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Empty branch in alternation

Reports empty branches in a RegExp alternation. An empty branch will only match the empty string, and in most cases that is not what is desired. This inspection will not report a single empty branch at the start or the end of an alternation.

Example:

(alpha||bravo)

After the quick-fix is applied:

(alpha|bravo)

Locating this inspection

By ID

Can be used to locate inspection in e.g. Qodana configuration files, where you can quickly enable or disable it, or adjust its settings.

RegExpEmptyAlternationBranch
Via Settings dialog

Path to the inspection settings via IntelliJ Platform IDE Settings dialog, when you need to adjust inspection settings directly from your IDE.

Settings or Preferences | Editor | Inspections | RegExp

New in 2017.2

Last modified: 27 August 2024