studio Code

VS Code is a free, open-source code editor from Microsoft with a rich extension ecosystem.

Option 1: Install via Snap


sudo snap install code --classic

Option 2: Install via deb Package


# Add Microsoft GPG key and repository
wget -qO- https://packages.microsoft.com/keys/microsoft.asc | gpg --dearmor > packages.microsoft.gpg
sudo install -D -o root -g root -m 644 packages.microsoft.gpg /etc/apt/keyrings/packages.microsoft.gpg
echo "deb [arch=amd64 signed-by=/etc/apt/keyrings/packages.microsoft.gpg] https://packages.microsoft.com/repos/code stable main" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/vscode.list
 
# Install
sudo apt update
sudo apt install code -y
 
# Clean up
rm packages.microsoft.gpg

Launch VS Code


# Launch from the command line
code
 
# Open a specific directory
code /path/to/project
 
# Open a specific file
code file.py

Recommended Extensions

Install extensions via the command line:


# Chinese language pack
code --install-extension MS-CEINTL.vscode-language-pack-zh-hans
 
# Python
code --install-extension ms-python.python
 
# Go
code --install-extension golang.go
 
# Rust
code --install-extension rust-lang.rust-analyzer
 
# Java
code --install-extension vscjava.vscode-java-pack
 
# Docker
code --install-extension ms-azuretools.vscode-docker
 
# Remote SSH (remote development)
code --install-extension ms-vscode-remote.remote-ssh
 
# GitLens
code --install-extension eamodio.gitlens
 
# Prettier code formatter
code --install-extension esbenp.prettier-vscode
 
# ESLint
code --install-extension dbaeumer.vscode-eslint

Common Settings

Press Ctrl + Shift + P to open the Command Palette, type settings json to open the settings file:


{
  "editor.fontSize": 15,
  "editor.fontFamily": "'JetBrains Mono', 'Noto Sans Mono CJK SC', monospace",
  "editor.tabSize": 2,
  "editor.formatOnSave": true,
  "editor.minimap.enabled": false,
  "editor.wordWrap": "on",
  "files.autoSave": "afterDelay",
  "terminal.integrated.fontSize": 14,
  "workbench.colorTheme": "One Dark Pro"
}

Install Programming Fonts


# Install JetBrains Mono font
sudo apt install fonts-jetbrains-mono -y
 
# Install Fira Code (with ligature support)
sudo apt install fonts-firacode -y
 
# Refresh font cache
fc-cache -fv

VS Code Keyboard Shortcuts

Shortcut	Function
`Ctrl + Shift + P`	Command Palette
`Ctrl + P`	Quick Open File
`Ctrl + Shift + F`	Global Search
Ctrl + ``	Toggle Terminal
`Ctrl + B`	Toggle Sidebar
`F5`	Start Debugging
`Ctrl + Shift + X`	Open Extensions Panel

JetBrains IDE

JetBrains offers professional IDEs including IntelliJ IDEA (Java), PyCharm (Python), GoLand (Go), WebStorm (JavaScript), and more.

Install via JetBrains Toolbox (Recommended)

JetBrains Toolbox is the unified tool for managing all JetBrains IDEs:


# Download Toolbox App
wget -O jetbrains-toolbox.tar.gz "https://data.services.jetbrains.com/products/download?platform=linux&code=TBA"
 
# Extract
tar -xzf jetbrains-toolbox.tar.gz
 
# Run (directory name may vary by version)
cd jetbrains-toolbox-*/
./jetbrains-toolbox
 
# Clean up
cd ..
rm -rf jetbrains-toolbox*

After launching, Toolbox stays in the system tray, allowing you to install and manage all JetBrains IDEs from there.

Install Individual IDEs via Snap


# IntelliJ IDEA Community (free)
sudo snap install intellij-idea-community --classic
 
# IntelliJ IDEA Ultimate (paid)
sudo snap install intellij-idea-ultimate --classic
 
# PyCharm Community (free)
sudo snap install pycharm-community --classic
 
# PyCharm Professional (paid)
sudo snap install pycharm-professional --classic
 
# GoLand
sudo snap install goland --classic
 
# WebStorm
sudo snap install webstorm --classic
 
# CLion
sudo snap install clion --classic
 
# Rust Rover
sudo snap install rustrover --classic

JetBrains IDE Performance Tuning

JetBrains IDEs are JVM-based. You can improve performance by adjusting memory settings. Go to Help > Edit Custom VM Options:


-Xms512m
-Xmx2048m
-XX:+UseG1GC
-XX:ReservedCodeCacheSize=512m

Recommended Plugins

Install via Settings > Plugins within the IDE:

Chinese (Simplified) Language Pack - Chinese language support
Key Promoter X - Keyboard shortcut learning prompts
Rainbow Brackets - Color-coded bracket matching
GitToolBox - Enhanced Git features
.ignore - .gitignore file support

Command-Line Tools

JetBrains IDEs support opening projects from the command line:


# Create command-line launcher (within the IDE)
# Tools > Create Command-line Launcher
 
# Then you can open projects from the command line
idea /path/to/project
pycharm /path/to/project
goland /path/to/project

Other Editors

Additional editors available on Ubuntu 26.04:


# Neovim (terminal editor)
sudo apt install neovim -y
 
# Sublime Text
sudo snap install sublime-text --classic
 
# Zed (high-performance editor)
curl -fsSL https://zed.dev/install.sh | sh

Choose the editor that best fits your workflow. VS Code is great for lightweight, fast development, while JetBrains IDEs offer deeper language support and refactoring capabilities.