Can different IDE share a same workspace?

Question

I would like to use Eclipse and Spring Tool Suite at the same time using the same workspace. Is there a way to do that?

PS: I've tried deleting .lock file in .metadata directory. But after I open Eclipse again, it's regenerated.

Thanks in advance!

Answer 1

No, it is not possible. The workspace stores several piece of information that both IDEs require (e.g. the Eclipse file system model that stores the list of all projects).

There are two things you could do (if you really require to work with both components):

• Install every plug-in of one of your IDEs into the other (presumably it would be easier to install your Eclipse plug-ins into STS, but it very much depends on what you have installed). Then, if you need, you can open two windows (Window / New Window from the main menu), and then manage your stuff as needed.
• Maintain two installations with two different workspaces, that share a set of projects stored outside the workspace. However, I would not recommend this approach because
  1. You have to refresh the projects in the other workspace (where you were not editing)
  2. The automatic builders registered in both workspaces would execute much often, and even worse, they could be conflicting with each other.

If you only need to work with the same set of versioned projects in the Eclipse instances, then maybe it would be a better idea to create a Team Project Set of your projects, and check them out into both workspaces, and share your changes through the version control system.