Completely Uninstall IntelliJ IDEA and Reinstall It

Introduction

Whether you're dealing with performance hiccups or just want to reset your development environment, sometimes a complete uninstallation of your IDE is the best course of action. For users of IntelliJ IDEA, JetBrains provides a robust system for syncing and preserving settings across installations. Before we dive into the steps to fully remove IntelliJ from your macOS, let's ensure your settings are safe.

Step 1: Sync Your Settings with JetBrains Account

Before you start the uninstallation process, it's wise to sync your IntelliJ IDEA settings to your JetBrains Account. This will save your preferences, keymaps, plugins, and even database connections, making it simple to restore your environment after reinstalling.

Here's how to sync your settings:

• It should be easy for you find the Enable settings sync button in IntelliJ IDEA > Preferences > Settings sync.
• Click the button and push all the things you want to sync to cloud.

With your settings safely uploaded to the JetBrains cloud, you can proceed with the uninstallation without worrying about losing your customized setup.

Step 2: Quit IntelliJ IDEA

Ensure that IntelliJ IDEA is not running. If it is, quit the application.

Step 3: Delete the Application

You can uninstall IntelliJ IDEA from the JetBrains Toolbox or manually delete the application from your Application folder in Finder.

Step 4: Remove Configuration and Cache Directories

To remove configuration data, caches, and logs, open Terminal and execute the following commands:

bash
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rm -rf ~/Library/Preferences/com.jetbrains.intellij
rm -rf ~/Library/Caches/com.jetbrains.intellij
rm -rf ~/Library/Application Support/JetBrains/IntelliJIdea*
rm -rf ~/Library/Logs/JetBrains/IntelliJIdea*

These commands will delete the related preferences, caches, application support files, and logs.

Step 5: Clear Remaining Caches (Optional)

For a thorough cleanup, you might want to remove all JetBrains-related cache files:

bash
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rm -rf ~/Library/Caches/JetBrains

Step 6: Empty the Trash

After moving the application and its related files to the Trash, empty the Trash to permanently delete them.

Reinstallation and Restoring Settings

Once you've reinstalled IntelliJ IDEA, you can restore your settings by logging into your JetBrains Account within the IDE and syncing your settings from the cloud. This feature ensures that you can quickly get back to your familiar work environment.

A Word of Caution

The rm -rf command will forcefully and recursively delete files without confirmation. Use it cautiously and double-check paths to prevent accidental data loss.

Conclusion

Resetting your IntelliJ IDEA installation can rejuvenate the performance of your IDE. By syncing your settings before uninstalling, you safeguard your personalized setup and ensure a seamless transition back to your development work after a fresh install. Happy coding!