VSCode Remote Containers automatically copy file from host to docker container on save

Question

I am finding many answers on how to develop inside a container in Visual Studio Code with the Remote Containers extension, but surprisingly none address my use case.

I can add to the repo only from the host, but can run the code only from the container. If I edit a file in the container, I have to manually copy it to the host so I can commit it, but if I edit the file on the host, I have to manually copy it into the container so I can test it.

I would like to set up the IDE to automatically copy files from the host into the container whenever I save or change a file in a particular directory. This way I can both commit files on the host, and run them in the container, without having to manually run docker cp each time I change a file. Files should not automatically be copied from the container to the host, since the container will contain built files which should not be added to the repo.

It seems highly unlikely that this is impossible; but how?

Answer 1

This can be configured using the Run on Save extension.

Set it to run docker cp on save.