Interpretation of the eclipse.classpath file. What does "kind =" con "and" exported = "true mean?"

Question

This is the eclipse .classpath file of the eclipse .classpath program that I downloaded.

I think that kind="src" and kind="output" pretty straight forward, as they mean where the source java files and compiled class files are located.

It seems that kind="lib" indicates the jar files that the plugin refers to, but I have something I'm not sure about.

• What does kind="con" mean?
• What is exported="true" ? I think in order to use this plugin, all the jar files referenced by the plugin must be exported, but only some of them are exported.

Answer 1

1) In kind="con" , con denotes a container that is interpreted by eclipse as a classpath container . As described in this link:

A class class container provides a way to indirectly reference a classpath record set through a classpath entry of type CPE_CONTAINER

In other words, it allows you to group other entries in the classpath in any way and reuse it everywhere (including the ability to have different entries for different projects).

2) exported : Let's say you have Project B , which depends on Project C A dependency is defined as exported=true . Then another Project A , which depends on Project B , will also have Project C present on the A 'class path.

Answer 2

• kind = "con" indicate classpath containers
• exported = true exports the dependency, which means that any project that has a dependency on your project can see and access the exported dependent conditions.