[java] IntelliJ - Convert a Java project/module into a Maven project/module

I have a project on Bitbucket. Only the sources are committed. To retrieve the project onto a new machine, I used Version Control > Checkout from Version Control from within IntelliJ.

It then asks whether I would like to create a new project from this source, to which I reply Yes. So far, so good. It creates a nice little Java project for me, consisting of a single module.

However, my goal in pulling this project into IntelliJ was to turn it into a Maven project. I cannot find any option anywhere that will let me do this!

Is there a way to have IntelliJ just generate a basic empty pom.xml for me, with a name and an artifactId and a repository? Or, is there a way to import the project as a Maven project in the first place? (Whenever I try to create a project from existing source, it only gives me the option of a Java project.)

I have resolved this same issue by doing below steps:

1. File > Close Project

2. Import Project

3. Select you project via the system file popup

4. Check "Import project from external model" radio button and select Maven entry

5. And some Next buttons (select JDK, ...)

Then the project will be imported as Maven module.

This fixed it for me: Open maven projects tab on the right. Add the pom if not yet present, then click refresh on the top left of the tab.

1. Open 'Maven projects' (tab on the right side).
2. Use 'Add Maven Projects'
3. Find your pom.xml

Just follow the steps:

1. Right click to on any module pox.xml and then chose "Add as Maven Project"

2. Next to varify it, go to the maven tab, you will see the project with all maven goal which you can use:

I want to add the important hint that converting a project like this can have side effects which are noticeable when you have a larger project. This is due the fact that Intellij Idea (2017) takes some important settings only from the pom.xml then which can lead to some confusion, following sections are affected at least:

1. Annotation settings are changed for the modules
2. Compiler output path is changed for the modules
3. Resources settings are ignored totally and only taken from pom.xml
4. Module dependencies are messed up and have to checked
5. Language/Encoding settings are changed for the modules

All these points need review and adjusting but after this it works like charm.

Further more unfortunately there is no sufficient pom.xml template created, I have added an example which might help to solve most problems.

<project xmlns="http://maven.apache.org/POM/4.0.0" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"
     xsi:schemaLocation="http://maven.apache.org/POM/4.0.0 http://maven.apache.org/xsd/maven-4.0.0.xsd">
<modelVersion>4.0.0</modelVersion>
<groupId>Name</groupId>
<artifactId>Artifact</artifactId>
<version>4.0</version>
<properties>
    <!-- Generic properties -->
    <java.version>1.8</java.version>
    <project.build.sourceEncoding>UTF-8</project.build.sourceEncoding>
    <project.reporting.outputEncoding>UTF-8</project.reporting.outputEncoding>
</properties>
<dependencies>
    <!--All dependencies to put here, including module dependencies-->
</dependencies>
<build>
    <directory>${project.basedir}/target</directory>
    <outputDirectory>${project.build.directory}/classes</outputDirectory>
    <testOutputDirectory>${project.build.directory}/test-classes</testOutputDirectory>
    <sourceDirectory>${project.basedir}/src/main/java</sourceDirectory>
    <testSourceDirectory> ${project.basedir}/src/test/java</testSourceDirectory>

    <resources>
        <resource>
            <directory>${project.basedir}/src/main/java</directory>
            <excludes>
                <exclude>**/*.java</exclude>
            </excludes>
        </resource>
        <resource>
            <directory>${project.basedir}/src/main/resources</directory>
            <includes>
                <include>**/*</include>
            </includes>
        </resource>
    </resources>
    <plugins>
        <plugin>
            <groupId>org.apache.maven.plugins</groupId>
            <artifactId>maven-compiler-plugin</artifactId>
            <version>3.5.1</version>
            <configuration>
                <annotationProcessors/>
                <source>${java.version}</source>
                <target>${java.version}</target>
            </configuration>
        </plugin>
    </plugins>
</build>

Edit 2019:

• Added recursive resource scan
• Added directory specification which might be important to avoid confusion of IDEA recarding the content root structure

I had a different scenario, but still landed on this answer.
I had imported my root project folder containing multiple Maven projects but also some other stuff used in this project.
IntelliJ recognised the Java files, but didn't resolve the Maven dependencies.

I fixed this by performing a right-click on each pom and then "Add as maven project"

The easiest way is to add the project as a Maven project directly. To do this, in the project explorer on the left, right-click on the POM file for the project, towards the bottom of the context menu, you will see an option called 'Add as Maven Project', click it. This will automatically convert the project to a Maven project

A visual for those that benefit from it.

After right-clicking the project name ("test" in this example), select "Add framework support" and check the "Maven" option.