1. Java 1.5 Virtual Machine
2. Java 1.5 For Mac

Java 1.5 is DEFINITELY a part of the Max OSX Tiger, but I don't think Apple is planning to release Java 1.5.before. they release the Tiger OS. So, far as I know, the only way to get 1.5 on the Mac is to get the beta of the OS. Cheers, Kathy. Instructions for Installing Java 3D 1.5.1. The 1.5.1 version of the Java 3D TM API runs on JDK version 1.5.0 and higher. It has been released for the Solaris, Linux, Windows, and Mac OS X operating environments. See the release notes for more information. This release of Java 3D runs on JDK version 1.5.0 and higher. Java 1.5 is DEFINITELY a part of the Max OSX Tiger, but I don't think Apple is planning to release Java 1.5.before. they release the Tiger OS. So, far as I know, the only way to get 1.5 on the Mac is to get the beta of the OS. Cheers, Kathy.

Information and system requirements for installing and using Oracle Java on Mac OS X

• Platform(s): Mac OS X
• Java version(s): 7.0, 8.0

After I updated to macOS Sierra 10.12, El Capitan (OS X 10.11), or Yosemite (OS X 10.10), why am I told to install Java after I already installed the latest Java?

See information about Apple Java messages.

Can I restore Apple Java 6 after uninstalling Oracle Java?

Yes, see the instructions on the Apple website Restore Apple Java 6. If you have JDK 7 or later versions installed on your system and you want to restore Apple Java 6, then those JDK versions need to be uninstalled first. See the instructions to Uninstall JDK.

For Java versions 6 and below, Apple supplies their own version of Java. For Mac OS X 10.6 and below, use the Software Update feature (available on the Apple menu) to check that you have the most up-to-date version of Java 6 for your Mac. For issues related to Apple Java 6 on Mac, contact Apple Support. Oracle and Java.com only support Java 7 and later, and only on 64 bit systems.

Mac OS X and Apple Java 6 End of Life

Apple has posted notice that Mac OS X 10.11 (El Capitan) will be the last OS X release that supports Java 6, and as such, recommends developers whose applications depend on Java 6 to migrate their apps to a newer Java version provided by Oracle. » More info (apple.com)

Chrome browser versions 42 and above. Starting with Chrome version 42, Chrome has disabled the standard way in which browsers support plugins. More info

How do I get Java for my Mac?

You can download Java from java.com.

How do I know if I have Java installed on my Mac?

Mac OS X 10.6 and below: Apple's Java comes pre-installed with your Mac OS.
Mac OS X 10.7 (Lion) and above: Java is not pre-installed with Mac OS X versions 10.7 and above. To get the latest Java from Oracle, you will need Mac OS X 10.7.3 and above.
If you have Java 7 or later versions, you will see a Java icon under System Preferences.
Java versions 6 and below are listed in the Java Preferences.app located in the Applications > Utilities folder on your Mac.

How do I install Java for my Mac?

See Mac Java installation instructions.

How do I find out what version of Java I have on my Mac?

Mac OS X 10.7.3 and above: Under System Preferences click on the Java icon to access the Java Control Panel which will list your Java version.
If you do not see a Java icon under System Preferences, Java 7 or later versions is not installed.

How do I enable Java on my Mac?

When you install Oracle Java on your Mac (Lion and above), Java will be enabled by default.
If you are running a Java application in the browser, you will need to also check that Java is enabled in your browser.
For earlier versions of Java, check the Apple Support site.

How do I clear the Java cache on my Mac?

See How to clear the Java cache on Mac.

How do I update Java on my Mac?

See How to update Java on Mac.

How do I uninstall Java from my Mac?

See Mac Java uninstall instructions.

I do not have Mac version 10.7.3 (Lion) or higher. How do I get Java for other Mac versions?

For Java versions 6 and below, Apple supplies their own version of Java. Use the Software Update feature (available on the Apple menu) to check that you have the most up-to-date version of Apple's Java for your Mac.
Users of Lion Mac OS X 10.7.1 and 10.7.2 should upgrade to 10.7.3 or later versions, so you can get the latest Java version from Oracle.

Is it safe to install previous or older versions of Java?

Oracle highly discourages users from using older versions of Java. Installing old and supported versions of Java on your system presents a serious security risk. Upgrading to the latest version of Java ensures that Java applications will run with the most up-to-date security and performance improvements on your system. You can confirm that you have the latest version on the verification page. If installing an older version of Java is absolutely required, you must first uninstall the current version. See the instructions on the Mac uninstall Java FAQ.

Why will applets not run after getting Java through Apple Software Update?

Apple disables the Java plug-in and Webstart applications when the Java update is done using Software Update. Also, if the Java plug-in detects that no applets have been run for an extended period of time it will again disable the Java plug-in.

Why is Oracle Java available only for Mac OS X 10.7.3 and above?

Java 1.5 Virtual Machine

The Java Runtime depends on the availability of an Application programming interface (API). Some of the API were added in Mac OS X 10.7.3. Apple has no plans to make those API available on older versions of the Mac OS.

Can I install Java on Mac OS X 10.10 (Yosemite)?

Yes. See Mac OS X 10.10 FAQ.

The installation hangs during an auto-update, what can I do to get the latest Java?

During an auto-update, Mac OS X 10.9 (Mavericks) users might see the installation stall. Download the latest Java from the java.com web site.

When I try to use java from the command line, why doesn't it work? I have Oracle's version of the JRE installed.

Installing a JRE from Oracle does not update java -version symlinks or add java to your path. For this functionality, you must install the full JDK. See Mac command line info.

Java 1.5 For Mac

How do I get support or provide feedback on Java?

Provide us details on Feedback form for reporting issues or providing feedback for Java.

You might also be interested in:

• How do I install Java for my Mac?
• How do I uninstall Java on my Mac?
• Where is the Java Control Panel on Mac?
• How do I clear Java cache on my Mac?
• How do I Update Java for my Mac?
• How do I disable Java in my web browser?

I've got to write some code for a legacy application that is still running JDK 1.5. Unfortunately, it looks like OS X doesn't actually have a 1.5 JDK installed; it just links to 1.6:

It sounds like from http://developer.apple.com/java/faq/ that Java is part of the OS update..I'm on Mac OS X v10.6.3 (Snow Leopard). Is there a way to get an actual 1.5 JDK installed on this OS version?

Or do I need to try and find an old version of OS X before I can do this work?

8 Answers

If you're writing code in Eclipse or potentially some other IDE, you should be able to configure it to target 1.5 compliance.

If you are using javac directly, you could try the -source 1.5 and/or -target 1.5 javac options, which may be sufficient for what you're doing? The 1.6 JDK should be able to produce 1.5-compliant code.

Have a look at http://wiki.oneswarm.org/index.php/OS_X_10.6_Snow_Leopard on how to get and install 1.4 and 1.5 JDKs on Snow Leopard. Also bear in mind that whenever you run Software Update and a JDK update is installed, you will need to 'fix' the symlinks to the 1.4 and 1.5 JDKs.

UPDATE: as a side note, for those developing with several JDKs on OS X, have a look at this handy little utility to switch JDK from the command line: setjdk.

There are really two problems here:

1. Installing an old version of Java, and keeping Software Update from removing it.
2. Telling applications that require the older version where to find it, while letting everything else benefit from the latest version.

I don't have anything to add (yet) to what has already been written about installing an old version of Java, however, according to this post from Mike Swingler, Java Runtime Engineer at Apple:

Nobody can or should should be changing symlinks in /System/Library/ Frameworks/JavaVM.framework except for Apple software updates (and we are loath to do so, because it inevitably breaks someone)

In other words, updating the Operating System's links to the old copy of Java is a questionable practice, as it forces every Java application on the system to use the old Java version.

The right way is to set JAVA_HOME to the correct version of Java on an as-needed basis. You can do this by executing /usr/libexec/java_home to get the path to a specific version. For example, to get the path to a 1.5 version:

/usr/libexec/java_home --version 1.5

You don't need a copy of Java 1.5 in order to develop for it; Java 1.6 is backwards-compatible with Java 1.5, so anything that would work on 1.5 will work on 1.6. The -source and -target flags may be of use in order to ensure that everything works on 1.5. That said, this article will explain how to get a copy of Java 1.5 on Snow Leopard. Be aware, though, that it could potentially trash/harm your system.

Thanks this works great: http://wiki.oneswarm.org/index.php/OS_X_10.6_Snow_Leopard

Strangely, you must follow the renaming steps in the instructions, where you mod the symlinks for 1.5 and 1.5.0 to the actual leopard Java 1.5 - if you don't do that and just try to run the java binary, you get a bus error!

In any case, thanks to these steps I now have an actual Java 5 JDK to compile and run against in Eclipse, which saves me lots of trouble. For one thing, I can find and remove references to Java 1.6-only methods instantly. It's great. Before these would only show up in QA, or even worse, when one of the few customers still on Java 5 tried to run our program. Which was. Bad.

This is why 'supporting' JDK5 while actually just pointing symlinks to Java 6 is not good enough for development.

The absolutely easiest way is to use this script by Brice Dutheil. Save the script, download the dmg from Apple (the script will tell you the URI), and run the script. Voila!

Although the -source and -target flags can be used, they don't always produce code which works on all older JREs. I've definitely had occasions where trying to back-compile to an older spec produced code which worked fine for some users, but wouldn't run on others. To be really sure that everyone using a 1.5 or 1.4 JRE can run your code, you should probably do your production builds with a 1.5 or 1.4 JDK.

I found these instructions very helpful on getting a 'real' 1.5 and 1.4 JDK installed under snow leopard:http://codethought.com/blog/?p=233

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged macosjava or ask your own question.