ReSharper Platform SDK Help

Registering a Custom Language

Before a custom language can be recognised and parsed by ReSharper, it must first be registered. There are several classes that need to be registered:

If the custom language is the primary language of a file, the file type needs to be registered with the Project Model. This registration maps file extensions to the file type, and tells ReSharper that a specific file is a "known file". This file type is also used to provide file type specific components, such as the project file language service that can be used to retrieve the PSI implementation for that language. The file type is represented by an instance of ProjectFileType, specifically a subclass of KnownProjectFileType.

A custom language can be the primary language of a file, or it can be secondary, such as C# "islands" in a .aspx page, or injected, for example, into a C# string literal that contains a regular expression. If the language is secondary or injected, the custom language doesn't need a project file type.

Registering a PSI language definition tells the PSI about the language. Every node in the PSI abstract syntax tree returns this language type from ITreeNode.Language. The language type is represented by a derived instance of PsiLanguageType, specifically a subclass of KnownLanguage. The language type is also used to provide language specific components, such as the language service that provides access to the lexer and parser.

If a file doesn't have a Project Model file type, or a PSI language mapping, it will be represented by UnknownProjectFileType and UnknownLanguage, respectively.

Once the file type and language definitions are registered, a Project Model language service is required to act as a bridge between the Project Model and the PSI, to allow mapping between a file extension and the project file type. Finally, a PSI language service provides access to the lexer and parser, so that the PSI tree can be built.

Last modified: 04 July 2023