Devcontainer Minimal Template
Minimal devcontainer template for quickly starting projects with a clean base configuration.
What it is
A minimal devcontainer template for quickly starting projects. Only includes the essentials: a devcontainer.json, LICENSE, and README.
Available as source code.
Contents
devcontainer.json: base configuration with image, VS Code extensions, and settings- LICENSE: MIT by default
- README: usage instructions
Philosophy
The template follows the principle of minimal configuration: only what is needed to open a project in a functional devcontainer. Any customization — language, tools, services — is added based on project needs, not by anticipation.
Lessons learned
Starting minimal and adding incrementally produces cleaner configurations than starting from a complex template and removing what is not needed.
References
- GitHub Repository — jonmatum, 2024. Source code.
Related content
- Dev Containers
Specification for defining reproducible development environments in containers, eliminating 'works on my machine' problems and accelerating onboarding.
- Local Development
Practices and tools for creating productive development environments on the developer's machine, replicating production as closely as possible.