Directories used by the IDE
By default, PyCharm stores user-specific files for each IDE instance (configuration, caches, plugins, logs, and so on) in the user's home directory. However, you can change the location for storing those files, if necessary.
You can move the default IDE directories, for example, if the user profile drive runs out of space or it is located on a slow disk, if the home directory is encrypted (slowing down the IDE) or is located on a network drive, if you want to create a portable installation or exclude caches from home directory backups, and so on.
Go to Help | Edit Custom Properties.
Set the property that corresponds to the necessary directory:
Property
Path to
idea.config.path
idea.system.path
idea.plugins.path
idea.log.path
warning
Do not specify the same directory in different properties. This may prevent PyCharm from starting.
Specify paths with forward slashes /, including Windows paths (for example, C:
/idea )./system You can insert any other properties as variables. For example, use
${user.home}
(standard Java system property) to specify paths relative to the user's home directory:idea.config.path=${user.home}/MyIdeaConfiguration
After you restart PyCharm, it will use the new location of the corresponding directory.
Every time you install a new major version of PyCharm, it uses a new set of IDE directories and automatically deletes the caches and logs directories for older versions of the IDE that have not been updated in the last 180 days. The configuration and plugins directories will remain forever, unless you remove them manually.
Go to Help | Delete Leftover IDE Directories.
In the Delete Leftover IDE Storage Directories dialog, select the versions of the IDE that you are not planning to use and click Delete.
The PyCharm configuration directory contains user-defined IDE settings, such as keymaps, color schemes, custom VM options, platform properties, and so on.
You can change the location of the PyCharm configuration directory using the idea.config.path property.
To share your personal IDE settings, copy the files from the configuration directory to the corresponding folders on another PyCharm installation. Make sure that PyCharm is not running to avoid erasing the copied files when you shut down the IDE.
The PyCharm system directory contains caches and local history files.
You can change the location of the PyCharm system directory using the idea.system.path property.
For more information about removing cache files, refer to Invalidate caches.
The PyCharm plugins directory contains user-installed plugins.
You can change the location of the PyCharm plugins directory using the idea.plugins.path property.
note
If you installed PyCharm through the Toolbox App, the plugins directory will be located in the standard IDE directory for user-installed plugins.
The PyCharm logs directory contains product logs and thread dumps.
You can change the location of the PyCharm logs directory using the idea.log.path property.
tip
You can open the location of the logs directory using the corresponding Help menu action: Show Log in Explorer on Windows or Show Log in Finder on macOS.
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