I want my application to check if another version of itself is already running.
For example, demo.jar started, user clicks to run it again, but the second instance realizes "oh wait, there is already a demo.jar running." and quits with a message.
What you are looking for can probably best be accomplished with a lock file. By lock file I simply mean a file that will have a predefined location and whose existence is your mutex.
Test if that file exists when your program starts, if it does, exit immediately. Create a file in a known location. If your program exits normally, delete the lock file.
Probably best is if you can also populate the file with a pid (process id) so that you can detect abnormal exits that didn't delete the file but this get OS specific.
Java Code. Put this into a file called Main.java:
import java.net.*;
import java.io.*;
public class Main{
public static void main(String args[]){
ServerSocket socket = null;
try {
socket = new ServerSocket(34567);
System.out.println("Doing hard work for 100 seconds");
try{ Thread.sleep(100000); } catch(Exception e){ }
socket.close();
}
catch (IOException ex) {
System.out.println("App already running, exiting...");
}
finally {
if (socket != null)
try{ socket.close(); } catch(Exception e){}
}
}
}
Compile and run it
javac Main.java
java Main
Test it in a normal case:
Run the program. You have 100 seconds to run the program again in another terminal, it will fall through saying its already running. Then wait 100 seconds, it should allow you to run it in the 2nd terminal.
Test it after force halting the program with a kill -9
Conclusion:
The socket occupation is cleaned up by the operating system when your program is no longer operating. So you can be sure that the program will not run twice.
Drawbacks
If some sneaky person, or some naughty process were to bind all of the ports, or just your port, then your program will not run because it thinks its already running.
Simple yet powerful tested solution.
static File file;
static FileChannel fileChannel;
static FileLock lock;
static boolean running = false;
@SuppressWarnings("resource")
public static boolean checkIfAlreadyRunning() throws IOException {
file = new File(FilePath.FILEPATH + "az-client.lock");
if (!file.exists()) {
file.createNewFile();
running = true;
} else {
file.delete();
}
fileChannel = new RandomAccessFile(file, "rw").getChannel();
lock = fileChannel.tryLock();
if (lock == null) {
fileChannel.close();
return true;
}
ShutdownHook shutdownHook = new ShutdownHook();
Runtime.getRuntime().addShutdownHook(shutdownHook);
return running;
}
public static void unlockFile() {
try {
if (lock != null)
lock.release();
fileChannel.close();
file.delete();
running = false;
} catch (IOException e) {
e.printStackTrace();
}
}
static class ShutdownHook extends Thread {
public void run() {
unlockFile();
}
}
Put these methods in some Util class and before launching your main class just check that if already exists then show some dialog to user otherwise launch an application. It works even if you abnormally shutdown java process or what ever you do. It is robust and efficient, no need to set up DataGram listeners or whatever...
If you use a Mutex, logically that Mutex would need to be accessible from any JVM which was running a copy of "the program". In C programming, this might be accomplished via shared memory, but Java doesn't have such a thing by default.
With that understanding, there are plenty of ways to implement what you want. You could open a server socket on a designated port (the operating system assures that only one process is the recipient of the server socket, and subsequent opens fail).
You could use a "lock file" but it is a bit complicated, as the file you would need to use would really be a directory (and it becomes heavily dependent on whether directory creation is atomic for your file system, even though most directory creations are). If a sysadmin decides to run you via NFS, then things get even harder (if not impossible).
You can also do a number of nifty tricks with JVMs and debugging / JMI, provided you can somehow assure youself that all relevant JVMs are launched with the same configurations (in time, an impossible task).
Other people have used the exec facility to run the equivalent of a process listing, but it is a bit tricky due to the possibility of race condition (two processes simultaneously check, and fail to see each other).
In the end, the server socket route is probably the most stable, as it is guaranteed to only bind to one process by the TCP/IP stack (and is mediated by the operating system). That said, you will have to flush the socket of incoming messages, and it opens up the possibility of other security issues.
If your application is running on Windows, you can call CreateMutex through JNI.
jboolean ret = FALSE;
HANDLE hMutex = CreateMutex(NULL, FALSE, mutexName);
ret = TRUE;
if(WAIT_TIMEOUT == WaitForSingleObject(hMutex, 10))
{
ret = FALSE;
}
else if(GetLastError() != 0)
{
ret = FALSE;
}
This returns true if nobody else is using this mutex, false otherwise. You could provide "myApplication" as a mutex name or "Global\MyApplication" if you want your mutex to be shared by all Windows sessions.
Edit: It's not as complicated as it looks :) and I find it clean.
The strategy of this code is to keep the PID around from the last run in the registry, if that PID is found running on the system, don't start. If you finish, reset.
The preferences are stored on Windows Registry in HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\JavaSoft\Prefs
import java.io.*;
import java.util.prefs.Preferences;
public class JavaApplication3 {
public static void main(String[] args){
if(isRunning()){
System.out.println("Two instances of this program cannot " +
"be running at the same time. Exiting now");
}
else{
onStart();
epicHeavyWorkGoesHere();
onFinish();
}
}
public static void epicHeavyWorkGoesHere(){
try {
Thread.sleep(15000);
} catch (InterruptedException ex) {}
}
public static void onStart(){
Preferences prefs = Preferences.systemRoot().node("JavaApplication3");
prefs.put("RUNNINGPID", getCurrentPID());
}
public static void onFinish(){
Preferences prefs = Preferences.systemRoot().node("JavaApplication3");
prefs.put("RUNNINGPID", "");
}
public static boolean isRunning(){
Preferences prefs = Preferences.systemRoot().node("JavaApplication3");
if (prefs.get("RUNNINGPID", null) == null || prefs.get("RUNNINGPID", null).equals(""))
return false;
if (isProcessIdRunningOnWindows(Integer.parseInt(prefs.get("RUNNINGPID", null))))
return true;
return false;
}
public static String getCurrentPID(){
//This function should work with Windows, Linux and Mac but you'll have to
//test to make sure. If not then get a suitable getCurrentPID function replacement.
try{
java.lang.management.RuntimeMXBean runtime = java.lang.management.ManagementFactory.getRuntimeMXBean();
java.lang.reflect.Field jvm = runtime.getClass().getDeclaredField("jvm");
jvm.setAccessible(true);
sun.management.VMManagement mgmt = (sun.management.VMManagement) jvm.get(runtime);
java.lang.reflect.Method pid_method = mgmt.getClass().getDeclaredMethod("getProcessId");
pid_method.setAccessible(true);
return pid_method.invoke(mgmt) + "";
}
catch(Exception e){
throw new RuntimeException("Cannot get the current PID");
}
}
public static boolean isProcessIdRunningOnWindows(int pid){
//This Function only works for windows, if you want it to work on linux
//or mac, you will have to go find a replacement method that
//takes the processID as a parameter and spits out a true/false
//if it is running on the operating system.
try {
Runtime runtime = Runtime.getRuntime();
String cmds[] = {"cmd", "/c", "tasklist /FI \"PID eq " + pid + "\""};
Process proc = runtime.exec(cmds);
InputStream inputstream = proc.getInputStream();
InputStreamReader inputstreamreader = new InputStreamReader(inputstream);
BufferedReader bufferedreader = new BufferedReader(inputstreamreader);
String line;
while ((line = bufferedreader.readLine()) != null) {
if (line.contains(" " + pid + " ")){
return true;
}
}
return false;
}
catch (Exception ex) {
throw new RuntimeException("Cannot run the tasklist command to query if a pid is running or not");
}
}
}
If the program is hung and the pid remains in the task list this will be blocked. You could add an additional registry key that will store the last successful run time, and if the run time becomes too great, the stored PID is killed, and the program re-run.
Contrary to several other answers, the most reliable method is to create a ServerSocket on a fixed port known only to you, way up in the paint cards. It will automatically be released when your application exits, unlike any lock file, and its prior existence via a BindException is a pretty infallible sign that another instance is already running.
Here is one method that uses an automatically named lock file in the user's home directory. The name is based on where the jar is being ran from.
import java.io.File;
import java.io.FileNotFoundException;
import java.io.IOException;
import java.io.RandomAccessFile;
import java.nio.channels.FileChannel;
public class SingleInstance {
@SuppressWarnings("resource")
public static boolean isAlreadyRunning() {
File file;
FileChannel fileChannel;
File userDir = new File(System.getProperty("user.home"));
file = new File(userDir, myLockName());
if (!file.exists()) {
try {
file.createNewFile();
file.deleteOnExit();
} catch (IOException e) {
throw new RuntimeException("Unable to create Single Instance lock file!", e);
}
}
try {
fileChannel = new RandomAccessFile(file, "rw").getChannel();
} catch (FileNotFoundException e) {
throw new RuntimeException("Single Instance lock file vanished!", e);
}
try {
if (fileChannel.tryLock() != null) {
return false;
}
} catch (Exception e) {
}
try {
fileChannel.close();
} catch (IOException e1) {
}
return true;
}
private static String myLockName() {
return "." + SingleInstance.class.getProtectionDomain().getCodeSource().getLocation().getPath()
.replaceAll("[^a-zA-Z0-9_]", "_");
}
}
This is also a good solution if your Appication can schedued in task manager with a unique name
"tasklist /FI \"IMAGENAME eq "+MyApplication+".exe
Following solution work in two deadly scenerio too. 1> Even your launched exe scheduled as javaw.exe in task manager. 2> You can install your application at two location and from launching both location it also works.
String tempDir = System.getProperty("java.io.tmpdir");// dependent to OS find any tem dir.
String filePath = tempDir + "lockReserverd.txt";
try {
final File file = new File(filePath);
if(file.exists())
return false;
final RandomAccessFile randomAccessFile = new RandomAccessFile(file, "rw");
final FileLock fileLock = randomAccessFile.getChannel().tryLock();
if (fileLock != null) {
Runtime.getRuntime().addShutdownHook(new Thread() {
public void run() {
try {
fileLock.release();
randomAccessFile.close();
file.delete();
} catch (Exception e) {
//log.error("Unable to remove lock file: " + lockFile, e);
}
}
});
return true;
}
} catch (Exception e) {
//log.Error("Unable to create and/or lock file");
}
return false
or
This will work if your application.exe is listed in task manager
"tasklist /FI \"IMAGENAME eq "+MyApplication+".exe
Check PID and file lock technique
We can write the process id of the process that created the lock file into the file. When we encounter an existing lock file, we do not just quit, but we check if the process with that id is still alive. If not, then create a new application instance. I think MongoDB use this technique.
static File file;
static FileChannel fileChannel;
static FileLock lock;
static boolean running = false;
static String currentPID = null;
static String lockFilePID = null;
public static final String USER_DIR = System.getProperty("user.dir");
public static final String LOCK_FILE = "az-client.lock";
public static boolean checkInstance() {
try {
file = new File(USER_DIR + File.separator + LOCK_FILE);
currentPID = Integer.toString(getCurrentPID());
if (!file.exists()) {
file.createNewFile();
writePID(currentPID);
lockFile();
addShudDownHook();
running = true;
return running;
} else {
if (isFileLocked()) {
syso("App already running");
System.exit(0);
} else {
lockFilePID = getPIDFromLockFile();
if (isProcessIdRunningOnWindows(Integer.parseInt(lockFilePID))) {
lockFile();
addShudDownHook();
running = true;
return running;
} else {
file.delete();
file.createNewFile();
writePID(currentPID);
lockFile();
addShudDownHook();
running = true;
return running;
}
}
}
} catch (Exception e) {
syso(e + "App already running");
System.exit(0);
}
return running;
}
/**
*
* @return
* @throws IOException
*/
@SuppressWarnings("resource")
private static boolean isFileLocked() throws IOException {
fileChannel = new RandomAccessFile(file, "rw").getChannel();
lock = fileChannel.tryLock();
if (lock == null) {
fileChannel.close();
fileChannel = null;
return true;
} else {
lock.release();
fileChannel.close();
fileChannel = null;
}
return false;
}
public static int getCurrentPID() {
// This function should work with Windows, Linux and Mac but you'll have
// to
// test to make sure. If not then get a suitable getCurrentPID function
// replacement.
try {
java.lang.management.RuntimeMXBean runtime = java.lang.management.ManagementFactory.getRuntimeMXBean();
java.lang.reflect.Field jvm = runtime.getClass().getDeclaredField("jvm");
jvm.setAccessible(true);
sun.management.VMManagement mgmt = (sun.management.VMManagement) jvm.get(runtime);
java.lang.reflect.Method pid_method = mgmt.getClass().getDeclaredMethod("getProcessId");
pid_method.setAccessible(true);
return (int) pid_method.invoke(mgmt);
} catch (Exception e) {
throw new RuntimeException("Cannot get the current PID");
}
}
public static boolean isProcessIdRunningOnWindows(int pid) {
// This Function only works for windows, if you want it to work on linux
// or mac, you will have to go find a replacement method that
// takes the processID as a parameter and spits out a true/false
// if it is running on the operating system.
try {
Runtime runtime = Runtime.getRuntime();
String cmds[] = { "cmd", "/c", "tasklist /FI \"PID eq " + pid + "\"" };
Process proc = runtime.exec(cmds);
InputStream inputstream = proc.getInputStream();
InputStreamReader inputstreamreader = new InputStreamReader(inputstream);
BufferedReader bufferedreader = new BufferedReader(inputstreamreader);
String line;
while ((line = bufferedreader.readLine()) != null) {
if (line.contains(" " + pid + " ")) {
return true;
}
}
return false;
} catch (Exception ex) {
throw new RuntimeException("Cannot run the tasklist command to query if a pid is running or not");
}
}
/**
* This method write PID to Lock file
*
* @param pid
* @throws Exception
*/
private static void writePID(String pid) throws Exception {
try {
// To Do write PID to LockFile
} catch (Exception e) {
syso(e);
throw e;
}
}
/**
* This method return PID from Lock File
*
* @return
* @throws Exception
*/
private static String getPIDFromLockFile() throws Exception {
try {
return //To Do getPID from File
} catch (Exception e) {
syso(e);
throw e;
}
}
private static void addShudDownHook() {
try {
ShutdownHook shutdownHook = new ShutdownHook();
Runtime.getRuntime().addShutdownHook(shutdownHook);
} catch (Exception e) {
LogWriter.logger.error(e);
}
}
private static void unlockFile() {
try {
if (lock != null) {
lock.release();
}
fileChannel.close();
file.delete();
running = false;
} catch (IOException e) {
syso(e);
}
}
private static void lockFile() {
try {
fileChannel = new RandomAccessFile(file, "rw").getChannel();
lock = fileChannel.tryLock();
if (lock == null) {
fileChannel.close();
fileChannel = null;
}
} catch (IOException e) {
syso(e);
}
}
static class ShutdownHook extends Thread {
public void run() {
unlockFile();
}
}
FileLock does not work on Linux. Please don't use FileLock. I think getting the Process's Name (by creating a unique name if possible) would be a way to tackle this problem. I think Process ID is auto-assigned.
Refer to this on getting the Process:
http://www.itechp2pexchange.com/content/linux-unix-run-only-one-instance-script
