JetBrains have just released a new version of their C++ IDE CLion, named suitably enough CLion Nova. This is a refactor of CLion that replaces the old slower Java legacy core with a new one built on their custom clangd implementation and the engine behind Rider and ReSharper C++ tools. It is available for free (and will be throughout the EAP period) although it does require you to download their Toolbox installer.
Benefits of the new version from the JetBrains blog:
CLion Nova still uses two C++ language engines: a clangd-based one and the one used by ReSharper C++/Rider. Most of the features of CLion Classic should work exactly the same in CLion Nova.
The most notable benefits in terms of performance in CLion Nova are:
- Faster highlighting speeds, especially in the case of incremental code updates
- A more responsive UI
- Faster Find Usages
- Significantly fewer freezes and hangs in refactorings
- Faster test indexing
This unification also brings some new functions to CLion Nova that aren’t included in CLion Classic’s feature set:
- New refactorings like introduce field, introduce namespace alias, introduce using enumeration, and convert to scoped enumeration.
- New inspections, quick-fixes, and intentions like redundant qualifier, the replace
autowith explicit type declaration, and sorting of#includedirectives.- New code hints like preprocessor directive hints and a Push-to-Hint mode.
You can learn more about the new CLion Nova C++ IDE EAP in the video below.