Options dialog box: Text Editor > JavaScript > IntelliSense

Applies to: yesVisual Studio noVisual Studio for Mac

Note

This article applies to Visual Studio 2017. If you're looking for the latest Visual Studio documentation, see Visual Studio documentation. We recommend upgrading to the latest version of Visual Studio. Download it here

Use the IntelliSense page of the Options dialog box to modify settings that affect the behavior of IntelliSense for JavaScript. You can access the IntelliSense page by choosing Tools > Options on the menu bar, and then expanding Text Editor > JavaScript/TypeScript > IntelliSense.

Note

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The IntelliSense page contains the following sections:

Statement Completion

You can use these options to change the behavior of IntelliSense statement completion.

UIElement list

Only use Tab or Enter to commit

When you select this check box, the JavaScript code editor appends statements with items selected in the completion list only after you choose the Tab or Enter key. When you deselect this check box, other characters – such as a period, comma, colon, open parenthesis, and open brace ({) – can also append statements with the selected items.

References

You can use these options to specify the types of IntelliSense .js files that are in scope for different JavaScript project types. The IntelliSense references are typically used to provide IntelliSense support for global objects. You can also use this page to set the loading order for scripts that must be loaded at run time, and to add IntelliSense extension files.

UIElement list

Reference groups

This option specifies the reference group type. Three reference groups are supported:

You can use pre-defined reference groups to specify that particular IntelliSense .js files are in scope for different JavaScript projects. Four reference groups are available:

  • Implicit (Windows version), for Windows 8.x Store apps using JavaScript. Files included in this group are in scope for every .js file opened in the Code Editor for Windows 8.x Store apps using JavaScript.

  • Implicit (Web), for HTML5 projects. Files included in this group are in scope for every .js file opened in the Code Editor for these project types.

  • Dedicated worker reference groups, for HTML5 web workers. Files specified in this group are in scope for .js files that have an explicit reference to a dedicated worker reference group.

  • Generic, for other JavaScript project types.

Included files

This option specifies the order in which files are loaded into the context of the language service. You can configure the order by using the Remove, Move Up, and Move Down buttons. For IntelliSense to work correctly, a file that is dependent on another must be loaded after the other file.

Caution

If an object is defined unconditionally in two or more implicit references, the last reference in this list will be used to define the object.

Add a reference to the group

This option provides a way to add additional IntelliSense .js files by browsing to the appropriate files.

Download remote references (e.g. http://) for files in the miscellaneous files project

When this check box is selected, and if you have a JavaScript file opened outside the context of a project, Visual Studio downloads remote JavaScript files referenced in the file for the purpose of providing IntelliSense information. If this option is selected, files are downloaded when you include them as a reference in your JavaScript file.

Note

For web projects, remote files referenced in your project are downloaded by default.

See also