Run/Debug Configuration: GlassFish Server

Run | Edit Configurations | | GlassFish Server | Local or Remote

GlassFish Server run/debug configurations let you deploy and debug your applications on GlassFish Server. The GlassFish Integration plugin must be enabled.

Server tab for a local configuration

Item	Description
Application server	Select the server configuration to be used. Click Configure to create a new server configuration or edit an existing one. (The Application Servers dialog will open.)
After launch	Select this checkbox to start a web browser after starting the server and deploying the artifacts. Select the browser from the list. Click `Shift+Enter` to configure your web browsers.
With JavaScript debugger	If this checkbox is selected, the web browser is started with the JavaScript debugger enabled. Note that JavaScript debugging is available only for Firefox and Google Chrome. When you debug your JavaScript in Firefox for the first time, the JetBrains Firefox extension is installed.
The field underneath After launch	Specify the URL the browser should go to when started. In most typical cases, this URL corresponds to the root of your Web application or its starting page.
VM options	If necessary, specify the command-line options to be passed to the server JVM at the server start. If you need more room to type, click next to the field to open the VM Options dialog where the text entry area is larger. When specifying JVM options, follow these rules: Use spaces to separate individual options, for example, `-client -ea -Xmx1024m`. If an option includes spaces, enclose the spaces or the argument that contains spaces in double quotes, for example, `some" "arg` or `"some arg"`. If an option includes double quotes (as part of the argument), escape the double quotes using backslashes, for example, `-Dmy.prop=\"quoted_value\"`. You can pass environment variable values to custom Java properties. For example, if you define a variable `MY_ENV_VAR`, you can pass it to the `foo` property as follows: -Dfoo=${MY_ENV_VAR}
On 'Update' action	Select the necessary option for the Update application function ( or `Ctrl+F10` in the Run or Debug tool window). The update options are different for exploded and packed artifacts. For exploded artifacts, the available options are: Update resources. All changed resources are updated (HTML, JSP, JavaScript, CSS and image files). Update classes and resources. Changed resources are updated; changed Java classes (EJBs, servlets, etc.) are recompiled. In the debug mode, the updated classes are hot-swapped. In the run mode, IntelliJ IDEA just updates the changed classes in the output folder. Whether such classes are actually reloaded in the running application, depends on the capabilities of the runtime being used. Redeploy. The application artifact is rebuilt and redeployed. Restart server. The server is restarted. The application artifact is rebuilt and redeployed. For packed artifacts, the available options are: Hot swap classes. Changed classes are recompiled and reloaded at runtime. This option works only in the debug mode. Redeploy. The application artifact is rebuilt and redeployed. Restart server. The server is restarted. The application artifact is rebuilt and redeployed.
Show dialog	Select this checkbox if you want to see the Update dialog every time you use the Update application function. The Update dialog is used to select the Update option prior to actually updating the application.
On frame deactivation	Specify what IntelliJ IDEA should do when you switch from the IDE to a different application (for example, a web browser). (Frame deactivation means switching to a different application.) The options other than Do nothing have the same meanings as in the case of the Update action.
JRE	By default, the project JDK is used to run the application. If you want to specify an alternative JDK or JRE here, select it from the drop-down list.
Server Domain	Select the server domain to be used (to deploy and run your application).
Username	Specify the name of the user on whose behalf IntelliJ IDEA will connect to the server.
Password	The password of the user specified in the Username field.
Preserve Sessions Across Redeployment	For GlassFish Server 3 or later versions: select this checkbox to preserve active HTTP sessions when redeploying your application artifacts.

Server tab for a remote configuration

Item	Description
Application server	Select the server configuration to be used. Note that this is a local server configuration. (When working with a remote server, the same server version must be available locally.) Click Configure to create a new server configuration or edit an existing one. (The Application Servers dialog will open.)
After launch	Select this checkbox to start a web browser after connecting to the server and deploying the artifacts. Select the browser from the list. Click `Shift+Enter` to configure your web browsers.
With JavaScript debugger	If this checkbox is selected, the web browser is started with the JavaScript debugger enabled. Note that JavaScript debugging is available only for Firefox and Google Chrome. When you debug your JavaScript in Firefox for the first time, the JetBrains Firefox extension is installed.
The field underneath After launch	Specify the URL the browser should go to when started. In most typical cases, this URL corresponds to the root of your Web application or its starting page.
On 'Update' action	Select the necessary option for the Update application function ( or `Ctrl+F10` in the Run or Debug tool window). The options are: Hot swap classes. Changed classes are recompiled and reloaded at runtime. This option works only in the debug mode. Redeploy. The application artifact is rebuilt and redeployed.
Show dialog	Select this checkbox if you want to see the Update dialog every time you use the Update application function. The Update dialog is used to select the Update option prior to actually updating the application.
On frame deactivation	Specify what IntelliJ IDEA should do when you switch from the IDE to a different application (for example, a web browser). (Frame deactivation means switching to a different application.) The options other than Do nothing have the same meanings as in the case of the Update action.
Domain Admin Server Port	GlassFish domain administration server port.
Username	Specify the name of the user on whose behalf IntelliJ IDEA will connect to the server.
Password	The password of the user specified in the Username field.
Deploy Target	Specify the following information for the target server: Domain. Select this option if the server operates in the domain mode. Virtual server. To deploy onto a particular virtual server in the target domain, specify the name of the virtual server. Otherwise, the artifacts are deployed onto all the virtual servers in the domain. Cluster. Select this option if the server operates in the cluster mode. Cluster Name. Specify the name of the target cluster. Domain Admin Server Host. Specify the fully qualified domain name or the IP address of the domain administration server host.
Use SSL connection	Select this checkbox to connect to the server using SSL.
Preserve Sessions Across Redeployment	For GlassFish Server 3 or later versions: select this checkbox to preserve active HTTP sessions when redeploying your application artifacts.
Upload with GlassFish	Select this checkbox to deploy the application artifacts using the GlassFish Admin Console. Note that in this case you won't be able to deploy exploded artifacts to a remote server (i.e. if the server is actually on a different computer). If you use this option, you don't need to specify the remote staging settings.
Remote staging	This section contains the settings related to staging. An example of remote staging settings for a mounted folder is provided after this table.
Type	Select the way the staging environment or host is accessed for transferring the application artifact or artifacts from your local computer. (In the user interface of IntelliJ IDEA this setting is also referred to as the connection type.) The available options are: Same file system. Select this option if the target server is installed on your local computer. The artifacts in this case are deployed locally and, thus, don't need to be transferred to a remote host. ftp. The File Transfer Protocol or Secure FTP is used. Local or mounted folder. The staging environment is a local folder or is accessed as a mounted folder. If the list is empty, you have to enable the FTP/SFTP Connectivity plugin which supports the corresponding functionality.
Host	If Same file system is selected for Type, the only available option for Host is also Same file system. In all other cases, the list contains the existing configurations of the selected type. So each configuration corresponds to an individual (S)FTP connection, or a local or mounted folder. Select an existing configuration or create a new one. To create a new configuration: Click to the right of the list. In the Deployment dialog, click . In the Add Server dialog, specify the configuration name, select the type, and click OK. On the Connection tab, specify the settings in the Upload/download project files section. The rest of the settings don't matter. Click OK in the Deployment dialog.
Staging	When deploying to the remote host, the application artifact or artifacts are placed into a staging folder which should be accessible to GlassFish Server. The settings in this section define the location of this staging folder. Note that if Same file system is selected for Type and Host, no settings in this section need to be specified.
Path from root	The path to the staging folder relative to the local or mounted folder, or the root of the (S)FTP host. You can use to select the folder in the Choose target path dialog.
Mapped as	The absolute path to the staging folder in the local file system of the remote host.
Remote connection settings	The settings for accessing deployed applications.
Host	The fully qualified domain name or the IP address of the GlassFish Server host. When the target server operates in the cluster mode, this is the host of the GlassFish Server instance which the debugger should connect to.
Port	The server HTTP port, or, for a cluster, the HTTP port of the corresponding GlassFish Server instance.

An example of remote staging settings for a mounted folder

Assuming that:

C:\shared is a shared folder on the remote host, which is mounted to the local computer as the drive X:.
The folder that you are going to use for staging is C:\shared\staging.

Here are the corresponding remote staging settings:

Type: Local or mounted folder.
Host: The configuration should be selected in which the value in the Folder field is X:\ (the Upload/download project files section on the Connection tab of the Deployment dialog).
Staging/Path from root: staging
Staging/Mapped as: C:\shared\staging

Deployment tab

Use this tab to specify which artifacts or external resources should be deployed onto the server. An external resource means a deployable Web component such as a .war file which is not represented by a project artifact. Usually, such components are stored outside of the project scope.

To add items to the deployment list (shown under Deploy at the server startup), click the Add button . To edit the settings for an artifact or external resource, select the corresponding item in the list and use the controls below.

Item	Description
or `Alt+Insert`	Add an artifact or an external resource to the list.
or `Alt+Delete`	Remove the selected artifacts and external resources from the list.
or `F4`	Configure the selected artifact. The Artifacts page of the Project Structure dialog will open.
Use custom context root	If you want to assign a particular context root to an artifact or external resource, select the artifact or the resource, select the checkbox, and specify the desired context root in the field below the checkbox.

Logs tab

Use this tab to specify which log files generated while running or debugging should be displayed in the console, that is, on the dedicated tabs of the Run or Debug tool window.

Item	Description
Is Active	Select checkboxes in this column to have the log entries displayed in the corresponding tabs in the Run tool window or Debug tool window.
Log File Entry	The read-only fields in this column list the log files to show. The list can contain: Full paths to specific files. Ant patterns that define the range of files to be displayed. Aliases to substitute for full paths or patterns. These aliases are also displayed in the headers of the tabs where the corresponding log files are shown. If a log entry pattern defines more than one file, the tab header shows the name of the file instead of the log entry alias.
Skip Content	Select this checkbox to have the previous content of the selected log skipped.
Save console output to file	Select this checkbox to save the console output to the specified location. Type the path manually, or click the browse button and point to the desired location in the dialog that opens.
Show console when a message is printed to standard output stream	Select this checkbox to activate the output console and bring it forward if an associated process writes to Standard.out.
Show console when a message is printed to standard error stream	Select this checkbox to activate the output console and bring it forward if an associated process writes to Standard.err.
	Click this button to open the Edit Log Files Aliases dialog where you can select a new log entry and specify an alias for it.
	Click this button to edit the properties of the selected log file entry in the Edit Log Files Aliases dialog.
	Click this button to remove the selected log entry from the list.

Code Coverage tab

Use this tab to configure code coverage monitoring options.

Note that this tab is not available for remote servers.

Item	Description
Choose code coverage runner	Select the desired code coverage runner.
Sampling	Select this option to measure code coverage with minimal slow-down.
Tracing	Select this option to collect accurate branch coverage. This mode is available for the IntelliJ IDEA code coverage runner only.
Track per test coverage	Select this checkbox to detect lines covered by one test and all tests covering line.
Packages and classes to record code coverage data	If necessary, specify the classes and packages to be measured. Use or to add classes or packages to the list. To remove the classes or packages from the list, select the corresponding list items and click .
Enable coverage in test folders.	Select this checkbox to include the test source folders in code coverage analysis.

Startup/Connection tab for a local configuration

Item	Description
Run / Debug / Coverage	Use to switch between the settings for the run, debug and code coverage modes.
Startup script	Specify the script to be used to start the server. Use default: If this checkbox is selected, the default script is used. in this case opens the Default Startup Script dialog which shows the contents of the Startup script field (readonly). Clear this checkbox to change the parameters passed to the script or to specify a different script: To specify the script, click and select the desired script in the dialog that opens. To specify the parameters, click and specify the script parameters and VM options in the Configure VM and Program Parameters dialog. When specifying the parameters and options, follow these rules: Use spaces to separate individual parameters and options, for example, `-client -ea -Xmx1024m`. If a parameter or an option includes spaces, enclose the spaces or the argument that contains the spaces in double quotes, for example, `some" "arg` or `"some arg"`. If a parameter or an option includes double quotes (e.g. as part of the argument), escape the double quotes by means of the backslashes, for example, `-Dmy.prop=\"quoted_value\"`.
Shutdown script	Specify the script to be used to stop the server. Use default: If this checkbox is selected, the default script is used. in this case opens the Default Shutdown Script dialog which shows the contents of the Shutdown script field (readonly). Clear this checkbox to change the parameters passed to the script or to specify a different script: To specify the script, click and select the desired script in the dialog that opens. To specify the parameters, click and specify the script parameters and VM options in the Configure VM and Program Parameters dialog. When specifying the parameters and options, follow these rules: Use spaces to separate individual parameters and options, for example, `-client -ea -Xmx1024m`. If a parameter or an option includes spaces, enclose the spaces or the argument that contains the spaces in double quotes, for example, `some" "arg` or `"some arg"`. If a parameter or an option includes double quotes (e.g. as part of the argument), escape the double quotes by means of the backslashes, for example, `-Dmy.prop=\"quoted_value\"`.
Pass environment variables	The way GlassFish Server is started cannot be changed by using environment variables. The server configuration file domain.xml should be changed instead. So, whatever you specify in this section, doesn't matter. To make the necessary changes to the configuration file, IntelliJ IDEA provides quick fixes. When you see a warning in the lower part of the dialog that certain settings are incorrect, you should click Fix. As a result, the necessary changes are made to domain.xml. Example When you select Debug in the upper part of the tab, you see that there is a variable `JAVA_OPTS` with the value `-agentlib:jdwp=transport=dt_socket,address=127.0.0.1:9009,suspend=y,server=n` As stated before, the corresponding setting cannot be passed to the GlassFish Server JVM by means of `JAVA_OPTS`. In the configuration file <domain_name>/config/domain.xml, by default, the corresponding value (the `debug-options` attribute of the `<java-config>` element) is `-agentlib:jdwp=transport=dt_socket,address=9009,server=y,suspend=n` So, in the lower part of the dialog, you see the warning Debug settings are invalid.... Now, if you click Fix, the value in domain.xml changes to `-agentlib:jdwp=transport=dt_socket,address=9009,server=n,suspend=y`
Port	Use this field to change the debugger port. When the warning Debug settings are invalid... is shown, click Fix. This changes the port number in the GlassFish Server configuration file domain.xml. See also, Run/Debug Configuration: GlassFish Server.
Debugger Settings	Click this button to edit the debugger options on the Debugger page of the Settings dialog.

Startup/Connection tab for a remote configuration

This tab shows command-line options for starting the server JVM in the run and debug modes.

Item	Description
Run / Debug	Use to switch between the settings for the run and debug modes. The settings are shown in the area under To run/debug...
To run/debug remote server JVM...	The command-line options for starting the server JVM. These should be specified in the GlassFish Server configuration file domain.xml.
Transport (and all that follows)	The GUI for generating the remote debug command-line options shown in the area under To run/debug...

Item

Description

Run /

Debug

Use to switch between the settings for the run and debug modes. The settings are shown in the area under To run/debug...

To run/debug remote server JVM...

The command-line options for starting the server JVM. These should be specified in the GlassFish Server configuration file domain.xml.

Transport (and all that follows)

The GUI for generating the remote debug command-line options shown in the area under To run/debug...

Common settings

When you edit a run configuration (but not a run configuration template), you can specify the following options:


Name	Specify a name for the run/debug configuration to quickly identify it when editing or running the configuration, for example, from the Run popup `Alt+Shift+F10`.
Allow parallel run	Select to allow running multiple instances of this run configuration in parallel. By default, it is disabled, and when you start this configuration while another instance is still running, IntelliJ IDEA suggests to stop the running instance and start another one. This is helpful when a run/debug configuration consumes a lot of resources and there is no good reason to run multiple instances.
Store as project file	Save the file with the run configuration settings to share it with other team members. The default location is .idea/runConfigurations. However, if you do not want to share the .idea directory, you can save the configuration to any other directory within the project. By default, it is disabled, and IntelliJ IDEA stores run configuration settings in .idea/workspace.xml.

Name

Specify a name for the run/debug configuration to quickly identify it when editing or running the configuration, for example, from the Run popup Alt+Shift+F10.

Allow parallel run

Select to allow running multiple instances of this run configuration in parallel.

By default, it is disabled, and when you start this configuration while another instance is still running, IntelliJ IDEA suggests to stop the running instance and start another one. This is helpful when a run/debug configuration consumes a lot of resources and there is no good reason to run multiple instances.

Store as project file

Save the file with the run configuration settings to share it with other team members. The default location is .idea/runConfigurations. However, if you do not want to share the .idea directory, you can save the configuration to any other directory within the project.

By default, it is disabled, and IntelliJ IDEA stores run configuration settings in .idea/workspace.xml.

The tree view of run/debug configurations has a toolbar that helps you manage configurations available in your project as well as adjust default configurations templates.

Item	Shortcut	Description
	`Alt+Insert`	Create a run/debug configuration.
	`Alt+Delete`	Delete the selected run/debug configuration. Note that you cannot delete default configurations.
	`Ctrl+D`	Create a copy of the selected run/debug configuration. Note that you create copies of default configurations.
		The button is displayed only when you select a temporary configuration. Click this button to save a temporary configuration as permanent.
		Move into new folder / Create new folder. You can group run/debug configurations by placing them into folders. To create a folder, select the configurations within a category, click , and specify the folder name. If only a category is in focus, an empty folder is created. Then, to move a configuration into a folder, between the folders or out of a folder, use drag or and buttons. To remove grouping, select a folder and click .
		Click this button to sort configurations in the alphabetical order.

Before launch

In this area, you can specify tasks to be performed before starting the selected run/debug configuration. The tasks are performed in the order they appear in the list.

Item	Shortcut	Description
	`Alt+Insert`	Click this icon to add one of the following available tasks: Run External tool: select to run an external application. In the dialog that opens, select one or multiple applications you want to run. If it is not defined in IntelliJ IDEA yet, add its definition. For more information, see External tools and External Tools. Run Another Configuration: select to execute another run/debug configuration. In the dialog that opens, select the configuration to be run. Build: select to compile the specified module. The Build Module command will be executed. If an error occurs during compilation, IntelliJ IDEA won't attempt to start the run/debug configuration. Build Project: select to compile the entire project. The Build Project command will be executed. If an error occurs during compilation, IntelliJ IDEA won't attempt to start the run/debug configuration. Build, no error check: the same as the Build option, but IntelliJ IDEA will try to start the run/debug configuration irrespective of the compilation results. Build Artifacts: select this option to build an artifact or artifacts. In the dialog that opens, select the artifact or artifacts that should be built. Launch Web Browser: select this option to have a browser started. In the dialog that opens, select the type of the browser and provide the start URL. Also, specify if you want the browser be launched with JavaScript debugger. Run Ant target: select this option to run an Ant target. In the dialog that opens, select the target to be run. Run Grunt task: select this option to run a Grunt task. In the Grunt task dialog that opens, specify the Gruntfile.js where the required task is defined, select the task to execute, and specify the arguments to pass to the Grunt tool. Specify the location of the Node.js interpreter, the parameters to pass to it, and the path to the grunt-cli package. Run gulp task: select this option to run a Gulp task. In the Gulp task dialog that opens, specify the Gulpfile.js where the required task is defined, select the task to execute, and specify the arguments to pass to the Gulp tool. Specify the location of the Node.js interpreter, the parameters to pass to it, and the path to the gulp package. Run Maven Goal: select this option to run a Maven goal. In the dialog that opens, select the goal to be run. Run npm script: select this option to execute an npm script. In the NPM Script dialog that opens, specify the npm run/debug configuration settings. Compile TypeScript: select to run the built-in TypeScript compiler and thus make sure that all the changes you made to your TypeScript code are reflected in the generated JavaScript files. In the TypeScript Compile Settings dialog that opens, select or clear the Check errors checkbox to configure the behaviour of the compiler in case any errors are detected: If the Check errors checkbox is selected, the compiler will show all the errors and the run configuration will not start. If the Check errors checkbox is cleared, the compiler will show all the detected errors but the run configuration still will be launched. Generate CoffeeScript Source Maps: select this option to generate the source maps for your CoffeeScript sources. In the dialog that opens, specify where your CoffeeScript source files are located. Run Remote External Tool: adds a remote SSH external tool. Run Rake task: add a Rake task to be executed prior to running or debugging. To choose a Rake task, click the browse button , and select the desired task from the list of available tasks. Note that code completion is available here. Run JRuby compiler: choose this option to execute JRuby compiler with the specified target path, compiler process heap size, and command line parameters (if any).
	`Alt+Delete`	Click this icon to remove the selected task from the list.
	`Enter`	Click this icon to edit the selected task. Make the necessary changes in the dialog that opens.
/	`Alt+Up`/`Alt+Down`	Click these icons to move the selected task one line up or down in the list. The tasks are performed in the order that they appear in the list.
Show this page		Select this checkbox to show the run/debug configuration settings prior to actually starting the run/debug configuration.
Activate tool window		By default this checkbox is selected and the Run or the Debug tool window opens when you start the run/debug configuration. Otherwise, if the checkbox is cleared, the tool window is hidden. However, when the configuration is running, you can open the corresponding tool window for it yourself by pressing `Alt+4` or `Alt+5`.

Last modified: 01 August 2022