Using Eclipse

Last modified: August 20, 2024

Introduction

You can use Eclipse IDE for Java Developers to write and debug Java actions in your Mendix app.

Deploy For Eclipse

To use Eclipse, you first need to set up your app so that Eclipse recognizes it.

In Studio Pro, open the Mendix app containing the Java actions you want to edit. Select App > Deploy for Eclipse to generate the necessary files for Eclipse to recognize the App directory as a Java project. This generates the Eclipse project file, classpath file, and launch configuration.

Setting Up Eclipse

In Mendix, all text is saved in UTF-8 encoding. To make sure your source code is also saved in UTF-8, do the following in Eclipse:

  1. Select Window > Preferences.

  2. Select Workspace in the new menu window.

  3. Select UTF-8:

You must also have a Java Development Kit (JDK) installed and selected. You will normally have a JDK installed as part of your Studio Pro installation. Check that the JDK you want to use is listed under Installed JREs and select it as the default in Eclipse.

Selecting a default JDK

In addition, you must set the Compiler compliance level in the Compiler tab to the correct JDK version.

Adding a Mendix App

To add a Mendix app to Eclipse, do the following in Eclipse:

  1. Select File > Import.

  2. Open the General folder, select Existing Projects into Workspace and click Next >:

    Import existing project

  3. Use the option Select root directory, browse to your Mendix app folder and click Finish:

Launching a Mendix App

To launch the app, do the following:

  1. Select Run > Run configurations… or Run > Debug configurations…, depending on how you would like to start the application.

  2. Find Java application in the list. It should contain a launch configuration with the same name as the Mendix app’s directory.

  3. Select the launch configuration.

  4. Select Run (or Debug) to start the application:

After you have launched the application, the M2EE Admin Console will appear. This is the same console as you would normally see in Mendix Studio Pro, if you had run the application from there. You can stop your application by closing the console.