checkstyle-idea

DescriptionThis is a CheckStyle plug-in for JetBrain's IntelliJ IDEA.

At present this plugin is only having high priority fixes applied - if you have the time and inclination to continue feature development please drop me a line.

Unlike JetStyle, this plug-in was original written to provide real-time integration, in a similar manner to Eclipse-CS. From version 0.4 it also provides on-demand scanning for the current file and project.

UsageReal-time scanning is provided as an Inspection. On-demand scanning is available as a tab at (by default) the bottom of the IDEA window.

Configuration for both the inspection and the on-demand scanning is done via the CheckStyle item in the Settings panel.

Click on Real-time Scan and you will be able to specify the report severity and activate the inspection as appropriate.

Current FeaturesIn version 3.x:

CheckStyle 5.0 support. Per-module configuration.

In version 2.x:

Scan files in real-time with an IDEA inspection. Scan the current file, module or project on demand. Standard Java rules are built in, or specify your own CheckStyle file. Ability to add third party checks to the classpath. Ability to define external properties. Version 1.x is for IDEA6. 2.x is for IDEA 7 and (from 2.2) 8. Both of these support CheckStyle 4 and are no longer maintained.

Version 3 support CheckStyle 5 only, and from 3.0.5 is compatible with IDEA 9.

Current LimitationsThe plugin will throw exceptions if used with class files targeted at a later version than that of the JDK used by IDEA. In particular, this will affect Mac users with the pre-release of JDK6. The solution is to target class files at the version of the IDEA JRE (i.e. 1.5 for Mac users). Thanks to J. G. Christopher. If you change the configuration options the real-time scan will not be updated until the file is either changed or reopened. We do not check if a property definition is required for a given file. Hence you can exit configuration without setting required properties. Given, however, that CheckStyle files can change without the plug-in being aware this is something we'll always have to live with to some degree. CheckStyle errors and warnings from the inspection are both shown at a single level, as IDEA will only allow one warning level for an inspection.