SideX — a Tauri-based port of Visual Studio Code

What is SideX?

SideX is a new project on GitHub that repackages Visual Studio Code on top of Tauri instead of Electron. The repository Sidenai/sidex hosts the code and installer scripts; it has been reported that the project aims to create a lighter, more native-feeling VS Code experience by swapping Electron for a Rust-based Tauri wrapper. Tidy, lean, and built with modern toolchains — that’s the pitch.

Why it matters

Why should anyone care? Because Electron fatigue is real. Developers crave apps that don’t eat RAM like a greedy cousin at Thanksgiving. Tauri typically yields smaller binaries and tighter OS integration, with Rust handling the native bits and a webview for UI. If SideX can keep extension compatibility and the familiar Code UX while trimming bloat, it could be a welcome alternative — think VSCodium-level community builds but optimized for modern native stacks. Exciting? Yes. Necessary? Arguably so.

Roadblocks and what to watch

Caveats abound. It has been reported that preserving full extension and API compatibility is tricky; some VS Code internals rely on Electron-specific behavior. There are also licensing and telemetry questions to navigate, and performance or platform edge-cases that only time will reveal. Will developers flock to a Tauri-powered Code clone, or will extensions and subtle incompatibilities keep most users on the official build? Check the repo, try it out if you dare, and keep an eye on issues and community feedback — this could be the start of a broader Electron-to-Tauri trend, or just another niche fork.

Sources: github.com/sidenai, Hacker News