Text Editor Advanced Options

You can use the settings in Tools > Options > Text Editor > Micro Focus COBOL and on the Advanced page to configure some additional features such as the formatting or some of the tooltips.

Advanced

Copybook extensions
Specifies the file extensions that are recognized as copybook files. Separate the extensions by a comma.
Note: To ensure the file extensions will be recognized as COBOL copybooks, you also need to add them to your project properties (type copyext(ext1,ext2) in Additional Directives on the COBOL page in your project's properties).
Enable inactive code colorization
Enabled by default. Specifies that any sections of code in $if conditional compilations that are not compiled should be colorized.

If you are editing large source files, switching this option off could help improve the performance in the editor.

Enable Outlining
Enabled by default. Controls whether to show the outlining for blocks of code in the editor. If there are files opened in the editor, any changes to this option only take effect after closing and reopening the files.

If you are editing large source files, switching this option off could help improve the performance in the editor.

Enable Outlining for groups
Enabled by default. Controls whether to show the outlining for 01 level group items. If there are files opened in the editor, any changes to this option only take effect after closing and reopening the files.

If you are editing large source files, switching this option off could help improve the performance in the editor.

Find All References scope
Enables you to configure whether Find All References searches only in the current project or, only for .NET COBOL, in all .NET COBOL projects within your solution. See General Visual Studio IDE Issues for information about the limitations when using Find All References.
Limit IntelliSense search scope
Disabled by default. Limits the IntelliSense search scope so suggestions might not be available in certain cases. Only enable this setting if IntelliSense is causing performance issues.
Place 'System' $set ilusing statements first
When orderering ILUSING statements, the 'System' namespaces are placed first.
Show comment tasks
Enables you to specify whether the IDE should scan the source files in the editor for Task List comments (such as TODO or HACK) and display them in the Task List window. If there are any files opened in the editor, changes to this option only take effect after closing and reopening the files.

If you are editing large source files, switching this option off could help improve the performance in the editor.

Error Reporting

Background syntax check timeout
Specifies the response time (in seconds) after which the background parse is aborted.
Enable background syntax checking
Enables automatic syntax checking of the code as you type.

Generally, it is recommend that you leave Background Syntax Checking turned on as a number of IDE features rely on it and are not available when it is disabled. You might consider turning it off only when editing exceptionally large files. See Known Issues and Restrictions for more information about which IDE features are not available in that scenario.

Enable DB2 background syntax checking
Enables DB2 syntax checking during background compile.
Enable OpenSQL background syntax checking
Enables OpenSQL background syntax checking to a specified level.
Enable SQL Option background syntax checking
Enables SQL background syntax checking to a specified level.
Run background syntax check in separate process
The default is x86 project configurations. Native COBOL only. Specifies which project configurations should run background syntax checking in a separate process and not as part of the Visual Studio process.

Background syntax checking runs as part of the Visual Studio process. This is a 64-bit process in Visual Studio 2022, and was previously 32-bit in versions earlier than 2022. This can be an issue for projects that require specific bitism, such as applications that use XDB, in that they would fail to perform background parse correctly. To avoid this issue, use this option to specify if a project is to be parsed out-of-process in the correct bitism.

Restriction: Only applies to native COBOL projects. Background syntax checking of .NET COBOL projects only works as part of the Visual Studio process.
  • Off - all configurations run as part of the Visual Studio process.
  • x86 project configurations - specifies that background syntax checking for x86 project configurations runs as a separate process, but 64-bit configurations run as part of the Visual Studio process
  • x86/x64 project configurations - specifies that background syntax checking for both x86 and x64 project configuration runs as a separate process.

Expanded Copybooks

Discard unsaved changes in copybooks when closing the source
Set to True by default. Discards any unsaved changes in the expanded copybooks, when you close the COBOL source file.
Enable expanded copybook view
Set to True by default. Enables support for showing copybooks in an open source file. It is not possible to change this setting while debugging.
Maintain expanded copybook view state
Enables you to specify whether the state of the expanded copybook view should be preserved between closing and reopening a file or the project.