This script is launching the VirtualBox VM of your choice then shut it down when the script is interupted or killed.

I personnaly use it with IntelliJ IDEA to launch/stop the VM on project opening/closing.

./vm-start-and-stop.sh [-h] ["VM Name"] [--sleep]

-h         Display help
"VM Name"  Name of the VirtualBox machine to start
--sleep    Put VM to sleep instead of powering it off

You might need to edit VirtualBox path in the script, then :

vm-start-and-stop.cmd [-h] ["VM Name"] [--sleep]

-h         Display help
"VM Name"  Name of the VirtualBox machine to start
--sleep    Put VM to sleep instead of powering it off

Unfortunately, I cannot get rid of the minimified console opening. It must stay opened for VM to shutdown.

1. Open Settings (Ctrl+Alt+S)
2. Goto Tools/Startup Tasks
3. Click on [+] then Add New Configuration, then HTTP Request
4. Configure it:
   • Name: VM (or anything you want, it is not shared upon projects)
   • Environment:
   • File: Go grab the dummy.http in the resource folder of this repo (it will fire a dummy HTTP request on example.com)
   • Request: #1
5. Click on [+] in Before launch: Activate tool window, then Run External Tool
6. Click on [+] and configure it:
   • Name: ProjectName's VM (or anything you want, but will be shared upon projects)
   • Program: Go grab the vm-start-and-stop script for your system
   • Arguments: "VM Name" --sleep
7. Validate and close every popup
8. You can now launch your VM from the Run/Debug drop down or close and reopen your project

PS: I know there is alternatives with plugins that might be cleaner than this trick with HTTP request. You can on Linux/MacOS use the Bash plugin to directly configure the script, or you can use any Run/debug template you want... But, this is the only solution that is native for all IntelliJ versions (PhpStorm, RubyMind, PyCharm, etc.) and cross-os.

Feel free to provide any better solution if you find one :)