The Start Window
The Start Window appears when no solution is open. It shows Recent Projects, a Get Started panel, and quick-access tiles for creating new projects, opening folders, or cloning from GitHub. You can disable it in Tools → Options → Environment → Startup if you prefer to launch straight into the editor.
Solution Explorer
Solution Explorer (View → Solution Explorer) shows your solution hierarchy: Solution → Projects → Folders → Files. Right-click any item for a context menu. The search box at the top lets you filter files by name. The Show All Files button reveals files on disk that are not yet included in the project.
The Code Editor
The code editor is where you spend most of your time. Key features include IntelliSense autocomplete, syntax highlighting, code folding, multi-caret editing, and inline AI suggestions from GitHub Copilot. The scrollbar map on the right shows a miniature view of the entire file with error and warning markers.
Ctrl+Space Force IntelliSense completion Ctrl+. Quick Actions & Refactorings Ctrl+K, Ctrl+C Comment selection Ctrl+K, Ctrl+U Uncomment selection Ctrl+Shift+B Build solution F5 Start debugging F10 Step Over (debugger) F11 Step Into (debugger) Ctrl+Shift+F Find in Files Ctrl+R, Ctrl+R Rename symbol Alt+Enter Copilot inline suggestion accept
The Debugger
Set a breakpoint by clicking the grey gutter to the left of a line number (a red dot appears). Press F5 to start debugging. When execution hits your breakpoint, hover over variables to see their values, use the Locals and Watch windows to inspect state, and Call Stack to trace the execution path.
Output, Error List & Terminal
The Output window shows build output and debug print statements. The Error List shows compile errors (red), warnings (yellow), and messages (blue)—double-click any row to jump to the offending line. The integrated Terminal (View → Terminal) runs PowerShell or cmd inside the IDE.