Change signature
The Change Signature refactoring combines several different modifications that can be applied to a function signature. You can use this refactoring to:
change the function name
add new parameters and remove the existing ones
To assign default values to the parameters
reorder parameters
When changing a function signature, PyCharm searches for all usages of the function and updates all the calls, implementations, and override replacements of the function that can be safely modified to reflect the change.
Examples
Before | After |
|---|---|
|
# This function will be renamed:
def fibonacci(n):
a, b = 0, 1
while b < n:
print(b)
a, b = b, a+b
n = int(input("n = "))
fibonacci(n)
|
# Function with the new name:
def fibonacci_numbers(n):
a, b = 0, 1
while b < n:
print(b)
a, b = b, a+b
n = int(input("n = "))
fibonacci_numbers(n)
|
Default value and propagation of new parameters
For each new parameter added to a function, you can specify:
A default value (or an expression) (the Default value field).
You can also propagate the parameters you have introduced to the functions that call the function whose signature you are changing.
The refactoring result depends on whether you specify the default value and whether you use propagation.
Propagation. New parameters can be propagated to any function that calls the function whose signature you are changing. In such case, generally, the signatures of the calling functions change accordingly. These changes, however, also depend on the default values set for the new parameters.
Default value. Generally, this is the value to be added to the function calls.
If the new parameter is not propagated to a calling function, the calls within such function will also use this value.
If propagation is used, this value won't affect the function calls within the calling functions.
Changing a function signature
Default value and propagation of new parameters
Place the caret at the name of the function that you want to refactor.
Press Ctrl+F6. Alternatively, select from the main menu or from the context menu.
-
In the Change Signature dialog, make necessary changes to the function signature depending on your needs:
Change the function name. To change the name, edit the text in the Name field.
-
Manage the function parameters. To configure the parameters, use the table and the buttons in the Parameters area:
To add a new parameter, click
and specify properties of the new parameter in the corresponding table row. To remove a parameter, select any row and click
. To reorder the parameters, use the Up (
) and Down (
) icons. For example, if you want to put a certain parameter first in the list, click any of the cells in the row corresponding to that parameter, and then click the required number of times. To change the name or the default value of a parameter, make the necessary updates in the table of parameters (in the fields Name and Default value respectively).
Click Refactor.
To see the expected changes and make adjustments prior to the refactoring, click Preview.