Has apple blocked Java 6?

Hello Ryan...I have a similar situation and need to use Java with Chrome on ML 10.8.x...did this solution work for you?

Good news to Java 6 users on OS X 10.7 and above! Apple did release a "quarterly update of Java 6" (Java for OS X 2013-001) recently that updates to 1.6.0_41. Best of all, this update is available for 10.7+ users as well.

Mac Rumors news (2013/02/19)

Download link of Java 6 update for OS X 10.7 and 10.8

Problem solved!

Ryan Lei -- Taiwan wrote:

Good news to Java 6 users on OS X 10.7 and above! Apple did release a "quarterly update of Java 6" (Java for OS X 2013-001) recently that updates to 1.6.0_41. Best of all, this update is available for 10.7+ users as well.

Download link of Java 6 update for OS X 10.7 and 10.8

Except that the link you gave is still broken and takes you to the previous Update 12, at least it does here in the states.

Use Software Update to get Java for Mac OS X 10.6 Update 13 or use this direct link to the download itself http://support.apple.com/downloads/DL1573/en_US/JavaForMacOSX10.6.Update13.dmg

Ryan Lei -- Taiwan wrote:

Apple did release a "quarterly update of Java 6" (Java for OS X 2013-001) recently that updates to 1.6.0_41.

Not a quarterly update, but a panic update because their servers got hacked by the Chinese. Update 2012-006 was issued 2/2/13.

baltwo wrote:

Not a quarterly update, but a panic update because their servers got hacked by the Chinese. Update 2012-006 was issued 2/2/13.

For Oracle there had been a Feb 19 tri-annual update scheduled, according to this Critical Patch Update Advisory, but they rolled it out early on Feb 1 due to the criticality of the last issue. At that time they made a decision to go to a quarterly schedule with the next being on April 16. So this one had to have been an out-of-cycle update for the reason baltwo stated. I believe Apple was just reacting to the Oracle emergency release covering five new vulnerabilities as described here.

I'm guessing that Oracle is overwhelmed by the discovery of all these new issues and are going to have to increase the update frequency or give up on browser Java completely. If I were a Java programmer right now, I'd be looking for a class or a new job using some other coding language.

This should be the last public update for Jave SE 6, but we still have over a week left in the final month of support, so who knows?

MadMacs0,It's obvious that you're not a java developer. Java is used on major web sites with millions of visitors a day like Google, Amazon and others. Server side Java does not have the same security issues as Java in the browser. Practically noone codes java apps for the web browser since +7 years or so.

Java run on the server side is technically way safer than many PHP systems anyway. Many of the newer technologies like Ruby and others run on the JVM (Java Virtual Machine). The job market for java developers is very healthy, thank you. Yes, I am one.

Since Apple left many in the lurch with these iOSified OSs and dropped support for many machines so they can't run ML and, since many developers haven't coded their applets for Java SE 7, I suspect that Apple will continue providing Java updates as necessary to beat down the exploits; otherwise, they won't be able to handle the bad press and stock price degradation. 😉

Apple have not "blocked java 6" as a technology. They have blocked all versions of the java browser plugin before version 1.7.0_11-b22.

There are no major issues running java 6 apps that I'm aware of in neither OS X Lion 10.7.5 nor in OS X 10.6.8. I use a java-based book keeping package without issues and also some other native java apps. Also I develop server side solutions with jdk 6 in Eclipse, there too without the slightest hiccup.

So unless you absolutely need to run Java in the browser for whatever reason, you really don't have to do anything beside keeping your java version as up to date as you can.

If you do, you'd be well advised to manage security settings as tight as you can and perhaps limiting Java use just to one browser separate from what you use as your main browser.

baltwo, I'm not holding my breath 😀 but I hope you're right. It would make my life easier if Apple kept updating java 6 (including the jdk) in Snow Leopard for yet some time, as I just downgraded from Lion.

If push come to shove it I know I can manage as I was on PowerPC and stuck with java 1.5 just until last summer. The OpenJdk project is gold for java developers.

Well, you are certainly correct about the position Apple finds itself in, but I'm not sure they currently have the right skill-set to be able to keep Java 6 up-to-date on their own. In the past they have always relied on Oracle to provide them with the basic patch, then integrated it into their own installer and run it thorough internal & developer testing when time permitted. Although Oracle isn't providing public support any more after this month, they will continue to provide enterprise support to paying customers, so if Apple pays them enough, perhaps it can work out that way. Only time will tell.

Mik B wrote:

Apple have not "blocked java 6" as a technology. They have blocked all versions of the java browser plugin before version 1.7.0_11-b22.

The XProtect.meta.plist on SL shows:

<key>JavaWebComponentVersionMinimum</key>

<string>1.6.0_37-b06-434</string>

and

<key>MinimumPlugInBundleVersion</key>

<string>1.6.0.36</string>

and the L/ML one has the same first entry.

Correct. I should of course have added that version number for java 6 too. WIth the current version in Apples latest update 13, java 6 is build 1.6.0_41-b02-445.

Mik B wrote:

MadMacs0,It's obvious that you're not a java developer.

Not a developer. I thought about it once, but found a more lucritive line of work.

Java is used on major web sites with millions of visitors a day like Google, Amazon and others. Server side Java does not have the same security issues as Java in the browser. Practically noone codes java apps for the web browser since +7 years or so.

I'm certainly aware of that and have pointed it out in numerous postings on that subject recently. But I have also noted that there is way too much legacy browser Java still out there. One user told me that the entire banking system in Denmark relies on it for on-line banking. Even worse, there are many who's livelyhood relies on their ability to use Java with their web browsers. Teachers are one large group, but there are certainly others.

Java run on the server side is technically way safer than many PHP systems anyway. Many of the newer technologies like Ruby and others run on the JVM (Java Virtual Machine). The job market for java developers is very healthy, thank you. Yes, I am one.

Everything I've read says you are right. My sources tell me that ECMAScripting (a more accurate name for JavaScript) along with Ruby on Rails will be the next shoes to drop. Best of luck in your endevors.

Hi,

My current version of Java is 1.7.0_17-b02, which exceeds the minimum requirements listed in the XProtec.meta.plist. Safari is still blocking Java...

In any case, my plist file is locked. How do I edit it? Thanks

Klaus Blume wrote:

My current version of Java is 1.7.0_17-b02, which exceeds the minimum requirements listed in the XProtec.meta.plist. Safari is still blocking Java...

Your profile says you are running Lion and this is a Snow Leopard forum, but I guess we can let it go.

Agree that it should be working for you as long as you have it enabled for browser use. Exactly what do you see when Safari goes to How do I test whether Java is working on my computer?

In any case, my plist file is locked. How do I edit it?

And what plist file would that be?