FAQ

How do I uninstall vfox?

Please refer to the Uninstallation Guide for detailed instructions on how to completely remove vfox from your system.

Switch xxx not work or the vfox use command does not work ?

If your shell prompt vfox requires hook support. Please ensure vfox is properly initialized with 'vfox activate' that means you do not hook vfox into your shell, please hook it manually first.

Please refer to Quick Start#_2-hook-vfox-to-your-shell to manually hook vfox into your shell.

How should I use vfox in Docker, CI/CD, or other non-interactive shells?

Prefer vfox exec.

vfox activate works by installing shell hooks, which are intended for interactive shells. In Docker build steps, CI jobs, and other non-interactive shells, these hooks are usually not triggered automatically.

Recommended examples:

vfox exec nodejs@24.14.0 -- npm install -g pnpm
vfox exec nodejs@24.14.0 -- bash -lc 'node -v && npm -v'

Use vfox use when you want to persist version selection for Global, Project, or Session scope. Use vfox exec when you want a command to run immediately with the correct SDK environment.

vfox use says it switched, but node / java / … is still the old one

Something in front of vfox in PATH provides a command of the same name, so the shell never gets to vfox's. After vfox use, vfox says which executable that is. vfox doctor <sdk> shows the same in detail.

The usual causes are a node installed by pnpm runtime set node -g (it lands in $PNPM_HOME/bin), a system JDK or a Homebrew node that the OS puts before vfox's directories, and a startup file that adds a directory to PATH after eval "$(vfox activate bash)". Remove the competing copy, move the vfox activate line below the line that adds the directory, or let vfox put its directories first with vfox config path.mode baseline (aggressive also covers directories added after vfox activate): see PATH Order Settings.

How do I use a JDK (or any SDK) that is already installed on my machine?

Link it. Nothing is downloaded or copied, and removing the version from vfox later leaves the SDK alone:

vfox link java@17-system /usr/lib/jvm/java-17-openjdk-amd64
vfox use java@17-system

On a CI runner, vfox link --detect java -y links the JDKs the plugin can find. See vfox link.

An SDK changed after vfox installed it (flutter upgrade, …)

vfox manages versions by directory, so it cannot stop an SDK from updating itself in place. It notices, though: vfox use and vfox doctor warn when the plugin reports that an installed version is no longer what was installed. Put it back with vfox install --reinstall <sdk>@<version>, and move to a newer version by installing that version with vfox instead.

Why can't I select when use use and search commands in GitBash?

Related ISSUE: Unable to select in GitBash

The problem of not being able to select in GitBash only occurs when you directly open the native GitBash to run vfox. A temporary solution is:

1. Run GitBash through Windows Terminal
2. Run GitBash in VS Code