045: ABAP - ADT for VS Code (Part 1)

Welcome to this short series on ABAP development tools for VS Code. What will you learn here about installing and getting started with ABAP using VS Code? We'll start with the following agenda: We'll give a brief introduction to the new architecture and everything else you should know when working with VS Code. We'll look at the installation and setup, and then take a short tour of VS Code to familiarize you with its features. In the next section, we'll explore Agentic AI, how to configure it, and how to use it later. At the end, you'll get a brief overview and an outlook on how the extension will continue.

Introduction

So let's dive right into the topic and learn a bit more about the extension and the releases. Let's look at the different development tools over time, starting with the SAP GUI and the various transactions available to us for carrying out development. In the past, this was primarily about full-stack development, meaning we modeled the database, built the UI, provided a transaction, and the user could then work with it. In other words, we did all our work in one tool. Then the ABAP Development Tools, or ADT for short, were introduced, initially in the Eclipse version, which is now over 14 years old. Over the past few years, this version has become feature-complete, meaning we have all the functionalities we need to develop applications in the cloud. However, the full-stack development aspect is missing, as we only handle the ABAP backend, and the Fiori app is created in a separate IDE. The version for Visual Studio Code has now also been released within the ABAP Development Tools suite. This is a new IDE that will support the same functionalities in the future, but is primarily designed for agentic AI and the complete developer workflow for full-stack development.

The overall goal is to create a single IDE for complete full-stack development. We want to eliminate the need to switch tools and instead be able to manage the entire application lifecycle, from backend to frontend components, directly within the IDE. This offers the advantages of speed, consistent tool usage, and reduced training requirements. Currently, Visual Studio Code is the IDE, but it is also possible to support other derivatives, such as Business Application Studio. Since this is an initial scope, the Visual Studio Code plugin was implemented first. Implementation in Business Application Studio would follow later and is primarily relevant and lucrative for companies with a strict company device policy. This means that installing new software is relatively difficult, and not every user/developer has the necessary administrator rights on their computer. However, we also see advantages here, as the installation and management of plugins is eliminated, and the virtual environment handles this for us – something for the lazy developer.

So, what does the new architecture for the development environment look like? You should have noticed that the last two updates were relatively large and took a long time. A new architecture was rolled out in these updates. The focus is now on the language server, a so-called LSP server with the Language Server Protocol, which provides all the functionalities of the development environment, such as code highlighting, validation, and interfaces. This server ultimately connects to the SAP system, and our IDE essentially only communicates with the language server. This has the advantage that we can use different IDEs that support the Language Server Protocol to develop against our SAP system. The only difference lies in the UI components, which must be developed individually depending on the development environment and can therefore vary. According to the development team, this allowed them to reuse 60% of the code, which now runs in a Java language server. At the same time, the architecture of the MCP server, which our AI requires, was integrated into the language server, so that it runs centrally on the developer's development machine.

Initial Scope

What should you expect from this new development environment? Basically, the initial scope was full-stack development with RAP. The most modern stack in ABAP Cloud was used, so that all artifacts required for a RAP application are available. However, this primarily refers to table entities, data definitions, and simple types, not to classic tables. All lifecycle components are present, such as unit testing, the ABAP Test Cockpit, and everything we need for AI. This includes, for example, the MCP server, which also contains the RAP generator, as well as tools for activating and executing unit tests. Agentic AI was implemented using Copilot, a standard plugin for Visual Studio Code. Support for all systems, whether cloud or on-premise, is possible from release 7.31 onwards. While the initial scope did not include Basic Authentication, this has since been added. And of course, basic debugging is also possible.

Which components are currently not included? Classic reports and tables are not included in the feature set, nor are many elements that require the SAP GUI. Some UI functionalities, such as IDE Actions, the Transport Organizer, and the Data Preview, are also currently unavailable but are planned for release in future versions. Somewhat surprisingly, creating new packages is not possible via the development environment. Here, you have to use a helper class and the XCO library or Eclipse. The lack of an ABAP Cleaner is also somewhat disappointing. However, this is expected to be released relatively soon, also as a plugin for VS Code.

Installation

Let's take a look at the software installation. All we really need to do is search for Visual Studio Code. There we'll find a download page for all common operating systems, and then we can install the plugin within the IDE. We'll take a look at these steps live on the system and perform them step by step.

Use your preferred search engine, as you'll find the Visual Studio Code installation page and can download the appropriate version. In this case, we'll choose the installation file and not the compressed ZIP file, since we want to install it on our system to use it as a permanent IDE. After downloading, we'll perform the installation and click through the wizard step by step: Where should it be installed? Which files will be associated with it? And how do we want to handle this in the end?

After the installation is complete, we can start Visual Studio Code for the first time. In the top area, via the toolbar, we can enter a command and search for "Color Theme" to adjust the settings. Here you can choose between different themes, whichever you prefer, light or dark. We'll choose a light theme, as this offers better contrast, especially for presentations or displays. In the sidebar, you'll find the Extensions section. There you can search for and install new plugins. We'll search for "ABAP Development" and find several plugins in this area. The official ABAP Development Tools plugin is listed third. We'll start the installation using the Install button, thus installing the plugin in our IDE. Now we can start working with ABAP.

VS Code Tour

Before we really dive into the IDE, we want to give you a brief overview of the IDE and the various functionalities that are important for working with it. This overview image shows you various information about the window you will see: On the left is the toolbar. We already used this to install the extension. There you will also find other tools such as debugging, the explorer, and the Git connection. Right next to it is the so-called workspace area. This is where all your working directories are stored, which you will create later, such as connections to systems or individual packages from systems. Once the code is open, you'll find the outline directly below. This is there to visualize the object's structure. At the bottom left, you'll find the accounts and settings. These are especially important if you later want to connect to the GitHub plugin or log out again. This function is easily overlooked.

In the middle section, you'll find the editor, the main tool for editing and modifying files. Above it is the command palette. This is particularly important because Visual Studio Code doesn't offer all functionalities through the UI; some functions can only be accessed via commands. You enter these commands in the upper section. You can click on the bar once to start entering the command, or you can press "Ctrl+Shift+P" to enter the command immediately afterward. In our image, you can see the Copilot on the right. This is already pre-configured and populated with initial information. This will be needed later to work with Agentic AI.

Outlook

In this episode, we primarily wanted to provide an insight into why Visual Studio Code exists and what its purpose is. We looked at the installation process and the first steps in how to handle the configuration. You've now gained a first insight into the IDE and an overview of the various tools it offers. Next time, we'll delve into its actual use and explore different functions within the development environment. Thanks for watching, and see you next time.

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