add devcontainer

.devcontainer/Dockerfile

@@ -0,0 +1,24 @@
+ARG NODE_VER=23.5.0
+ARG BASE_IMAGE=node:${NODE_VER}
+FROM $BASE_IMAGE
+
+ENV DEBIAN_FRONTEND=noninteractive
+
+# Install pnpm globally and install necessary build tools
+RUN apt-get update \
+    && apt-get install -y \
+    git \
+    python3 \
+    make \
+    g++ \
+    nano \
+    vim \
+    && apt-get clean \
+    && rm -rf /var/lib/apt/lists/*
+
+ARG PNPM_VER=9.15.2
+RUN npm install -g pnpm@${PNPM_VER}
+
+# Set Python 3 as the default python
+RUN ln -s /usr/bin/python3 /usr/bin/python
+ENV DEBIAN_FRONTEND=dialog

.devcontainer/devcontainer.json

@@ -0,0 +1,38 @@
+// See https://aka.ms/vscode-remote/devcontainer.json for format details.
+{
+    "name": "elizaos-dev",
+    "dockerFile": "Dockerfile",
+    "build": {
+        "args": {
+            "NODE_VER": "23.5.0",
+            "PNPM_VER": "9.15.2"
+        }
+    },
+    "privileged": true,
+    "runArgs": [
+        "-p=3000:3000", // Add port for server api
+        "-p=5173:5173", // Add port for client
+        //"--volume=/usr/lib/wsl:/usr/lib/wsl", // uncomment for WSL
+        //"--volume=/mnt/wslg:/mnt/wslg", // uncomment for WSL
+        "--gpus=all", // ! uncomment for vGPU
+        //"--device=/dev/dxg", // uncomment this for vGPU under WSL
+        "--device=/dev/dri"
+    ],
+    "containerEnv": {
+        //"MESA_D3D12_DEFAULT_ADAPTER_NAME": "NVIDIA", // uncomment for WSL
+        //"LD_LIBRARY_PATH": "/usr/lib/wsl/lib" // uncomment for WSL
+    },
+    "customizations": {
+        "vscode": {
+            "extensions": [
+                "vscode.json-language-features",
+                "vscode.css-language-features",
+                // "foxundermoon.shell-format",
+                // "dbaeumer.vscode-eslint",
+                // "esbenp.prettier-vscode"
+                "ms-python.python"
+            ]
+        }
+    },
+    "features": {}
+}

docs/docs/guides/local-development.md

@@ -8,37 +8,61 @@ This guide covers setting up and working with Eliza in a development environment
 
 ## Prerequisites
 
-Before you begin, ensure you have:
+You can develop either in a **dev container** or directly on your **host machine**.
+
+### Requirements:
 
 ```bash
 # Required
-Node.js 23+
-pnpm
+Node.js (v23+; not required if using the dev container)
+pnpm (not required if using the dev container)
 Git
 
-# Optional but recommended
-VS Code
-Docker (for database development)
-CUDA Toolkit (for GPU acceleration)
+VS Code (mandatory for using the dev container or coding)
+Docker (mandatory for using the dev container or database development)
+CUDA Toolkit (optional, for GPU acceleration)
 ```
 
 ## Initial Setup
 
 ### 1. Repository Setup
 
+Clone the repository and navigate to the project directory:
+
 ```bash
 # Clone the repository
 git clone https://github.com/elizaos/eliza.git
 cd eliza
+```
+
+### 2. (Optional) Run Inside a Dev Container
+
+1. Open the project directory in **VS Code**:
+   ```bash
+   code .
+   ```
+
+2. In the bottom-right corner, you'll see a popup:
+   **"Reopen in Container"** – Click it.
+
+   - If you don't see the popup or miss it, press `F1`, type:
+     **"Reopen in Container"**, and select it.
+
+3. Wait for the container to initialize.
 
+4. Open a terminal (hotkey: `Ctrl+Shift+\``) and run commands from the **container terminal** going forward.
+
+### 3. Setup dependencies
+
+```bash
 # Install dependencies
 pnpm install
 
 # Install optional dependencies
 pnpm install --include=optional sharp
 ```
 
-### 2. Environment Configuration
+### 4. Environment Configuration
 
 Create your development environment file:
 
@@ -56,7 +80,7 @@ XAI_API_KEY=                 # Leave blank for local inference
 XAI_MODEL=meta-llama/Llama-3.1-7b-instruct  # Local model
 ```
 
-### 3. Local Model Setup
+### 5. Local Model Setup
 
 For local inference without API dependencies:
 
@@ -106,10 +130,16 @@ pnpm run dev --characters="characters/my-character.json"
 pnpm start:client
 ```
 
+NOTE: If you are using devcontainer, add --host argument to client:
+```
+pnpm start:client --host
+```
+
 Look for the message:
 `  ➜  Local:   http://localhost:5173/`
 Click on that link or open a browser window to that location. Once you do that you should see the chat interface connect with the system and you can start interacting with your character.
 
+
 ## Database Development
 
 ### SQLite (Recommended for Development)