This cop checks if the length a class exceeds some maximum value. Comment lines can optionally be ignored. The maximum allowed length is configurable.

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 checks that the ABC size of methods is not higher than the configured maximum. The ABC size is based on assignments, branches (method calls), and conditions. See http://c2.com/cgi/wiki?AbcMetric

This cop tries to produce a complexity score that's a measure of the complexity the reader experiences when looking at a method. For that reason it considers when nodes as something that doesn't add as much complexity as an if or a &&. Except if it's one of those special case/when constructs where there's no expression after case. Then the cop treats it as an if/elsif/elsif... and lets all the when nodes count. In contrast to the CyclomaticComplexity cop, this cop considers else nodes as adding complexity.

Example:

def my_method                   # 1
  if cond                       # 1
    case var                    # 2 (0.8 + 4 * 0.2, rounded)
    when 1 then func_one
    when 2 then func_two
    when 3 then func_three
    when 4..10 then func_other
    end
  else                          # 1
    do_something until a && b   # 2
  end                           # ===
end                             # 7 complexity points

This cop checks that the cyclomatic complexity of methods is not higher than the configured maximum. The cyclomatic complexity is the number of linearly independent paths through a method. The algorithm counts decision points and adds one.

An if statement (or unless or ?:) increases the complexity by one. An else branch does not, since it doesn't add a decision point. The && operator (or keyword and) can be converted to a nested if statement, and ||/or is shorthand for a sequence of ifs, so they also add one. Loops can be said to have an exit condition, so they add one.

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

Checks for colon (:) not followed by some kind of space. N.B. this cop does not handle spaces after a ternary operator, which are instead handled by Layout/SpaceAroundOperators.

Example:

# bad
def f(a:, b:2); {a:3}; end

# good
def f(a:, b: 2); {a: 3}; end

Use a guard clause instead of wrapping the code inside a conditional expression

Example:

# bad
def test
  if something
    work
  end
end

# good
def test
  return unless something
  work
end

# also good
def test
  work if something
end

# bad
if something
  raise 'exception'
else
  ok
end

# good
raise 'exception' if something
ok

This cop checks for uses of fail and raise.

Example: EnforcedStyle: only_raise (default)

# The `only_raise` style enforces the sole use of `raise`.
# bad
begin
  fail
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

def watch_out
  fail
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

Kernel.fail

# good
begin
  raise
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

def watch_out
  raise
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

Kernel.raise

Example: EnforcedStyle: only_fail

# The `only_fail` style enforces the sole use of `fail`.
# bad
begin
  raise
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

def watch_out
  raise
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

Kernel.raise

# good
begin
  fail
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

def watch_out
  fail
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

Kernel.fail

Example: EnforcedStyle: semantic

# The `semantic` style enforces the use of `fail` to signal an
# exception, then will use `raise` to trigger an offense after
# it has been rescued.
# bad
begin
  raise
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

def watch_out
  # Error thrown
rescue Exception
  fail
end

Kernel.fail
Kernel.raise

# good
begin
  fail
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

def watch_out
  fail
rescue Exception
  raise 'Preferably with descriptive message'
end

explicit_receiver.fail
explicit_receiver.raise

This cop checks for uses of fail and raise.

Example: EnforcedStyle: only_raise (default)

# The `only_raise` style enforces the sole use of `raise`.
# bad
begin
  fail
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

def watch_out
  fail
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

Kernel.fail

# good
begin
  raise
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

def watch_out
  raise
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

Kernel.raise

Example: EnforcedStyle: only_fail

# The `only_fail` style enforces the sole use of `fail`.
# bad
begin
  raise
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

def watch_out
  raise
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

Kernel.raise

# good
begin
  fail
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

def watch_out
  fail
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

Kernel.fail

Example: EnforcedStyle: semantic

# The `semantic` style enforces the use of `fail` to signal an
# exception, then will use `raise` to trigger an offense after
# it has been rescued.
# bad
begin
  raise
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

def watch_out
  # Error thrown
rescue Exception
  fail
end

Kernel.fail
Kernel.raise

# good
begin
  fail
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

def watch_out
  fail
rescue Exception
  raise 'Preferably with descriptive message'
end

explicit_receiver.fail
explicit_receiver.raise

Checks for if and unless statements that would fit on one line if written as a modifier if/unless. The maximum line length is configured in the Metrics/LineLength cop.

Example:

# bad
if condition
  do_stuff(bar)
end

unless qux.empty?
  Foo.do_something
end

# good
do_stuff(bar) if condition
Foo.do_something unless qux.empty?

This cop checks for usage of comparison operators (==, >, <) to test numbers as zero, positive, or negative. These can be replaced by their respective predicate methods. The cop can also be configured to do the reverse.

The cop disregards #nonzero? as it its value is truthy or falsey, but not true and false, and thus not always interchangeable with != 0.

The cop ignores comparisons to global variables, since they are often populated with objects which can be compared with integers, but are not themselves Interger polymorphic.

Example: EnforcedStyle: predicate (default)

# bad

foo == 0
0 > foo
bar.baz > 0

# good

foo.zero?
foo.negative?
bar.baz.positive?

Example: EnforcedStyle: comparison

# bad

foo.zero?
foo.negative?
bar.baz.positive?

# good

foo == 0
0 > foo
bar.baz > 0

This cop checks for uses of fail and raise.

Example: EnforcedStyle: only_raise (default)

# The `only_raise` style enforces the sole use of `raise`.
# bad
begin
  fail
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

def watch_out
  fail
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

Kernel.fail

# good
begin
  raise
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

def watch_out
  raise
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

Kernel.raise

Example: EnforcedStyle: only_fail

# The `only_fail` style enforces the sole use of `fail`.
# bad
begin
  raise
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

def watch_out
  raise
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

Kernel.raise

# good
begin
  fail
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

def watch_out
  fail
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

Kernel.fail

Example: EnforcedStyle: semantic

# The `semantic` style enforces the use of `fail` to signal an
# exception, then will use `raise` to trigger an offense after
# it has been rescued.
# bad
begin
  raise
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

def watch_out
  # Error thrown
rescue Exception
  fail
end

Kernel.fail
Kernel.raise

# good
begin
  fail
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

def watch_out
  fail
rescue Exception
  raise 'Preferably with descriptive message'
end

explicit_receiver.fail
explicit_receiver.raise

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 checks for missing top-level documentation of classes and modules. Classes with no body are exempt from the check and so are namespace modules - modules that have nothing in their bodies except classes, other modules, or constant definitions.

The documentation requirement is annulled if the class or module has a "#:nodoc:" comment next to it. Likewise, "#:nodoc: all" does the same for all its children.

Example:

# bad
class Person
  # ...
end

# good
# Description/Explanation of Person class
class Person
  # ...
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

Checks for uses of if/unless modifiers with multiple-lines bodies.

Example:

# bad
{
  result: 'this should not happen'
} unless cond

# good
{ result: 'ok' } if cond

Checks for uses of if/unless modifiers with multiple-lines bodies.

Example:

# bad
{
  result: 'this should not happen'
} unless cond

# good
{ result: 'ok' } if cond

Use a guard clause instead of wrapping the code inside a conditional expression

Example:

# bad
def test
  if something
    work
  end
end

# good
def test
  return unless something
  work
end

# also good
def test
  work if something
end

# bad
if something
  raise 'exception'
else
  ok
end

# good
raise 'exception' if something
ok

This cop enforces using // or %r around regular expressions.

Example: EnforcedStyle: slashes (default)

# bad
snake_case = %r{^[\dA-Z_]+$}

# bad
regex = %r{
  foo
  (bar)
  (baz)
}x

# good
snake_case = /^[\dA-Z_]+$/

# good
regex = /
  foo
  (bar)
  (baz)
/x

Example: EnforcedStyle: percent_r

# bad
snake_case = /^[\dA-Z_]+$/

# bad
regex = /
  foo
  (bar)
  (baz)
/x

# good
snake_case = %r{^[\dA-Z_]+$}

# good
regex = %r{
  foo
  (bar)
  (baz)
}x

Example: EnforcedStyle: mixed

# bad
snake_case = %r{^[\dA-Z_]+$}

# bad
regex = /
  foo
  (bar)
  (baz)
/x

# good
snake_case = /^[\dA-Z_]+$/

# good
regex = %r{
  foo
  (bar)
  (baz)
}x

Example: AllowInnerSlashes: false (default)

# If `false`, the cop will always recommend using `%r` if one or more
# slashes are found in the regexp string.

# bad
x =~ /home\//

# good
x =~ %r{home/}

Example: AllowInnerSlashes: true

# good
x =~ /home\//

This cop checks for uses of fail and raise.

Example: EnforcedStyle: only_raise (default)

# The `only_raise` style enforces the sole use of `raise`.
# bad
begin
  fail
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

def watch_out
  fail
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

Kernel.fail

# good
begin
  raise
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

def watch_out
  raise
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

Kernel.raise

Example: EnforcedStyle: only_fail

# The `only_fail` style enforces the sole use of `fail`.
# bad
begin
  raise
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

def watch_out
  raise
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

Kernel.raise

# good
begin
  fail
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

def watch_out
  fail
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

Kernel.fail

Example: EnforcedStyle: semantic

# The `semantic` style enforces the use of `fail` to signal an
# exception, then will use `raise` to trigger an offense after
# it has been rescued.
# bad
begin
  raise
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

def watch_out
  # Error thrown
rescue Exception
  fail
end

Kernel.fail
Kernel.raise

# good
begin
  fail
rescue Exception
  # handle it
end

def watch_out
  fail
rescue Exception
  raise 'Preferably with descriptive message'
end

explicit_receiver.fail
explicit_receiver.raise

Checks for colon (:) not followed by some kind of space. N.B. this cop does not handle spaces after a ternary operator, which are instead handled by Layout/SpaceAroundOperators.

Example:

# bad
def f(a:, b:2); {a:3}; end

# good
def f(a:, b: 2); {a: 3}; end

If the else branch of a conditional consists solely of an if node, it can be combined with the else to become an elsif. This helps to keep the nesting level from getting too deep.

Example:

# bad
if condition_a
  action_a
else
  if condition_b
    action_b
  else
    action_c
  end
end

# good
if condition_a
  action_a
elsif condition_b
  action_b
else
  action_c
end

Checks for colon (:) not followed by some kind of space. N.B. this cop does not handle spaces after a ternary operator, which are instead handled by Layout/SpaceAroundOperators.

Example:

# bad
def f(a:, b:2); {a:3}; end

# good
def f(a:, b: 2); {a: 3}; end

Use a guard clause instead of wrapping the code inside a conditional expression

Example:

# bad
def test
  if something
    work
  end
end

# good
def test
  return unless something
  work
end

# also good
def test
  work if something
end

# bad
if something
  raise 'exception'
else
  ok
end

# good
raise 'exception' if something
ok