New extension issues in isaacsim 4.5.0

Isaac Sim Version

4.5.0

Operating System

Windows 11

Topic Description

as a followup to this post of mine on creating a new extension in the new isaac sim editor: Creating new extentions with new workstation and issac sim 4.5.0

I have successfuly created a new Scripting Template but I am running into a couple of issues I need help with:

when pressing the vs code thumbnail, vs code opens up with this hirarchy:


where DSISS is C:/Users/

But it should open up with the hirarchy of the extension:

where can i configurate the path of the vs code thumbnail?

  1. The extension does not have a simbolic link to isaac sim and thus all isaac sim refrences are broken:

in previous versions of isaac sim, there was a link_app.sh/link_app.bat that would create the simbolic link when run:

how can i fix the broken refrences in the new isaac sim?

Thank you

Given that the issues you’re facing might be related to the specific version of Isaac Sim, I suggest you try the new, open-source version, Isaac Sim 5.0. It’s possible the problems with the VS Code hierarchy and the symbolic link have been addressed in this newer release. You can find the new version in the Isaac Sim GitHub repo.

@VickNV of course i can always change the isaac sim version I use. If anything, i will roll back to the last stable version which is 4.2.0. I do my best to research and try to utilize your newest version since you have marked it as a stable version.

These issues are super basic. Obviously extentions cannot be written without refrence to isaac sim tool kit (which was established using link_app.bat up to now).

i’ll wait for a responce from someone who will look into this.

Thanks for the detailed report – these are both real issues with the 4.5.0 extension development workflow. Here are answers to each.


Issue 1: VS Code opens with the wrong folder hierarchy

When you click “Window > VS Code” in Isaac Sim, it intentionally opens the Isaac Sim installation root folder (e.g., C:\Users\DSISS\AppData\Local\ov\pkg\isaac-sim-4.5.0\), not your extension folder. This is by design: the installation root contains .vscode/settings.json with python.analysis.extraPaths pointing to all built-in Isaac Sim extensions, which is what gives you IntelliSense for omni.* and isaacsim.* imports.

The folder name starting with your username in the VS Code sidebar is just how Windows shows the path – you are looking at the correct Isaac Sim root.


Issue 2: Missing symbolic link / broken Isaac Sim references

link_app.bat was removed in Isaac Sim 4.2.0 when the extension development model changed. The new approach is simpler – there is no symlink step.

Recommended workflow for 4.5.0 on Windows:

  1. Create your extension directly inside the Isaac Sim installation’s extsUser folder:

    C:\Users\DSISS\AppData\Local\ov\pkg\isaac-sim-4.5.0\extsUser\my.extension.name\
    

    The extsUser folder is already registered as an extension search path, so Isaac Sim will discover your extension automatically.

  2. Open the Isaac Sim root in VS Code – either use “Window > VS Code” from within Isaac Sim, or open the folder manually. The .vscode/settings.json at the root already has python.analysis.extraPaths listing all Isaac Sim extensions, so your broken references will resolve immediately.

  3. Enable your extension in the Extension Manager (Window > Extensions, search for it, toggle it on).

If you want to keep your extension in a separate folder (outside the Isaac Sim install), you can copy the python.analysis.extraPaths entries from <isaac-sim-root>\.vscode\settings.json into your own .vscode/settings.json, using absolute paths to the Isaac Sim install.

The VS Code Integration docs and the Extension Template Generator have more detail on the current workflow.


Note for Isaac Sim 6.0.x users

If you have since upgraded to Isaac Sim 6.0.0 or later, there is a cleaner solution. The Isaac Sim VS Code Edition VS Code marketplace extension now includes a built-in extension template wizard (Templates > Extension in its panel). It scaffolds a new extension and automatically generates a .vscode/settings.json with the correct python.analysis.extraPaths for whatever folder you choose – no manual path copying needed. This is the intended replacement for link_app.bat in 6.0.x. The UI-based Extension Template Generator inside Isaac Sim was formally deprecated in 6.0.0 in favour of this approach.

Closing this as resolved. If anything above is unclear, please open a new topic and we can walk through the setup step by step.