Install pdflatex with LaTeX Workshop to Simulate Overleaf

Table of Contents

A guide to setting up offline pdflatex on Linux with LaTeX Workshop in VSCode, simulating the Overleaf workflow with AI assistance.

⚠️ Requires approximately ~6GB of root storage to install all dependencies and avoid compile errors.

1. Install pdflatex

PdfLatex converts LaTeX sources into PDF — essential for researchers publishing their findings.

# Install TexLive base
sudo apt-get install texlive-latex-base

# Install recommended and extra fonts to avoid font-related errors
sudo apt-get install texlive-fonts-recommended
sudo apt-get install texlive-fonts-extra

# Install extra packages
sudo apt-get install texlive-latex-extra

# Install full dependencies (recommended)
sudo apt-get install texlive-full

# Install latexmk for LaTeX Workshop
sudo apt-get install latexmk

# Test
pdflatex main.tex

2. Install LaTeX Workshop in VSCode

Search for and install the LaTeX Workshop extension from the marketplace.

3. Configure VSCode

Open Settings (JSON) and add:

"latex-workshop.latex.tools": [
    {
        "name": "latexmk",
        "command": "latexmk",
        "args": [
            "-synctex=1",
            "-interaction=nonstopmode",
            "-file-line-error",
            "-pdf",
            "-outdir=%OUTDIR%",
            "%DOC%"
        ]
    }
],
"latex-workshop.latex.recipes": [
    {
        "name": "latexmk (pdflatex)",
        "tools": ["latexmk"]
    }
],
"latex-workshop.formatting.latex": "latexindent",
"latex-workshop.view.pdf.internal.synctex.keybinding": "double-click"

Workflow

With this setup, you get:

  • Double-click from PDF → code: SyncTeX jumps to the corresponding line
  • Ctrl + Shift + P → SyncTeX from cursor: Jump from code → PDF
  • Combine with AI for faster LaTeX writing