Java compiler

A Java compiler is a compiler for the Java programming language.

Some Java compilers output optimized machine code for a particular hardware/operating system combination, called a domain specific computer system. An example would be the now discontinued GNU Compiler for Java.^[1]

The most common form of output from a Java compiler is Java class files containing cross-platform intermediate representation (IR), called Java bytecode.^[2]

The Java virtual machine (JVM) loads the class files and either interprets the bytecode or just-in-time compiles it to machine code and then possibly optimizes it using dynamic compilation.

A standard on how to interact with Java compilers was specified in JSR 199.^[3]

See also

• List of Java Compilers
• javac, the standard Java compiler in Oracle's JDK

References

1. "GCJ - past, present, and future". Archived from the original on 2019-08-02. Retrieved 2021-09-24.
2. "The Java Virtual Machine Specification, Java SE 8 Edition, Section 1.2". Archived from the original on 2021-09-24. Retrieved 2021-09-24.
3. "JSR 199: JavaTM Compiler API". Archived from the original on 2021-09-24. Retrieved 2021-09-24.

External links

• Sun's OpenJDK javac page
• Stephan Diehl, "A Formal Introduction to the Compilation of Java", Software - Practice and Experience, Vol. 28(3), pages 297-327, March 1998.