Opening Files from Command Line

You can open an arbitrary file, folder, or project for editing in IntelliJ IDEA from the command line, optionally specifying where the caret should rest after opening the file.

In the command line, run the following command:
<IntelliJ IDEA> [--line <number>] path

Alternatively, you can use the following syntax:

<IntelliJ IDEA> path:<number>

The command options are as follows:

Option	Description
`<IntelliJ IDEA>`	The platform-specific IntelliJ IDEA launcher. On macOS and Linux, it is recommended to use the command-line launcher created during the IntelliJ IDEA installation, or create one manually by selecting Tools \| Create Command-line Launcher on the IntelliJ IDEA main menu. Refer to Besides working from within IntelliJ IDEA, you can perform the following actions from the command line: for details. On Windows, it is recommended to add the path to the IntelliJ IDEA executable to the `Path` environment variable.
`path`	The path to the file or the folder to be opened. If the file or folder belongs to an existing project, this project will be opened. If the file does not belong to any project, a temporary project for this file will be created automatically. If the folder does not belong to any project, a new project will be created inside this folder.
`--line <number>`	(optional) The line number, on which the caret should rest after opening the file.

Option

Description

<IntelliJ IDEA>

The platform-specific IntelliJ IDEA launcher.

On macOS and Linux, it is recommended to use the command-line launcher created during the IntelliJ IDEA installation, or create one manually by selecting Tools | Create Command-line Launcher on the IntelliJ IDEA main menu. Refer to Besides working from within IntelliJ IDEA, you can perform the following actions from the command line: for details.

On Windows, it is recommended to add the path to the IntelliJ IDEA executable to the Path environment variable.

path

The path to the file or the folder to be opened.

If the file or folder belongs to an existing project, this project will be opened.
If the file does not belong to any project, a temporary project for this file will be created automatically.
If the folder does not belong to any project, a new project will be created inside this folder.

--line <number>

(optional) The line number, on which the caret should rest after opening the file.

Examples

Syntax: idea.exe --line <number> path
Alternative syntax: idea.exe path:<number>
Examples: idea.exe --line 3 C:\MyProject\scripts\numbers.js idea.exe C:\MyProject\scripts\numbers.js:3

Syntax: idea --line <number> path
Alternative syntax: idea path:<number>
Example: idea --line 3 ~/MyProject/scripts/numbers.js idea ~/MyProject/scripts/numbers.js:3

Last modified: 20 November 2018