What is External Code Formatters for NetBeans?

(Formerly known as Eclipse Java Code Formatter for NetBeans)

This is the project page of the NetBeans IDE plugin External Code Formatters for NetBeans. This plugin helps you to apply to a common code style in a team of Eclipse, IntelliJ and NetBeans IDE users. You can use several external code formatters inside the NetBeans IDE (see below), depending on whatever your co-workers use. The original formatting engine of Eclipse, the Google Code Formatter, the Spring Java Formatter or any other are embedded and allow you to format the source code the same way as e.g. your co-workers do with their Eclipse IDE.

Current features

• Makes use of the internal NetBeans formatting API, which makes it possible to reuse built-in features like the format on save action or format only selected lines, ... (since 1.13)
• Global configuration and project specific configuration
• Shows the used formatter in a notification (Disabled by default)
• Supports Eclipse formatter profiles (since 1.6)
• Code templates for @formatter:on/off (since 1.9)
• Supports Workspace Mechanic configuration file (since 1.10)
• Support configuration from .settings/org.eclipse.jdt.core.prefs (absolute and relative paths) (since 1.10)
• Support configuration of linefeed (since 1.10)
• Support for macro invocation (since 1.12)
• Support for guarded documents (documents that are created by the NetBeans GUI builder, guarded blocks are skipped of course, but everything in between can be formatted), only for Eclipse Java Code Formatter (since 1.13)
• Support for Google code formatter (since 1.13)
• Support for Spring Java formatter (since 1.14)
• Support for Eclipse Javascript formatter (since 1.14)
• Support for revelc.net XML formatter (since 1.14)
• Support for Jackson Json formatter (since 1.14)
• Support for manticore JSQLFormatter (Special thanks to Andreas Reichel for the contribution) (since 1.14.1)
• Support for remote configurations for Eclipse formatters (since 1.14.1)
• Support for Palantir Java Formatter (since 1.15.0)
• Support for Vertical Blank SQL Formatter (since 1.15.0)
• Support for DBeaver SQL Formatter (via Spotless) (since 1.15.0)
• Option to organize imports with Google and Palantir Formatter instead of NetBeans (since 1.15.2)

History of this plugin

• The original idea is based on http://epochcoder.blogspot.com/2013/08/import-eclipse-formatter-into-netbeans.html from Willie Scholtz
• Geertjan Wielenga made further investigations on that idea and put everything together to create a first NetBeans Plugin out of this idea
• This was then forked by Benno Markiewicz
• Benno Markiewicz stopped the development on the plugin and so Geertjan Wielenga forked it again and was looking for someone who wanted to take it over
• I think I used this plugin since I use NetBeans, because in every company I was so far, I had exactly this circumstance that the formatting configuration was always there for Eclipse, but not for NetBeans. And because I prefer NetBeans over Eclipse I had to find a way to use NetBeans but the code style configuration from Eclipse. I'm happy that I can give back something to the community now by continuing the development of this plugin.