JetBrains/intellij-community · error · IncorrectOperationException

psi.error.attempt.to.edit.class.file

psi.error.attempt.to.edit.class.file

Error message

Cannot modify compiled element in file ''{0}''

What it means

PsiJavaModuleReferenceImpl.handleElementRename rewrites a 'requires' module name inside module-info.java. When the reference element belongs to a compiled module descriptor (module-info.class read from a jar), there is no writable source to edit, so it throws IncorrectOperationException with the localized key psi.error.attempt.to.edit.class.file, including the containing (class) file.

Source

Thrown at java/java-psi-impl/src/com/intellij/psi/impl/source/PsiJavaModuleReferenceImpl.java:51

  public @NotNull String getCanonicalText() {
    return getElement().getReferenceText();
  }

  @Override
  public PsiJavaModule resolve() {
    return (PsiJavaModule)super.resolve();
  }

  @Override
  public ResolveResult @NotNull [] multiResolve(boolean incompleteCode) {
    return ResolveCache.getInstance(getProject()).resolveWithCaching(this, Resolver.INSTANCE, false, incompleteCode);
  }

  @Override
  public PsiElement handleElementRename(@NotNull String newName) throws IncorrectOperationException {
    PsiJavaModuleReferenceElement element = getElement();
    if (element instanceof PsiCompiledElement) {
      throw new IncorrectOperationException(JavaPsiBundle.message("psi.error.attempt.to.edit.class.file", element.getContainingFile()));
    }
    PsiElement newElement = PsiElementFactory.getInstance(element.getProject()).createModuleReferenceFromText(newName, null);
    return element.replace(newElement);
  }

  private Project getProject() {
    return getElement().getProject();
  }

  private static class Resolver implements ResolveCache.PolyVariantResolver<PsiJavaModuleReferenceImpl> {
    private static final ResolveCache.PolyVariantResolver<PsiJavaModuleReferenceImpl> INSTANCE = new Resolver();

    @Override
    public ResolveResult @NotNull [] resolve(@NotNull PsiJavaModuleReferenceImpl reference, boolean incompleteCode) {
      PsiJavaModuleReferenceElement refElement = reference.getElement();
      PsiFile file = refElement.getContainingFile();
      String moduleName = reference.getCanonicalText();

View on GitHub (pinned to be881553f2)

Solutions

1. Check element instanceof PsiCompiledElement before rename; if compiled, navigate to source (attach library sources or find the source module-info.java) and rename there.
2. Attach sources for the jar (Library properties -> Sources tab) so the reference resolves to editable source PSI.
3. If the module is third-party, rename the reference in your own code (requires statement) instead of renaming the module itself.

Example fix

// before
moduleRef.handleElementRename(newName); // module-info.class in jar -> throws

// after
PsiElement elem = moduleRef.getElement();
if (elem instanceof PsiCompiledElement) {
  // cannot edit bytecode: attach sources or rename the reference usage instead
} else {
  moduleRef.handleElementRename(newName);
}

if (moduleRef.getElement() instanceof PsiCompiledElement) return; // bytecode not editable

static boolean isEditableModuleRef(PsiJavaModuleReference r) { return !(r.getElement() instanceof PsiCompiledElement); }

try { moduleRef.handleElementRename(n); } catch (IncorrectOperationException e) { /* attach sources or edit own code */ }

When it happens

Trigger: Renaming a Java module whose module-info is only available as bytecode: the reference element is a PsiCompiledElement (from a library jar's module-info.class), e.g. rename module refactoring run against a dependency's descriptor, or a reference in a decompiled view.

Common situations: Rename module refactoring applied to a library module; plugins resolving module references from jars and attempting rename; reading module info from binary dependencies (compiled with JPMS) instead of sources.

Related errors

• Cannot rename light class
• Cannot set package name for module declarations
• ''{0}'' is not an identifier.
• Implicitly declared class may have no name
• Can't change name of JShell holder method

AI-assisted analysis of JetBrains/intellij-community@be881553f2 (2026-08-14). Data as JSON: /api/errors/549e00320ab2617e. Report an issue: GitHub.