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How to enable IntelliSense on external unity projects?

Tal Mishan 0 Reputation points
2025-10-07T06:44:10.7233333+00:00

Hey there. Recently I started working on unity projects with teammates and I encountered a problem where the IntelliSense is disabled on projects from other people. At first VS Code notified me that the workspace isn't trusting this file, so I added the GitHub unity file to the trust list. This worked for a while until it came back and wouldn't allow the unity extension to be enabled. It works completely fine on private projects. I also tried making the VS Code editor to be the preferred one in unity. How can I solve this problem? Help will be appreciated.

Developer technologies | Visual Studio | Extensions
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  1. Varsha Dundigalla(INFOSYS LIMITED) 5,025 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff
    2025-10-07T14:04:26.21+00:00

    Thank you for reaching out.

    This usually happens because VS Code disables extensions in untrusted folders, or Unity isn’t generating the right project files. Follow these steps:

    1. Trust the Workspace

    VS Code blocks IntelliSense if the folder isn’t trusted.

    • Open the project in VS Code.
    • If you see a banner about trust, click Trust or Trust the Authors.
    • Or: Ctrl+Shift+P → Workspace: Manage Workspace Trust → mark your Unity project as trusted.
    1. Use the Correct Unity Extension

    Unity deprecated the old VS Code Editor package.

    • In Unity: open Window → Package Manager.
    • Install Visual Studio Editor package (v2.0.20 or newer).
    • Remove the old Visual Studio Code Editor package if it’s still there.
    1. Set VS Code as External Editor in Unity
    • Go to Edit → Preferences → External Tools.
    • Set Visual Studio Code as the external script editor.
    • Tick Regenerate project files and click the button.
    1. Install Required Extensions & SDKs
    • In VS Code, install C# (or C# Dev Kit) by Microsoft.
    • Make sure .NET SDK is installed (check by running dotnet --version in a terminal).
    • If your Unity project targets .NET Framework 4.7.1, install the Developer Pack for it.
    1. Clear Old Cache & Regenerate Project Files

    If IntelliSense is still broken:

    Close Unity and VS Code.

    Delete these folders from your project:

    • .vs/
      • Library/
        • obj/
        Reopen Unity → Regenerate project files.
    1. Restart VS Code and let OmniSharp / C# Dev Kit reload.
    2. Fix Broken Project Recognition

    If VS Code shows “Miscellaneous Files” instead of your project name:

    • In Unity: Assets → Open C# Project.
    • This forces Unity to rebuild the solution files correctly.

    Following these steps resolves most cases where IntelliSense doesn’t work on external Unity projects. If it’s still failing, check VS Code → Output → OmniSharp for error details — they’ll point to the exact missing component.

    Let me know if you need any further help with this. We'll be happy to assist.

    If you find this helpful, please mark this as answered.

    Was this answer helpful?

    1 person found this answer helpful.

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