Cognitive Complexity

Cognitive Complexity is a measure of how difficult a unit of code is to intuitively understand. Unlike Cyclomatic Complexity, which determines how difficult your code will be to test, Cognitive Complexity tells you how difficult your code will be to read and comprehend.

A method's cognitive complexity is based on a few simple rules:

• Code is not considered more complex when it uses shorthand that the language provides for collapsing multiple statements into one
• Code is considered more complex for each "break in the linear flow of the code"
• Code is considered more complex when "flow breaking structures are nested"

Further reading

• Cognitive Complexity docs
• Cognitive Complexity: A new way of measuring understandability

This cop identifies the use of a &block parameter and block.call where yield would do just as well.

Example:

# bad
def method(&block)
  block.call
end
def another(&func)
  func.call 1, 2, 3
end

# good
def method
  yield
end
def another
  yield 1, 2, 3
end

This cop checks that the closing brace in a method call is either on the same line as the last method argument, or a new line.

When using the symmetrical (default) style:

If a method call's opening brace is on the same line as the first argument of the call, then the closing brace should be on the same line as the last argument of the call.

If an method call's opening brace is on the line above the first argument of the call, then the closing brace should be on the line below the last argument of the call.

When using the new_line style:

The closing brace of a multi-line method call must be on the line after the last argument of the call.

When using the same_line style:

The closing brace of a multi-line method call must be on the same line as the last argument of the call.

Example:

# symmetrical: bad
  # new_line: good
  # same_line: bad
  foo(a,
    b
  )

  # symmetrical: bad
  # new_line: bad
  # same_line: good
  foo(
    a,
    b)

  # symmetrical: good
  # new_line: bad
  # same_line: good
  foo(a,
    b)

  # symmetrical: good
  # new_line: good
  # same_line: bad
  foo(
    a,
    b
  )

This cop enforces the use of either #alias or #alias_method depending on configuration. It also flags uses of alias :symbol rather than alias bareword.

Example: EnforcedStyle: prefer_alias (default)

# bad
alias_method :bar, :foo
alias :bar :foo

# good
alias bar foo

Example: EnforcedStyle: preferaliasmethod

# bad
alias :bar :foo
alias bar foo

# good
alias_method :bar, :foo

This cop enforces the use of either #alias or #alias_method depending on configuration. It also flags uses of alias :symbol rather than alias bareword.

Example: EnforcedStyle: prefer_alias (default)

# bad
alias_method :bar, :foo
alias :bar :foo

# good
alias bar foo

Example: EnforcedStyle: preferaliasmethod

# bad
alias :bar :foo
alias bar foo

# good
alias_method :bar, :foo

Checks for simple usages of parallel assignment. This will only complain when the number of variables being assigned matched the number of assigning variables.

Example:

# bad
a, b, c = 1, 2, 3
a, b, c = [1, 2, 3]

# good
one, two = *foo
a, b = foo()
a, b = b, a

a = 1
b = 2
c = 3

This cop can check for array literals made up of symbols that are not using the %i() syntax.

Alternatively, it checks for symbol arrays using the %i() syntax on projects which do not want to use that syntax.

Configuration option: MinSize If set, arrays with fewer elements than this value will not trigger the cop. For example, a MinSize of3` will not enforce a style on an array of 2 or fewer elements.

Example: EnforcedStyle: percent (default)

# good
%i[foo bar baz]

# bad
[:foo, :bar, :baz]

Example: EnforcedStyle: brackets

# good
[:foo, :bar, :baz]

# bad
%i[foo bar baz]

This cop enforces the use of either #alias or #alias_method depending on configuration. It also flags uses of alias :symbol rather than alias bareword.

Example: EnforcedStyle: prefer_alias (default)

# bad
alias_method :bar, :foo
alias :bar :foo

# good
alias bar foo

Example: EnforcedStyle: preferaliasmethod

# bad
alias :bar :foo
alias bar foo

# good
alias_method :bar, :foo

This cop enforces the use of either #alias or #alias_method depending on configuration. It also flags uses of alias :symbol rather than alias bareword.

Example: EnforcedStyle: prefer_alias (default)

# bad
alias_method :bar, :foo
alias :bar :foo

# good
alias bar foo

Example: EnforcedStyle: preferaliasmethod

# bad
alias :bar :foo
alias bar foo

# good
alias_method :bar, :foo

This cop enforces the use of either #alias or #alias_method depending on configuration. It also flags uses of alias :symbol rather than alias bareword.

Example: EnforcedStyle: prefer_alias (default)

# bad
alias_method :bar, :foo
alias :bar :foo

# good
alias bar foo

Example: EnforcedStyle: preferaliasmethod

# bad
alias :bar :foo
alias bar foo

# good
alias_method :bar, :foo

This cop can check for array literals made up of symbols that are not using the %i() syntax.

Alternatively, it checks for symbol arrays using the %i() syntax on projects which do not want to use that syntax.

Configuration option: MinSize If set, arrays with fewer elements than this value will not trigger the cop. For example, a MinSize of3` will not enforce a style on an array of 2 or fewer elements.

Example: EnforcedStyle: percent (default)

# good
%i[foo bar baz]

# bad
[:foo, :bar, :baz]

Example: EnforcedStyle: brackets

# good
[:foo, :bar, :baz]

# bad
%i[foo bar baz]

Checks for a newline after the final magic comment.

Example:

# good
# frozen_string_literal: true

# Some documentation for Person
class Person
  # Some code
end

# bad
# frozen_string_literal: true
# Some documentation for Person
class Person
  # Some code
end

This cop can check for array literals made up of symbols that are not using the %i() syntax.

Alternatively, it checks for symbol arrays using the %i() syntax on projects which do not want to use that syntax.

Configuration option: MinSize If set, arrays with fewer elements than this value will not trigger the cop. For example, a MinSize of3` will not enforce a style on an array of 2 or fewer elements.

Example: EnforcedStyle: percent (default)

# good
%i[foo bar baz]

# bad
[:foo, :bar, :baz]

Example: EnforcedStyle: brackets

# good
[:foo, :bar, :baz]

# bad
%i[foo bar baz]

This cop checks whether some constant value isn't a mutable literal (e.g. array or hash).

Example:

# bad
CONST = [1, 2, 3]

# good
CONST = [1, 2, 3].freeze

This cop checks for redundant access modifiers, including those with no code, those which are repeated, and leading public modifiers in a class or module body. Conditionally-defined methods are considered as always being defined, and thus access modifiers guarding such methods are not redundant.

Example:

class Foo
  public # this is redundant (default access is public)

  def method
  end

  private # this is not redundant (a method is defined)
  def method2
  end

  private # this is redundant (no following methods are defined)
end

Example:

class Foo
  # The following is not redundant (conditionally defined methods are
  # considered as always defining a method)
  private

  if condition?
    def method
    end
  end

  protected # this is not redundant (method is defined)

  define_method(:method2) do
  end

  protected # this is redundant (repeated from previous modifier)

  [1,2,3].each do |i|
    define_method("foo#{i}") do
    end
  end

  # The following is redundant (methods defined on the class'
  # singleton class are not affected by the public modifier)
  public

  def self.method3
  end
end

Example:

# Lint/UselessAccessModifier:
#   ContextCreatingMethods:
#     - concerning
require 'active_support/concern'
class Foo
  concerning :Bar do
    def some_public_method
    end

    private

    def some_private_method
    end
  end

  # this is not redundant because `concerning` created its own context
  private

  def some_other_private_method
  end
end

Example:

# Lint/UselessAccessModifier:
#   MethodCreatingMethods:
#     - delegate
require 'active_support/core_ext/module/delegation'
class Foo
  # this is not redundant because `delegate` creates methods
  private

  delegate :method_a, to: :method_b
end

This cop checks whether some constant value isn't a mutable literal (e.g. array or hash).

Example:

# bad
CONST = [1, 2, 3]

# good
CONST = [1, 2, 3].freeze

This cop checks whether some constant value isn't a mutable literal (e.g. array or hash).

Example:

# bad
CONST = [1, 2, 3]

# good
CONST = [1, 2, 3].freeze

This cop enforces the use of either #alias or #alias_method depending on configuration. It also flags uses of alias :symbol rather than alias bareword.

Example: EnforcedStyle: prefer_alias (default)

# bad
alias_method :bar, :foo
alias :bar :foo

# good
alias bar foo

Example: EnforcedStyle: preferaliasmethod

# bad
alias :bar :foo
alias bar foo

# good
alias_method :bar, :foo