Building the Future of Open Source Development Tools With the Eclipse Theia IDE

The Eclipse Theia IDE is leaving its beta stage in June 2024, marking the beginning of a new era of integrated development environments (IDEs) at the Eclipse Foundation. Based on the robust Eclipse Theia Platform — first made available in 2017 — this full-featured IDE adds yet another important cornerstone to the Eclipse Cloud DevTools ecosystem. 

The Theia IDE was initially created for developers seeking a modern, open, and flexible tool for their coding pursuits. Now it is poised to emerge as an essential resource for developers seeking a modern, extensible, and privacy-respecting development environment. The evolution of Theia from a blueprint to a full IDE underscores the power of community collaboration and the endless possibilities of open source innovation. 

This article highlights the journey leading up to this release, the vibrant community supporting the Theia IDE ecosystem, and provides insights into how developers can use it and contribute to its ongoing success.

Eclipse Theia’s Journey From a Platform to an IDE

The journey of Theia’s evolution from a platform to a template to a full IDE started in 2017. Initially conceived as a platform for building web-based tools and IDEs, Theia gained traction over the years, with many companies adopting it for a wide range of products. 

In 2021, recognising the need to streamline the creation of custom products and facilitate adoption, the community introduced Theia Blueprint. This standard IDE product based on Theia served as a template for building desktop-based products and showcased the platform’s capabilities. 

Over time, Theia Blueprint’s quality surged as developers adopted it for daily use. This culminated in the decision to refine Theia Blueprint into what is now available as Theia IDE, an initiative that began in the summer of 2023 with the beta release in December 2023.

A Comprehensive and Adaptable Development Environment

Theia IDE is a state-of-the-art code development tool built on modern web technologies, allowing it to seamlessly operate in both desktop and browser environments. By leveraging the latest industry standards like Language Server Protocol (LSP), Debug Adapter Protocol (DAP), and Monaco Code Editor, Theia IDE offers a cutting-edge coding experience. 

Beyond its unique and rich feature set, Theia IDE is fully compatible with VS Code extensions, accessible via the vendor neutral OpenVSX registry, and enables extensive customisation and adaptability for diverse development needs. With its fully vendor neutral open source foundation and robust extensibility, Theia IDE can be tailored to almost any purpose, from a highly optimised IDE for internal developers to specialised domain-specific tools beyond traditional coding applications.

Figure 1: A visualisation of the Theia IDE

A Robust and Versatile Choice for Developers

For developers seeking an IDE that combines flexibility, openness, and cutting-edge technology, Theia IDE is a compelling choice. Distinctive features like an adaptable toolbar, detachable views, remote development support, and the forthcoming live collaboration mode set Theia apart from other open source IDEs. Moreover, its commitment to privacy and its stance against incorporating telemetry by default underscore its respect for user preferences.

Theia IDE is available as a downloadable desktop application but can be easily deployed in the cloud for use within a browser. This versatility allows seamless integration into existing infrastructures, such as online portals or company environments, and even direct hosting on hardware devices. Theia’s modular and flexible architecture enables users to enhance and adapt almost anything within Theia, making it a versatile solution for any use case.

Last, but definitely not least, Theia IDE is also a product of one of the most successful and innovative models of software development: a vendor neutral open source community. 

Vendor Neutral Open Source Is the Foundation of Theia IDE

Theia IDE is built entirely on open source and does not include any proprietary or closed-source components.

At its core, Theia IDE is driven by Eclipse Theia, an open source project governed by the Eclipse Foundation and developed under the Eclipse Public License (EPL). This proven licence not only ensures the freedom to use and distribute the software but also allows for commercial use, making Theia IDE an attractive option for businesses and individual developers alike. 

Supported by a diverse coalition of industry leaders and open source contributors, Theia IDE benefits from the collective expertise of organisations like Ericsson, Red Hat, STMicroelectronics, EclipseSource, and TypeFox, as well as independent developers. This collaborative effort ensures that Theia IDE evolves with a broad range of perspectives, fostering innovation and reliability.

Figure 2: Adopters and contributors to Eclipse Theia

One of the most compelling aspects of Theia IDE’s open source nature is the opportunity for adopters to directly influence the project through contributions. Whether by introducing new features, improving existing functionalities, or participating in the decision-making process, every contributor can have a direct impact on the project. This participatory approach cultivates a sense of ownership and community among users, further enhancing the IDE’s development and evolution.

Theia IDE’s openness also empowers users to avoid vendor lock-in for their development tools — an essential consideration given the critical role of development tooling in aspects like IP protection, security, and flexibility. 

Theia’s development process is entirely based on meritocracy: no party can unilaterally decide on the fate of the project or insert elements into the software. At the same time, the community is free to customise and extend the IDE for specific needs without fear of being tied to the decision of single vendors or proprietary technologies or platforms. This autonomy encourages innovation and ensures that Theia IDE remains a versatile tool that can adapt to the ever-changing landscape of software development.

Community Engagement Shapes Theia IDE Evolution

Built on an Eclipse open source project, Theia IDE is supported by a vibrant community and underpinned by a licence that encourages commercial use. This sets the stage for a powerful, flexible, inclusive, and forward-looking development environment. By choosing Theia IDE, developers and organisations are not just adopting an IDE: they are joining a movement that values collaboration, freedom, and the collective pursuit of excellence in software development.

The evolution of Theia IDE from Theia Blueprint to a full-fledged IDE highlights a journey of continuous improvement and community engagement. The Theia community expects mutual benefits between the underlying platform and the IDE. User feedback, ideas, and contributions enhance the platform, and improvements in the platform enrich the IDE and its user base.

Theia IDE offers downloadable installers for all major operating systems and can be accessed online for free. Visit the Theia IDE website for more details.

The Theia community welcomes developers not only to explore the IDE’s capabilities but also to contribute to its ongoing development. Whether providing feedback, reporting issues, suggesting new features, or participating in the development, every contribution enriches the Theia IDE ecosystem. The platform’s open source nature ensures it remains a collaborative, inclusive, and evolving tool, inviting developers to be part of its growth story. 

For more information on how to give feedback, ask questions, or contribute, please visit the Eclipse Theia IDE website.