- Qt Creator Manual
- Reference
- Qt Creator Manual 13.0.2

How To ◦ Acknowledgements

# Reference

The following topics contain reference information about using Qt Creator and the integrated tools.

Acknowledgements | Third-party components in Qt Creator.
Command-Line Options | Options for starting Qt Creator from the command line.
Custom Wizards | Wizard types and JSON wizard format.
FAQ | Answers to some frequently asked questions about Qt Creator.
Glossary | Qt Creator terms and concepts.
Keyboard Shortcuts | Default keyboard shortcuts.
Known Issues | Known issues in Qt Creator version 13.0.2.
Technical Support | Qt support sites and other useful sites.
Version Control Systems | Version control systems that you can use from Qt Creator.

## Analyzers

Use integrated code analysis tools to improve your C++ or QML code.

JavaScript and QML Checks | Run static checks on the QML and JavaScript code in your project to find common problems.

## Build Systems

When you create projects, you can choose the build system to use for building the project: CMake, qmake, Meson, or Qbs. qmake is installed and configured when you install Qt. To use one of the other supported build systems, you need to set it up.

Autotools | With Autotools, you can create a portable, complete, and self-contained GNU Build System from simple instructions.
CMake | CMake is an alternative to qmake for automating the generation of build systems.
Conan Package Manager | The experimental Conan plugin integrates the Conan package manager.
IncrediBuild | IncrediBuild decreases the time it takes to build C++ code.
Meson | Use Meson to build native desktop applications.
Nimble | The Nimble package manager uses the Nim compiler to generate Nim application executables for the desktop platforms.
Qbs | Qbs is an all-in-one build tool that generates a build graph from a high-level project description (like qmake or CMake do) and executes the commands in the low-level build graph (like make does).
vcpkg Package Manager | The experimental vcpkg plugin integrates the vcpkg C/C++ package manager.

## Build Configurations

Build configurations have everything you need to compile the sources into binaries. Build configurations use the tools and settings defined in their corresponding kit.

CMake Build Configuration | Settings for building applications with CMake.
CMake Presets | Examples of supported CMake presets.
Conan Build Configuration | Settings for building applications with the Conan package manager.
IncrediBuild Build Configuration | Build and clean steps for Incredibuild.
Meson Build Configuration | Settings for building applications with Meson.
Qbs Build Configuration | Settings for building applications with Qbs.
qmake Build Configuration | Settings for building applications with qmake.

## Devices

Connect devices to the computer to run, debug, and analyze applications built for them from Qt Creator. When you install Qt for a target platform, such as Android or QNX, the build and run configurations for the development targets might be set up automatically in Qt Creator.

Developing for MCUs | Connect MCU devices to the computer to run and debug applications on them.

## Editors

When you open files, Qt Creator chooses a suitable editor according to the file type.

C++ Quick Fixes | Summary of quick fixes for C++ code.
Clang Code Model | Offers code editing services for C++.
Edit Mode | Edit and navigate code and other resources in your projects.
FakeVim Modes and Commands | Supported Vim modes and emulated commands.
Language Servers | Get code completion, highlighting of the symbol under cursor, and jumping to the symbol definition in the editor for other programming languages besides C++, as well as diagnostics.
Model Editor | Create Universal Modeling Language (UML) style models with structured and behavioral diagrams.
QML Quick Fixes | Summary of quick fixes for QML code.
SCXML Editor | Edit state chart (.scxml) files.

## Platforms

You can install and run Qt Creator on several operating systems to create applications for multiple desktop, embedded, and mobile device platforms.

Desktop Platforms | Requirements for operating systems that you can install and run Qt Creator on.
Embedded Platforms | Embedded platforms that you can develop applications for.
Mobile Platforms | Mobile platforms that you can develop applications for.
Optimizing Applications for Mobile Devices | Guidelines for developing usable applications for mobile devices.
Supported Platforms | Summary of development and target platforms.

## Preferences

You can set preferences that apply globally to all projects and override them for particular projects.

Axivion | Create a connection to an Axivion dashboard server.
Beautifier | Format source code with Artistic Style, ClangFormat, or Uncrustify.
FakeVim | Set indentation for Vim-style editing and map vim commands to Qt Creator functions.
Locator | Add and change locator filters.
Nim | Set Nim code style and paths to tools.
Qbs | Set preferences for Qbs and Qbs profiles.
Qt Quick Code Style | Set QML code style.
Screen Recording | Set preferences for recording screens with FFmpeg.
Testing | Customize the handling of tests, test frameworks, and test tools.
To-Do | Add keywords for listing to-do entries.

### Analyzer

Preferences for code analysis tools.

Clang Tools | Set preferences for Clang-Tidy and Clazy.

### C++

Preferences for editing C++ code.

C++ Code Style | Set global code style for C++ files.
Clangd | Sets global preferences for the clangd code model.
Code Model | Sets global preferences for the code model.
Quick Fixes | Set global preferences for C++ quick fixes.

### Kits

Preferences for build and run kits.

Compilers | Lists the registered compilers. You can add custom compilers to the list.
Kits | Set kit preferences. A kit consists of a set of values that define one environment, such as a device, tool chain, Qt version, and debugger command to use.

### Text Editor

Preferences for the behavior and appearance of text and code editors.

Behavior | Set preferences for indentation, typing, and file encoding in the text editor.
Completion | Set preferences for code completion and inserting matching characters in the text editor.
Font & Colors | Set the font preferences and apply color schemes for syntax highlighting, diff editor, and code analysis results.
Snippets | Add, change, and remove snippets in the snippet editor.

## Run Configurations

Run configurations start the application in the location where the deploy configuration copied it. By default, when you select Run, Qt Creator builds the project, deploys it to the device defined in the kit, and runs it there. If you did not make changes to the project since you last built and deployed it, Qt Creator simply runs it again.

Android Run Settings | Settings for running applications on Android devices.
Boot2Qt Run Settings | Settings for running applications on Boot2Qt devices.
Desktop Device Run Settings | Settings for running applications on desktop device types.
Python Run Settings | Settings for running Qt for Python applications.
QNX Run Settings | Settings for running applications on Linux-based devices.
Qt Quick UI Prototype Run Settings | Settings for running Qt Quick UI Prototype projects (.qmlproject).
Remote Linux Run Settings | Settings for running applications on Linux-based devices.

## UI Design

You can use a visual editor, Qt Designer, for designing widget-based UIs in the Design mode. For Qt Quick UIs, use a separate visual editor, Qt Design Studio, or the Edit mode.

Adding Qt Designer Plugins | Adding widgets to Qt Designer by creating plugins that extend Qt applications.
Converting UI Projects to Applications | Converting a project that has a .qmlproject file to one that has a .pro file.
Qt Designer | A visual editor for Qt Widgets.
Qt Quick Designer | A visual editor for QML files (.qml) and Qt Design Studio UI files (.ui.qml).
UI Files | Limitations of Qt Design Studio UI files (.ui.qml).
Using QML Modules with Plugins | Using C++ plugins to expose custom components to Qt Quick applications.

## Views

When you switch modes or trigger actions, Qt Creator opens views for viewing output and organizing project contents.

### Output Views

You can view output from several sources, such as a list of errors and warnings encountered during a build, detailed output from the compiler, status of a program when it is executed, debug output, or search results.

Application Output | Displays the status of a program when you execute it, and the debug output.
Compile Output | Shows all output from the compiler.
Issues | Lists issues from different sources.
Search Results View | Search through projects, files on a file system or the currently open files and view search results.
Terminal | Opens a terminal.
Test Results | View test results.
To-Do Entries | Lists to-do keywords from project files.

### Sidebar Views

In some modes, you can use a left and right sidebar to organize different views into project contents. Only views that are relevant to the mode you are working in are available in it.

Call Hierarchy | Shows information about incoming and outgoing function calls from a language server.
Class View | Shows the class hierarchy of the currently open projects.
File System | Shows all the files in the current directory.
Include Hierarchy | Shows the files that the current file includes and those that include the current file.
Open Documents | Shows currently open files.
Outline | Shows an overview of defined types and other symbols, as well as their properties and hierarchy in a source file.
Projects | Shows a list of projects in a project tree.
Type Hierarchy | Shows the base classes and derived classes of a class.

How To ◦ Acknowledgements