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Lab: Install VS Code Twin and First Session

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Videos by Asst. Prof. Dr. Santi Nuratch, Department of Control Systems and Instrumentation Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, King Mongkut's University of Technology Thonburi (KMUTT) · The whole series in the playlist AIoT Foundation

Course 2 · Module 2 Type: Hands-on (install + bind + first live session) Suggested time: 2–3 hours (including installation)

Read first: Lesson · Cheatsheet · ← Table of Contents · ← M01 · M03 →

Useful references during the lab

Section titled “Useful references during the lab”
Document Use when
Hackathon README Installing the VSIX / flashing the HEX
Bitstream Studio Marketplace Install Path A
Course 1 M02 If you need to build/flash yourself

Lab Goals

Section titled “Lab Goals”
  • The Bitstream Studio extension is ready to use
  • A workspace exists that can point at the firmware project or the lab pack
  • A first session succeeds on at least one path: Simulator or Bitstream
  • Visualization / moving values are visible, with evidence recorded
  • vscode-twin-setup.md filled in

Lab A — Install (required)

Section titled “Lab A — Install (required)”
  1. Install VS Code (or Cursor)
  2. Install Bitstream Studio:
  3. Reload → Command Palette → Open Bitstream Studio
  4. (If using the board-free mode) install Bitstream Simulator per your kit’s guide
  5. Do the CA/credentials step only if your round’s guide specifies it
  6. (Recommended) run Download Free Assets from GitHub once, if you’ll use 3D models from ternion-3d-assets-free

Pass when: Bitstream Studio opens, and you see the data-source toolbar / Link

Lab B — Workspace bind (required)

Section titled “Lab B — Workspace bind (required)”
  1. Create or open a workspace folder per the lesson’s layout
  2. Place or link the firmware/ folder (or clone Hackathon as a version reference)
  3. Open Bitstream Studio from the same workspace window
  4. Note the project path + the VSIX/HEX version in the setup sheet

Pass when: you can explain “which folder the firmware is in” and “which window the Twin host is opened from”

Lab C — First live session (required)

Section titled “Lab C — First live session (required)”

Complete at least one path — starting with Simulator is recommended if the board isn’t ready yet.

C1 — Simulator path

Section titled “C1 — Simulator path”
  1. Toolbar → Simulator
  2. Start Simulator / Streaming
  3. Link / Connect
  4. Open Sensor Telemetry (or the designated panel)
  5. Take a screenshot: values moving + the Link status

C2 — Bitstream path (board)

Section titled “C2 — Bitstream path (board)”
  1. Flash a HEX matched to the VSIX (hex/ + the Flasher)
  2. Toolbar → Bitstream · choose the COM
  3. Link / Connect until the handshake succeeds
  4. Confirm the graph/values from the board
  5. Take a screenshot

Pass when: there is live evidence for at least one path (a screenshot or a short clip)

Lab D — Observe & switch (recommended)

Section titled “Lab D — Observe & switch (recommended)”
  1. If you can do both Simulator and Bitstream — switch mode once, and confirm the old data is cleared / not mixed in
  2. Briefly open the Output / logs when there is an error, and note the message
  3. (Optional) open the web-app/ page from Hackathon per its guide — point out that it is an outer Visualization layer

Pass when (recommended): there is a 3–5 line note on how you split the problem into layers

Deliverables checklist

Section titled “Deliverables checklist”
  • Labs A–C passed
  • vscode-twin-setup.md filled in completely
  • First-session evidence (a screenshot)
  • (Recommended) Lab D

Troubleshooting

Section titled “Troubleshooting”
Symptom Approach
The Open Bitstream Studio command doesn’t appear The wrong VSIX was installed / you haven’t Reloaded yet / a different app is open
The session / Link doesn’t come up Shutdown Backend Services and reopen · check port 9998
The Simulator shows no value The Simulator isn’t Streaming yet · the mode is still set to Bitstream
Bitstream is empty The wrong COM · the HEX doesn’t match the version · the baud / USB cable
A port is already in use Close the other editor that owns it · Shutdown the backends
The UI loads but the graph is still The wrong workspace/panel is open · not Linked yet

Lesson · Cheatsheet · Table of Contents · M03 →

Cite this lesson

If you teach from this lesson or reuse it in slides or documents, credit it with the text below. If you changed it, add (adapted) after the title.

"Lab: Install VS Code Twin and First Session" from TESA Open Knowledge by the Thai Embedded Systems Association (TESA), https://github.com/tesaiot/tesa-qualification-program, licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0

Thai attribution: "แล็บ: ติดตั้ง Twin บน VS Code และเซสชันแรก" จาก TESA Open Knowledge โดยสมาคมสมองกลฝังตัวไทย (Thai Embedded Systems Association: TESA) https://github.com/tesaiot/tesa-qualification-program สัญญาอนุญาต CC BY-NC 4.0

Lesson link: https://tesaiot.github.io/tesa-qualification-program/en/courses/digital-twin/m02-vscode-twin/l02-lab/

This lesson adapts the source below; keep its credit too.
https://github.com/drsanti/TESAIoT-Courses/blob/287c21814ba8c75f693136616dcd270349a15966/C2/M02/lab.md · Original content by Asst. Prof. Dr. Santi Nuratch (ผศ.ดร.สันติ นุราช), KMUTT. Course 2 (C2/) of drsanti/TESAIoT-Courses. TESA funded the work and holds the rights; published here under CC BY-NC 4.0. The upstream repository carries no licence file. Text kept faithful; structure, front matter, quizzes and notes added by TESA Open Knowledge.

Full guide: how to cite TESA

TESA Open Knowledge · © 2026 สมาคมสมองกลฝังตัวไทย (TESA) · CC BY-NC 4.0

Content is licensed CC BY-NC 4.0. Reuse it non-commercially and credit the Thai Embedded Systems Association (TESA) every time. · How to cite TESA