Behave and Gherkin support broken after PyCharm update: run configuration not recognized, steps undefined

Problem

After updating PyCharm or its plugins, Behave/BDD support breaks with one or more of the following symptoms:

• Behave run configurations appear as "Unknown" or corrupted, and the Behave run configuration type is not recognized
• Steps in Gherkin .feature files are highlighted as undefined ("Undefined step reference"), and navigation from steps to step definitions stops working
• Behave tests can no longer be run or debugged; run options are missing from the editor and file context menus

The behave CLI runs the same tests successfully outside the IDE.

Cause

Several plugins together provide BDD support in PyCharm and must be on matching versions: Python (Python Community Edition in PyCharm Community), Gherkin, and PythonDAP. After an IDE update, these plugins can end up on mismatched or outdated versions, or one of them can be missing or disabled. Any of these states breaks Behave run configurations and Gherkin step resolution.

Resolution

1. Open Settings | Plugins (Managing plugins in PyCharm).
2. Update the Python (or Python Community Edition), Gherkin, and PythonDAP plugins to the latest versions. Install any that are missing and enable any that are disabled.
3. Restart the IDE.

Existing Behave run configurations are recognized again after the restart (confirmed in Python Behave Run Configurations: Showing as Unknown After IntelliJ IDEA 2025.3 Upgrade).

If the symptoms persist after the plugin update:

• Undefined steps and broken navigation from .feature files are tracked in Intellij 2025.3 and Gherkin 253 and Python 253 plugins not working.
• "No tests were found" when tags are passed to behave is tracked in Behave 1.3.3 - PyCharm reports "No tests were found" if tags are passed to behave (fix planned for 2026.2.1).
• AttributeError: 'StepRegistry' object has no attribute 'clear' with behave 1.2.6 is fixed in PyCharm 2026.1; updating the behave package also resolves it (AttributeError: 'StepRegistry' object has no attribute 'clear' executing feature file with behave==1.2.6).
• In IntelliJ IDEA, a missing Gherkin plugin causes the "PyBehaveRunConfigurationType is not recognized" error - see Unable to run Behave configuration in IntelliJ IDEA.