Project Structure Disappears Upon Opening IDE

I had the same issue.  I fixed by using the /File/Repair IDE

Please try with IntelliJ IDEA 2023.2 release: https://www.jetbrains.com/idea/download/index.html.

If the issue persists, file a bug at https://youtrack.jetbrains.com/newIssue?project=IDEA and attach the logs (Help | Collect Logs and Diagnostic Data).

Please contact support at https://intellij-support.jetbrains.com/hc/requests/new and attach the logs (Help | Collect Logs and Diagnostic Data). Also attach .idea directory from the project and the screenshot of the IDE window when this issue occurs.

Slavalu74 Please see https://youtrack.jetbrains.com/issue/IJPL-2152/IDEA-should-notify-users-on-macOS-if-there-is-no-access-to-the-directory-of-the-project-and-require-access for the workaround.

I am using intellij ultimate version 2023.2.3 and facing the exactly same issue for a long time. 
The same issue is not happening while using community version ( 2023.1.4)

Please report with the logs as described in the previous comment.

It's the same for me. Not only the project files are missing but also the terminal isn't working.
It happened after I moved the project directories around. 
After I deleted the .idea/ and rebuilt the project it seems working again.

Edit:
Unfortunately it breaks again the first time I run a file.

Edit:

For me the problem is closely related to the fact that the files are on iCloud. Is actually IntelliJ IDEA supposed to work even with files form iCloud?

I downloaded the latest version of IntelliJ and facing a similar issue. The project structure keeps disappearing from the navigation on the left menu. I have tried deleting the .idea folder, tried to add ‘Project Content’ but nothing seems to work.  

I downloaded the older version of IntelliJ - IntelliJ IDEA 2022.3.1 (Ultimate Edition) - and it worked fine. The new version of IntelliJ definitely has issues. 

Scott , did you found a solution? I didn't find the issue on youtracked

Hi Aurelie Giordano Please contact IntelliJ IDEA support for assistance directly at https://intellij-support.jetbrains.com/hc/en-us/requests/new and describe your case a bit more detailed. A couple of screenshots or a project sample could help with the investigation process

Possible workaround:

- File | Close Project

- Close the IDE

- Open a project root folder in the OS file manager

- Backup and delete the .idea folder and all .iml files

- Try to open a project in the IDE

hi Aurelie Giordano 

i got your notification, but i am not the “Scott” who posted this.  (weird)

more weird:  i have had this problem before, but i am not experiencing it now.  iirc, i deleted the project entirely (after making sure i had no outstanding changes) then checked out the whole thing via VCS again.

not sure if it is relevant but i am now using macOS 14.2.1 and IntelliJ 2023.3.3, which are slightly different than the “Scott” who posted this.

I too tore my hair apart with this issue for a while. Finally I realized that issue was happening when I did not use the Load Maven script option that comes up as a small pop up suggestion as soon as I import the Spring project. So when I didn't do it & ran the mvn clean install from the Run/Debug configuration it would not always load the modules & dependencies.

Hello.

I'm facing the same issue as OP, only I have a Scala project. 

To add, I'm able to use Community Edition without any issue. This only occurs with Ultimate.

https://youtrack.jetbrains.com/issue/IDEA-353756/Project-dissapearing

Can we get any updates, please?

Hi!

I'm facing the same issue. It keeps appearing and reappearing (my maven project.

Any Updates?

Jacky Liu Thank you for your response. The workaround did the job for me!

Moving the project outside of Documents/Desktop/Downloads folders, - worked for me. Also, the easiest option.

Thank you Jacky Liu 

2023.3.7 the same issue with disappering folders. Can you fix it? TypeScript project

Also having the same problem and still happens with version 2024.2.3 (build 242.23339.11 of September 25th 2024). The IDEA also says there'S no version control on the directory but there's a .git folder and other IDEs find it. MacOS permission are fine regarding access to the project location.

This can happen if there are non-ascii chars in the project paths due to https://youtrack.jetbrains.com/issue/IJPL-162082/IDE-fails-to-show-project-folder-if-the-folder-name-or-project-path-contains-some-non-ASCII-characters-e.g-Japanese-or-Korean .

See also https://youtrack.jetbrains.com/articles/SUPPORT-A-418/Files-and-folders-disappear-from-Project-view-and-files-are-unexpectedly-closed-in-Editor-on-Mac-OS .

I recently switched to a mac (Sequoia 15.3 M3 Pro) and have been getting this issue again with the most recent IntelliJ IDEA 2024.3.1.1 (Ultimate Edition) Build #IU-243.22562.218. I was also deleting the project, then re-imporing from github. Only to find my project structure disappearing. Frustrating. 

While I was unable to solve permanently, my workaround (for maven projects) was to change the view to ‘Project Files’, Right Click on my project POM file and select Maven/Unlink Maven Projects. Then I was able to right click again on the POM and select ‘Add as Maven Project’. This restored the project structure and dependencies.

Really hope this helps and can be resolved. Next time I will submit a ticket.

Chris Ditcher Thank you for reporting this!

Based on the description, it looks like the Project Model was corrupted on IDEA's end.

Does the GitHub Repository include the .idea directory? If it does, what files does it contain?

If the issue resurfaces, try closing IDEA, removing the "Maven" directory from the System Directory and re-import the Project by double-clicking the root pom.xml.

Roman Vatagin thanks for the tip. I will try that next time. There is an .idea directory in my local copy of the git repo, but it is .gitignore'd so does not exist in the origin.