The document discusses how IntelliJ IDEA provides helpful features for developing Mule applications using XML configuration files. Mule 2 configurations are defined using XML schemas that specify allowed elements and attributes. IntelliJ leverages these schemas to provide auto-complete suggestions and context help when editing Mule XML files. This assists developers in properly configuring elements and attributes without needing to consult separate documentation.

1. Mule IntelliJ Tips

2. • As some may know, we have been working on our open source Mule
IDE based on Eclipse. However, with the schema-based configuration
in Mule, IntelliJ IDEA users get some great features to help them build
mule applications quicker too.

3. Quick Introduction
• Mule 2 XML configurations are defined in schemas. For every module
and transport in Mule there is a schema that defines the
configuration elements that can be used. For example the following
defines the Mule schema (default namespace), the VM transport and
the Quartz connector:

4. • <?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
• <mule xmlns="http://www.mulesource.org/schema/mule/core/2.0"
• xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"
• xmlns:vm="http://www.mulesource.org/schema/mule/vm/2.0"
• xmlns:quartz="http://www.mulesource.org/schema/mule/quartz/2.0"
• xsi:schemaLocation="
• http://www.mulesource.org/schema/mule/quartz/2.0
http://www.mulesource.org/schema/mule/quartz/2.0/mule-quartz.xsd
• http://www.mulesource.org/schema/mule/vm/2.0
http://www.mulesource.org/schema/mule/vm/2.0/mule-vm.xsd
• http://www.mulesource.org/schema/mule/core/2.0
http://www.mulesource.org/schema/mule/core/2.0/mule.xsd">
• </mule>

5. • Essentially the schemas in Mule 2 provide an XML Domain Specific
Language (DSL) for constructing integrations and service
compositions. The benefits of this approach over the Mule 1.x
approach is that:

6. • there no longer class names in XML configuration files (unless you
are plugging in a custom implementation)
• all available attributes for a configuration element are provided in
the schema and which gives you auto-complete in many Xml editors.
Previously, developers had to look at the documentation or JavaDoc
to figure out what properties to set
• required elements and attributes are validated and enforced by the
schema
• attributes are typed making validation more robust

7. When editing a Mule Xml in IntelliJ IDEA, you will
get full code-complete for the modules imported
into your XML file:

8. While you are filling out the details of your
connector you can quickly get help about the
attribute you are adding by hitting Ctrl+Q on OS X
and Windows. You will get context help on that
attribute.

9. The context help also works on configuration
elements:

10. 1. Mule Xml Configuration Template [m2]

11. 2. New Namespace [ns]

12. 3. New Schema Location [sl]