Running Eclipse

After installing the Eclipse SDK in a directory, you can start the Workbench by running the Eclipse executable included with the release (you also need a Java SE 5 JRE, not included with the Eclipse SDK). On Windows, the executable file is called eclipse.exe, and is located in the eclipse sub-directory of the install. If installed at c:\eclipse-SDK-4.1-win32, the executable is c:\eclipse-SDK-4.1-win32\eclipse\eclipse.exe. Note: Set-up on most other operating environments is analogous. Special instructions for Mac OS X are listed below.

Allocating enough memory and solving OutOfMemoryErrors


eclipse -vmargs -Xmx<memory size>

with the <memory size> value set to greater than "384M" (384 megabytes -- the default).


eclipse -vmargs -XX:MaxPermSize=<memory size>



Selecting a workspace


Specifying the Java virtual machine

Here is a typical Eclipse command line: 

eclipse -vm c:\jdk5u22\jre\bin\javaw


To create a Windows shortcut to an installed Eclipse:



Mac OS X





Shared Install


Advanced Topics in Running Eclipse

The Eclipse executable and the platform itself offer a number of execution options of interest to people developing or debugging parts of Eclipse. This is a list of the commonly used options, for a full list see the Eclipse runtime options page in the Platform Plug-in Developer Guide. The general form of running the Eclipse executable is:

eclipse [platform options] [-vmargs [Java VM arguments]]
Eclipse Startup Parameters
Command Description Since
-arch architecture
Defines the processor architecture on which the Eclipse platform is running. The Eclipse platform ordinarily computes the optimal setting using the prevailing value of Java os.arch property. If specified here, this is the value that the Eclipse platform uses. The value specified here is available to plug-ins as Platform.getOSArch(). Example values: "x86", "sparc", "PA-RISC", "ppc". 2.0
-application applicationId
The application to run. Applications are declared by plug-ins supplying extensions to the org.eclipse.core.runtime.applications extension point. This argument is typically not needed. If specified, the value overrides the value supplied by the configuration. If not specified, the Eclipse Workbench is run. 1.0
Cleans cached data used by the OSGi framework and Eclipse runtime. Try to run Eclipse once with this option if you observe startup errors after install, update, or using a shared configuration. 3.0
-configuration configURL
The location for the Eclipse Platform configuration file, expressed as a URL. The configuration file determines the location of the Eclipse platform, the set of available plug-ins, and the primary feature. Note that relative URLs are not allowed. The configuration file is written to this location when the Eclipse platform is installed or updated. 2.0
Mirrors the Eclipse platform's error log to the console used to run Eclipse. Handy when combined with -debug. 1.0
-data workspacePath
The path of the workspace on which to run the Eclipse platform. The workspace location is also the default location for projects. Relative paths are interpreted relative to the directory that Eclipse was started from. 1.0
-debug [optionsFile]
Puts the platform in debug mode and loads the debug options from the file at the given location, if specified. This file indicates which debug points are available for a plug-in and whether or not they are enabled. If a file location is not given, the platform looks in the directory that eclipse was started from for a file called ".options". Both URLs and file system paths are allowed as file locations. 1.0
-dev [classpathEntries]
Puts the platform in development mode. The optional classpath entries (a comma separated list) are added to the runtime classpath of each plug-in. For example, when the workspace contains plug-ins being developed, specifying -dev bin adds a classpath entry for each plug-in project's directory named bin, allowing freshly generated class files to be found there. Redundant or non-existent classpath entries are eliminated. 1.0
Initializes the configuration being run. All runtime related data structures and caches are refreshed. Handy with shared installs: running Eclipse once with this option from an account with write privileges will improve startup performance. 3.0
-keyring keyringFilePath
The location of the authorization database (or "key ring" file) on disk. This argument must be used in conjunction with the -password option. Relative paths are interpreted relative to the directory that Eclipse was started from. 1.0
-nl locale
Defines the name of the locale on which the Eclipse platform is running. The Eclipse platform ordinarily computes the optimal setting automatically. If specified here, this is the value that the Eclipse platform uses. The value specified here is available to plug-ins as Platform.getNL(). Example values: "en_US" and "fr_FR_EURO". 2.0
Runs the platform without putting up the splash screen. 1.0
-os operatingSystem
Defines the operating system on which the Eclipse platform is running. The Eclipse platform ordinarily computes the optimal setting using the prevailing value of Java property. If specified here, this is the value that the Eclipse platform uses. The value specified here is available to plug-ins as Platform.getOS(), and used to resolve occurrences of the $os$ variable in paths mentioned in the plug-in manifest file. Example values: "win32", "linux", "hpux", "solaris", "aix". 1.0
-password password
The password for the authorization database. Used in conjunction with the -keyring option. 1.0
-perspective perspectiveId
The perspective to open in the active workbench window on startup. If this parameter is not specified, the perspective that was active on shutdown will be opened. 1.0
The location of a properties file containing default settings for plug-in preferences. These default settings override default settings specified in the primary feature. Relative paths are interpreted relative to the directory that eclipse was started from. 2.0
-product productId
The ID of the product to run. The product gives the launched instance of Eclipse its personality, and determines the product customization information used. This replaces -feature, which is still supported for compatibility. 3.0
Option for performing a global refresh of the workspace on startup. This will reconcile any changes that were made in the file system since the platform was last run. 1.0
-showlocation [workspaceName]
Option for displaying the location of the workspace in the window title bar. In release 2.0 this option only worked in conjunction with the -data command line argument. In 3.2, an optional workspace name argument was added that displays the provided name in the window title bar instead of the location of the workspace. 2.0
-vm vmPath
The location of Java Runtime Environment (JRE) to use to run the Eclipse platform. If not specified, the launcher will attempt to find a JRE. It will first look for a directory called jre as a sibling of the Eclipse executable, and then look on the operating system path. Relative paths are interpreted relative to the directory that eclipse was started from. 1.0
-vmargs args
When passed to the Eclipse, this option is used to customize the operation of the Java VM used to run Eclipse. If specified, this option must come at the end of the command line. The given arguments are dependent on VM that is being run. 1.0

All arguments following (but not including) the -vmargs entry are passed directly through to the indicated Java VM as virtual machine arguments (that is, before the class to run). Note: If an Eclipse startup argument, such as -data, is provided after the Java vm arguments (-vmargs), Eclipse will not start and you will receive a "JVM terminated. Exit code=1" error.