Jinstall 1.0a1 FAQ
  This information is for installations created with the Jinstall 1.0a1 utility. If you encounter any problems that are not covered here, please mail me a bug report.

Installation problems

General information

  Installation problems
 
I can't get the environment to see the install class.
  • Check the CLASSPATH setting. In many environments, this is set in an environment variable, and should include the directory containing install.class.
  • Can you run any java application class in the same directory as the install.class file? If you can, but still can't get the VM to find the install class, verify you downloaded the class as a binary file.
Installation fails with an exception or the java VM crashes.
Please mail me a bug report if you get an exception and don't think this is a bug in the java environment itself. If aren't sure, send one anyway.
  • IOExceptions can be caused by your process not having enough permissions or space to create files in the installation directory.
  • The GUI interface can trigger bugs in some java implementations.
    Try running the installer in console mode. Give it the command line arguments
    -o <targetDirectoryToInstall>
I get a message "some batch files were not created".
This just means the installation went properly, but the utility wasn't able to automatically create files that conveniently start the main class for the package. The message should include the name of the classes to start the application. Please make a note of these names, and also read the documentation for the package to learn how to start the application.

If you also get a message "don't have enough information about the ... environment", please mail me a bug report.

I can't run the generated batch file properly.
  • Check if the path to the java interpreter is in your search path.
  • This should be the same interpreter you used to install your package.
  • The CLASSPATH for the application is appended to any existing CLASSPATH. Check if you have any previous versions of the application already in your CLASSPATH.
  • Check the batch file for errors, and mail me a bug report if something is incorrectly generated.
JDK 1.1_final on Solaris throws a NullPointerException during GUI installation
Just after extracting the initialization code, the installation throws a NullPointerException at
sun.awt.motif.MComponentPeer.initialize
sun.awt.motif.MComponentPeer.<init>
sun.awt.motif.MCanvasPeer.<init>
...
From the known bugs in java.awt page at Javasoft on Feb 28, 1997
You may get a NullPointerException if the default font listed in the $JAVA_HOME/lib/font.properties file is not available on Unix environments. In order to workaround this, change the default font in this file to a font which does exist on your system. If you don't need to run in a multifont (internationalized) environment, you can simply remove this file.
JIT version of JDK 1.0.2 on Solaris throws an IOException or dumps core towards the end of installation.
Check the version of the JIT VM
% java -version
java version "1.0.2dp:12/18/96-17:52"
% 
If you see a date (this is the stuff after the 1.0.2dp: ) earlier than 01/31/97-13:13, the modified interpreter (whether or not it runs in JIT mode) may have trouble running System.exec() calls. This call is needed to make the generated scripts executable. Either use the unmodified java interpreter, or use the latest version of the Solaris JIT.
I want to mail in a bug report.
Please mail reports to jinstall-bugs@sbktech.org and include as much details as you can.
  • If you get an exception, include the full stack trace.
  • Include the operating system, java version and the java VM you are using.
  • Run this diagnostic program (or compile its source if you prefer) as an application and include its output.
  • If you were able to work around the problem, please include the details so I can add it to this FAQ.
  General information
 
How does it work?
The install class itself is just a small class loader. The contents of the package as well as the code to install the package are compressed and stored as attributes in the bytecode. When you run the installer, it reads part of itself and loads the installation code. The installation code then reads the rest of the data and installs your package.
I want to get a copy of the installer utility
Jinstall is now available as a commercially supported utility from InstallShield Software Corporation. Additional information may be found by going to http://www.installshield.com/java/.
 

http://www.sbktech.org/jinstallfaq.html Revised: Feb 20, 1997
Copyright (C) 1997 KB Sriram.
Comments, bug reports: kbs@sbktech.org