Installing Oracle JRE or JDK 8 on Debian or Ubuntu Systems

Steps for installing Oracle Java 8 on Debian-based systems.

Configure your system to use the latest version of Oracle Java SE 8 JRE or JDK (1.8u151minimum). Java 9 and later are not supported.
Note: After installing the JDK, you may need to set JAVA_HOME to your profile:
  • For shell or bash: export JAVA_HOME=path_to_java_home
  • For csh (C shell): setenv JAVA_HOME=path_to_java_home

  1. Check which version of the JDK your system is using: 
    java -version
    If the OpenJDK is used, the results should look like:
    openjdk version "1.8.0_242"
OpenJDK Runtime Environment (build 1.8.0_242-b09)
OpenJDK 64-Bit Server VM (build 25.242-b09, mixed mode)
    If Oracle Java is used, the results should look like:
    java version "1.8.0_241"
Java(TM) SE Runtime Environment (build 1.8.0_241-b07)
Java HotSpot(TM) 64-Bit Server VM (build 25.241-b07, mixed mode)
  2. If necessary, go to Oracle Java SE Downloads, accept the license agreement, and download the installer for your distribution.

    The Oracle JDK License has changed for releases starting April 16, 2019. See Java SE Development Kit 8 Downloads.

    Note: If installing the Oracle JDK in a cloud environment, download the installer to your local client, and then use scp (secure copy) to transfer the file to your cloud machines.
  3. Make a directory for the JDK: 
    sudo mkdir -p /usr/lib/jvm
  4. Extract the tarball and install the JDK: 
    sudo tar zxvf jdk-version-linux-x64.tar.gz -C /usr/lib/jvm

    The JDK files are installed into a directory called /usr/lib/jvm/jdk-8u_version.

  5. Tell the system that there's a new Java version available: 
    sudo update-alternatives --install "/usr/bin/java" "java" "/usr/lib/jvm/jdk1.8.0_version/bin/java" 1
    Note: If updating from a previous version that was removed manually, execute the above command twice, because you'll get an error message the first time.
  6. Set the new JDK as the default: 
    sudo update-alternatives --set java /usr/lib/jvm/jdk1.8.0_version/bin/java
  7. Verify the version of the JRE or JDK: 
    java -version
    java version "1.8.0_241"
Java(TM) SE Runtime Environment (build 1.8.0_241-b07)
Java HotSpot(TM) 64-Bit Server VM (build 25.241-b07, mixed mode)