Java 9 is Coming - Know The Release Date and Major Features

Short bytes: General availability of Java 9 is announced by Oracle and it is coming on Sep 22nd, 2016. The major feature in Java 9, the module system, will be a boon for developers and it will also bring improved scalability and performance to Java platform.

Java 9 release dates and roadmap is finalized by Oracle and you can expect it to be available by Sep 22nd, 2016. If you are interested in trying it out now, the early access version of JDK 9 is available here. The milestone definitions for JDK9 are the same as those for JDK 8.

Modularity via Project Jigsaw is a key feature of Java 9. Java 9 will treat modules as a fundamental new kind of program component, with the system improving scalability and performance, a key Oracle Java official says.

In a blog post this week, Oracle’s Mark Reinhold, chief architect of the Java platform group, discussed the goals of the module system. Chief among them is reliable configuration, to replace the “brittle, error-prone, class-path mechanism” with a means for program components to declare dependencies on each other. Strong encapsulation, which allows a component to declare which public types are accessible to other components, is also a goal.

“These features will benefit application developers, library developers, and implementers of the Java SE Platform itself directly,” said Reinhold. “And indirectly, since they will enable a scalable platform, greater platform integrity, and improved performance.”

Reinhold defined a module as a self-describing collection of code and data. Code within it is organized as a set of packages containing types, essentially classes, and interfaces. Data within modules includes resources and other kinds of static information.

Other than Project Jigsaw and Modularity to Java 9 platform, some of the other notable features worth mentioning are –

jshell – a new command line tool for Java that will add native support and popularize a Java way to REPL (Read-Eval-Print-Loop).
JMH – a Java harness for building, running, and analyzing nano/micro/milli/macro benchmarks.
Probably G1 as default garbage collector.
Full support for HTTP 2.0 and feature a new HTTP client for Java that will replace HttpURLConnection, and also implement HTTP 2.0 and websockets.

A list of other features coming along with Java 9 is listed here by Oracle. You can also check the countdown page for Java 9 and subscribe to get latest updates and it approached the release date.

Java 9 Release Schedule

2015/12/10		Feature Complete
2016/02/04		All Tests Run
2016/02/25		Rampdown Start
2016/04/21		Zero Bug Bounce
2016/06/16		Rampdown Phase 2
2016/07/21		Final Release Candidate
2016/09/22		General Availability