NetBeans IDE

NetBeans IDE is a free and full-featured software project designed for developers who are looking to develop applications using the Java programming language. It is a cross-platform IDE (Integrated Development Environment) that works on GNU/Linux, Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X operating systems.

Features at a glance

Key features include project management, support for a wide range of database engines, versioning system, state-of-the-art build tools, code editing and refactoring, code debugging and profiling capabilities, code analyses and testing, application deployment and monitoring, web services, HTML5 web development, Swing and JavaFX support, PHP frameworks and tools, as well as support for a wide range of programming languages, not only Java.

What’s in the box?

NetBeans IDE is a sophisticated software that provides an open source, high performance, modular, extensible, multi-platform Java IDE to accelerate the development of Java applications, web services and mobile applications. The project includes a debugger, profiler, multi-language editor and a versioning control system. It features IDE-wide QuickSearch, custom installer, plugin manager, templates and sample applications, databases and services, action items list, sliding windows, as well as support for multiple monitors and project groups.

Under the hood and availability

The application is written entirely in the Java programming languages, which means that it will run any operating system (see the next section for details) where the Java Runtime Environment is installed. It is available for download in multiple editions, supporting the Java SE, Java EE, C/C++, as well as the HTML5 and PHP technologies, as easy to install binary packages.

Supported operating systems and requirements

As mentioned, NetBeans IDE is a platform-independent application. It has been successfully tested under numerous GNU/Linux flavors, as well as on the commercial Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X operating systems. Both 32-bit and 64-bit architectures are supported at this time.

What is new in this release:

• Bug fixes in the installer for OS X 10.9.5 and 10.10
• Bug fixes included in Patches 1, 1.1, 2 for NetBeans IDE 8.0 and Patches 1.1, 2 for NetBeans IDE 8.0.1
• GlassFish 4.1 and Tomcat 8.0.15 bundled with the IDE
• Support for WildFly Server and WebLogic Server 12.1.3
• Added support for RequireJS
• Grunt tasks available in the popup menu for web projects
• Support for debugging JavaScript files with Karma
• Node.JS and Bower modules can be installed directly within the IDE
• Improved Git support

What is new in version 8.2:

• Bug fixes in the installer for OS X 10.9.5 and 10.10
• Bug fixes included in Patches 1, 1.1, 2 for NetBeans IDE 8.0 and Patches 1.1, 2 for NetBeans IDE 8.0.1
• GlassFish 4.1 and Tomcat 8.0.15 bundled with the IDE
• Support for WildFly Server and WebLogic Server 12.1.3
• Added support for RequireJS
• Grunt tasks available in the popup menu for web projects
• Support for debugging JavaScript files with Karma
• Node.JS and Bower modules can be installed directly within the IDE
• Improved Git support

What is new in version 8.1:

• Bug fixes in the installer for OS X 10.9.5 and 10.10
• Bug fixes included in Patches 1, 1.1, 2 for NetBeans IDE 8.0 and Patches 1.1, 2 for NetBeans IDE 8.0.1
• GlassFish 4.1 and Tomcat 8.0.15 bundled with the IDE
• Support for WildFly Server and WebLogic Server 12.1.3
• Added support for RequireJS
• Grunt tasks available in the popup menu for web projects
• Support for debugging JavaScript files with Karma
• Node.JS and Bower modules can be installed directly within the IDE
• Improved Git support

What is new in version 8.0.2:

• Bug fixes in the installer for OS X 10.9.5 and 10.10
• Bug fixes included in Patches 1, 1.1, 2 for NetBeans IDE 8.0 and Patches 1.1, 2 for NetBeans IDE 8.0.1
• GlassFish 4.1 and Tomcat 8.0.15 bundled with the IDE
• Support for WildFly Server and WebLogic Server 12.1.3
• Added support for RequireJS
• Grunt tasks available in the popup menu for web projects
• Support for debugging JavaScript files with Karma
• Node.JS and Bower modules can be installed directly within the IDE
• Improved Git support

What is new in version 8.0.1:

• Modularity and enterprise features for JavaScript via RequireJS
• Support for debugging JavaScript files with Karma
• Node.JS and Bower modules can be installed directly within the IDE
• Grunt tasks available in the popup menu for web projects
• GlassFish 4.1, Tomcat 8.0.9, WildFly, and WebLogic 12.1.3
• Latest PrimeFaces framework bundled in the IDE
• Enhanced Java tools
• Improved Git support
• Integration of recent patches

What is new in version 7.4:

• HTML5 development for Android and iOS devices
• HTML5 development in Java EE and PHP applications
• Editing support for Knockout and AngularJS frameworks
• Java SE 8 Support
• Redesigned JavaFX support according to JDK 8 architecture
• Additional enhancements.

What is new in version 7.3.1:

• Java EE:
• Support for Java EE 7 with both Maven and Ant projects
• Deployment to GlassFish 4
• Deep support for major Java EE 7 specifications: JSF 2.2, JPA 2.1, JAX-RS 2.0, WebSocket 1.0 and more
• Support for WebLogic 12.1.2 and JBoss 7.x
• Java Persistence JPQL testing tool
• Project Easel: HTML5 Application Development:
• HTML5 Application project with JavaScript testing support
• JavaScript Editor significantly improved
• Page inspector and visual CSS style editor
• JavaScript Debugger
• Embedded WebKit browser; deep integration with Chrome
• Java:
• Breadcrumbs: A new navigation bar shows the current embedding in the editor
• Updated Show member and Show hierarchy views
• Set of new hints and refactorings
• Filters for Find Usages results
• Effective POM editor tab in pom.xml editor
• JavaFX:
• FXML/Scene Builder Support
• JDK 7u6+ support on Windows, Mac and Linux
• FXML editing greatly improved by providing accurate code completion, error marking and more
• FXML Generate Controller action added on FXML files
• PHP:
• Parsers for Namespaced Annotations (Symfony 2, Doctrine 2, etc.)
• Basic Composer Integration (Dependency Manager for PHP)
• Twig Code Completion (with documentation)
• Smarty Braces Matching for Related Tags
• Smarty Parser Errors of Unmatched Tags
• Groovy:
• Groovy 2.0 integration
• Support in Java EE projects
• Groovy JUnit test support
• Basic refactoring implemented (Find Usages, Rename for class type)
• Profiler:
• Sampled memory profiling
• CPU snapshots comparison
• Support for Linux ARM machine
• C/C++:
• Memory usage reduced by at least half for big projects
• Parser speed improvements
• Parser's index can be kept and relocated with project
• NetBeans Platform:
• Options dialog contents filtering
• New File / Open Recent File menu, and a new shortcut CTRL+ALT+T
• Main toolbar shows new drop down list for overflow situations

What is new in version 7.3:

• Project Easel: HTML5 Application Development:
• HTML5 Application project with JavaScript testing support
• JavaScript Editor significantly improved
• Page inspector and visual CSS style editor
• JavaScript Debugger
• Embedded WebKit browser; deep integration with Chrome
• Java:
• Breadcrumbs: A new navigation bar shows the current embedding in the editor
• Updated Show member and Show hierarchy views
• Set of new hints and refactorings
• Filters for Find Usages results
• Effective POM editor tab in pom.xml editor
• Java EE:
• Java Persistence JPQL testing tool
• REST Service Development enhancements
• JavaFX:
• FXML/Scene Builder Support
• JDK 7u6+ support on Windows, Mac and Linux
• FXML editing greatly improved by providing accurate code completion, error marking and more
• FXML Generate Controller action added on FXML files
• PHP:
• Parsers for Namespaced Annotations (Symfony 2, Doctrine 2, etc.)
• Basic Composer Integration (Dependency Manager for PHP)
• Twig Code Completion (with documentation)
• Smarty Braces Matching for Related Tags
• Smarty Parser Errors of Unmatched Tags
• Groovy:
• Groovy 2.0 integration
• Support in Java EE projects
• Groovy JUnit test support
• Basic refactoring implemented (Find Usages, Rename for class type)
• Profiler:
• Sampled memory profiling
• CPU snapshots comparison
• Support for Linux ARM machine
• C/C++:
• Memory usage reduced by at least half for big projects
• Parser speed improvements
• Parser's index can be kept and relocated with project
• NetBeans Platform:
• Options dialog contents filtering
• New File / Open Recent File menu, and a new shortcut CTRL+ALT+T
• Main toolbar shows new drop down list for overflow situations

What is new in version 7.3 RC1:

• Rich Web applications (HTML5, JavaScript, CSS)
• Extended clipboard and refactoring improvements in Java Editor
• JavaTM SE Development Kit 7 Update 10 support
• Full support of JavaFX 2.2.4 SDK
• Support for JavaME SDK 3.2

What is new in version 7.1 RC1:

• JavaFX:
• Support for JavaFX 2.0
• Support of all three deployment models: Desktop, Applet, JNLP
• Preloaders to improve application loading experience
• Customized UI controls using CSS3
• JavaFX 2.0 Support in NetBeans IDE 7.1
• Java:
• New Visual debugger
• Gap support in GridBagLayout customizer
• Inspect and Refactor
• Improved Javadoc highlighting and formatting
• GridBagLayout Customizer in NetBeans IDE 7.1
• Web Languages:
• Support for CSS3
• Code completion and documentation for new CSS3 elements
• Browser specific properties
• CSS3 Support in NetBeans IDE 7.1
• Java EE:
• Cluster and Instance deployment support for GlassFish
• 50+ CDI enhancements in Java editor
• JSF component suite support
• Improvements in Java Persistence, Web Services, EJB, WebLogic and more
• CDI Warnings in Java Editor, NetBeans IDE 7.1
• PHP:
• Improved PHP debugging
• PHPUnit test groups capabilities
• Support for Smarty templates
• Faster uploads with keep-alive for (S)FTP client
• PHP Debugging in NetBeans IDE 7.1
• NetBeans Platform:
• New Window System APIs
• Enhanced TopComponentGroup behavior
• Visual Window Layout designer
• Pluggable multiview components
• Platform Window System in NetBeans IDE 7.1
• Versioning:
• Integrated Git support
• History tab on file editor window
• Locking/unlocking files in Subversion working directory
• Support for Mercurial branches and tags

What is new in version 6.9.1:

• Support for JavaFX 1.3.1
• Improvements to the JavaFX Debugger
• Integration of the June 2010 and July 2010 patches
• Performance improvements

What is new in version 6.9:

• The NetBeans team is proud to announce the availability of NetBeans IDE 6.9! NetBeans IDE 6.9 introduces the JavaFX Composer, a visual layout tool for building JavaFX GUI applications, similar to the Swing GUI builder for Java SE applications. With the JavaFX Composer, developers can quickly build, visually edit, and debug Rich Internet Applications (RIA) and bind components to various data sources, including Web services.
• The NetBeans 6.9 release also features OSGi interoperability for NetBeans Platform applications and support for developing OSGi bundles with Maven. With support for OSGi and Swing standards, the NetBeans Platform now supports the standard UI toolkit and the standard module system, providing a unique combination of standards for modular, rich-client development.
• Additional noteworthy features in this release include support for JavaFX SDK 1.3, PHP Zend framework, and Ruby on Rails 3.0; as well as improvements to the Java Editor, Java Debugger, issue tracking, and more.
• NetBeans 6.9 is available in English, Brazilian Portuguese, Japanese and Simplified Chinese. There are several community-contributed localization efforts underway to support additional languages. Join the efforts today.
• As always, we welcome feedback about your experience using NetBeans software. Share your thoughts on our mailing lists and forums. To keep track of NetBeans news, subscribe to the NetBeans Weekly Newsletter, and follow NetBeans on Twitter.

Requirements:

• Java 2 Standard Edition Runtime Environment