# Ide Management

> Use when creating, listing, opening, deleting, or managing Cloud IDEs, or checking IDE hibernation status, changing PHP version in IDE, or sharing an IDE with teammates.

- Skill: `acquia/ide-management` (Agent Skill)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add acquia/ide-management`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/acquia/ide-management/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: DevOps & Infra
- License: Proprietary
- Author: acquia (https://skillmd.com/u/acquia)
- Updated: 2026-09-17
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/acquia/ide-management

---


# Managing Cloud IDEs

> **Platform:** This skill applies to **ACE (Acquia Cloud Enterprise)** subscriptions only.

Use when:
- Creating, opening, or sharing a Cloud IDE
- Deleting or listing Cloud IDEs
- Configuring IDE services or checking hibernation status

## What is a Cloud IDE?

A Cloud IDE is a complete Drupal development environment that includes:

- **Theia IDE** — Web-based code editor (VS Code-like interface)
- **Apache & PHP** — Full Drupal web server
- **MySQL Database** — Development database
- **Drush** — Drupal command-line tool
- **Composer** — PHP dependency manager
- **Git** — Version control

**Hibernation:** IDEs automatically enter hibernation after 2 hours of inactivity, consuming minimal resources. They wake automatically when you access them.

---

## List Your IDEs

### See all IDEs for a given application

```bash
acli ide:list 2>/dev/null | grep -v "is available\|self-update"
acli ide:list:app <applicationUuid> 2>/dev/null | grep -v "is available\|self-update"
acli ide:list:app myapp 2>/dev/null | grep -v "is available\|self-update"
```

Output:
```
Select a Cloud Platform application:
  [0] My App (prod, staging, dev)
  [1] Other App (prod, staging)

IDEs for My App:
  My IDE (another.user@example.com)
    Web URL: https://ide-12345.ides.acquia.com
    IDE URL: https://ide-12345.web.ahdev.cloud
    Created: 2024-01-15

Other IDE (another.user@example.com)
    Web URL: https://ide-67890.ides.acquia.com
    IDE URL: https://ide-67890.web.ahdev.cloud
    Created: 2024-02-20
```

### List IDEs belonging to you (across all applications)

```bash
acli ide:list:mine 2>/dev/null | grep -v "is available\|self-update"
```

Shows only IDEs you personally own across all applications.

---

## Create a New IDE

### Interactive Wizard

```bash
acli ide:create 2>/dev/null
```

Prompts you step-by-step:

```
? Do you want to link a local project? (Yes/No)
? Select a Cloud Platform application: [0] My App
? Enter a label for your IDE: (optional, default shows your name)
? Creating your Cloud IDE...
✓ IDE created successfully!

Your IDE is ready at: https://ide-12345.ides.acquia.com
```

### Scripted (non-interactive)

```bash
# Create IDE for specific application
acli ide:create --application=abc123-def456 --label="My IDE" 2>/dev/null

# Fastest option - uses defaults if possible
acli ide:create --application=abc123-def456 2>/dev/null
```

### What happens after creation?

1. **IDE provisioning** (~2-3 minutes)
2. Theia loads with your codebase
3. Databases are cloned from your application
4. Development environment is ready

---

## Open an IDE in Your Browser

### Open directly

```bash
acli ide:open 2>/dev/null
```

Prompts which IDE if you have multiple.

### With application context

```bash
acli ide:open --application=abc123 2>/dev/null
```

### Get just the URL

```bash
acli ide:info 2>/dev/null
```

Shows the IDE URL and details.

---

## Get IDE Information

```bash
acli ide:info 2>/dev/null
```

Output:
```
IDE: My IDE
  Application: My App (abc123-def456)
  Owner: another.user@example.com
  Label: My IDE
  Created: 2024-01-15
  Last Activity: 2024-02-20 14:23:00
  Status: Running
  Web URL: https://ide-12345.web.ahdev.cloud
  IDE URL: https://ide-12345.ides.acquia.com
```

---

## Delete an IDE

### Delete with confirmation

```bash
acli ide:delete 2>/dev/null
```

Prompts for confirmation:

```
? Select the IDE you want to delete: [0] My IDE
? Delete "My IDE"? This cannot be undone. (yes/no)
Deleting IDE...
✓ IDE deleted successfully.
```

### Delete non-interactively

```bash
acli ide:delete --ide=12345 2>/dev/null
```

**Note:** This is permanent and cannot be undone. Make sure to push any uncommitted code to Git!

## Share an IDE with Teammates

### Get the share URL

```bash
acli ide:share
```

Prints the share URL for your IDE:

```
Share URL: https://ide-12345.ides.acquia.com?share_token=abc123xyz
```

### Regenerate the share token

```bash
acli ide:share --regenerate
```

Invalidates the old token and prints a new share URL.

### Access shared IDE

Your teammate clicks the share URL and gets temporary read access. They don't need their own IDE or application access.

---

## Configure & Manage IDE Services

### Change PHP version

```bash
acli ide:php-version <version>
```

Example:

```bash
acli ide:php-version 8.2
acli ide:php-version 8.1
```

Validates the version exists on the system, updates the config, and restarts php-fpm automatically.

### Manage IDE Services

Valid service names: `php`, `php-fpm`, `apache`, `apache2`, `mysql`, `mysqld`

```bash
# Start a service
acli ide:service-start apache
acli ide:service-start mysql

# Stop a service
acli ide:service-stop apache

# Restart a service
acli ide:service-restart php
acli ide:service-restart apache
acli ide:service-restart mysql
```

### Toggle Xdebug

```bash
acli ide:xdebug-toggle
```

Checks the current state and switches it — enables if disabled, disables if enabled. Alias: `xdebug`.

---

## Hibernation

IDEs automatically hibernate after **2 hours of inactivity** and wake automatically when accessed (1–2 minute startup). Hibernated IDEs consume minimal resources.

To check status or get URLs:

```bash
acli ide:info 2>/dev/null
```

To wake a hibernated IDE, simply open it:

```bash
acli ide:open
```

The IDE will wake automatically. If stuck, try restarting services:

```bash
acli ide:service-restart apache
acli ide:service-restart php
```

---

## Best Practices

### 1. One IDE per Feature Branch

Create a new IDE for each feature you're working on:

```bash
acli ide:create --label="Feature: New Homepage" 2>/dev/null
```

This keeps work isolated and makes it easy to switch between tasks.

### 2. Delete Idle IDEs

Remove IDEs you're no longer using to keep your account clean:

```bash
acli ide:delete 2>/dev/null
```

### 3. Use IDE Labels Wisely

Choose descriptive labels:

```bash
# ✓ Good
acli ide:create --label="Feature: ACN Migration" 2>/dev/null
acli ide:create --label="Bug Fix: Login Form Issue" 2>/dev/null
acli ide:create --label="Client: Acme Corp Review" 2>/dev/null

# ✗ Bad
acli ide:create --label="IDE 1" 2>/dev/null
acli ide:create --label="Test" 2>/dev/null
```

### 4. Push Code Regularly

Your IDE has Git access. Push to your repository frequently.

### 5. Monitor Resources

Large IDEs use more resources. Check your Acquia Cloud dashboard if you hit limits.

---

## Troubleshooting

### IDE won't start / stuck loading

Delete and recreate the IDE:

```bash
acli ide:delete 2>/dev/null
acli ide:create 2>/dev/null
```

### "Access Denied" error

You might not have permission to the application. Verify:

```bash
acli api:applications:list 2>/dev/null
```

### IDE is very slow

This is often due to hibernation waking (wait 30–60 seconds) or a large codebase. If it persists, recreate the IDE:

```bash
acli ide:create 2>/dev/null
```

### Can't SSH into IDE

Set up SSH keys first:

```bash
acli ssh-key:list 2>/dev/null

# If no keys, create one
acli ssh-key:create 2>/dev/null
```

---

## Related Topics

- **[SSH Key Management](../ssh-key-management/SKILL.md)** — Set up secure SSH access
- **[Troubleshooting](../troubleshooting/SKILL.md)**