CoffeeScript Support

In this section:

• CoffeeScript Support
  • Overview
  • Preparing for CoffeeScript development
  • Coding assistance
• Transpiling CoffeeScript to JavaScript
• Running CoffeeScript
• Debugging CoffeeScript

Overview

IntelliJ IDEA provides CoffeeScript support. IntelliJ IDEA recognizes *.coffee files, and allows you to edit them providing full range of coding assistance without any additional steps from your side. CoffeeScript files are marked with  icon.

To run, debug, and test your code, you will need it translated into JavaScript which requires a transpiler and Node.js. For more details on CoffeeScript transpilation, see Transpiling CoffeeScript to JavaScript.

Preparing for CoffeeScript development

1. Make sure the CoffeeScript and Node.js plugins are installed and enabled.

   These plugins are not bundled with IntelliJ IDEA, but they are available from the IntelliJ IDEA plugin repository. Once enabled, the plugins are available at the IDE level, that is, you can use them in all your IntelliJ IDEA projects. See Installing, Updating and Uninstalling Repository Plugins and Enabling and Disabling Plugins for details.

2. Download and install the Node.js framework.
3. Configure the Node.js interpreter in IntelliJ IDEA:
   1. Open the Settings / Preferences Dialog by choosing File | Settings for Windows and Linux or IntelliJ IDEA | Preferences for OS X, and click Node.js and NPM under Languages&Frameworks.
   2. On the Node.Js and NPM page that opens, specify the location of the desired Node.js interpreter.

Coding assistance

CoffeeScript support includes:

• Code completion for keywords, labels, variables, parameters and functions.
• Error and syntax highlighting.
• Code formatting and folding.
• Refactoring:
  • Common refactoring procedures, such as extract method , inline, rename/move, etc.
  • CoffeeScript-specific refactoring procedures, such as change signature, extract parameter, extract variable.

  See JavaScript-Specific Refactorings for details.

• Code generation
  • Generating code stubs based on file templates during file creation.
  • Ability to create line and block comments (Ctrl+Slash or Ctrl+NumPad //Ctrl+Shift+Slash or Ctrl+Shift+NumPad /).
• Navigation through source code
  • Navigating with Structure View.
  • Navigate | Declaration (Ctrl+B, Ctrl+Button1 Click or Button2 Click).
  • Navigate | Implementation (Ctrl+Alt+B or Ctrl+Alt+Button1 Click) from overridden method / subclassed class.
  • Navigate | Symbol (Ctrl+Shift+Alt+N.
• Compiling to JavaScript for further running, debugging, and testing, see Running CoffeeScript and Debugging CoffeeScript.
• Executing CoffeeScript files involves:
  • Ability to preview results of CoffeeScript files compilation to JavaScript.
  • Ability to launch CoffeeScript files from the context menu.
  • Run/debug configuration for NodeJS includes the ability to use CoffeeScript plugin.