How do I know when there are updates and downloads available for IBM z Open Editor, IDz on VS Code, and Zowe Explorer Extension?

Question & Answer

Question

How do I know when there are new updates and downloads for IBM z Open Editor, VS Code, and Zowe Explorer Extension?
Where do I find out about new features?
How do I know what versions are currently installed?

Review the Output in the console and select IBM z Open Editor to see all related products and their versions listed.

For example:

IBM z Open Editor 6.3.0
VS Code1.109.2
Zowe Explorer Extension 3.4.2
Java 21.0.8

Cause

Most IBM products have a notification service or APAR subscription service.

Currently, there is no mechanism in place to automatically send emails when a new update is released for IBM z Open Editor and related plugins for VS Code.

If there is a known APAR for IDz on VS Code, a user can subscribe to that specific APAR.

Answer

There are four main sites where information and downloads can be found.

IBM Community updates

When there is a new release, a post describing the new features will be added to the blog in the Development and Pipeline - IBM Community.

See https://community.ibm.com/community/user/groupz?CommunityKey=f461c55d-159c-4a94-b708-9f7fe11d972b

Community members can manage their email notification settings for each community for which they are a member and can choose daily or weekly emails.

Linked In

Subscribe to Peter Haumer on LinkedIn.

See https://www.linkedin.com/in/haumer/recent-activity/all/

Peter now posts for every new release.

Downloads for IDz on VS Code can be found on the Mainframe Dev Github site under IBM VS Code Components:
https://ibm.github.io/mainframe-downloads/downloads.html
Downloads for the Extension pack can also be found on the Marketplace site:
https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=IBM.developer-for-zos-on-vscode-extension-pack
and
https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=IBM.application-delivery-foundation-for-zos-vscode-extension-pack

Note: Extension packs do not have to be updated for every release. When installed, they always pull in the latest version of the Extensions. VS Code will automatically pull updates of the Extensions unless the update function is disabled.

Related Information

Zowe Integration - note this includes both host and VS Code client installations

[{"Type":"MASTER","Line of Business":{"code":"LOB70","label":"Z TPS"},"Business Unit":{"code":"BU048","label":"IBM Software"},"Product":{"code":"SSTQXQ","label":"IBM Developer for z\/OS Enterprise Edition"},"ARM Category":[{"code":"a8m3p0000006xkeAAA","label":"Z Open Editor_VSCode"}],"ARM Case Number":"TS021895660","Platform":[{"code":"PF033","label":"Windows"}],"Version":"16.0.0;16.0.1;16.0.2;16.0.3;16.0.4;16.0.5;16.0.6;17.0.0;17.0.1;17.0.2;17.0.3;17.0.4"}]

Product Synonym

IDz; IDz on VS Code

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Document Information

Modified date:
07 May 2026

UID

ibm17272306

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