Overview - Java SE 7

This Release Note covers all point releases for the Java SE 7 branch that are offered by eApps. Upgrade instructions are included.

Java SE 7 is a major release of the Java Platform, Standard Edition. This release has introduced new functionality and significant changes to the existing Java platform. If you are upgrading from any prior version of Java to Java SE 7, there is a HIGH RISK of data loss and downtime if you do not carefully test your existing application with this new version.

eApps recommends, as a best practice, to maintain a staging server where you can test software upgrades before moving them into production. This approach will allow you to minimize the risk of data loss and downtime of your production service when performing software upgrades. If necessary, you can rebuild your staging Virtual Server on demand so that you have a fresh installation to test on. If you need more information about setting up a staging Virtual Server, please contact eApps Sales.

IMPORTANT: Java SE 7 has an extensive list of new features and changes. Upgrading to this version may significantly impact the operation of your applications. See the Java SE 7 Release Notes for a list of changes that may cause issues when upgrading: http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/7u-relnotes-515228.html. Please read this document carefully to understand all the changes in the Java SE 7 release. All Java SE 7 documentation is located here:http://docs.oracle.com/javase/7/docs/

Java SE 7 and above are only available for Virtual Servers running CentOS 6 (ISPmanager). If you are on a CentOS 5 (Webmin) or CentOS 4 (VPS) plan and need Java SE 7, you will need to migrate to a CentOS 6 (ISPmanager) plan. Contact eApps Sales for more information.

eApps Release Notes for Java SE 7 1.7.0_80
eApps Release Notes for Java SE 7 1.7.0_76
eApps Release Notes for Java SE 7 1.7.0_72
eApps Release Notes for Java SE 7 1.7.0_67
eApps Release Notes for Java SE 7 1.7.0_65
eApps Release Notes for Java SE 7 1.7.0_60
eApps Release Notes for Java SE 7 1.7.0_55
eApps Release Notes for Java SE 7 1.7.0_51
eApps Release Notes for Java SE 7 1.7.0_45
eApps Release Notes for Java SE 7 1.7.0_25

How to upgrade
Java SE 6 to Java SE 7
Java SE 7 to Java SE 7 (newer version)

Highlighted Features and Fixes in Java SE 7 1.7.0_80

Java SE 7 1.7.0_80 is the last public release of the Java SE 7 platform. No more updates to this version will be available. Please see the official End of Life (EOL) announcement from Oracle for more information: Oracle Java SE Support Roadmap.

Features

• New Command-line option to Identify Use of Deprecated Mechanisms (see official release notes for detailed explanation)

Fixes

• Fix for a JVM crash when using a Kerberos login
• Improved performance in ClassLoader
• zlib updated to fix an issue with some gzipped files

The official Release Notes for Java SE 7 1.7.0_80 are available here - http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/7u80-relnotes-2494162.html

Highlighted Features and Fixes in Java SE 7 1.7.0_76

SSLv3 is disabled by default in Java SE 7 1.7.0_76 and for all subsequent Java SE 7 releases. Due to security issues SSLv3 is obsolete and should no longer be used.

Features

Java SE 7 1.7.0_76 is a bug fix and security release, no new features have been added.

Fixes

• Fix for ProcessBuilder leaking memory
• Fix for JWS not being authenticated using kerberos
• Fixed corrupt attribute value for XML parser

The official Release Notes for Java SE 7 1.7.0_76 are available here - http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/7u76-relnotes-2389087.html

Highlighted Features and Fixes in Java SE 7 1.7.0_72

All Oracle products that are compliant with SSL v3.0 are vulnerable to POODLE, an exploit in the SSL v3 code. More information about POODLE and which Oracle products are affected is available here - CVE-2014-3566.

NOTE - Instructions on how to disable SSL v3.0 in Oracle JDK and JRE to fix the "POODLE" vulnerability are found here - Disable SSL v3.

Features

Java SE 7 1.7.0_72 is a bug fix and security release, no new features have been added.

Fixes

• Fix to introduce system property to maintain RC4 preference order
• Resource files updated for TimeZone display names

The official Release Notes for Java SE 7 1.7.0_72 are available here - http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/7u72-relnotes-2296190.html

Highlighted Features and Fixes in Java SE 7 1.7.0_67

Features

Java SE 7 1.7.0_67 was released to fix a bug in Java SE 7 1.7.0_65. No features have been added.

Fixes

• Fix for regression - java_arguments not accepted after update to 7u65

The official Release Notes for Java SE 7 1.7.0_67 are available here - http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/7u67-relnotes-2251330.html

Highlighted Features and Fixes in Java SE 7 1.7.0_65

Features

• New property maxElementDepth was added to provide applications the ability to set limit on maximum element depth in an xml file that they parse
• IANA time zone data version 2014c is now part of the JRE

Fixes

• Handling of system property org.omg.CORBA.ORBSingletonClass has been reverted to match the behavior from 7u55 and prior JDK versions
• Fix for applet caller check comparing URLs
• RMI thread can no longer call out to AWT thread for webstart app

The official Release Notes for Java SE 7 1.7.0_65 are available here - http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/7u65-relnotes-2229169.html

Highlighted Features and Fixes in Java SE 7 1.7.0_60

Features

• An enabled expiration check may now be ignored at first launch
• MinHeapFreeRatio and MaxHeapFreeRatio are now manageable using the management API

Fixes

• Improved fix for line break calculations
• Better support for tzdata2014b
• Fix for async close issues

The official Release Notes for Java SE 7 1.7.0_60 are available here - http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/7u60-relnotes-2200106.html

Highlighted Features and Fixes in Java SE 7 1.7.0_55

Features

Java SE 7 1.7.0_55 is a bug fix and security release. No new major features have been added.

Fixes

• Fixed break logging and AWT circular dependency
• Fix for frozen AppKit thread in 7u40 on Mac OS X
• Reduce dialog frequency when app is run multiple times

The official Release Notes for Java SE 7 1.7.0_55 are available here - http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/7u55-relnotes-2177812.html

Highlighted Features and Fixes in Java SE 7 1.7.0_51

Features

• Jarsigner tool will now print an informational warning if jar is not timestamped
• New Security Slider settings
• New default socket permission settings

Fixes

• Fix for applets not loading and crashing Firefox on Mac OS X
• Updated tz data support
• Warnings now appear in all jar files, not just the main jar

The official Release Notes for Java SE 7 1.7.0_51 are available here - http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/7u51-relnotes-2085002.html

Highlighted Features and Fixes in Java SE 7 1.7.0_45

Features

Java SE 7 1.7.0_45 contains new features for protection against unauthorized redistribution of Java applications. Please read the New Features and Changes section of the Release Notes for more information.

Fixes

Java SE 7 1.7.0_45 has several security fixes. The Oracle Critical Patch Updates, Security Alerts and Third Party Bulletin page have more details - http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/topics/security/alerts-086861.html

The official Release Notes for Java SE 7 1.7.0_45 are available here - http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/7u45-relnotes-2016950.html

Highlighted Features and Fixes in Java SE 7 1.7.0_25

Features

Java SE 7 1.7.0_25 is a bug fix and security release, no new features have been added.

Fixes

• This release fixes a security issue, as documented in Oracle Security Alert for CVE-2013-1493 - http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/topics/security/alert-cve-2013-1493-1915081.html

The official Release Notes for Java SE 7 1.7.0_25 are available here - http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/7u25-relnotes-1955741.html

How to upgrade

It is your responsibility to ensure that your application will work on the newer version of Java. There may be incompatibilities that will affect how your application works. Please make sure that you have read the official Release Notes and have done any necessary testing before upgrading a production application.

To upgrade from Java SE 6 to Java SE 7 in ISPmanager, you will need to delete the application from the ISPmanager Control Panel, and then install the new version, also from the Control Panel.

To upgrade Java SE 7 to a newer version of Java SE 7 in ISPmanager, you will need to work from the command line using SSH, and you will need to be able to work as the root user. You will need to use yum to upgrade the application.

Java SE 6 to Java SE 7

There is no direct upgrade path between major Java versions. To upgrade, you will need to backup any custom configurations you have made to Java SE 6, uninstall Java SE 6, and then install Java SE 7. Once you have successfully installed Java SE 7, you will need to redeploy any custom configurations back to Java SE 7, and restart your Java based applications.

To uninstall Java SE 6, log in as root to the ISPmanager Control Panel, and go to Server Settings > Applications. Locate Java SE 6 in the list of applications, click on it to highlight it, and then click on Delete in the upper-right corner. Wait a few minutes, and then click on the link to Applications again to see if the uninstall process has completed. You may have to click on Applications several times before you see the application removed.

Once Java SE 6 has been removed, install Java SE 7. Click on Java SE 7 in the Applications list, and then click on Install in the upper-right corner. This will install Java SE 7. Wait a few minutes, then click on the link to Applications again to see if the install process has completed. You may have to click on Applications several times before you see the application installed.

Once the update completes, you will need to redeploy any existing Java customizations, and restart your Java based applications.

Java SE 7 to Java SE 7 (newer version)

To upgrade from an existing version of Java SE 7 to a newer version of Java SE 7, you will need to work from the command line of the Virtual Server, logging in using SSH as the root user. Once you are connected, you will need to use the yum update java-1.7.0-sun command.

[root@eapps-example ~]# yum update java-1.7.0-sun

Once the update completes, you will need to redeploy any existing Java customizations, and restart your Java based applications.