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Widget Inspector does not jump to the source code for external widgets when clicking “Show Implementation Widgets” in the latest Flutter version #9063
Description
After upgrading to the latest Flutter version, the Widget Inspector has a new Show Implementation Widgets button. However, clicking on this button only displays the widget’s information but does not navigate to the source code location.
In previous versions, when clicking on a widget in Widget Inspector, it would correctly jump to the source code. This behavior is now broken.
Flutter version:3.29.0
Activity
HawlyHuang commentedon Mar 21, 2025
In previous versions, clicking on external widgets in Widget Inspector would correctly jump to the corresponding source code, even for third-party packages. This behavior is now broken.
[-]Widget Inspector does not jump to the source code when clicking “Show Implementation Widgets” in the latest Flutter version[/-][+]Widget Inspector does not jump to the source code for external widgets when clicking “Show Implementation Widgets” in the latest Flutter version[/+]elliette commentedon Mar 24, 2025
Need to do more investigation here. We do jump to source code, just not the source code of the implementation widget - instead we jump to the source code of its parent in the local project.
elliette commentedon Mar 24, 2025
Ah I see what is happening:
_getSelectedSummaryWidgetLocationto get the location of the selected widget (to send to the IDE): https://github.com/flutter/flutter/blame/807ccd7f9d68337d21ec771d1940a97f12262a8e/packages/flutter/lib/src/widgets/widget_inspector.dart#L1614_getSelectedSummaryWidgetLocation, we walk up the tree until we find a widget created by in the local project, and return the location of that widget: https://github.com/flutter/flutter/blob/807ccd7f9d68337d21ec771d1940a97f12262a8e/packages/flutter/lib/src/widgets/widget_inspector.dart#L2420-L2429I'm surprised this was working before, since none of this code has been touched for the new inspector. However, it looks like an easy fix.
HawlyHuang commentedon Mar 25, 2025
Thank you for the quick investigation and detailed explanation.
It’s good to know that the root cause has been identified and that it seems to be an easy fix.
This issue significantly impacts development efficiency when using third-party libraries, as it prevents us from quickly navigating to the source code of external widgets.
I’m looking forward to the fix being released soon. Let me know if you need any additional information or testing.
Thanks again for your work! 🚀
[Widget Inspector] Jump to source code of implementation widgets from…
HawlyHuang commentedon Apr 9, 2025
Could you clarify when this version is scheduled for release? Additionally, should I prioritize updating the Flutter SDK, the Flutter tool, or both to ensure compatibility?
elliette commentedon Apr 9, 2025
This change will be included in Flutter 3.32, which should be on Flutter beta channel in the next week or so, and on Flutter stable end of May. All you need to do is update your Flutter SDK.
[Widget Inspector] Jump to source code of implementation widgets from…
xuvien commentedon Jun 13, 2025
Would love to see this fixed — Inspector should go to the widget usage in user code by default.
That said, the current behavior could be useful for debugging 3rd-party packages or checking if a bug comes from the SDK. Maybe this "bug" could become a feature: add a checkbox like:
"Prefer navigating to widget definition"
Fix first, then make it toggleable — best of both worlds. ❣️
Likhachev17 commentedon Aug 14, 2025
any updates here? 3.35.0 jump to code still doesn't work
[Widget Inspector] Jump to source code of implementation widgets from…