Tslint: Formatters don't do anything

[gotofritz]

Bug Report

• __TSLint version__: 4.4.1
• __TypeScript version__: 2.1.6
• __Running TSLint via__: both angular-cli and node_modules/tslint/bin/tslint using tslint.json and tsconfig.json

I run the command with

node_modules/tslint/bin/tslint --config ./tslint.json --project ./src/tsconfig.json

Expected behavior

I am trying to use the verbose formatter (crazy that it's not the default one, why would people NOT want to know the rule name, anyway). I have no idea where to put that information and what the key should be called (format? formatter? something else?)

Tried both formatter / format in the examples below. Also tried adding it to tslint.json. It is simply ignored.

{
  "format": "verbose",
  "compilerOptions": {
    "baseUrl": "",
    "declaration": false,
    "emitDecoratorMetadata": true,
    "experimentalDecorators": true,
    "lib": ["es6", "dom"],
    "mapRoot": "./",
    "module": "es6",
    "moduleResolution": "node",
    "outDir": "../dist/out-tsc",
    "sourceMap": true,
    "target": "es5",
    "typeRoots": [
      "../node_modules/@types"
    ]
  }
}

{
  "compilerOptions": {
    "baseUrl": "",
    "declaration": false,
    "emitDecoratorMetadata": true,
    "experimentalDecorators": true,
    "format": "verbose",
    "lib": ["es6", "dom"],
    "mapRoot": "./",
    "module": "es6",
    "moduleResolution": "node",
    "outDir": "../dist/out-tsc",
    "sourceMap": true,
    "target": "es5",
    "typeRoots": [
      "../node_modules/@types"
    ]
  }
}

Any hints?

[gotofritz]

If I run it with

node_modules/tslint/bin/tslint --config ./tslint.json --project ./src/tsconfig.json -t verbose

then it works. So it's simply a matter of telling us how to do it, since the documentation lacks that information.

[ajafff]

What you pasted above is your tsconfig.json, not your tslint.json...

However, you pass the formatter on the command line as described in the docs:

-t, --format          output format (prose, json, stylish, verbose, pmd, msbuild, checkstyle, vso, fileslist)  [default: "prose"]`

so for your example it would be this: node_modules/.bin/tslint -c ./tslint.json -t verbose --project ./src/tsconfig.json

[ajafff]

Regarding your docs request, there are several sources that state exactly what you are searching for:

https://github.com/palantir/tslint#cli-1
https://palantir.github.io/tslint/usage/cli/
tslint --help

[gotofritz]

Are you saying that formatters can only be changed by passing arguments on the command line, and not by adding them to the config files?

[ajafff]

By looking at the tslint.json docs I would say it is currently not possible to configure the formatter or the formatterDirectory in tslint.json.

[gotofritz]

You keep mentioning tslint.json, but I was under the impression the tslint options are in tsconfig.json, this is what I have been trying to work with. Sadly there doesn't seem to be any documentation for that

[adidahiya]

@gotofritz not sure how we can make that any clearer. it is the second section in the README. https://github.com/palantir/tslint#usage

[gotofritz]

In the second section in the README it says tslint.json is used to configure the rules. Yet there are a lot of rules in the tsconfig.json too - sourceMaps, target, etc. It's absolutely not clear why some options are in one file and some in the other. In fact I didn't see the tsconfig.json options listed anywhere, I only know of it because angular-cli generates it.

[brettjacobson]

@gotofritz tsconfig.json controls the TypeScript compiler; BUT tslint will also use part of tsconfig.json when you use --project option to define which files should be linted (instead of passing every filename on the command line). Its just a shortcut to identifying the files to be linted, and thats the only thing tslint pulls from tsconfig.json. Only the "files" option from that file is used, as documented at http://www.typescriptlang.org/docs/handbook/tsconfig-json.html

Every other setting needs to control tslint must be in the tslint.json file.

But I would agree that more options that are only on the command line should be able to be specified in tslint.json, especially the formatter. I believe typically tools similar to this allow options to be set in a settings json file, and then can be overridden on the command line.

[gotofritz]

Great, I finally understand how it all fits together, thanks.

[rifler]

is there a way to set formatter in tslint.json instead of cli?