IntelliJ IDEA 2017.3 Help

Creating Controllers and Actions

This feature is only supported in the Ultimate edition.

The following is only valid when Ruby Plugin is installed and enabled!

When creating a controller, use the IntelliJ IDEA approach described in the section Creating Rails Application Elements.

IntelliJ IDEA suggests two ways of defining actions in controllers. First, you can define actions on creating a controller. Alternatively, it is also possible to edit the source code, enjoying the powerful IntelliJ IDEA coding assistance features.

To create a controller and define actions and options in it, follow these steps

  1. As described in the section Creating Rails Application Elements, do one of the following:
    • On the main menu, choose Tools | Run Rails Generator.
    • With the editor, or the Project tool windows having the focus, press Alt+Insert, or choose New on the context menu of the Project tool window. Then choose Run Rails Generator.
  2. In the pop-up window, type controller.
  3. In the Add New Controller dialog box, type the controller name and actions delimited with spaces.

    Next, click the right arrow arrow small blue right to reveal the fields for entering directory and additional options:

    ruby railsCreateAction
  4. In the Options section, specify the target directory and options, and then click OK:
    ruby railsCreateAction1

    Alternatively, open the desired controller in the editor, type the def keyword, then the action name, and press Enter. IntelliJ IDEA automatically adds the closing end keyword, and marks the new action with the view icon in the left gutter.

    ruby railsCreateAction2

Using private and public modifiers results in hiding or showing view icons in the gutter, and, respectively disabling or enabling creation of views. In the Project tool window, such methods are marked as method and ruby methodPublic icons respectively.

Last modified: 6 March 2018

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