Configuring keyboard shortcuts

MPS includes predefined keymaps and lets you customize frequently used shortcuts.

To view the keymap configuration, open the Settings/Preferences dialog (Ctrl+Alt+S) and select Keymap.

MPS automatically selects a predefined keymap based on your environment. Make sure that it matches the OS you are using or select the one that matches shortcuts from another IDE or editor you are used to (for example, Eclipse or NetBeans).

You cannot customize predefined keymaps. When you modify any shortcut, MPS creates a copy of the currently selected keymap, which you can configure. Click to duplicate the selected keymap, rename, remove, or restore it to default values.

The keymap itself is a list of actions with corresponding keyboard and mouse shortcuts, and abbreviations. To find an action by name, type it in the search field. If you know the shortcut of an action, click and press the key combination in the Find Shortcut dialog.

Add a keyboard shortcut

On the Keymap page of the Settings/Preferences dialog (Ctrl+Alt+S), right-click an action and select Add Keyboard Shortcut.
In the Keyboard Shortcut dialog, press the necessary key combination.
(Optional) Select the Second Stroke checkbox to define a complex shortcut with two sequential key combinations.
Click OK to save the shortcut.

It is important that you use the mouse pointer because pressing Enter while in the Keyboard Shortcut dialog is treated as a key combination that you want to use as a shortcut.

The key combination that you press is displayed in the Keyboard Shortcut dialog, as well as a warning if it conflicts with existing shortcuts.

Add a mouse shortcut

On the Keymap page of the Settings/Preferences dialog (Ctrl+Alt+S), right-click an action and select Add Mouse Shortcut.
In the Mouse Shortcut dialog, move the mouse pointer to the central area and click or scroll as necessary.
Click OK to save the shortcut.

The performed mouse manipulations are displayed in the Mouse Shortcut dialog, as well as a warning if it conflicts with existing shortcuts.

Add an abbreviation

An abbreviation can be used to quickly find an action without a shortcut. For example, you can press Ctrl+Shift+A and type the name of the Jump to Colors and Fonts action to quickly modify the color and font settings of the element under the current caret position. If you assign an abbreviation for this action (like JCF), you can then type it instead of the full action name.

On the Keymap page of the Settings/Preferences dialog (Ctrl+Alt+S), right-click an action and select Add Abbreviation.
In the Abbreviation dialog, type the desired abbreviation and click OK.

Location of user-defined keymaps

All user-defined keymaps are stored in separate configuration files under the keymaps subdirectory in the MPS configuration directory:

Syntax: %HOMEPATH%\.<product><version>\config\keymaps
Example: C:\Users\JohnS\.MPS2019.1\config\keymaps

Syntax: ~/Library/Preferences/<product><version>/keymaps
Example: ~/Library/Preferences/MPS2019.1/keymaps

Syntax: ~/.<product><version>/config/keymaps
Example: ~/.MPS2019.1/config/keymaps

Each keymap file contains only the differences relative to the parent keymap.

You can use these files to share your custom keymaps with team members. To export your keymap, copy the corresponding file, and then import it by placing it in the keymaps directory on another MPS installation.

Conflicts with global OS shortcuts

Predefined keymaps do not cover every possible platform, version, and configuration. Some shortcuts can conflict with global system actions and shortcuts for third-party software. To fix these conflicts, you can reassign or disable the conflicting shortcut.

Try out the key combinations that you use and make necessary adjustments. Also, make sure that function keys are enabled on your system and check the following:

OS	Shortcut	System action	MPS action
macOS	`⌃Space`	Show Spotlight search	Basic code completion
	`⌃Space`	Select the previous input source	Basic code completion
	`Ctrl+click and drag`	Right-click	Copy and drag selected text
Ubuntu	`Ctrl+Alt+S`	Shade window	Settings
	`Ctrl+Alt+L`	Lock screen	Reformat Code
	`Ctrl+Alt+T`	Launch Terminal	Surround With
	`Ctrl+Alt+F12`	Open the tty12 virtual console	File path
	`Ctrl+Alt+Left` `Ctrl+Alt+Right`	Switch between Workspaces	Undo/redo navigation operations
	`Alt+F7`	Move window	Find Usages
	`Alt+F8`	Resize window	Evaluate Expression

Last modified: 5 July 2019