Is this the same thing as JRE that comes with LM20.3?
Last edited by LockBot on Sat Feb 18, 2023 11:00 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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This misconception that Java is bad by default is utter nonsense. Running Java is no different to running any other interpreter, for example, Python. When you run a Java application, the JRE process has no extra privileges with which to attack your system. If you trust the developer / publisher, then you are no worse off than running a python script.
This kind of thinking may have originated from the days of Java Applets, which were small Java programs embedded into web pages. These ran in the browser in a sandbox. Inevitably, there were issues with the sandboxing and some clever and devious people were able to break out of it, in some way.
For this reason, it is worth disabling the use of Java within LibreOffice, under the "Advanced" options. There might be an edge case out there, but I see no reason to run any Java program within LibreOffice, whether it is sandboxed or not. An extension of that would therefore be for users to remove the JRE if they're not using Java at all. Saves updating something that's never used.
The other common misconception is that Java and Javascript are related. They are not. However, the latter is prevalent in today's web sites and it does get its share of issues in various libraries that can be very widely used. Javascript is also the part of the tool chain for several "local web apps", e.g. anything based on the Electon framework. For this reason, popular javascript libraries are often examined in fine detail for any flaws, as well as suffering attempts to have malicious code commits.
Having said that, it is possible and indeed recommended to run Java (and any other program) within a Firejail sandbox in order to keep the Java application away from your files. There are plenty of default Firejail profiles for Java applications that can be used as a template for any other application.
For this reason, it is worth disabling the use of Java within LibreOffice, under the "Advanced" options. There might be an edge case out there, but I see no reason to run any Java program within LibreOffice, whether it is sandboxed or not.
LibreOffice Base, which I use a fair bit won't run without JRE. Same for certain applications within LibreOffice Calc.
Computer: Dell Vostro 470 Systems: Linux Mint 21.2 Xfce (Victoria), Manjaro 23.1 Xfce (Vulcan), Windows 10 (22H2) Pro.
There is really no need to cripple LO. The bad wording for Java comes from the old Java browser plugins, but that is another thing and since several years dead.