1PERLCRITIC(1)         User Contributed Perl Documentation        PERLCRITIC(1)
2
3
4

NAME

6       "perlcritic" - Command-line interface to critique Perl source.
7

SYNOPSIS

9         perlcritic [-12345 | --brutal | --cruel | --harsh | --stern | --gentle]
10                    [--severity number | name] [{-p | --profile} file | --noprofile]
11                    [--top [ number ]] [--theme expression] [--include pattern]
12                    [--exclude pattern] [{-s | --single-policy} pattern]
13                    [--only | --noonly] [--profile-strictness {warn|fatal|quiet}]
14                    [--force | --noforce] [--statistics] [--statistics-only]
15                    [--count | -C] [--verbose {number | format}] [--allow-unsafe]
16                    [--color | --nocolor] [--pager pager] [--quiet]
17                    [--color-severity-highest color_specification]
18                    [--color-severity-high color_specification]
19                    [--color-severity-medium color_specification]
20                    [--color-severity-low color_specification]
21                    [--color-severity-lowest color_specification]
22                    [--files-with-violations | -l]
23                    [--files-without-violations | -L]
24                    [--program-extensions file_name_extension]
25                    {FILE | DIRECTORY | STDIN}
26
27         perlcritic --profile-proto
28
29         perlcritic { --list | --list-enabled | --list-themes | --doc pattern [...] }
30
31         perlcritic { --help | --options | --man | --version }
32

DESCRIPTION

34       "perlcritic" is a Perl source code analyzer.  It is the executable
35       front-end to the Perl::Critic engine, which attempts to identify
36       awkward, hard to read, error-prone, or unconventional constructs in
37       your code. Most of the rules are based on Damian Conway's book Perl
38       Best Practices. However, "perlcritic" is not limited to enforcing PBP,
39       and it will even support rules that contradict Conway.  All rules can
40       easily be configured or disabled to your liking.
41
42       This documentation only covers how to drive this command.  For all
43       other information, such as API reference and alternative interfaces,
44       please see the documentation for Perl::Critic itself.
45

USAGE EXAMPLES

47       Before getting into all the gory details, here are some basic usage
48       examples to help get you started.
49
50           # Report only most severe violations (severity = 5)
51           perlcritic YourModule.pm
52
53           # Same as above, but read input from STDIN
54           perlcritic
55
56           # Recursively process all Perl files beneath directory
57           perlcritic /some/directory
58
59           # Report slightly less severe violations too (severity >= 4)
60           perlcritic -4 YourModule.pm
61
62           # Same as above, but using named severity level
63           perlcritic --stern YourModule.pm
64
65           # Report all violations, regardless of severity (severity >= 1)
66           perlcritic -1 YourModule.pm
67
68           # Same as above, but using named severity level
69           perlcritic --brutal YourModule.pm
70
71           # Report only violations of things from "Perl Best Practices"
72           perlcritic --theme pbp YourModule.pm
73
74           # Report top 20 most severe violations (severity >= 1)
75           perlcritic --top YourModule.pm
76
77           # Report additional violations of Policies that match m/variables/xms
78           perlcritic --include variables YourModule.pm
79
80           # Use defaults from somewhere other than ~/.perlcriticrc
81           perlcritic --profile project/specific/perlcriticrc YourModule.pm
82

ARGUMENTS

84       The arguments are paths to the files you wish to analyze.  You may
85       specify multiple files.  If an argument is a directory, "perlcritic"
86       will analyze all Perl files below the directory.  If no arguments are
87       specified, then input is read from STDIN.
88

OPTIONS

90       Option names can be abbreviated to uniqueness and can be stated with
91       singe or double dashes, and option values can be separated from the
92       option name by a space or '=' (as with Getopt::Long). Option names are
93       also case-sensitive.
94
95       "--profile FILE" or "-p FILE"
96           Directs "perlcritic" to use a profile named by FILE rather than
97           looking for the default .perlcriticrc file in the current directory
98           or your home directory.  See "CONFIGURATION" in Perl::Critic for
99           more information.
100
101       "--noprofile"
102           Directs "perlcritic" not to load any configuration file, thus
103           reverting to the default configuration for all Policies.
104
105       "--severity N"
106           Directs "perlcritic" to only apply Policies with a severity greater
107           than "N".  Severity values are integers ranging from 1 (least
108           severe) to 5 (most severe).  The default is 5.  For a given
109           "--profile", decreasing the "--severity" will usually produce more
110           violations. You can set the default value for this option in your
111           .perlcriticrc file.  You can also redefine the "severity" for any
112           Policy in your .perlcriticrc file.  See "CONFIGURATION" for more
113           information.
114
115       "-5 | -4 | -3 | -2 | -1"
116           These are numeric shortcuts for setting the "--severity" option.
117           For example, "-4" is equivalent to "--severity 4".  If multiple
118           shortcuts are specified, then the most restrictive one wins.  If an
119           explicit "--severity" option is also given, then all shortcut
120           options are silently ignored.  NOTE: Be careful not to put one of
121           the number severity shortcut options immediately after the "--top"
122           flag or "perlcritic" will interpret it as the number of violations
123           to report.
124
125       "--severity NAME"
126           If it is difficult for you to remember whether severity "5" is the
127           most or least restrictive level, then you can use one of these
128           named values:
129
130               SEVERITY NAME   ...is equivalent to...   SEVERITY NUMBER
131               --------------------------------------------------------
132               --severity gentle                           --severity 5
133               --severity stern                            --severity 4
134               --severity harsh                            --severity 3
135               --severity cruel                            --severity 2
136               --severity brutal                           --severity 1
137
138       "--gentle | --stern | --harsh | --cruel | --brutal"
139           These are named shortcuts for setting the "--severity" option.  For
140           example, "--cruel" is equivalent to "--severity 2".  If multiple
141           shortcuts are specified, then the most restrictive one wins.  If an
142           explicit "--severity" option is also given, then all shortcut
143           options are silently ignored.
144
145       "--theme RULE"
146           Directs "perlcritic" to apply only Policies with themes that
147           satisfy the "RULE".  Themes are arbitrary names for groups of
148           related policies.  You can combine theme names with boolean
149           operators to create an arbitrarily complex "RULE".  For example,
150           the following would apply only Policies that have a 'bugs' AND
151           'pbp' theme:
152
153               $> perlcritic --theme='bugs && pbp' MyModule.pm
154
155           Unless the "--severity" option is explicitly given, setting
156           "--theme" silently causes the "--severity" to be set to 1.  You can
157           set the default value for this option in your .perlcriticrc file.
158           See "POLICY THEMES" in Perl::Critic for more information about
159           themes.
160
161       "--include PATTERN"
162           Directs "perlcritic" to apply additional Policies that match the
163           regex "/PATTERN/imx".  Use this option to temporarily override your
164           profile and/or the severity settings at the command-line.  For
165           example:
166
167               perlcritic --include=layout my_file.pl
168
169           This would cause "perlcritic" to apply all the "CodeLayout::*"
170           policies even if they have a severity level that is less than the
171           default level of 5, or have been disabled in your .perlcriticrc
172           file.  You can specify multiple "--include" options and you can use
173           it in conjunction with the "--exclude" option.  Note that
174           "--exclude" takes precedence over "--include" when a Policy matches
175           both patterns.  You can set the default value for this option in
176           your .perlcriticrc file.
177
178       "--exclude PATTERN"
179           Directs "perlcritic" to not apply any Policy that matches the regex
180           "/PATTERN/imx".  Use this option to temporarily override your
181           profile and/or the severity settings at the command-line.  For
182           example:
183
184               perlcritic --exclude=strict my_file.pl
185
186           This would cause "perlcritic" to not apply the "RequireUseStrict"
187           and "ProhibitNoStrict" Policies even though they have the highest
188           severity level.  You can specify multiple "--exclude" options and
189           you can use it in conjunction with the "--include" option.  Note
190           that "--exclude" takes precedence over "--include" when a Policy
191           matches both patterns.  You can set the default value for this
192           option in your .perlcriticrc file.
193
194       "--single-policy PATTERN" or "-s PATTERN"
195           Directs "perlcritic" to apply just one Policy module matching the
196           regex "/PATTERN/ixms", and exclude all other Policies.  This option
197           has precedence over the "--severity", "--theme", "--include",
198           "--exclude", and "--only" options.  For example:
199
200               perlcritic --single-policy=nowarnings my_file.pl
201
202           This would cause "perlcritic" to apply just the
203           "ProhibitNoWarnings" Policy, regardless of the severity level
204           setting.  No other Policies would be applied.
205
206           This is equivalent to what one might intend by...
207
208               perlcritic --exclude=. --include=nowarnings my_file.pl
209
210           ... but this won't work because the "--exclude" option overrides
211           the "--include" option.
212
213           The equivalent of this option can be accomplished by creating a
214           custom profile containing only the desired policy and then
215           running...
216
217               perlcritic --profile=customprofile --only my_file.pl
218
219       "--top [ N ]"
220           Directs "perlcritic" to report only the top "N" Policy violations
221           in each file, ranked by their severity.  If "N" is not specified,
222           it defaults to 20.  If the "--severity" option (or one of the
223           shortcuts) is not explicitly given, the "--top" option implies that
224           the minimum severity level is "1" (i.e.  "brutal"). Users can
225           redefine the severity for any Policy in their .perlcriticrc file.
226           See "CONFIGURATION" for more information.  You can set the default
227           value for this option in your .perlcriticrc file.  NOTE: Be careful
228           not to put one of the severity shortcut options immediately after
229           the "--top" flag or "perlcritic" will interpret it as the number of
230           violations to report.
231
232       "--force"
233           Directs "perlcritic" to ignore the magical "## no critic"
234           annotations in the source code. See "BENDING THE RULES" for more
235           information.  You can set the default value for this option in your
236           .perlcriticrc file.
237
238       "--statistics"
239           Causes several statistics about the code being scanned and the
240           violations found to be reported after any other output.
241
242       "--statistics-only"
243           Like the "--statistics" option, but suppresses normal output and
244           only shows the statistics.
245
246       "--verbose N | FORMAT"
247           Sets the verbosity level or format for reporting violations.  If
248           given a number ("N"), "perlcritic" reports violations using one of
249           the predefined formats described below.  If given a string
250           ("FORMAT"), it is interpreted to be an actual format specification.
251           If the "--verbose" option is not specified, it defaults to either 4
252           or 5, depending on whether multiple files were given as arguments
253           to "perlcritic".  You can set the default value for this option in
254           your .perlcriticrc file.
255
256               Verbosity     Format Specification
257               -----------   -------------------------------------------------------
258                1            "%f:%l:%c:%m\n",
259                2            "%f: (%l:%c) %m\n",
260                3            "%m at %f line %l\n",
261                4            "%m at line %l, column %c.  %e.  (Severity: %s)\n",
262                5            "%f: %m at line %l, column %c.  %e.  (Severity: %s)\n",
263                6            "%m at line %l, near '%r'.  (Severity: %s)\n",
264                7            "%f: %m at line %l near '%r'.  (Severity: %s)\n",
265                8            "[%p] %m at line %l, column %c.  (Severity: %s)\n",
266                9            "[%p] %m at line %l, near '%r'.  (Severity: %s)\n",
267               10            "%m at line %l, column %c.\n  %p (Severity: %s)\n%d\n",
268               11            "%m at line %l, near '%r'.\n  %p (Severity: %s)\n%d\n"
269
270           Formats are a combination of literal and escape characters similar
271           to the way "sprintf" works.  See String::Format for a full
272           explanation of the formatting capabilities.  Valid escape
273           characters are:
274
275               Escape    Meaning
276               -------   ------------------------------------------------------------
277               %c        Column number where the violation occurred
278               %d        Full diagnostic discussion of the violation
279               %e        Explanation of violation or page numbers in PBP
280               %F        Just the name of the file where the violation occurred.
281               %f        Path to the file where the violation occurred.
282               %l        Line number where the violation occurred
283               %m        Brief description of the violation
284               %P        Full name of the Policy module that created the violation
285               %p        Name of the Policy without the Perl::Critic::Policy:: prefix
286               %r        The string of source code that caused the violation
287               %C        The class of the PPI::Element that caused the violation
288               %s        The severity level of the violation
289
290           The purpose of these formats is to provide some compatibility with
291           text editors that have an interface for parsing certain kinds of
292           input. See "EDITOR INTEGRATION" for more information about that.
293
294       "--list"
295           Displays a condensed listing of all the Perl::Critic::Policy
296           modules that are found on this machine.  This option lists all
297           Policies, regardless of your .perlcriticrc or command line options.
298           For each Policy, the name, default severity and default themes are
299           shown.
300
301       "--list-enabled"
302           Displays a condensed listing of all the Perl::Critic::Policy
303           modules that would be enforced, if you were actually going to
304           critique a file with this command. This is useful when you've
305           constructed a complicated command or modified your .perlcriticrc
306           file and you want to see exactly which Policies are going to be
307           enforced (or not enforced, as the case may be). For each Policy,
308           the name, default severity and default themes are shown.
309
310       "--list-themes"
311           Displays a list of all the themes of the Perl::Critic::Policy
312           modules that are found on this machine.
313
314       "--profile-proto"
315           Displays an expanded listing of all the Perl::Critic::Policy
316           modules that are found on this machine.  For each Policy, the name,
317           default severity and default themes are shown, as well as the name
318           of any additional parameters that the Policy supports.  The format
319           is suitable as a prototype for your .perlcriticrc file.
320
321       "--only"
322           Directs perlcritic to apply only Policies that are explicitly
323           mentioned in your .perlcriticrc file.  This is useful if you want
324           to use just a small subset of Policies without having to disable
325           all the others.  You can set the default value for this option in
326           your .perlcriticrc file.
327
328       "--profile-strictness {warn|fatal|quiet}"
329           Directs perlcritic how to treat certain recoverable problems found
330           in a .perlcriticrc or file specified via the "--profile" option.
331           Valid values are "warn" (the default), "fatal", and "quiet".  For
332           example, perlcritic normally only warns about profiles referring to
333           non-existent Policies, but this option can make this situation
334           fatal. You can set the default value for this option in your
335           .perlcriticrc file.
336
337       "--count"
338       "-C"
339           Display only the number of violations for each file.  Use this
340           feature to get a quick handle on where a large pile of code might
341           need the most attention.
342
343       "--color"
344       "--colour"
345           This option is on when outputting to a tty.  When set, Severity 5
346           and 4 are colored red and yellow, respectively.  Colorization only
347           happens if Term::ANSIColor is installed. For Windows environments,
348           Win32::Console::ANSI must also be installed.  Negate this switch to
349           disable color.  You can set the default value for this option in
350           your .perlcriticrc file.
351
352       "--pager PAGER_COMMAND_STRING"
353           If set, perlcritic will pipe it's output to the given
354           PAGER_COMMAND_STRING.  You can set the default value for this
355           option in your .perlcriticrc file.
356
357           Setting a pager turns off color by default.  You will have to turn
358           color on explicitly.  If you want color, you'll probably also want
359           to tell your pager to display raw characters.  For "less" and
360           "more", use the -R switch.
361
362       "--color-severity-highest COLOR_SPECIFICATION"
363           Specifies the color to be used for highest severity violations, as
364           a Term::ANSIColor color specification. Can also be specified as
365           "--colour- severity-highest", "--color-severity-5", or
366           "--colour-severity-5".
367
368       "--color-severity-high COLOR_SPECIFICATION"
369           Specifies the color to be used for high severity violations, as a
370           Term::ANSIColor color specification. Can also be specified as
371           "--colour- severity-high", "--color-severity-4", or
372           "--colour-severity-4".
373
374       "--color-severity-medium COLOR_SPECIFICATION"
375           Specifies the color to be used for medium severity violations, as a
376           Term::ANSIColor color specification. Can also be specified as
377           "--colour- severity-medium", "--color-severity-3", or
378           "--colour-severity-3".
379
380       "--color-severity-low COLOR_SPECIFICATION"
381           Specifies the color to be used for low severity violations, as a
382           Term::ANSIColor color specification. Can also be specified as
383           "--colour- severity-low", "--color-severity-2", or
384           "--colour-severity-2".
385
386       "--color-severity-lowest COLOR_SPECIFICATION"
387           Specifies the color to be used for lowest severity violations, as a
388           Term::ANSIColor color specification. Can also be specified as
389           "--colour- severity-lowest", "--color-severity-1", or
390           "--colour-severity-1".
391
392       "--files-with-violations"
393           Display only the names of files with violations.  Use this feature
394           with --single-policy to find files that contain violations of a
395           given policy. Can also be specified as "--l".
396
397       "--files-without-violations"
398           Display only the names of files without violations.  Use this
399           feature with --single-policy to find files that do not contain
400           violations of a given policy. Can also be specified as "--L".
401
402       "--program-extensions file_name_extension"
403           Tell "perlcritic" to treat files whose names end in the given file
404           name extension as programs, not as modules. If a leading '.' is
405           desired it must be explicitly specified, e.g.
406
407               --program-extensions .pl
408
409           The matching is case-sensitive, and the option may be specified as
410           many times as desired, e.g.
411
412               --program-extensions .pl --program-extensions .cgi
413
414           The above can also be done by quoting the file name extensions:
415
416               --program-extensions '.pl .cgi'
417
418           Files whose name ends in '.PL' will always be considered programs.
419
420       "--doc PATTERN"
421           Displays the perldoc for all Perl::Critic::Policy modules that
422           match "m/PATTERN/ixms".  Since Policy modules tend to have rather
423           long names, this just provides a more convenient way to say
424           something like: "perldoc
425           Perl::Critic::Policy::ValuesAndExpressions::RequireUpperCaseH
426           eredocTerminator" at the command prompt.
427
428       "--allow-unsafe"
429           This option directs "perlcritic" to allow the use of Policies that
430           have been marked as "unsafe".  Unsafe Policies may result in risky
431           operations by compiling and executing the code they analyze.  All
432           the Policies that ship in the core Perl::Critic distribution are
433           safe.  However, third- party Policies, such as those in the
434           Perl::Critic::Dynamic distribution are not safe. Note that "safety"
435           is honorary -- if a Policy author marks a Policy as safe, it is not
436           a guarantee that it won't do nasty things.  If you don't trust your
437           Policies and the code you are analyzing, then do not use this
438           switch.
439
440       "--quiet"
441           Suppress the "source OK" message when no violations are found.
442
443       "--help"
444       "-?"
445       "-H"
446           Displays a brief summary of options and exits.
447
448       "--options"
449           Displays the descriptions of the options and exits.  While this
450           output is long, it it nowhere near the length of the output of
451           "--man".
452
453       "--man"
454           Displays the complete "perlcritic" manual and exits.
455
456       "--version"
457       "-V"
458           Displays the version number of "perlcritic" and exits.
459

CONFIGURATION

461       Most of the settings for Perl::Critic and each of the Policy modules
462       can be controlled by a configuration file.  The default configuration
463       file is called .perlcriticrc.  "perlcritic" will look for this file in
464       the current directory first, and then in your home directory.
465       Alternatively, you can set the "PERLCRITIC" environment variable to
466       explicitly point to a different file in another location.  If none of
467       these files exist, and the "--profile" option is not given on the
468       command-line, then all Policies will be loaded with their default
469       configuration.
470
471       The format of the configuration file is a series of INI-style blocks
472       that contain key-value pairs separated by "=". Comments should start
473       with "#" and can be placed on a separate line or after the name-value
474       pairs if you desire.
475
476       Default settings for perlcritic itself can be set before the first
477       named block. For example, putting any or all of these at the top of
478       your .perlcriticrc file will set the default value for the
479       corresponding command-line argument.
480
481           severity  = 3                                     #Integer or named level
482           only      = 1                                     #Zero or One
483           force     = 0                                     #Zero or One
484           verbose   = 4                                     #Integer or format spec
485           top       = 50                                    #A positive integer
486           theme     = (pbp + security) * bugs               #A theme expression
487           include   = NamingConventions ClassHierarchies    #Space-delimited list
488           exclude   = Variables  Modules::RequirePackage    #Space-delimited list
489
490       The remainder of the configuration file is a series of blocks like
491       this:
492
493           [Perl::Critic::Policy::Category::PolicyName]
494           severity = 1
495           set_themes = foo bar
496           add_themes = baz
497           arg1 = value1
498           arg2 = value2
499
500       "Perl::Critic::Policy::Category::PolicyName" is the full name of a
501       module that implements the policy.  The Policy modules distributed with
502       Perl::Critic have been grouped into categories according to the table
503       of contents in Damian Conway's book Perl Best Practices. For brevity,
504       you can omit the 'Perl::Critic::Policy' part of the module name.
505
506       "severity" is the level of importance you wish to assign to the Policy.
507       All Policy modules are defined with a default severity value ranging
508       from 1 (least severe) to 5 (most severe).  However, you may disagree
509       with the default severity and choose to give it a higher or lower
510       severity, based on your own coding philosophy.  You can set the
511       "severity" to an integer from 1 to 5, or use one of the equivalent
512       names:
513
514           SEVERITY NAME ...is equivalent to... SEVERITY NUMBER
515           ----------------------------------------------------
516           gentle                                             5
517           stern                                              4
518           harsh                                              3
519           cruel                                              2
520           brutal                                             1
521
522       "set_themes" sets the theme for the Policy and overrides its default
523       theme.  The argument is a string of one or more whitespace-delimited
524       alphanumeric words.  Themes are case-insensitive.  See "POLICY THEMES"
525       for more information.
526
527       "add_themes" appends to the default themes for this Policy.  The
528       argument is a string of one or more whitespace-delimited words. Themes
529       are case- insensitive.  See "POLICY THEMES" for more information.
530
531       The remaining key-value pairs are configuration parameters that will be
532       passed into the constructor of that Policy.  The constructors for most
533       Policy modules do not support arguments, and those that do should have
534       reasonable defaults.  See the documentation on the appropriate Policy
535       module for more details.
536
537       Instead of redefining the severity for a given Policy, you can
538       completely disable a Policy by prepending a '-' to the name of the
539       module in your configuration file.  In this manner, the Policy will
540       never be loaded, regardless of the "--severity" given on the command
541       line.
542
543       A simple configuration might look like this:
544
545           #--------------------------------------------------------------
546           # I think these are really important, so always load them
547
548           [TestingAndDebugging::RequireUseStrict]
549           severity = 5
550
551           [TestingAndDebugging::RequireUseWarnings]
552           severity = 5
553
554           #--------------------------------------------------------------
555           # I think these are less important, so only load when asked
556
557           [Variables::ProhibitPackageVars]
558           severity = 2
559
560           [ControlStructures::ProhibitPostfixControls]
561           allow = if unless  # My custom configuration
562           severity = cruel   # Same as "severity = 2"
563
564           #--------------------------------------------------------------
565           # Give these policies a custom theme.  I can activate just
566           # these policies by saying "perlcritic --theme 'larry || curly'"
567
568           [Modules::RequireFilenameMatchesPackage]
569           add_themes = larry
570
571           [TestingAndDebugging::RequireTestLabels]
572           add_themes = curly moe
573
574           #--------------------------------------------------------------
575           # I do not agree with these at all, so never load them
576
577           [-NamingConventions::Capitalization]
578           [-ValuesAndExpressions::ProhibitMagicNumbers]
579
580           #--------------------------------------------------------------
581           # For all other Policies, I accept the default severity,
582           # so no additional configuration is required for them.
583
584       Note that all policies included with the Perl::Critic distribution that
585       have integer parameters accept underscores ("_") in their values, as
586       with Perl numeric literals.  For example,
587
588           [ValuesAndExpressions::RequireNumberSeparators]
589           min_value = 1_000
590
591       For additional configuration examples, see the perlcriticrc file that
592       is included in this examples directory of this distribution.
593
594       Damian Conway's own Perl::Critic configuration is also included in this
595       distribution as examples/perlcriticrc-conway.
596

THE POLICIES

598       A large number of Policy modules are distributed with Perl::Critic.
599       They are described briefly in the companion document
600       Perl::Critic::PolicySummary and in more detail in the individual
601       modules themselves.  Say "perlcritic --doc PATTERN" to see the perldoc
602       for all Policy modules that match the regex "m/PATTERN/ixms"
603
604       There are a number of distributions of additional policies on CPAN. If
605       Perl::Critic doesn't contain a policy that you want, some one may have
606       already written it.  See "SEE ALSO" in Perl::Critic for a list of some
607       of these distributions.
608

POLICY THEMES

610       Each Policy is defined with one or more "themes".  Themes can be used
611       to create arbitrary groups of Policies.  They are intended to provide
612       an alternative mechanism for selecting your preferred set of Policies.
613       For example, you may wish disable a certain set of Policies when
614       analyzing test programs.  Conversely, you may wish to enable only a
615       specific subset of Policies when analyzing modules.
616
617       The Policies that ship with Perl::Critic are have been divided into the
618       following themes.  This is just our attempt to provide some basic
619       logical groupings.  You are free to invent new themes that suit your
620       needs.
621
622           THEME             DESCRIPTION
623           ------------------------------------------------------------------------
624           core              All policies that ship with Perl::Critic
625           pbp               Policies that come directly from "Perl Best Practices"
626           bugs              Policies that that prevent or reveal bugs
627           certrec           Policies that CERT recommends
628           certrule          Policies that CERT considers rules
629           maintenance       Policies that affect the long-term health of the code
630           cosmetic          Policies that only have a superficial effect
631           complexity        Policies that specificaly relate to code complexity
632           security          Policies that relate to security issues
633           tests             Policies that are specific to test programs
634
635       Say "perlcritic --list" to get a listing of all available policies and
636       the themes that are associated with each one.  You can also change the
637       theme for any Policy in your .perlcriticrc file.  See the
638       "CONFIGURATION" section for more information about that.
639
640       Using the "--theme" command-line option, you can create an arbitrarily
641       complex rule that determines which Policies to apply. Precedence is the
642       same as regular Perl code, and you can use parentheses to enforce
643       precedence as well.  Supported operators are:
644
645           Operator    Altertative    Example
646           -----------------------------------------------------------------
647           &&          and            'pbp && core'
648           ||          or             'pbp || (bugs && security)'
649           !           not            'pbp && ! (portability || complexity)'
650
651       Theme names are case-insensitive.  If the "--theme" is set to an empty
652       string, then it evaluates as true all Policies.
653

BENDING THE RULES

655       Perl::Critic takes a hard-line approach to your code: either you comply
656       or you don't.  In the real world, it is not always practical (or even
657       possible) to fully comply with coding standards.  In such cases, it is
658       wise to show that you are knowingly violating the standards and that
659       you have a Damn Good Reason (DGR) for doing so.
660
661       To help with those situations, you can direct Perl::Critic to ignore
662       certain lines or blocks of code by using annotations:
663
664         require 'LegacyLibaray1.pl';  ## no critic
665         require 'LegacyLibrary2.pl';  ## no critic
666
667         for my $element (@list) {
668
669             ## no critic
670
671             $foo = "";               #Violates 'ProhibitEmptyQuotes'
672             $barf = bar() if $foo;   #Violates 'ProhibitPostfixControls'
673             #Some more evil code...
674
675             ## use critic
676
677             #Some good code...
678             do_something($_);
679         }
680
681       The "## no critic" annotations direct Perl::Critic to ignore the
682       remaining lines of code until a "## use critic" annotation is found. If
683       the "## no critic" annotation is on the same line as a code statement,
684       then only that line of code is overlooked.  To direct perlcritic to
685       ignore the "## no critic" annotations, use the "--force" option.
686
687       A bare "## no critic" annotation disables all the active Policies.  If
688       you wish to disable only specific Policies, add a list of Policy names
689       as arguments just as you would for the "no strict" or "no warnings"
690       pragma.  For example, this would disable the "ProhibitEmptyQuotes" and
691       "ProhibitPostfixControls" policies until the end of the block or until
692       the next "## use critic" annotation (whichever comes first):
693
694           ## no critic (EmptyQuotes, PostfixControls);
695
696           # Now exempt from ValuesAndExpressions::ProhibitEmptyQuotes
697           $foo = "";
698
699           # Now exempt ControlStructures::ProhibitPostfixControls
700           $barf = bar() if $foo;
701
702           # Still subject to ValuesAndExpression::RequireNumberSeparators
703           $long_int = 10000000000;
704
705       Since the Policy names are matched against the "## no critic" arguments
706       as regular expressions, you can abbreviate the Policy names or disable
707       an entire family of Policies in one shot like this:
708
709           ## no critic (NamingConventions)
710
711           # Now exempt from NamingConventions::Capitalization
712           my $camelHumpVar = 'foo';
713
714           # Now exempt from NamingConventions::Capitalization
715           sub camelHumpSub {}
716
717       The argument list must be enclosed in parentheses and must contain one
718       or more comma-separated barewords (i.e. don't use quotes).  The "## no
719       critic" annotations can be nested, and Policies named by an inner
720       annotation will be disabled along with those already disabled an outer
721       annotation.
722
723       Some Policies like "Subroutines::ProhibitExcessComplexity" apply to an
724       entire block of code.  In those cases, "## no critic" must appear on
725       the line where the violation is reported.  For example:
726
727           sub complicated_function {  ## no critic (ProhibitExcessComplexity)
728               # Your code here...
729           }
730
731       Some Policies like "Documentation::RequirePodSections" apply to the
732       entire document, in which case violations are reported at line 1.  But
733       if the file requires a shebang line, it is impossible to put "## no
734       critic" on the first line of the file.  This is a known limitation and
735       it will be addressed in a future release.  As a workaround, you can
736       disable the affected policies at the command-line or in your
737       .perlcriticrc file.  But beware that this will affect the analysis of
738       all files.
739
740       Use this feature wisely.  "## no critic" should be used in the smallest
741       possible scope, or only on individual lines of code. And you should
742       always be as specific as possible about which policies you want to
743       disable (i.e. never use a bare "## no critic").  If Perl::Critic
744       complains about your code, try and find a compliant solution before
745       resorting to this feature.
746

EDITOR INTEGRATION

748       For ease-of-use, "perlcritic" can be integrated with your favorite text
749       editor.  The output-formatting capabilities of "perlcritic" are
750       specifically intended for use with the "grep" or "compile" modes
751       available in editors like "emacs" and "vim".  In these modes, you can
752       run an arbitrary command and the editor will parse the output into an
753       interactive buffer that you can click on and jump to the relevant line
754       of code.
755
756       The Perl::Critic team thanks everyone who has helped integrate Perl-
757       Critic with their favorite editor.  Your contributions in particular
758       have made Perl- Critic a convenient and user-friendly tool for Perl
759       developers of all stripes.  We sincerely appreciate your hard work.
760
761   EMACS
762       Joshua ben Jore has authored a minor-mode for emacs that allows you to
763       run perlcritic on the current region or buffer.  You can run it on
764       demand, or configure it to run automatically when you save the buffer.
765       The output appears in a hot-linked compiler buffer.  The code and
766       installation instructions can be found in the extras directory inside
767       this distribution.
768
769   VIM
770       Scott Peshak has published perlchecker.vim, which is available at
771       <http://www.vim.org/scripts/script.php?script_id=1731>.
772
773   gVIM
774       Fritz Mehner recently added support for "perlcritic" to his fantastic
775       gVIM plugin.  In addition to providing a very Perlish IDE, Fritz's
776       plugin enables one-click access to "perlcritic" and many other very
777       useful utilities.  And all is seamlessly integrated into the editor.
778       See <http://lug.fh-swf.de/vim/vim-perl/screenshots-en.html> for
779       complete details.
780
781   EPIC
782       EPIC is an open source Perl IDE based on the Eclipse platform. Features
783       include syntax highlighting, on-the-fly syntax check, content assist,
784       code completion, perldoc support, source formatting with Perl::Tidy,
785       code templates, a regular expression editing tool, and integration with
786       the Perl debugger.  Recent versions of EPIC also have built-in support
787       for Perl::Critic.  At least one Perl::Critic contributor swears by
788       EPIC.  Go to <http://e-p-i-c.sourceforge.net> for more information
789       about EPIC.
790
791   BBEdit
792       Josh Clark has produced an excellent Perl-Critic plugin for BBEdit. See
793       <http://globalmoxie.com/projects/bbedit-perl-critic/index.shtml> for
794       download, installation, and usage instructions.  Apple users rejoice!
795
796   Komodo
797       Komodo is a proprietary IDE for Perl and several other dynamic
798       languages.  Starting in version 5.1.1, Komodo has built-in support for
799       Perl-Critic, if you have the Perl::Critic and criticism modules
800       installed.  Free trial copies of Komodo can be obtained from the
801       ActiveState website at <http://www.activestate.com>.
802
803   ActivePerl
804       ActivePerl includes a very slick graphical interface for configuring
805       and running Perl-Critic called "perlcritic-gui".  A free community
806       edition of ActivePerl can be obtained from the ActiveState website at
807       <http://www.activestate.com>.
808

EXIT STATUS

810       If "perlcritic" has any errors itself, exits with status == 1.  If
811       there are no errors, but "perlcritic" finds Policy violations in your
812       source code, exits with status == 2.  If there were no errors and no
813       violations were found, exits with status == 0.
814

THE Perl::Critic PHILOSOPHY

816           Coding standards are deeply personal and highly subjective.  The
817           goal of Perl::Critic is to help you write code that conforms with a
818           set of best practices.  Our primary goal is not to dictate what
819           those practices are, but rather, to implement the practices
820           discovered by others.  Ultimately, you make the rules --
821           Perl::Critic is merely a tool for encouraging consistency.  If
822           there is a policy that you think is important or that we have
823           overlooked, we would be very grateful for contributions, or you can
824           simply load your own private set of policies into Perl::Critic.
825

EXTENDING THE CRITIC

827       The modular design of Perl::Critic is intended to facilitate the
828       addition of new Policies.  You'll need to have some understanding of
829       PPI, but most Policy modules are pretty straightforward and only
830       require about 20 lines of code.  Please see the Perl::Critic::DEVELOPER
831       file included in this distribution for a step-by-step demonstration of
832       how to create new Policy modules.
833
834       If you develop any new Policy modules, feel free to send them to
835       "<team@perlcritic.com>" and I'll be happy to consider putting them into
836       the Perl::Critic distribution.  Or if you would like to work on the
837       Perl::Critic project directly, you can fork our repository at
838       <https://github.com/Perl-Critic/Perl-Critic.git>.
839
840       The Perl::Critic team is also available for hire.  If your organization
841       has its own coding standards, we can create custom Policies to enforce
842       your local guidelines.  Or if your code base is prone to a particular
843       defect pattern, we can design Policies that will help you catch those
844       costly defects before they go into production. To discuss your needs
845       with the Perl::Critic team, just contact "<team@perlcritic.com>".
846

CONTACTING THE DEVELOPMENT TEAM

848       You are encouraged to subscribe to the mailing list at
849       <https://groups.google.com/d/forum/perl-critic>.  At least one member
850       of the development team is usually hanging around in
851       <irc://irc.perl.org/#perlcritic> and you can follow Perl::Critic on
852       Twitter, at <https://twitter.com/perlcritic>.
853

SEE ALSO

855       There are a number of distributions of additional Policies available. A
856       few are listed here:
857
858       Perl::Critic::More
859
860       Perl::Critic::Bangs
861
862       Perl::Critic::Lax
863
864       Perl::Critic::StricterSubs
865
866       Perl::Critic::Swift
867
868       Perl::Critic::Tics
869
870       These distributions enable you to use Perl::Critic in your unit tests:
871
872       Test::Perl::Critic
873
874       Test::Perl::Critic::Progressive
875
876       There is also a distribution that will install all the Perl::Critic
877       related modules known to the development team:
878
879       Task::Perl::Critic
880

BUGS

882       Scrutinizing Perl code is hard for humans, let alone machines.  If you
883       find any bugs, particularly false-positives or false-negatives from a
884       Perl::Critic::Policy, please submit them at
885       <https://github.com/Perl-Critic/Perl-Critic/issues>.  Thanks.
886

CREDITS

888       Adam Kennedy - For creating PPI, the heart and soul of Perl::Critic.
889
890       Damian Conway - For writing Perl Best Practices, finally :)
891
892       Chris Dolan - For contributing the best features and Policy modules.
893
894       Andy Lester - Wise sage and master of all-things-testing.
895
896       Elliot Shank - The self-proclaimed quality freak.
897
898       Giuseppe Maxia - For all the great ideas and positive encouragement.
899
900       and Sharon, my wife - For putting up with my all-night code sessions.
901
902       Thanks also to the Perl Foundation for providing a grant to support
903       Chris Dolan's project to implement twenty PBP policies.
904       <http://www.perlfoundation.org/april_1_2007_new_grant_awards>
905

AUTHOR

907       Jeffrey Ryan Thalhammer <jeff@imaginative-software.com>
908
910       Copyright (c) 2005-2011 Imaginative Software Systems.  All rights
911       reserved.
912
913       This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it
914       under the same terms as Perl itself.  The full text of this license can
915       be found in the LICENSE file included with this module.
916
917
918
919perl v5.32.1                      2021-03-24                     PERLCRITIC(1)
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