Setting up and checking your Windows environment

The operation of the Java™ runtime on Windows is controlled by a number of environment variables.

If you experience initial problems in running the JVM, check the following items:

PATH

The PATH environment variable must point to the directory of your Java installation that contains the file java.exe. Ensure that PATH includes the \bin directory of your Java installation.

CLASSPATH

The Java runtime uses this environment variable to find the classes it needs when it runs. This is useful when the class you want to run uses classes that are located in other directories. By default, this is blank. If you install a product that uses the Java runtime, CLASSPATH is automatically set to point to the .jar files that the product needs.