FAQ about Code With Me
What is Code With Me?
Code With Me is a plugin for PyCharm and other JetBrains IDEs (except for Rider and DataGrip for now) that enables you to collaboratively review, edit, and debug code with your colleagues in real time. The service provided by Code With Me is available in both the PyCharm Professional and Community editions (with session time limits in the Community version).
Since version 2021.1, the Code With Me plugin comes as a bundled one in the supported IDEs; you don't need to install it manually.
In PyCharm 2020.3, the Code With Me plugin can be downloaded.
In PyCharm 2021.1 and later, the Code With Me plugin is bundled with PyCharm and activated by default. If the plugin is disabled, enable it on the Installed tab of the Settings | Plugins page, as described in Managing plugins.
What are the PyCharm requirements for working with Code With Me?
The Code With Me plugin is compatible with PyCharm 2020.3 and later.
Do I need PyCharm, PyCharm license, or the same IDE to connect?
As a host, you need to have the PyCharm license and the PyCharm version 2020.3 or later installed on your machine with the Code With Me plugin installed.
As a guest, you only need an invitation link. After you open the link in your browser, JetBrains Client (a free lightweight application based on IntelliJ platform) will be automatically downloaded, and you can join the corresponding Code With Me session.
What is downloaded when I open an invitation link?
When you open an invitation link in your browser, JetBrains Client (a free lightweight application based on IntelliJ platform) is automatically downloaded.
Do I need to activate my Code With Me license?
If you are using your JetBrains account or an offline activation code to register you IDE, your license will be applied to the Code With Me plugin automatically.
If you are using a license server to register the IDE, the Code With Me plugin needs to be activated manually.
For more information about activating the Code With Me license, refer to Code With Me license.
Where can I find information on how to use Code With Me?
The information on how to use Code With Me is available here.
Where can I find information about on-premises Code With Me setup
The information about quick Code With Me setup is available here.
If you need information for full environment servers' setup, refer to Code With Me administration guide
I don't have the same IDE as the person who invited me. Can I connect from a different IDE ?
No IDE is required to connect as a guest, you only need an invitation link. After you open the link in your browser, a free lightweight client application will be automatically downloaded and you can join the Code With Me session.
What are the basic supported scenarios and capabilities of Code With Me?
The host can start a session to invite other participants (guests) and share project code with them. Session participants either follow each other or navigate the code independently. The session participants can edit code located on the host’s computer. The host can start a debugging session and share its state and actions.
What is the maximum number of participants that can join one session?
The number of concurrent participants in the Code With Me session depends on the license you have.
Does Code With Me support plugins?
Plugins that perform customization of the IDE are supported. The guest cannot download and enable any language or framework related plugins.
Is Code With Me compatible with other editors such as VSCode, Vim, Emacs, and so on?
No, but as a guest, you can customize your local environment and add a keymap of your choice by installing and enabling the needed plugin.
What are the minimum/recommended system requirements for Code With Me?
The minimum and recommended requirements can be found here.
However, for guests only a lightweight client application is downloaded, so the requirements for disk space and computer resources are lower than for a host.
How do I use Code With Me behind proxy?
If you work in a local network, you can bypass proxy restrictions by using a private on-premises server.
As an alternative, you can add the following urls to the allowed addresses:
https://code-with-me.global.jetbrains.comhttps://download.jetbrains.comhttps://download-cf.jetbrains.comhttps://download-cdn.jetbrains.comwss://codewithme-relay-1.europe-north1-gke.intellij.netwss://codewithme-relay-2.europe-north1-gke.intellij.netwss://codewithme-relay-1.us-east1-gke.intellij.netwss://codewithme-relay-2.us-east1-gke.intellij.netwss://codewithme-relay-1.asia-northeast1-gke.intellij.netwss://codewithme-relay-2.asia-northeast1-gke.intellij.netwss://codewithme-relay-1.southamerica-east1-gke.intellij.netwss://codewithme-relay-2.southamerica-east1-gke.intellij.netwss://codewithme-relay-1.asia-south1-gke.intellij.netwss://codewithme-relay-2.asia-south1-gke.intellij.net
What are the current limitations for working with Code With Me?
Not all the tool windows are available for the guests.
If I connect to a host IDE from another IDE, do both IDEs have to have the same version?
No. When a guest connects to the lobby server, the application that makes this connection (depending on the user flow, this might be the Code With Me IDE plugin, the Toolbox application, or the launcher downloaded via the browser) checks the version of the host IDE to which it will connect and downloads the corresponding JetBrains Client with the exact same build number of the host IDE.
If the JetBrains Client in the exact version was downloaded before, the cached JetBrains Client is used.
How are the build numbers of Code With Me plugin, JetBrains Client and Host IDE connected?
Each new IDE version comes with numerous UI and protocol improvements. To take advantage of these continuous improvements, a matching JetBrains Client with the exact same build number as the JetBrains IDE is released. This client is downloaded transparently for the user, depending on how the connection is initiated, by the Code With Me plugin, the Toolbox application, or the launcher when the first-time connection is established to an IDE of that version. The client is then cached for later reuse.
The Code With Me plugin generally has the same build number as the IDE with which it is bundled. This is a technical coincidence, but not a strict technical requirement. For host IDEs, the bundled Code With Me plugin therefore usually has the same build number as the JetBrains Client that guests must use to connect to that host IDE. However, in general, any plugin build that is compatible with the IDE version it is intended to run in will work to connect to any host IDE in any version.
Does the Code WIth Me plugin always download a JetBrains Client from the internet?
The Code With Me plugin downloads the JetBrains Client from the location provided by the lobby server. If a version with the exact same build number as the host IDE is already locally cached, it will not attempt to download the client again.
Code With Me for Business also supports running Code With Me in air-gapped environments, where the JetBrains Client can be downloaded from some internal repository. See the local storage guide for further details.
Note that starting with the IDE version 2024.1, the Code With Me plugin will reuse the JetBrains Client bundled into the running IDE if the client and host IDEs have the exact same version. Then, no JetBrains Client download is needed.
How long are the JetBrains Clients maintained and supported?
The JetBrains Client can only be used to connect to a host IDE with the exact same build number. This is a strict build restriction. Therefore, the JetBrains Client follows exactly the same product and support lifecycle as the JetBrains IDE it depends on.
How can I disable Code With Me?
Press Ctrl+Alt+S to open the IDE settings and then select .
Switch to the Installed tab and locate the Code With Me plugin in the list of the installed plugins.
Click
in the plugin description area and select Disable, then click OK and restart PyCharm.