Problems installing Java EE SDK on Linux

Question

I installed the Java 6 JRE on my VPS just fine, but I can't get the EE SDK installation to even run.

root@vps [/usr/java]# java -version
java version "1.6.0_18"
Java(TM) SE Runtime Environment (build 1.6.0_18-b07)
Java HotSpot(TM) Client VM (build 16.0-b13, mixed mode)

However, when I try to run java_ee_sdk-6-unix.sh:

./  ../  java_ee_sdk-6-unix.sh*  jre1.6.0_18/  jre.bin*
root@vps [/usr/java]# ./java_ee_sdk-6-unix.sh

Could not locate a suitable jar utility.
Please ensure that you have Java 6 or newer installed on your system
and accessible in your PATH or by setting JAVA_HOME

But the catch is that I set my environment variables correctly:

root@vps [/usr/java]# echo $PATH
/usr/java/jre1.6.0_18:/usr/java/jre1.6.0_18/bin:/usr/java/jre1.6.0_18/jre/bin:/usr/local/sbin:/usr/local/bin:/usr/bin:/usr/sbin:/bin:/sbin
root@vps [/usr/java]# export -p | grep JAVA_HOME
declare -x JAVA_HOME="/usr/java/jre1.6.0_18"

I'm pulling my hair out here, any ideas?

Answer 1

Do you have a JDK installed? You likely want to put $JDK_HOME/bin on your PATH, not the /bin of a JRE, as jar comes with JDK, not JRE.

Answer 2

Do this:

1. Delete all installations of Java.
2. Install the Java SDK (self-extracting) into /opt/jdk1.6.0_16 (for example)
3. Create a symbolic link: ln -s /opt/jdk1.6.0_16 /opt/jdk

4. Edit $HOME/.bashrc:

   JAVA_HOME=/opt/jdk
   PATH=$PATH:$HOME/bin:$JAVA_HOME/bin

5. Logout and log back in.

This offers many advantages:

• You can install multiple versions of the SDK and need only switch a symbolic link.
• You know where all the files are located.
• You know exactly which version of Java is being used.
• No other versions are installed, so there cannot be any conflicts.

I have done this for years and have never had any problems with Java on Linux, except for packages that do not detect that Java is installed and attempt to install the OpenJDK.

Also, stay away from the OpenJDK as its fonts are terrible to behold.