How to capture console output of Eclipse plugin with custom Launch Configuration?

Question

I'm writing an Eclipse plugin with a custom launch configuration, i.e. a launch() method inside a subclass of LaunchConfigurationDelegate. This method essentially just calls Runtime.exec(), but when I write to System.out from within launch() it goes to the console of the Eclipse instance which is debugging the plugin, rather than to the console of the plugin instance itself. I've analysed the ILaunchConfiguration and ILaunch arguments to the method but cannot find anywhere that they specify any output/error streams I can write to.

As is recommended in the tutorials, I have 2 separate plugins running together; one which handles the UI stuff (LaunchConfigurationTab,LaunchConfigurationTabGroup,LaunchShortcut,) and the other which contains the LaunchConfigurationDelegate itself.

I created a console in my UI plugin using this code, and I can write to it fine from within the UI code. But I cannot figure out how to direct output generated in my non-UI plugin to the console created in my UI plugin.

I've read this post and this one, but they do not specify how to "get ahold" of the output which is generated within the launch() method in the first place.

Any pointers would be really welcome, I am stuck!

score 2 · Accepted Answer · answered Sep 28 '11 at 16:02

Well I finally managed to get something working as follows:

In my LaunchConfigurationDelegate I introduced the following static method:

public static void setConsole(PrintStream ps) {
    System.setOut(ps);
    System.setErr(ps);
}

Then when creating my console in my UI plugin's PerspectiveFactory I call it as follows:

private void createConsole() {
    console = new MessageConsole("My Console", null);
    console.activate();
    ConsolePlugin.getDefault().getConsoleManager().addConsoles(new IConsole[]{ console });
    MessageConsoleStream stream = console.newMessageStream();

    MyLaunchConfigurationDelegate.setConsole(new PrintStream(stream));
}

This works, except everytime I close down Eclipse and restart it the console disappears. However when I reset my perspective, the console appears again. So obviously I need that code to be called on startup, not in the PerspectiveFactory itself.

Hope this helps someone.. and if anybody has some input for this last problem (or about my approach in general) please do comment!

How to capture console output of Eclipse plugin with custom Launch Configuration?

1 Answers1