After trying the multi-container project template stuff a bit ago, I decided to give it another go with the current extension (development). Surprisingly, I didn’t see any multi-container templates anywhere when creating a new project? In looking at the templates.json file on the dev branch, I noticed a “hide”: true in the multiroot block? Is that what’s stopping it from showing in VSC? Is that too experimental at this stage to be used? Do I need to be on another branch?
Thanks!
Hi, I’m the Toradex AI Assistant.
I might make mistakes or occasionally get you wrong. Our support team will step in if needed.
Based on the available documentation, multi-container projects are supported in the Torizon IDE extension(1). The multi-container project functionality allows you to integrate multiple single-container projects into one workspace, enabling you to run and debug them simultaneously(1).
According to the documentation, you should be able to create a multi-container Torizon project through the standard project creation process(1). However, there are some known issues with template visibility in certain scenarios.
From community reports, there can be situations where project creation templates may not appear properly in the VS Code Explorer(2). This can happen when:
Close any open folders: If you have a project already opened, go to File → Close Folder to return to the default state where you can select new project templates(2)
Check for proper workspace state: Ensure you’re not in a workspace that might be hiding the template options(2)
Use Command Palette: You can also try using Ctrl+Shift+P to access Toradex commands for creating projects(2)
When available, multi-container projects create a specific folder structure where the root folder contains files specific to the multi-container project, along with separate folders for each single-container project(1). The project uses a .code-workspace file to define tasks, launch configurations, and settings for the multi-root workspace(1).
If you’re still not seeing the multi-container template options after trying these steps, this might be related to the development branch status you mentioned. The functionality is documented as available, but there may be temporary visibility issues in certain extension versions.
Best regards, Toradex AI Assistant.
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well, none of that really helped.
I actually removed that line and the template showed up in VSC. I tried to use but got a bunch of noise about no such file or directory. So perhaps it’s just not ready for prime time or something?
You’re correct about the "hide": true setting being the reason the multi-container template wasn’t showing up in VS Code. The fact that removing this line made the template appear suggests it was intentionally hidden, likely because it’s still in development or has known issues.
The “no such file or directory” errors you’re encountering after enabling the template indicate that the multi-container template may indeed not be fully ready for production use. This type of error typically occurs when:
According to the documentation, multi-container projects have specific prerequisites and folder structure requirements (1). The multi-container project creates a root folder that contains files specific to the multi-container project, along with separate folders for each single-container project (1).
The project uses a .code-workspace file to define tasks, launch configurations, and settings for the multi-root workspace (1). When these foundational files are missing or incorrectly configured, you’ll see the file path errors you’re experiencing.
Based on your experience and the fact that the template was hidden by default, it appears the multi-container functionality is still in development. The official documentation shows the feature as available, but the practical implementation may not be fully stable yet.
For now, you might want to stick with single-container projects or manually create a multi-container setup by combining individual single-container projects and creating your own docker-compose.yml file to orchestrate them (1).
Best regards, Toradex AI Assistant.
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If I answered your question, please tick the “Solution” checkbox.
For follow-up questions to me, please use @ToradexAI in your post.
What are you seeing exactly on your setup? On my setup this is what is shown when you click to create a new Torizon project:
Under “Workspace Projects” there is a “+” button. Clicking this button lets you add a new template under this workspace. If you add more than 1 template to this workspace, then a multi-container workspace will be created when you click “Create Project”. This was on the latest stable version of the extension at the time of writing.
Perhaps you’re not on the latest version of the extension? Or some other weird setup issue?
Best Regards,
Jeremias
Ah, I was just doing things incorrectly then. I had remembered some sort of specific “multi-container” project button or something that used to appear. When I looked in the templates.json file in the .apollox directory, I saw a template in there “multiRoot”. So, I thought that was the template to use for a multiroot project. But, it was hidden from view because of the “hide”:true line in the templates.json file.
But, it seems like things are simpler. That multiroot template isn’t for viewing, and I just add more templates to that new workspace to get the multi-container going. And yes, I tried that it works fine.
Is there a process to add an existing template-based project to that workspace? And perhaps another to create a new template-based project in an existing workspace?
Thanks @jeremias.tx
Glad I was able to help.
Is there a process to add an existing template-based project to that workspace? And perhaps another to create a new template-based project in an existing workspace?
Just to make sure I understand. For the first you have an existing (I assume older project) that you want to add to a new workspace to make a multi-container workspace.
For the other, you want to ad a brand new project to a workspace to make it multi-container.
I’ll need to check, as there might be some compatibility issues with older projects. Since as you noted the creation process of multi-container workspaces has been changed and updated compared to before.
Best Regards,
Jeremias
Sorry, I should have been a bit more detailed. All of my questions will be based on the new extension, as I know backwards compatibility is a hassle of a moving target.
For a new project already created as a multi-container project with the current extension, is there a process for adding another container? I don’t believe you can run the “wizard”-like thing again?
If a project was created as a single container, is there a process to add another project to that workspace to make it a multi-container?
Thanks.
– Dave
Well VSCode generically has it’s own way to add a folder/project to a workspace. This works for adding another folder to an existing workspace, or a folder to another folder. You can see the option under “File” in VSCode.
However this doesn’t properly work for the extension it seems. It will add the folder but it won’t update all the Torizon specific tasks and scripts to accommodate the new project into the workspace. These files get auto-generated once on workspace creation.
I can ask our team if there’s a different way to go about this, or whether they have plans to support this kind of functionality.
Best Regards,
Jeremias
Ok, thanks for the info. Adding additional containers to a multi-container project would probably be a normal thing to do, as knowing exactly how many at the gitgo may not be known.
Regards!
– Dave
