Cannot open local terminal when remote container is opened as a workspace

[koonpeng]

• VSCode Version: 1.63.2
• Local OS Version: arch
• Remote OS Version: ubuntu 20.04
• Remote Extension/Connection Type: Docker
• Logs:

Steps to Reproduce:

Create a minimal workspace and devcontainer file

workspace.code-workspace

{
	"folders": [
		{
			"path": "."
		}
	],
	"settings": {}
}

.devcontainer/devcontainer.json

{
  "image": "ubuntu:20.04"
}

Select Open Workspace in container command in the command panel, then select Terminal: Create New Integrated Terminal (local).

The terminal fails to open and an error popup shows up:

The terminal process failed to launch: Starting directory (cwd) "~/ws/vscode-container-workspace-terminal-bug/workspace.code-workspace" is not a directory.

As a workaround, opening the workspace indirectly via Open Folder in container, then Open Workspace From File, results in working local terminal.

Does this issue occur when you try this locally?: No
Does this issue occur when you try this locally and all extensions are disabled?: No

[Tyriar]

@chrmarti we use the canonical URI to open the local folder if it exists, is there an issue with that mechanism?

https://github.com/Microsoft/vscode/blob/9199916f5b728d31e9eb3547a21ec44048ce7e95/src/vs/workbench/contrib/terminal/electron-sandbox/terminalRemote.ts#L39-L52

[chrmarti]

@Tyriar That points to a workspace file because the URI passed in does so too. I think that's how the canonical URI is supposed to work (/cc @lszomoru). Maybe you could apply the same logic you apply when opening a terminal in a multi-root workspace locally? Or use the workspace file's folder as the cwd?

[Tyriar]

Ah I missed the multi-root part, will investigate to see if we can handle it on our end.

[ili101]

+1
It will be nice if I could open a Local PS7 terminal while inside a devcontainer.
I found it was also requested in here (+ a workaround if you have SSH to the host):
https://stackoverflow.com/questions/71145541/how-to-open-local-terminal-when-running-vscode-in-a-dev-container

[gaziqbal]

+1. It repros for a multi-root workspace here as well. My workaround is to right-click on a folder and "open in integrated terminal".