IntelliJ IDEA 2016.3 Help

Updating a Command Line Tool

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Introduction

You can update the command definitions of a command line tool right in the IntelliJ IDEA editor and have the .xml definition file validated. As you type, the file is checked for well-formedness on the fly. Full validation is performed every time you invoke a command. If any inconsistencies are detected, the tool is marked with the Invalid description icon /help/img/idea/2016.3/icon_incorrect_description.png in the Command Line Tool Support page.

You can also add new tasks to the command definition file and enable IntelliJ IDEA to use them without re-configuring the command line tool, that is, without removing it from the list of available ones and adding it anew. All you need, is reload the commands from the executable file.

Note that PHP-specific command line tools work only with local PHP interpreters, see Configuring Local PHP Interpreters and Enabling PHP support.

Editing command definitions

To edit the command definitions

  1. Open the IntelliJ IDEA settings, and click the Command Line Tool Support.
  2. In the Command Line Tool Support page, select the desired tool and click the Open definition in editor button. The corresponding .xml definition file opens in the editor. Update the file as necessary.

Reloading command definitions

To reload command definitions

  1. Open the IntelliJ IDEA settings, and click the Command Line Tool Support.
  2. In the Command Line Tool Support page, select the desired tool and click the Reload command list from executable button /help/img/idea/2016.3/refresh.png.

Validating the definition file for structure consistence

To validate the definition file for structure consistence

  1. Start executing a command: choose Tools | Run Command on the main menu. Then type the call of the command in the Input tab of the Command Line Tools Console tool window.
  2. View the results in the Tool definition file errors tab. As soon as IntelliJ IDEA detects any structure inconsistency, it displays an error message that contains a brief description of the problem and indicates the line number where the problem is detected.

    By default, the tab is not displayed and opens only upon validation failure. In this case, IntelliJ IDEA displays a Command Line Tool pop-up window with a notification on validation failure. Upon clicking the More link, the Tool definition file errors tab opens showing messages on detected inconsistencies. Each message contains information on the file and the line number where the problem was found, as well as a brief description of the error.

    You can close the tab by clicking the cross on its header. To re-open the tab, again click More in the Command Line Tool notification pop-up window, which remains on the screen until you close it manually.

See Also

Last modified: 21 March 2017