JDK 5.0 Installation Notes

End of Service Life Notice

Please be aware that JDK 5 is no longer under support as of April 2015.
See the official statement in the Oracle Fusion Middleware document on the Oracle Lifetime Support Policies page.

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WARNING: Older versions of the JRE and JDK are provided to help developers debug issues in older systems. They are not updated with the latest security patches and are not recommended for use in production.

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For current Java releases, please consult the Oracle Software Download page.

Please also see the following Oracle Java Support Roadmap

System Requirements

JDK 5.0 is no longer supported on the Solaris 10 operating systems. For previously supported processors, desktop managers, browsers, locales and disk space requirements, see System Configurations.

Prior to installing the JDK, you should ensure that you have installed the full set of required patches needed for support of this release. Recommended and required patches are now hosted for download on the My Oracle Support website.

JDK Installation Instructions

Installing the JDK automatically installs the Java Plug-in and Java Web Start. Note that the Java Plug-in needs to be registered with the browser. Instructions for doing so can be found below at Java Plug-in Browser Registration Instructions.

To install the 32-bit JDK, follow the installation instructions below.

To install the 64-bit JDK on a SPARC, AMD64, or EM64T platform, you must follow a two-step procedure: Install the 32-bit JDK using the installation instructions below, and also install the supplemental support for 64-bit operation by following the 64-bit Installation Instructions.  

Install formats - JDK 5.0 is available in two installation formats.

• Self-extracting Binary File - This file can be used to install the JDK in a location chosen by the user. This file can be installed by anyone (not only root users), and it can be installed in any location. It will not displace the system version of the Java platform suppled by the Solaris Operating System (unless you intentially install it in the same location as the system's Java platform, which requires you to be root user). If you are using this file, see Installation of Self-Extracting Binary below.
• Solaris Packages - A .tar.Z file containing Solaris SUNW* packages to be installed with the pkgadd utility. The SUNW packages require root access to install, and they install by default in a location such that they replace the system version of the Java platform supplied by the Solaris operating system. If you are using this bundle, see Installation of Solaris Packages below.

Note: For any text on this page containing the following notation, you must substitute the appropriate JDK update version number (such as "_01") for the notation.

<update>

For example, if you are installing update 1.5.0_01, the following command:

 chmod +x jdk-1_5_0                 <update>-solaris-sparc.sh  

            

would become:

chmod +x jdk-1_5_0_01-solaris-sparc.sh

Installation of Self-Extracting Binary

Use these instructions if you want to use the self-extracting binary file to install the JDK. If you want to install Solaris packages comprising the JDK, use Installation of Solaris Packages below.

1. Download the self-extracting binary and check the file size to ensure that you have downloaded the full, uncorrupted software bundle.

You can download to any directory you choose; it does not have to be the directory where you want to install the JDK.

Before you download the file, notice its byte size provided on the download page on the web site. Once the download has completed, compare that file size to the size of the downloaded file to make sure they are equal.

2. Make sure that execute permissions are set on the self-extracting binary:

On SPARC processors:

chmod +x jdk-1_5_0 <update> -solaris-sparc.sh

On x86/AMD64/EM64T processors:

chmod +x jdk-1_5_0 <update> -solaris-i586.sh

3. Change directory to the location where you would like the files to be installed.

The next step installs the JDK into the current directory.

4. Run the self-extracting binary.

Execute the downloaded file with the path prepended to it. For example, if the file is in the current directory, prepend it with " ./" (necessary if " ." is not in the PATH environment variable):

On SPARC processors:

./jdk-1_5_0 <update> -solaris-sparc.sh

On x86/AMD64/EM64T processors:

./jdk-1_5_0 <update> -solaris-i586.sh

The binary code license is displayed, and you are prompted to agree to its terms.

The JDK files are installed in a directory called jdk1.5.0 <update> in the current directory. Follow this link to see its directory structure. The JDK documentation is a separate download.

Note about System Preferences - When run by a non-root user, the installation is considered a "private" or non-system install. During a private install, the installation script configures Java such that the backing store for the java.util.prefs package is created inside the JRE's installation directory. If the JRE is installed this way on a network-mounted drive, all Java applications, libraries, and preferences can be exported for sharing, so that the same version of the Java runtime environment and preferences are available to other machines.

As an alternative, when root users run the installation script, preferences are stored in the /etc directory. This is similar to installing the Java packages for Solaris, and this installation is "public" or system specific. Installing Java in this manner allows all versions of Java that support the java.util.prefs package to share the same set of preferences. In other words, in a public/system install, preferences set by a user running JRE 5.0 will also be available when the system is upgraded to JRE 6.

See the Preferences API documentation for more information about preferences in the Java platform.

Installation of Solaris Packages 

Use these instructions if you want to use the pkgadd utility to install the Solaris packages for the JDK. If you want to use the self-extracting binary file instead, see Installation of Self-extracting Binary above.

1. Download and check the file size to ensure that you have downloaded the full, uncorrupted software bundle.

It's best to create a new directory to save the download bundle to, as the next step will extract several directories and files into this directory. The directory can be anywhere you choose.

Before you download the file, notice its byte size provided on the download page on the web site. Once the download has completed, compare that file size to the size of the downloaded file to make sure they are equal.

2. Extract the contents of the compressed tar file:

On SPARC processors:

zcat jdk-1_5_0 <update> -solaris-sparc.tar.Z | tar -xf -

On x86/AMD64/EM64T processors:

zcat jdk-1_5_0 <update> -solaris-i586.tar.Z | tar -xf -

This creates several directories ( SUNWj5rt, SUNWj5dev, SUNWj5cfg, SUNWj5man, SUNWj5dmo, and SUNWj5jmp) plus a few files in the current directory.

3. Become root by running su and entering the super-user password.

4. Uninstall any earlier 5.0 package installation of JDK.

If your machine has an earlier version of 5.0 already installed in the default location ( /usr/jdk/jdk1.5.0), you must remove it before installing a later version of 5.0 at that location. 

You can skip this step if you intend to install JDK 5.0 in a non-default location. For more details, see Selecting the Default Java Platform.

5. Run the pkgadd command to install the packages.

On all processors:

pkgadd -d . SUNWj5rt SUNWj5dev SUNWj5cfg SUNWj5man SUNWj5dmo

This installs the JDK 5.0 into /usr/jdk/jdk1.5.0. Version 5.0 does not automatically become the default Java platform on Solaris 9 or earlier (unless there was no default), but does become the default on Solaris 10. If you want 5.0 to be the default on Solaris 8 or 9, follow the instructions at Default Installations of Java Platform.

See the pkgadd(1) and admin(4) man pages for information on installing the JDK in a non-default location.

6. For Japanese users: Install man pages.

If your machine has an earlier version of the 5.0 Japanese man pages already installed in /usr/jdk/jdk1.5.0, you must remove that package before installing a later version of the 5.0 Japanese man pages at that location. Remove this package by running:

On all processors:

pkgrm SUNWj5jmp

Then run the pkgadd command to install the new Japanese man page package:

On all processors:

pkgadd -d . SUNWj5jmp

7. Delete the tar files and extracted SUNW* directories.

8. Exit the root shell. No need to reboot.

Java Plug-in Browser Registration Instructions

You must register the Java Plug-in component with Netscape or Mozilla for the Plug-in to work. Instructions to do this can be found at Manual Java Plug-in Registration for Solaris.

Java Plug-in is supported for Netscape 7.x, plus Mozilla 1.x and higher on Solaris 8, 9, and 10. Java Plug-in also supports Netscape 4.x, but only on Solaris 8. Java Plug-in no longer works with Netscape 6.x. Java Plug-in may work with other non-supported browsers. If you are using a non-supported browser, check your browser documentation for details on registering the Java Plug-in.

Also see documentation on the Java Plug-in component.

Java Web Start Installation Notes

This JDK release includes Java Web Start; Java Web Start is automatically installed with the JDK. But note the following:

• Compatibility: The release of Java Web Start that comes with this JDK/JRE can be run on SDK/JRE 1.2.2 or later. It will not work with SDK/JRE 1.1.x or earlier.
• Upgrading from Previous Versions: This new release will overwrite previous installations and automatically update browsers to use this new release. The configuration files and program files folder used by Java Web Start have changed, but all your settings will remain intact after the upgrade, since Java Web Start will translate your settings to the new form.
• Using Java Web Start with Netscape 6.x/7.x: For Netscape 6.x/7.x users, setup the Java Web Start MIME type (JNLP) in the Edit->Preferences->Navigator->Helper Applications section. The file extension is jnlp; MIME Type is application/x-java-jnlp-file. It should be handled by the javaws executable file in your Java Web Start directory. Also note that, due to a problem with the JavaScript in Netscape 6.x/7.x, you must use the non-JavaScript version of the demos page.
• pkgadd utility use: (1) If you use the pkgadd utility to install the Solaris packages for JDK/JRE 5.0, a symbolic link for /j2se/jre/javaws/javaws will be created in /usr/bin. (2) If you have a previous release of Java Web Start installed and you want the latest version to run instead, edit the $HOME/.mailcap file so that it is identical to /etc/.mailcap. If you want the older version of Java Web Start to run, do not edit $HOME/.mailcap.

General Installation Notes

The following are general notes about the installation.

Solaris Package Install - Selecting the Default Java Platform

This note describes how the default Java platform is selected when running the Solaris package installation (not the self-extracting binary) of the JDK. It also describes how to change that default.

The Default Java Platform - Several versions of the Java platform can be present simultaneously on a Solaris system (using the default Solaris package installations), but only one can be the "default" Java platform. The default Java platform is defined by the directory that the /usr/java symbolic link points to. To determine the default version of java, run:

/usr/java/bin/java -fullversion

The /usr/java symbolic link can change the default Java platform because there are symbolic links in /usr/bin (also known as /bin) that use it. (For example, the /usr/bin/java link refers to /usr/java/bin/java, which is the Java 2 Runtime Environment). Many Java applications are compatible with later versions of the Java platform, but some applications might be less compatible.

Default Installations of Java Platform - When the Solaris Operating System is installed, the /usr/java symbolic link initially points to the directory shown in the second column of the table below.

* The only way that installing 5.0 will make itself the default on Solaris 9 or earlier is if no other default exists.

For example, on Solaris 8, the /usr/java symbolic link originally points to directory /usr/java1.2 which holds version 1.2.2. On Solaris 9, the /usr/java symbolic link originally points to directory /usr/j2se, which can hold any one of versions 1.3.1, 1.4.0, 1.4.1 or 1.4.2, depending on the latest Java version you have installed. On Solaris 10, the /usr/java symbolic link originally points to directory /usr/jdk/jdk1.5.0, which holds version 5.0.

Note that installing 5.0 on Solaris 8 or 9 will normally not alter the default Java platform. Version 5.0 will become the default only if the no other default exists. For example, if the /usr/java does not point to a version of Java, installing 5.0 will make /usr/java point to /usr/jdk/jdk1.5.0.

Setting JDK 5.0 to be the default - On Solaris 8 and 9, it is possible for root users to make JDK 5.0 the default Java platform by modifying the /usr/java symbolic link to point to /usr/jdk/jdk1.5.0. On Solaris 9, a root user would modify the /usr/j2se symbolic link to point to the same 5.0 directory. However, changing the symbolic link in this manner may cause problems for some earlier Java applications that have not been tested with 5.0. For information about incompatibilities between JDK 5.0 and earlier releases, see Compatibility with Previous Releases.

PATH Setting - The default Java is linked through /usr/bin, such as /usr/bin/java. If this is in the path before another version of Java is in the path, then that will be the version of Java run from the command line or from any other tool that uses the PATH environment variable to locate Java.

Location of Java VM Library Files ( libjvm.so)

If you use the Invocation API to launch an application directly rather than using the Java application launcher, be sure to use the correct paths to invoke the Java HotSpot Client Virtual Machine (VM) or Java HotSpot Server VM, as desired. The path within the JDK to the Java HotSpot Client VM is:

jre/lib/sparc/client/libjvm.so (on SPARC)

jre/lib/i386/client/libjvm.so (on x86)

The path to the Java HotSpot Server VM is:

jre/lib/sparc/server/libjvm.so (on SPARC)

jre/lib/sparcv9/server/libjvm.so (on SPARC 64-bit)

jre/lib/i386/server/libjvm.so (on x86)

jre/lib/amd64/server/libjvm.so (on AMD64/EM64T)

The corresponding locations in the Java 2 Runtime Environment begin with jre1.5.0 rather than jre. The Exact VM and Classic VM are no longer part of the JDK, and existing code that uses the Invocation API to launch an application based on old paths to the Exact or Classic VMs will not work.

Solaris Version	/usr/java Link Originally Points to Directory	Which Can Hold Java Platform	Default Platform After Installing 5.0
Solaris 8	/usr/java1.2	1.2.2	1.2.2 (unchanged) *
Solaris 9	/usr/j2se	1.3.1, 1.4.0, 1.4.1or 1.4.2	1.3.1, 1.4.0, 1.4.1 or 1.4.2 (unchanged) *
Solaris 10	/usr/jdk/jdk1.5.0	5.0	5.0

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