Gradle

Create a new Gradle project

1. Launch the New Project wizard. If no project is currently opened in IntelliJ IDEA, click New Project on the welcome screen. Otherwise, select File | New | Project from the main menu.

2. Select Gradle from the options on the left.

3. Specify the project SDK and an additional framework or a library (IntelliJ IDEA adds the appropriate plugin to the build.gradle file).

   Click Next.

4. On the next page of the wizard, specify the fields which resemble the Maven coordinates. These settings might be helpful if you decide to deploy your project to a Maven repository. The fields you specify are added to the build.gradle file.

   • GroupId - groupId of the new project. You can omit this field if you plan to deploy your project locally.

   • ArtifactId - artifactId that is added as a name of your new project.

   • Version - version of the new project. By default, this field is specified automatically.

   If a parent Gradle project is specified, the specified fields can be inherited (click Inherit) from the parent.

   Click Next.

5. Specify the name and location settings. Click Finish.

Create a Java EE project with Gradle as a build tool

1. Launch the New Project wizard. If no project is currently opened in IntelliJ IDEA, click New Project on the welcome screen. Otherwise, select File | New | Project from the main menu.

2. Select Java Enterprise from the options on the left.

3. Select Gradle as your build tool and click Next.

4. On the next page of the wizard, select additional libraries and frameworks for your project and click Next.

5. On the next page of the wizard, specify your project's name, location, and artifact coordinates. Click Finish.

   IntelliJ IDEA creates a Gradle project with the dedicated Gradle tool window and adds necessary dependencies.

   For the more detailed information, refer to Tutorial: Your first Java EE application.

Open an existing Gradle project

1. If no project is currently opened in IntelliJ IDEA, click Open on the welcome screen. Otherwise, select File | Open from the main menu.

   If you have some custom plugins that require you to import your project from the IntelliJ IDEA model, press Ctrl+Shift+A and search for the Project from Existing Sources action.

2. In the dialog that opens, select a directory containing a Gradle project and click OK.

   IntelliJ IDEA opens and syncs the project in the IDE.

If you need to adjust the Gradle settings options, refer to Gradle settings.

Check Gradle JVM and language level

• Gradle JVM: when IntelliJ IDEA opens the Gradle project, it checks the gradle.properties file for the appropriate JVM version specified in org.gradle.java.home and uses it for the project. If it is not specified, then the project SDK is used. Alternatively, you can use the Gradle settings to configure the Gradle JVM.

• Language level: the language level settings are applied for a source root or for a module. If a Gradle project has a single linked project then the project default language level is set to the minimum language level among the module language levels. The module language level is set to sourceCompatibility in the build.gradle file.

  The preview part is set to the conjunction of preview flags of the module source sets. The source set module language level is set to the corresponding combination of sourceCompatibility property and --enable-preview flag.

Link a Gradle project to an IntelliJ IDEA project

You can have multiple Gradle projects inside one IntelliJ IDEA project. It might be helpful if you keep parts of code in different projects, have some legacy projects on which you need to work, have Gradle composite build or work with microservices. You can link such projects in IntelliJ IDEA and manage them simultaneously.

When you open a Gradle project, the link of the project is established automatically and the Gradle tool window is enabled.

If an IntelliJ IDEA project is not linked to a Gradle project, then the Gradle tool window is disabled. In this case, IntelliJ IDEA displays a message with a link that quickly lets you reimport your Gradle project and enable the Gradle tool window. If the Gradle tool window is active, then you have at least one Gradle project linked.

1. Open the Gradle tool window.

2. In the Gradle tool window, click to attach a Gradle project.

3. In the dialog that opens, select the desired build.gradle file, and click OK.

4. In the Import Module from Gradle window, specify options for the Gradle project that you are trying to link and click OK.

   The project is linked. The Gradle tool window shows the toolbar and a tree view of Gradle entities.

If you need to link back the previously unlinked project, in the Project tool window, right-click the added build.gradle or if it is a Gradle Kotlin module the build.gradle.kts file and select Import Gradle Project.

Add a new Gradle module to an existing Gradle project

You can add a Gradle module to a project in which you are already working.

1. In a project, from the main menu, select File| New | Module to open the New Module wizard.

2. If the existing project is not the Gradle project then the process of adding a module is the same as Creating a new Gradle project. If the existing project is a Gradle project then the process of adding a new module is shorter. You need to specify the name of your module in the ArtifactId field. The rest of the information is added automatically and you can use either the default settings or change them according to your preferences. Also, note that Add as module to field, by default, displays the name of your project to which you are trying to add a module. You can click to select a different name if you have other linked Gradle projects.

Convert a regular project into a Gradle project

1. Open your project in IntelliJ IDEA.

2. In the Project tool window, right-click the name of your project and select New | File.

3. In the dialog that opens enter build.gradle and click OK.

4. Open the build.gradle file in the editor, add the information you need and re-open your project. The following minimal information should be included into the project's build script file:

   plugins { id 'java' } group 'org.example' version '1.0-SNAPSHOT' repositories { mavenCentral() } sourceSets { main { java { srcDirs = ['src'] } } } dependencies { compile 'junit:junit:4.12' }

   As soon as you create a build.gradle file, IntelliJ IDEA recognizes the Gradle build script and displays a notification suggesting to load the project as Gradle. After you load the project, IntelliJ IDEA enables the Gradle tool window.

   We also recommend that you add the settings.gradle file to your project and add rootProject.name = 'projectName' to it. Where 'projectName' would be the name of your project.

Access the Gradle settings

Use the Gradle settings to configure the build and run actions for each linked Gradle project, a Gradle version, importing of the project's changes, and so on.

1. In the Settings/Preferences dialog Ctrl+Alt+S, go to Build, Execution, Deployment| Gradle.

   

2. On the Gradle settings page, configure the available options and click OK to save the changes.

Configure a Gradle version for a project

IntelliJ IDEA lets you use different options to configure a Gradle version for your Gradle project. You can use the default Gradle wrapper, use a Gradle wrapper as a task, or configure a local Gradle distribution.

1. Select in the Gradle tool window to quickly access the Gradle settings page.

   

2. In the Use Gradle from list select one of the following options:

   • 'gradle-wrapper.properties' file: this is a recommended default option that uses Gradle wrapper.

     In this case you delegate the update of Gradle versions to Gradle and get an automatic Gradle download for the build. This option also lets you build with a precise Gradle version. The Gradle version is saved in the gradle-wrapper.properties file in the gradle directory of your project and helps you eliminate any Gradle version problems.

   • 'wrapper' task in Gradle build script: select this option to configure a Gradle wrapper according to the wrapper task configuration. It might be convenient if you prefer to control which Gradle version to use in the project.

     If you used the default Gradle wrapper option and then switched to the Gradle wrapper task configuration, changes you made in the task automatically update during the project import.

   • Specified location: select this option if you want to manually download and use a specific Gradle version. Specify the location of your Gradle installation and JVM under which IntelliJ IDEA will run Gradle when you import the specified Gradle project and when you execute its tasks.

   Click OK to save the changes.

Add VM options for the Gradle project

You can specify VM options for your Gradle project using the gradle.properties file.

1. Create or open your Gradle project.

2. In the Project tool window, right-click the project and from the context menu, select New | File.

3. In the New File dialog, enter gradle.properties as a filename and click OK.

4. Open the created file in the editor and add the VM options you need.

   

For more information, refer to the Gradle documentation.