Java Web Start in 10.8.2 with native (Apple) Java 1.6 can't find JRE

Question

I'm trying to run a some .jnlp applications (games) on latest os-x. While doing so Java Web Start.app propose me to install Java Runtime Environment (jre_7u9). Should not that be already included in os-x, java 1.6? As an example I use Eclipse which is java-based and I have no problems running it. I'm just worried that the new version could mess up something what works fine so far (saw couple of threads where people experience problems after installation of java 7, even with the Mail application!).

I know close to nothing about java, so if someone could point me to the solution which does not involve installation of jre_7u9, it would be nice.

Thanks in advance, Regards, Denis.

EDIT1:

It seems that user/bin/javaws points to the wrong direction:

javaws
No Java runtime present, requesting install.
Unable to locate a Java Runtime to invoke.

that is:

/System/Library/Frameworks/JavaVM.framework/Versions/Current/Commands/javaws

If i change it to (as suggested here http://support.apple.com/kb/HT5559)

/System/Library/Frameworks/JavaVM.framework/Commands/javaws

it does work fine, however it does not help Java Web Start.app to run properly, it still requires JRE installation, which is a nonsense.

p/s/ this thread discuss the same problem. This one as well. But so far i don't see any solution to make Java Web Start to work.

Answer 1

A detailed guide on how to solve this problem is presented in Java for OS X 2012-006: How to re-enable the Apple-provided Java SE 6 applet plug-in and Web Start functionality.

Answer 2

I was having the same problem where I could run javaws from the command line, but running from Chrome/Safari/Finder did not work using Java Web Start. The problem I found is that Java Web Start is looking for a user preference that does not exist. I was able to get this working by running:

defaults write com.apple.java.JavaPreferences WebComponentsEnabled -bool true