Update Java version

[erikjung]

Noting this here: https://cloudfour.slack.com/archives/walmart-dot-com/p1429312912000032

[lyzadanger]

@lharding You know about Java. I could use some help here.

Right now, boxen installs Java using boxen/puppet-java. As I recall, this is required for provisioning a new box. There is some dependency somewhere. Otherwise I wouldn't have touched Java with a ten-foot pole. Having said that, I don't recall what the dependency was and I don't have it in my notes.

Here are some other things I know to be at present:

• puppet-java claims to install different versions of Java 7
• Walmart has a specific version requirement. That version is 1.8.0_40 And I officially don't understand Java version numbers. It's claimed that that is a version-8 sub-version. Note that it is not 7.
• Many of us are seeing (and dismissing) nags to update our Java versions from time to time (I am one of those people)

The main questions are:

• Can exact versions—especially non-7 versions—be managed with boxen?
• Should this be managed with boxen?
• Will we break things if we hand-manage java versions? Can we allow a version update from that nag-window?

My preferred path would be just hand-managing this once the first provision installs whatever it installs. Which would be sort of a no-op. But I want to feel more confident that this isn't a long-term hosing situation.

If any changes to boxen need to happen, alternately, this will need to be tested on a fresh provision as well.

[lharding]

Answers to the main questions:

• We can (supposedly) manage minor (update) versions of Java 7 with boxen. Java 8 support is in the works, but semi-stagnant: Upgrade to Java 8 boxen/puppet-java#33
• Ideally this would be managed with boxen, but I suspect in general it's going to be rare that we have a need for anything but the default update of Java 7.
• In my experiments, hand-managing Java versions hasn't broken anything. When doing this, it's generally okay to accept the nag dialog as long as you're careful to decline whatever toolbars Oracle is pushing at the moment, UNLESS of course you need to stay on the version you have installed.
• It's possible to be rid of the nag dialogs permanently if you're in this situation or don't care about Java.

We're stuck with hand-managing Java versions for now, it looks like, because of Walmart's requirement, which is indeed Java 8 (the 8 in 1.8.0_40...yeah...). Hopefully puppet-java gets Java 8 support by the time we next have a client who makes us use Java.