Java Basics

Java in Control Panel of Windows

The Java Control Panel is a multipurpose control panel. It allows you to control how the Java technology runs on your computer. It also allows you to control certificates, making it safe to run applets and applications over the network. Moreover, you can manipulate the files used by the Java Plug-in and Java Web Start. Finally, you can set the runtime parameters for both Java Plug-in applets and Java Web Start applications.

In this tutorial we will show you how to access and use the Java Control Panel in a Windows 7 computer, with a 64-bit architecture. Also, the 1.7.0_45 version of Java is installed.

How to open the Java Control Panel

  1. Using the Windows Command Line: The JRE installation provides an executable file that opens the Java Control Panel. The default installation directory in Windows 7 is:
    C:\Program Files\Java\jre7
    

    and all executable files are located inside the directory:

    C:\Program Files\Java\jre7\bin
    

    Thus, we have to issue the following command:

    C:\Program Files\Java\jre7\bin\javacpl.exe
    
  2. Using the Windows Explorer: Navigate to the default installation directory of Java using the Windows Explorer. Enter inside the bin folder and double click on:
    javacpl.exe
    
  3. Using the Windows Control Panel:
    • Open the Windows Control Panel.
    • In the Control Panel Search area, enter Java Control Panel.
    • Click on the Java icon that appears, in order to open the Java Control Panel.

Contents of the Java Control Panel

The Java Control Panel consists of the following viewable panels:

  • General
  • Java
  • Security
  • Advanced

In the rest of this section we will analyze each panel separately.

General

A sample screenshot of the General panel is shown below:

java_control_panel_WM

The General panel consists of three sub-panels:

  • About: The About… button informs the user about the installed version of Java as shown below:

    about_Java_WM

  • Network Settings: The Network Settings… button opens the Network Settings dialog, where the user can configure the network settings that will be used by Java:

    jcp_network_settings_WM

  • Temporary Internet Files: The Settings… buttons opens the Temporary File Settings dialog, where the user can manipulate the stored temporary files in her computer.

    java_applications_cache_WM

    Also, the View… button opens the Java Cache Viewer, where a list of all applications, resources, and deleted applications stored in the Java cache is presented:

    jcp_cache_viewer_WM

Finally, we shall mention that this panel also informs the user whether Java is enabled in the browser or not. The user can change this setting from the Security tab.

Java

A sample screenshot of the Java panel is shown below:

jcp_java_WM

The View... button opens the Java Runtime Environment Settings dialog, where the user can overview all installed Java Runtime Environments (JREs) and can modify their runtime parameters:

jcp_environment_settings_WM

Security

A sample screenshot of the Security panel is shown below:

jcp_security_WM

The first option, called Enable Java content in the browser, specifies whether Java can be executed in the browser. De-selecting this option prevents any Java application from running in the browser. Furthermore, if the option is enabled, the user can specify the level of security using the provided slider.

For more information about Security please refer to link here.

Finally, the Manage Certificates… button opens the Certificates dialog, where the user can add and remove certificates, while the Restore Security Prompts button restores all security prompts that have been hidden.

Advanced

A sample screenshot of the Advanced panel is shown below:

jcp_advanced_WM

Through the Advanced panel, a user has the ability to modify and configure a large number of parameters, concerning the Java console, Advanced Security Settings, Certificate Revocations, etc.

 
This was a tutorial on how to access and use the Java Control Panel.

Sotirios-Efstathios Maneas

Sotirios-Efstathios (Stathis) Maneas is a PhD student at the Department of Computer Science at the University of Toronto. His main interests include distributed systems, storage systems, file systems, and operating systems.
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