Manage Java code style settings in Eclipse

Team members should agree on a common Java code style. Unfortunately, there are many settings in Eclipse that affect code style, and it is quite time-consuming to apply all these settings to another workspace.

To solve this problem, I have created a tool that can export all relevant settings from one workspace and import them to another workspace. These settings are included:

Java Code Style Formatter
Java Code Style Organize Imports
Java Editor Save Actions
Java Code Style Clean Up (always tied to Save Actions)
Java Compiler Errors/Warnings
General Workspace Text file encoding
General Workspace New text file line delimiter
XML XML Files Editor Format comments
JavaScript Code Style Formatter

This tool does not affect other settings, such as editor fonts or views.

The workspace that you import to or export from should not be opened in Eclipse when you run this tool.

Export settings from a workspace to a backup directory

java -jar eclipse-settings-impex-1.2.jar export "c:\my\workspaces\foo" "c:\tmp\export" MyProfile

This will create the following files in c:\tmp\export:

compiler.txt
encoding.txt
formatting-profile.txt
formatting.txt
import-order.txt
line-breaks.txt
save-actions.txt
xml.txt
compiler-js.txt
formatting-js.txt

Import settings from a backup directory to a workspace

java -jar eclipse-settings-impex-1.2.jar import "c:\my\workspaces\foo" "c:\tmp\export"

This will override all existing Formatter and Clean Up profiles in the target workspace! On the file system level, only *.prefs files are affected.

Compatibility

This tool has been used successfully with Eclipse Helios, Indigo, Juno, Kepler, Luna, Mars, Neon and Oxygen.

Download

Version history

1.2 – 2015-10-07: Support for JavaScript
1.1 – 2015-10-07: Better handling of missing files
1.0 – 2014-12-12: Included the Format XML comments setting
0.9 – 2013-06-25: Added support for Unix
0.8 – 2012-03-12: First public release

Feedback

Don't hesitate to send suggestions and comments to Christoph Schneegans (christoph@schneegans.de).