If you’ve ever downloaded Java from Oracle or OpenJDK, you might have noticed the "Windows x86" (as opposed to "Windows x64") option and wondered if it’s just legacy cruft.
You install a 32-bit JRE. You set JAVA_HOME . You try to run an installer or a Maven build, and you get: "This application requires a 64-bit JVM." Or worse, you try to load your native library and get: "Can't load IA 32-bit .dll on a AMD 64-bit platform" Run java -version in your terminal. If it doesn't explicitly say "64-Bit," you are likely running a 32-bit JVM. (On Windows, 32-bit Java installs to C:\Program Files (x86)\Java ; 64-bit goes to C:\Program Files\Java ). Should You Deploy New Projects on 32-Bit Java? Absolutely not.
Do you still have a production system running on 32-bit Java? Let us know in the comments why—we’d love to hear the legacy war stories.
