In release — preview. The IDE extension is under active construction and not yet generally available. The install and activation flow below is the design it’s being built to; treat it as preview until GA.
The extension follows the same model as every Shipmoor surface: the download is free, and your account entitlements — not the artifact you installed — decide what’s active.
Install (free)
The extension will install for free from the VS Code Marketplace and Open VSX. There is no separate “pro build” to find — one extension, tier decided locally.
The activation gate
The IDE extension is a paid feature of the Shipmoor IC plan. On startup it asks the local CLI for your entitlement state:
shipmoor capabilities --json # the extension runs this for youide_extension_proenabled → the extension activates and surfaces diagnostics.- Not enabled → it shows an upgrade prompt and emits no diagnostics. Nothing scans, nothing nags per-file.
Activation needs the shipmoor CLI on PATH or at ~/.shipmoor/bin/shipmoor (version 0.4.0 or later — the first release that ships the capabilities contract), signed in via shipmoor login. Manage your subscription at accounts.shipmoor.dev.
Why activation reads the CLI
The extension never sees a license file and never talks to a license server itself — it trusts the same locally verified entitlement state as the CLI, the harness, and the skills installer. One sign-in (shipmoor login) lights up every surface on the machine. See Sign in & licensing.
Next
- IDE Extension overview — the thin-client design.
- Capabilities & entitlements — the vocabulary behind
ide_extension_pro. - Managing your subscription — upgrade, billing, and the Console.