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Apache Cassandra

Building and IDE Integration

This page covers setting up Apache Cassandra in IntelliJ IDEA and Eclipse for development and debugging.

Prerequisites

Before IDE setup, ensure you have:

  • Built Cassandra from source (see Getting Started)

  • JDK 11 or 17 installed

  • Git installed and the repository cloned

IntelliJ IDEA

IntelliJ IDEA Community Edition includes everything needed for Cassandra development.

Generate Project Files

After building Cassandra, generate the IntelliJ project files:

ant generate-idea-files

This creates project files with:

  • Run/debug defaults for JUnit

  • Run/debug configuration for the Cassandra daemon

  • License header template for Java source files

  • Cassandra code style settings

  • Code inspections

Open the Project

  1. Start IntelliJ IDEA

  2. Select File > Open

  3. Navigate to your Cassandra checkout directory and confirm

The project should load without errors.

Running Tests

Right-click any test class or method and select Run or Debug to execute it directly from the IDE.

Eclipse

Eclipse IDE for Java Developers can also be used for Cassandra development.

Generate Eclipse Files

ant generate-eclipse-files

Import the Project

  1. Start Eclipse

  2. Select File > Import > Existing Projects into Workspace

  3. Select the Cassandra git directory

  4. Confirm the project is recognized and select Finish

Running Tests

Right-click a test class or method and select Run As > JUnit Test. Debug with Debug As > JUnit Test after setting breakpoints.

Debugging a Running Cassandra Instance

You can attach your IDE’s debugger to a running Cassandra process.

Start Cassandra with Debug Options

Set the JVM debug agent before starting Cassandra:

export JVM_EXTRA_OPTS="-agentlib:jdwp=transport=dt_socket,server=y,suspend=n,address=1414"
./bin/cassandra

Connect from Your IDE

In IntelliJ IDEA or Eclipse, create a Remote debug configuration pointing to localhost:1414 and start debugging.

Start Cassandra Directly from IDE

Alternatively, create a run configuration with:

  • Main class: org.apache.cassandra.service.CassandraDaemon

  • VM options: -Xms1024M -Xmx1024M -ea -Djava.net.preferIPv4Stack=true

Adjust heap settings as needed for your workload.

Multiple Working Trees

Use git worktree to maintain separate working trees for different Cassandra versions from a single clone. This avoids full rebuilds when switching between branches. 
git worktree add ../cassandra-5.0 cassandra-5.0