Environment Setup

Environment Setup
Guide

Choose your operating system and follow the steps in order.

Windows Installation Windows Session Protocol Mac Installation Mac Session Protocol

Windows Installation

Choose your setup method

Native Windows (Recommended)

Git Bash + Claude Code — simplest setup, desktop apps just work

WSL (Advanced)

Full Linux environment inside Windows — for advanced users or Linux-specific tooling

01 Install Git for Windows

Download from git-scm.com/downloads/win. During installation, keep all defaults (this includes Git Bash).

02 Install Claude Code

Open PowerShell and run:

Before running install scripts from the internet, read this security guide.

irm https://claude.ai/install.ps1 | iex

* If you see "not recognized" or PATH issues, close and reopen PowerShell.

03 Install VS Code

Download Visual Studio Code from code.visualstudio.com. Install the Live Share extension.

04 Verify Setup

Open Git Bash (search "Git Bash" in Start menu) and run:

claude

* This launches Claude Code. You'll authenticate on first use.

Desktop app kits (voice-to-text, GUI apps) will need extra steps on WSL. If you're unsure, choose Native Windows above.

01 Install WSL2

Open PowerShell as Administrator (right-click PowerShell in Start menu → "Run as administrator") and run:

wsl --install -d Ubuntu

* Reboot when prompted. After reboot, "Ubuntu" will open automatically and ask you to create a username and password.

02 Update Ubuntu

You should now see the Ubuntu terminal (green text on black background). Run:

sudo apt update && sudo apt -y upgrade

* Enter the password you just created. You won't see characters as you type - this is normal.

03 Install Development Tools

Still in your Ubuntu terminal, install Git and build tools:

sudo apt -y install git curl build-essential

04 Install Claude Code

Install the Claude Code CLI directly (no Node.js required):

Before running install scripts from the internet, read this security guide.

curl -fsSL https://claude.ai/install.sh | bash

* Close and reopen Ubuntu after installation to reload your shell.

05 Install VS Code

  • Download Visual Studio Code (Windows version) from code.visualstudio.com. During installation, ensure "Add to PATH" is checked. Then install these extensions:
  • WSL - by Microsoft
  • Live Share - by Microsoft

06 Verify Setup

In your Ubuntu terminal, create a test project and open it in VS Code:

mkdir -p ~/projects/test && cd ~/projects/test
code .
claude

* First run installs VS Code Server in WSL. You should see "WSL: Ubuntu" in the bottom-left corner of VS Code.

* Confirms Claude Code is installed. You'll authenticate on first use.

Windows Session Protocol

Repeat these steps at the start of every mentoring session.

If you installed natively (Git Bash)

01 Open Git Bash

Open Git Bash from the Windows Start menu (search "Git Bash").

02 Navigate to Project

Change to your project directory:

cd ~/projects/your-project-name

03 Launch VS Code

Open VS Code from the terminal:

code .

04 Start Live Share

In VS Code, click Live Share in the bottom status bar, then click Start Collaboration Session. Copy the link and send it to your mentor.

05 Grant Terminal Access

In VS Code, open a terminal with Ctrl+` (backtick). Right-click the terminal tab and select Make Read/Write so your mentor can run commands.

If you installed with WSL

01 Open Ubuntu

Open Ubuntu from the Windows Start menu. You should see your Ubuntu terminal.

02 Navigate to Project

Change to your project directory:

cd ~/projects/your-project-name

03 Launch VS Code

Open VS Code connected to WSL:

code .

* VS Code should show "WSL: Ubuntu" in the bottom-left corner.

04 Start Live Share

In VS Code, click Live Share in the bottom status bar, then click Start Collaboration Session. Copy the link and send it to your mentor.

05 Grant Terminal Access

In VS Code, open a terminal with Ctrl+` (backtick). Right-click the terminal tab and select Make Read/Write so your mentor can run commands.

Mac Installation

Homebrew + Claude Code

01 Install Homebrew

Homebrew is the package manager for macOS:

Before running install scripts from the internet, read this security guide.

/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"

* Follow the "Next steps" shown after installation to add Homebrew to your PATH.

02 Install Claude Code

Install the Claude Code CLI directly (no Node.js required):

Before running install scripts from the internet, read this security guide.

curl -fsSL https://claude.ai/install.sh | bash

* Close and reopen Terminal after installation.

03 Install VS Code

Download Visual Studio Code from code.visualstudio.com. Install the Live Share extension.

04 Verify Setup 

claude

* This launches Claude Code. You'll authenticate on first use.

Mac Session Protocol

Repeat these steps at the start of every mentoring session.

01 Open Terminal

Open Terminal from Applications → Utilities, or press Cmd+Space and type "Terminal".

02 Navigate to Project

Change to your project directory:

cd ~/projects/your-project-name

03 Launch VS Code

Open VS Code from the terminal:

code .

04 Start Live Share

In VS Code, click Live Share in the bottom status bar, then click Start Collaboration Session. Copy the link and send it to your mentor.

05 Grant Terminal Access

In VS Code, open a terminal with Ctrl+` (backtick). Right-click the terminal tab and select Make Read/Write so your mentor can run commands.