CODEWITHSUNDEEP
java
user705414
user705414

Reputation: 21200

What's the default classpath when not specifying classpath?

Wondering what will be the default classpath when not specifying classpath option?

Upvotes: 45

Views: 53030

Answers (4)

aioobe
aioobe

Reputation: 420991

The current working directory (.).

From The Java™ tutorials: PATH and CLASSPATH:

The default value of the class path is ".", meaning that only the current directory is searched. Specifying either the CLASSPATH variable or the -cp command line switch overrides this value.

Does this include subdirectories?

No, no entry in the classpath is "recursive". You have to list each subdirectory (or jar) explicitly. However, if you have an Example.class file representing class pkg.subpkg.Example, and the default classpath is used, then this file should live in ./pkg/subpkg/Example.class.

If java attempts to resolve pkg.subpkg.Example it will look in /pkg/subpkg of each classpath entry. I.e. you do not have to list ., pkg, and pkg/subpkg in the classpath, only ..

Upvotes: 46

Fedor Skrynnikov
Fedor Skrynnikov

Reputation: 5609

The default class path is the current directory. Setting the CLASSPATH variable or using the -classpath command-line option overrides that default, so if you want to include the current directory in the search path, you must include "." in the new settings. official manual

Upvotes: 5

gilbertpilz
gilbertpilz

Reputation: 1806

I think people are answering this person's question too literally. Yes, CLASSPATH defaults to ".", but there are a bunch of classes that automatically get loaded even when you don't set CLASSPATH or use the -classpath command line argument.

The following is a good place to learn about this process:

http://docs.oracle.com/javase/8/docs/technotes/tools/findingclasses.html

Upvotes: 27

gprathour
gprathour

Reputation: 15333

It is the current Working directory "."

You can check it out your self too

class CheckClassPath{
    public static void main(String args[]){
        System.out.println(System.getProperty("java.class.path"));
    }
}

Upvotes: 9

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