Scopes

File | Settings | Appearance and Behavior | Scopes for Windows and Linux
IntelliJ IDEA | Preferences | Appearance and Behavior | Scopes for macOS
Ctrl+Alt+S

A scope is a set of files to which various operations apply. Using this dialog, you can define scopes for the various IntelliJ IDEA actions, for example, Find Usages, or Code Inspections.

Item	Tooltip	Description
	Add scope `Alt+Insert`	Add a new local or shared scope.
	Delete `Delete`	Delete the selected scope from the list.
	Copy configuration `Ctrl+D`	Create a copy of the selected scope.
	Save as	Save the selected local scope as shared or the selected shared scope as local.
	Move Up / Move Down	Move the scopes up and down in the list. If some file is included into several scopes, the order of the scopes becomes important: IntelliJ IDEA uses the color of the uppermost scope (shown in the Scopes settings page) to highlight such file. Of course, you can change the order of the scopes, and thus the resulted highlighting.

Scope configuration controls

Item	Description
Name	Specify the scope name.
Pattern	Specify the pattern that defines the current scope. The following elements and structures can be used: The `file:` modifier. The element is mandatory. The `` asterisk to denote any symbol in a filename or file extension. Logical operators `AND (&&), OR (\|\|)`, and `NOT (!)`. For more information, see Scope language syntax reference. Do one of the following: Type or edit the pattern manually in the text field Pattern. Click , or press `Ctrl+NumPad Plus` to type or edit in the expanded area. Click or press `Ctrl+NumPad -` to return to a single-line area.) Choose the desired files in the Project Tree View and use the buttons described below to make IntelliJ IDEA generate the corresponding pattern automatically. Storing empty or incorrect patterns is not allowed. In such cases, IntelliJ IDEA shows a Syntax Error warning. Examples `file[MyMod]:src/main/java/com/example/my_package//` - include in a project all the files from module "MyMod", located in the specified directory and all subdirectories. `src[MyMod]:com.example.my_package..` - recursively include all classes in a package in the source directories of the module. `lib:com.company..\|\|com.company..` - recursively include all classes in a package from both project and libraries. `test:com.company.` - include all test classes in a package, but not in subpackages. `[MyMod]:com.company.util.` - include all classes and test classes in the package of the specified module. `file:.js\|\|file:.coffee` - include all JavaScript and CoffeeScript files. `file:js&&!file:.min.` - include all JavaScript files except those that were generated through minification, which is indicated by the `min` extension.
Include	Click this button to have the selected element included in the scope. The corresponding expression is automatically generated and added to the expression in the Pattern field. If the current element is a folder, the nested subfolders are ignored.
Include Recursively	Click this button to have the selected folder included in the scope, together with the nested subfolders. The corresponding expression is automatically generated and added to the expression in the Pattern field.
Exclude	Click this button to have the selected element excluded from the scope. The corresponding expression is automatically added to the Pattern. If the current element is a folder, the nested subfolders are ignored.
Exclude Recursively	Click this button to have the selected folder excluded from the scope, together with the nested subfolders. The corresponding expression is automatically added to the Pattern field.

Scope toolbar

Item	Tooltip	Description
Project tree view		The tree view contains all the files available in your project. In the view, select the desired files to be included in the current scope and have the scope definition pattern generated automatically. The message on the toolbar shows the total number of available files and the number of files included in the scope. See also the color legend below. Use the toolbar buttons described below to change the view presentation. The way of presentation of the project tree view, the available controls and scopes language syntax depend on the selection in project vs package list.
	Flatten Packages	When the button is pressed, all the packages are displayed as a single-level tree view. This enables you to find a package somewhere deep within the project by its name without going through the entire tree hierarchy.
	Group by Scopes Type	When this button is pressed, the items in the tree-view are grouped below three nodes: Library Classes Production Classes Test Classes This button is only available for the Package presentation of scopes.
	Compact Middle Packages	This option lets you specify how or whether empty packages are to be shown. (Empty packages are ones that contain nothing but other packages.)
	Show Files	If this button is pressed, source files are displayed explicitly in the tree view. When the files are shown, they can be selected for exclusion/inclusion into a pattern. If this button is not pressed, the files are hidden.
	Show Included Only	When the button is pressed, the tree shows only the elements that are included in the scope.
Packages Project		Define how you want the project files to be displayed in the tree view. The project tree view presentation, scopes language syntax and the available toolbar buttons differ depending on the selection.

Legend of the project tree view

Item	Description
	Folders and files included in scope are marked with green.
Black	Folders and files excluded from scope.
	Folders that contain both excluded and included files and subfolders are marked with dark blue.

Last modified: 15 April 2020