Excluding files from your project analysis based on path-matching patterns

You can adjust your project's initial analysis scope by excluding files based on path-matching patterns. To exclude the files, you define file exclusion parameters based on directory and file name patterns.

You can perform the setup in SonarQube UI (this requires that you have the project's Administer permission) or on the CI/CD host. A parameter set on the CI/CD host has precedence over any UI setting of the same parameter.

Example of an initial scope adjustment

We consider the following repository example where test files are contained in both test/ directories. Source and test code files are contained in the same ancestor directory: src/ which is chosen as the initial analysis scope for both source and test code. Therefore, a scope adjustment is necessary.

We adjust the initial scope as follows:

• For source files: by defining an exclusion parameter with the pattern src/**/test/**/*

• For test files: by defining an inclusion parameter with the pattern src/**/test/**/*

Principles governing the use of file exclusion parameters

A file exclusion parameter:

• Applies either to source code (also called main code) or to test code files.
  The SonarScanner must identify the source code as well as the test code since they are processed differently by SonarQube. A code file is either a source or a test code; it cannot be both (If this is the case, the scanner will fail the analysis with an error message.).
• Contains:
  • Either exclusion patterns: to define files to be excluded from the analysis scope.
  • Or inclusion patterns: to define files to be included in the scope.
    It means that the rest of the files is excluded from the analysis scope.

For a given code category (source or test), we strongly recommend that you use either exclusion-pattern or inclusion-pattern parameters, depending on what is simpler in your situation (If you do not and there is an overlapping, then exclusion patterns have precedence over inclusion patterns.). 

The following applies:

• The parameter defined at the project level will override the same parameter defined at the organization level.
  For example, if the organization administrator defines the exclusion pattern for source code  src/**/test1/**/* at the organization level, then, if the project administrator sets the exclusion pattern for source code  src/**/test2/**/*  for their project, the scanner will consider only the pattern  src/**/test2/**/*  to compute source file exclusion.
• If test file inclusion patterns are used, the scanner will automatically set these patterns as source file exclusion patterns during project analysis. These source file exclusion patterns will apply in addition to the other configured source file exclusion patterns.
  For example:
  • If the exclusion pattern for source code is src/**/test5/**/* and the inclusion pattern for test code is src/**/test6/**/*
  • Then the scanner will consider both patterns to compute the source file exclusion:
    src/**/test5/**/* and src/**/test6/**/*.

Defining a file exclusion parameter in the UI

1. Retrieve the project you want to configure.
2. Go to Administration > General Settings > Analysis Scope. 
3. In Files, choose the parameter to configure (source or test code; exclusion or inclusion patterns), and enter and save the first pattern. See Defining matching patterns for files.
4. Add additional patterns to the parameter if necessary.
5. Define other parameters if necessary. Make sure you use either Source File Exclusions or Source File Inclusions, and either Test File Exclusions or Test File Inclusions.

Defining a file exclusion parameter on the CI/CD host

The table below lists the properties you can use to define a file exclusion parameter by setting sonar properties on CI/CD host. For more information, see Analysis parameters.

Related pages

• Setting the initial analysis scope of your project
• Excluding specific files from your project's code coverage analysis or duplication check
• Excluding files from your project analysis based on path-matching patterns
• Excluding files from your project analysis based on file extension
• Applying advanced exclusions to your project analysis
• Performing other analysis scope adjustments
• Verifying the analysis scope of your project
• Adjusting the analysis scope at the organization level