As someone relying on Java to power your applications, you may be wondering: is it worth upgrading to the latest major release? With the arrival of Java 17 in September 2021, you now have an extensive, production-ready update of this ubiquitous platform to consider leveraging.
In this comprehensive technology guide, I‘ll overview the notable improvements and new capabilities introduced in Java 17. You‘ll learn how upgrades to the Java Development Kit (JDK) could benefit your software, along with best practices for transitioning.
By the end of this deep dive, you‘ll understand Java 17‘s significance and have actionable advice for putting its new features to work. Time to dive in!
The Significance of Java 17 for Modern Software
First, let‘s examine why the launch of Java 17 matters…
As an official Long Term Support (LTS) release, Java 17 will be supported with security patches and maintenance updates until at least September 2029. This makes it a suitable target for migrating many production systems off older versions like Java 8/11.
The last LTS, Java 11, is set to lapse out of support in 2026 – so many organizations are now preparing multi-year plans around upgrading to Java 17.
!["Java usage over time" graph showing steady growth to 3 billion devices running Java in 2021]
With over 3 billion devices running Java today and billions more Java developers globally, it remains the world‘s #1 programming language and software platform. From complex enterprise applications to Android apps, web systems to big data pipelines, Java is ubiquitous in modern computing.
Upgrading provides access to the latest performance optimizations, security enhancements, and language improvements. Java 17 continues this platform‘s tradition of incremental evolutions that balance innovation and stability.
Let‘s now dive into the most notable new capabilities included in Java 17!
Java 17 Core Feature Upgrades
While not as sweeping as releases that introduced major capabilities like lambdas or switch expressions, Java 17 does deliver valuable improvements:
Official Apple Silicon Support
Java now supports Apple‘s transition in latest Mac devices towards Arm-based system-on-chip (SoC) processors called Apple silicon….
Details on unified architecture, benefits for Mac deployments, compiler adaptations, etc.
Sealed Classes Provide More Design Control
First introduced as a preview in Java 15, the concept of "sealed classes" that restrict extension has now made it into the main Java standard…
Examples of constraining inheritance hierarchies with permits/denies
Call Native Code and Memory Via Foreign Function API
An incubating "Foreign Function & Memory API" enables safer invocation of non-Java functions and direct memory access for better native integration…
Use case explanations, walkthroughs of API usage
Pattern Matching Arrives for switch Statements
Expanding the switch syntax with sophisticated pattern matching support makes complex conditional logic easier to implement cleanly…
Syntax examples, description of preview feature process
Along with these headlining upgrades, Java 17 contains dozens more enhancements around graphics, networking, logging, garbage collection, containers, and tooling.
Later I’ll share guidance around how to determine when and how to migrate your own systems to leverage these wide-ranging improvements. First, let’s round out our Java 17 tour with some lower level changes.
What’s Deprecated/Removed in Java 17
Maintaining capabilities that are outdated, insecure, or simply underutilized places unnecessary baggage on the platform.
As with past releases, Java 17 continues pruning elements that had been marked as deprecated previously:
Applet API: The ancient client plug-in based framework relied on browser support that’s now absent in modern web clients.
Various Reflection Bypasses: Non-public methods for circumventing encapsulation have now been fully blocked for security reasons.
Certain File System Features: Elements that had cross-platform inconsistencies or performance issues saw removal.
Review the Java 17 Release Notes for a complete list of removals – your older code may require updates if still utilizing these deprecated elements prior to upgrading.
Big Picture: Trends and Trajectory
Stepping back, we can trace Java‘s industry-leading adoption and longevity to thoughtful, innovative stewardship by Oracle. Java 17 is the latest waypoint on a long technology journey…
The Next LTS Release Looms
Java 17 will be supported through late 2029, but developers should already have Java 21 on their roadmaps. Due in 2023, Java 21 marks the next Long Term Support release. Migrating newer applications first to Java 17 makes the Java 21 LTS transition smoother.
Java Keeps Expanding as a Unifying Force
From cloud services to embedded devices, Java continues permeating every fold of computing. Revolutionary paradigm shifts like Kotlin and functional programming expand what Java ecosystems can accomplish.
Java 18 and 19 Bring More Features
Before the next LTS, Java 18 and 19 will further enrich APIs, syntax, toolchains, and JVM capabilities. Devs who continuously integrate new Java releases best leverage ongoing enhancements.
Adopting each appropriate Java update ensures access to the latest optimizations, features and support timelines across the massive existing Java software landscape.
Now let’s shift gears to context around smoothly upgrading systems to leverage all that Java 17 offers…
Upgrading Existing Systems to Java 17
Especially for large, business-critical applications, moving to Java 17 requires thoughtful planning. Here is a step-by-step process I guide my technical teams through when preparing major version upgrades:
1. Assess Technical Compatibility
- Profile for usage of deprecated APIs that saw removal in Java 17 using tools like the Java Access Bridge.
- Check dependencies on external libraries for Java 17 support
- Run tests against Java 17 runtime to catch issues early
2. Evaluate Operational Impacts
- Factor in needs for increased infrastructure resources (memory, CPU, etc.)
- Adjust monitoring thresholds for JVM heap usage, thread pools, etc.
- Test failure scenarios via chaos engineering experiments
3. Determine Transition Approach
- "Lift-and-shift" is fastest but riskiest; doing major refactoring first enables incremental validation
- Consider running parallel clusters on old+new versions (with canary testing)
- Utilize containers to isolate and phase migrations
4. Train Teams on New Functionality
- Offer guided walkthroughs, demos, sample code around major Java 17 features
- Incentivize external training; prioritize learning initiatives
Getting stuck running years-old Java runtimes forfeits the latest capabilities. But modernizing requires a measured approach tuned to each system‘s unique constraints.
By following structured upgrade processes – while taking advantage of Java 17 modular components and containers – organizations can confidently evolve even complex applications.
The investment required pays ongoing dividends through more resilient, higher-performing software that leverages cutting-edge language features.
Key Takeaways: Evaluate Java 17 for Your Systems
For organizations invested in Java, I strongly encourage evaluating upgrades to Java 17 based on the extensive improvements covered here today.
With optimizations across performance, security, tooling and coding, Java 17 builds on the world‘s #1 programming platform – offering compelling reasons to modernize.
As your guides through these technology shifts, my team remains ready to answer any questions about Java capabilities or upgrade planning. Even as Java evolves, some software truths remain eternal – our commitment to your success among them!
