Hi.
What is the ESP8266 model you have?
 
First, we need to check if your computer is “seeing” your ESP8266 board.
Do you have Arduino IDE installed? It’s easier to test there. With the ESP8266 connected to your computer, in your Arduino IDE go to Tools > Port and check if there is any port available. If there is, it means your computer is seeing the board and there is a problem with VS Code. Tell me if this is the case so that I can send you some instructions to try to troubleshoot the issue.
 
If there isn’t any port available even in Arduino IDE, it probably means that you may have a problem with the USB cable, or you may need to install the ESP8266 USB drivers. What is the board model you have? Most boards use either the CP2101 or CH340 drivers.
 
Regards,
Sara

Thanks Sara,
I solved my problem using a different cable, but did not realize until later that I had to manually refresh the port information.
I’m using a HiLetgo ESP8266 NodeMCU CP2102 ESP-12E.
I was able to resolve the problem testing multiple cables, and seeing if it would get connected using the Mac’s System Information app. What I did not realize is that it does not refresh automatically, so once I started refreshing manually, the board showed up. Same thing in the PlatformIO, under the Devices section, I had to refresh manually each time I tested a new cable: just plugging the board with a new cable did not update automatically.
Thanks again

Hi again,
Usually, PlatformIO automatically detects the COM port automatically. You just need to press the upload button and that’s it.
But, that might be something related to your board or computer… so you need to refresh it manually…
 
Let me know if you need further help.
Regards,
Sara