Sonar and Other Static Code Analysis Tools: A Beginner-Friendly Guide with Java and JS Examples

What is Sonar?

Sonar is a static code analysis tool that helps developers find bugs, security vulnerabilities, and code quality issues in their code. It supports a wide range of programming languages, including Java, JavaScript, and Python.

What are static code analysis tools?

Static code analysis tools analyze source code without executing it. This means that they can be used to find potential problems in your code before you even run it.

Why are static code analysis tools important?

Static code analysis tools can help you to improve the quality and security of your software. By identifying and fixing potential problems early on, you can save yourself time and headaches in the long run.

How to use Sonar

Using Sonar is pretty straightforward.

1. Install the SonarQube server and the SonarScanner client.
2. Create a SonarQube project for your code.
3. Configure the SonarScanner client to scan your code.
4. Run the SonarScanner client to analyze your code.
5. View the results in the SonarQube UI.

Examples for Java and JS projects

Java example:

Let’s say you have a Java project called my-project and it's located in the directory /path/to/my-project. To use Sonar to analyze your code, you would follow these steps:

1. Create a sonar-project.properties file in the root directory of your project. The following is an example of a sonar-project.properties file:

sonar.projectKey=my-project
sonar.projectName=My Project
sonar.sources=src/main/java

• Run the SonarScanner client to analyze your code. You can do this by running the following command from the root directory of your project:

sonar-scanner

JS example:

Let’s say you have a JavaScript project called my-project and it's located in the directory /path/to/my-project. To use Sonar to analyze your code, you would follow these steps:

• Create a sonar-project.properties file in the root directory of your project. The following is an example of a sonar-project.properties file:

sonar.projectKey=my-project
sonar.projectName=My Project
sonar.sources=src

• Run the SonarScanner client to analyze your code. You can do this by running the following command from the root directory of your project:

sonar-scanner

Viewing the results

Once you have analyzed your code, you can view the results in the SonarQube UI. The results will show you the number of bugs, security vulnerabilities, and code quality issues that were found in your code. You can use this information to improve the quality and security of your code.

Tips for beginners

• Start by analyzing a small project. This will give you a chance to learn how Sonar works and to understand the types of issues that it can find.
• Don’t be discouraged if Sonar finds a lot of problems in your code. Everyone’s code has problems. The important thing is to learn from the results and to fix the issues that you find.
• If you’re not sure how to fix an issue, try searching for help online. There are many resources available to help developers fix Sonar issues.

Tips for experienced programmers

• Use Sonar as part of your continuous integration process. This will ensure that your code is analyzed every time you make a change.
• Set up quality gates in Sonar. This will prevent your code from being deployed if it doesn’t meet certain quality standards.
• Use Sonar to track the quality of your code over time. This can help you to identify areas where your code needs improvement.

Conclusion

Sonar is a powerful static code analysis tool that can help developers of all experience levels to improve the quality and security of their code. If you’re not already using Sonar, I encourage you to give it a try. You won’t be disappointed.