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Getting Started

What this section covers

Your local development environment — the laptop side of the lab. Install WSL2 (Windows only), set up VS Code, configure Python, and plug in AI coding assistants. Once this is done, you're ready to move to the OSC Basics section to get on the cluster.

Plan on ~4–6 hours total if you're starting from a fresh Windows machine. macOS/Linux users can skip WSL2 and cut that roughly in half.

Suggested order

  • 1. WSL2 Setup

    Windows users only: install the Windows Subsystem for Linux so you can run a real Ubuntu environment alongside Windows. Skip if you're on macOS or native Linux.

    ~45 min · Windows only

    Install WSL2

  • 2. VS Code Setup

    Install VS Code, connect it to WSL, set sensible defaults. The editor we use for everything — local scripts, remote SSH into OSC, Jupyter, Markdown.

    ~30 min · All platforms

    Set up VS Code

  • 3. VS Code Extensions

    The required extensions (Python, Remote-SSH, GitLens) plus the productivity picks we actually use. Install as a batch — takes five minutes.

    ~15 min · All platforms

    Install extensions

  • 4. Python Environment Setup

    Two environments, one purpose each: uv for fast project venvs, conda for compiled scientific stacks. Covers the pre-commit hooks we enforce across lab repos.

    ~45 min · All platforms

    Set up Python

  • 5. AI Coding Assistants

    GitHub Copilot and Claude Code — accounts, install, lab-recommended settings. Foundational setup before you touch agent workflows.

    ~30 min · All platforms

    Enable AI assistants

  • 6. Agent Workflows (advanced)

    Once the basics work: MCP servers, slash commands, hooks, subagents. The patterns Robert and other senior members use daily. Come back to this after you've lived in Copilot/Claude for a week or two.

    Optional · Return after first month

    Go deeper

After this section

Once your local machine is set up, move to OSC Basics to get your account, SSH in, and run your first job.