Migration from VSCode

This guide helps ReScript developers transition from the VSCode ReScript extension to the JetBrains ReScript plugin. It covers keyboard shortcut mappings, feature comparisons, and setup differences.

Keyboard Shortcut Mapping

The following table maps common actions between VSCode and JetBrains IDEs. Most shortcuts differ between the two platforms, but the underlying functionality is equivalent.

Action	VSCode	JetBrains (macOS)	JetBrains (Win/Linux)
Go to Definition	F12 / Cmd+Click	Cmd+B / Cmd+Click	Ctrl+B / Ctrl+Click
Find References	Shift+F12	Alt+F7	Alt+F7
Rename Symbol	F2	Shift+F6	Shift+F6
Format Document	Shift+Alt+F	Cmd+Opt+L	Ctrl+Alt+L
Quick Fix / Code Action	Cmd+.	Alt+Enter	Alt+Enter
Command Palette	Cmd+Shift+P	Cmd+Shift+A	Ctrl+Shift+A
Go to Symbol (File)	Cmd+Shift+O	Cmd+F12	Ctrl+F12
Go to Symbol (Workspace)	Cmd+T	Cmd+Opt+O	Ctrl+Alt+O
Toggle Line Comment	Cmd+/	Cmd+/	Ctrl+/
Toggle Block Comment	Shift+Alt+A	Cmd+Shift+/	Ctrl+Shift+/
Search Everywhere	Cmd+P (files)	Shift Shift	Shift Shift
Open Terminal	Ctrl+`	Alt+F12	Alt+F12
Trigger Completion	Ctrl+Space	Ctrl+Space	Ctrl+Space
Hover Documentation	Hover mouse	Hover / Ctrl+Q	Hover / Ctrl+Q
Surround With	–	Cmd+Alt+T	Ctrl+Alt+T
Extract Variable	–	Cmd+Alt+V	Ctrl+Alt+V
Extract Function	–	Cmd+Alt+M	Ctrl+Alt+M

Tip

JetBrains IDEs offer a “VSCode” keymap plugin that remaps most shortcuts to match VSCode defaults. Install it from Settings > Plugins > Marketplace and search for “VSCode Keymap”. This can significantly ease the transition.

Feature Comparison

The JetBrains ReScript plugin provides all the LSP-based features available in the VSCode extension, plus a wide range of native IDE integrations.

Feature	VSCode Extension	JetBrains Plugin
Syntax Highlighting	TextMate grammar	JFlex lexer + LSP semantic tokens (dual-layer)
Code Completion	LSP only	LSP + postfix templates + live templates
Diagnostics	LSP	LSP + Error Lens inline display
Code Formatting	LSP	LSP via rescript format CLI
Refactoring	LSP rename	Rename + Extract Variable/Function + Inline + Change Signature + React component extraction
Dead Code Analysis	Manual reanalyze CLI	Integrated inspection with reanalyze server mode
Test Runner	External terminal	Integrated test tree UI (Jest/Vitest auto-detect)
Code Generation	–	Generate switch arms, module type, make function, JSON codecs
Surround With	–	if/switch/try/block
Postfix Completion	–	.switch, .pipe, .log, .promise, .await, etc.
Live Templates	–	21 snippets (let, switch, @react.component, FFI bindings)
Code Inspections	–	Duplicate open, empty module, signature sync, style lint
Project Wizard	–	12 project templates
Module Hierarchy	–	Visual module dependency tree
Call Hierarchy	–	Caller/Callee tree

Setup Differences

Language Server

• VSCode: The ReScript extension bundles the language server. No additional installation is required.

• JetBrains: Requires @rescript/language-server to be installed in your project’s node_modules. When the language server is not detected, the plugin displays a notification bar with a one-click install button that automatically detects your package manager (npm/yarn/pnpm) and runs the installation in the background.

To install manually:

npm install -D @rescript/language-server

Configuration

• VSCode: Settings are configured in settings.json (user or workspace level) under the rescript.* namespace.

• JetBrains: Settings are configured in Settings > Languages & Frameworks > ReScript. Options include incremental type checking, signature help, inlay hints, and compilation status display.

Keymap

If you prefer to keep your VSCode muscle memory, install the VSCode Keymap plugin:

1. Go to Settings > Plugins > Marketplace

2. Search for “VSCode Keymap”

3. Click Install and restart the IDE

This remaps most common shortcuts to their VSCode equivalents.

Features Only in JetBrains

The following features are available exclusively in the JetBrains ReScript plugin and have no equivalent in the VSCode extension:

Code Editing

• Postfix completion – .switch, .pipe, .log, .promise, .await, and more

• Live templates – 21 built-in snippets for common patterns (let, switch, @react.component, FFI bindings)

• Surround with – Wrap selected code in if/switch/try/block (Cmd+Alt+T)

• Smart Enter – Automatically completes brackets and braces on Shift+Enter

• Statement mover – Move top-level declarations up/down with Alt+Shift+Up/Down

Refactoring

• Extract Variable (Cmd+Alt+V) – Extract an expression into a let binding

• Extract Function (Cmd+Alt+M) – Extract selected code into a new function

• Inline Variable/Function (Cmd+Alt+N) – Inline a variable or function at its usage sites

• Change Signature (Cmd+F6) – Modify function parameters with automatic call-site updates

• React component extraction – Extract JSX into a new React component

Code Generation (Cmd+N)

• Generate switch arms from variant types

• Generate module type skeletons and implementations

• Generate make constructor functions from record types

• Generate JSON encoder/decoder functions

• Generate record values with default fields

Code Inspections

• Duplicate open detection

• Empty module detection

• .resi signature sync checking

• Style linting (redundant booleans, Belt API suggestions)

• Reanalyze server mode – Persistent daemon for fast dead code analysis

Test Runner

• Integrated test tree UI with Jest and Vitest auto-detection

• Run/debug individual tests from gutter icons

Project Wizard

• Create new ReScript projects from 16 templates (Basic, Vite+React, Next.js, Electron, Hono, Cloudflare Workers, and more)

Tool Windows

• Module hierarchy – Visual module dependency tree

• Call hierarchy – Caller/Callee tree (Ctrl+Alt+H)

• Dependency diagram – Graphical module dependency visualization

• PPX expansion view – Inspect PPX macro output

• Type info panel – Always-visible type display for the cursor position

• REPL – Interactive ReScript evaluation environment

• Package dependencies – View rescript.json dependency tree

Additional Features

• .d.ts binding generation – Generate ReScript external bindings from TypeScript definitions

• Worksheet mode – Evaluate .resw files interactively

• Scratch files – Create and run temporary ReScript snippets

• Type signature search – Find functions by their type signature (Shift+Shift)

• Error Lens – Display diagnostics inline at the end of each line

• JS/TS to ReScript paste conversion – Paste JavaScript/TypeScript code and convert it to ReScript automatically