Broken java app (SAPGUI) after switch from Gnome3 to Unity

[Lazra]

Hello,

Until lately, I was working under gnome3 on my Ubuntu 12.04 64 bits. I had all my tools installed there and working correctly, especially SAPGUI 7.20rev5 (for connection to SAP Systems), which is based on java.

Recently, I felt that I had under-tested Unity and decided to give it a try for a few weeks. Mostly everything was OK as Unity was still installed, so i only had to select Unity at logon screen.

However, under Unity, SAPGUI does not work. As it is an essential tool for my work, I tried to come back to gnome3, but the application is not working there anymore too, giving me the same java error.

The error is some java NullPointerException (see below)
Does anyone have any idea why switching desktop caused this issue ? (I don't see any other event that could be the root cause: no new program installed, no java update, no configuration modification ...)

The error displayed when I launch SAPGUI from console:


Exception in thread "AWT-EventQueue-0" java.lang.NullPointerException
at sun.awt.X11.XToolkit.getScreenInsets(Unknown Source)
at com.sap.platin.base.config.Defaults.calcDefaultVal ue(Defaults.java:185)
at com.sap.platin.base.config.Defaults.getDefaultValu e(Defaults.java:88)
at com.sap.platin.base.config.SettingsTable.put(Setti ngsTable.java:127)
at com.sap.platin.base.util.AbstractPersistentHashMap .readData(AbstractPersistentHashMap.java:809)
at com.sap.platin.base.util.AbstractPersistentHashMap .init(AbstractPersistentHashMap.java:217)
at com.sap.platin.base.util.AbstractPersistentHashMap .init(AbstractPersistentHashMap.java:201)
at com.sap.platin.base.config.SettingsTable.<init>(SettingsTable.java:33)
at com.sap.platin.base.config.GuiConfiguration.readSe ttingsTable(GuiConfiguration.java:769)
at com.sap.platin.base.config.GuiConfiguration.readTa bles(GuiConfiguration.java:634)
at com.sap.platin.base.config.GuiConfiguration.init(G uiConfiguration.java:540)
at com.sap.platin.base.config.GuiConfiguration.<init>(GuiConfiguration.java:92)
at com.sap.platin.base.config.GuiConfiguration.getCur rent(GuiConfiguration.java:106)
at com.sap.platin.base.config.GuiConfiguration.getTab le(GuiConfiguration.java:227)
at com.sap.platin.base.config.GuiConfiguration.getStr ingValue(GuiConfiguration.java:388)
at com.sap.platin.base.config.GuiConfiguration.getStr ingValue(GuiConfiguration.java:383)
at com.sap.platin.base.config.GuiConfiguration.getStr ingValue(GuiConfiguration.java:375)
at com.sap.platin.base.plaf.DesignLookAndFeel.getCurr entDesign(DesignLookAndFeel.java:1065)
at com.sap.platin.base.plaf.DesignLookAndFeel.getDefa ults(DesignLookAndFeel.java:150)
at javax.swing.UIManager.setLookAndFeel(Unknown Source)
at com.sap.platin.base.logon.GuiImpl$1.run(GuiImpl.ja va:101)
at java.awt.event.InvocationEvent.dispatch(Unknown Source)
at java.awt.EventQueue.dispatchEventImpl(Unknown Source)
at java.awt.EventQueue.access$000(Unknown Source)
at java.awt.EventQueue$3.run(Unknown Source)
at java.awt.EventQueue$3.run(Unknown Source)
at java.security.AccessController.doPrivileged(Native Method)
at java.security.ProtectionDomain$1.doIntersectionPri vilege(Unknown Source)
at java.awt.EventQueue.dispatchEvent(Unknown Source)
at com.sap.platin.micro.event.GuiEventQueue.dispatchE vent(GuiEventQueue.java:79)
at java.awt.EventDispatchThread.pumpOneEventForFilter s(Unknown Source)
at java.awt.EventDispatchThread.pumpEventsForFilter(U nknown Source)
at java.awt.EventDispatchThread.pumpEventsForHierarch y(Unknown Source)
at java.awt.EventDispatchThread.pumpEvents(Unknown Source)
at java.awt.EventDispatchThread.pumpEvents(Unknown Source)
at java.awt.EventDispatchThread.run(Unknown Source)
Exception in thread "AWT-EventQueue-0" java.lang.NullPointerException
at sun.awt.X11.XToolkit.getScreenInsets(Unknown Source)
at com.sap.platin.base.config.Defaults.calcDefaultVal ue(Defaults.java:185)
at com.sap.platin.base.config.Defaults.getDefaultValu e(Defaults.java:88)
at com.sap.platin.base.config.GuiConfiguration.getInt Value(GuiConfiguration.java:431)
at com.sap.platin.base.config.GuiConfiguration.getInt Value(GuiConfiguration.java:425)
at com.sap.platin.base.logon.GuiLogon.getLogonFrame(G uiLogon.java:1310)
at com.sap.platin.base.logon.GuiLogonManager.getLogon Frame(GuiLogonManager.java:50)
at com.sap.platin.base.logon.GuiLogonManager.setVisib leLogonFrame(GuiLogonManager.java:62)
at com.sap.platin.base.logon.GuiImpl$2.run(GuiImpl.ja va:157)
at java.awt.event.InvocationEvent.dispatch(Unknown Source)
at java.awt.EventQueue.dispatchEventImpl(Unknown Source)
at java.awt.EventQueue.access$000(Unknown Source)
at java.awt.EventQueue$3.run(Unknown Source)
at java.awt.EventQueue$3.run(Unknown Source)
at java.security.AccessController.doPrivileged(Native Method)
at java.security.ProtectionDomain$1.doIntersectionPri vilege(Unknown Source)
at java.awt.EventQueue.dispatchEvent(Unknown Source)
at com.sap.platin.micro.event.GuiEventQueue.dispatchE vent(GuiEventQueue.java:79)
at java.awt.EventDispatchThread.pumpOneEventForFilter s(Unknown Source)
at java.awt.EventDispatchThread.pumpEventsForFilter(U nknown Source)
at java.awt.EventDispatchThread.pumpEventsForHierarch y(Unknown Source)
at java.awt.EventDispatchThread.pumpEvents(Unknown Source)
at java.awt.EventDispatchThread.pumpEvents(Unknown Source)
at java.awt.EventDispatchThread.run(Unknown Source)
Checkscript output:

/opt/SAPClients/SAPGUI/bin$ ./guilogon -checkscript
guilogon -checkscript output:
Before processing:
PLATINHOME =
PLATIN_JAVA =
uname = Linux
PATH = /home/adrien/bin:/usr/lib/lightdm/lightdm:/usr/local/sbin:/usr/local/bin:/usr/sbin:/usr/bin:/sbin:/bin:/usr/games
After processing:
THISSCRIPTPATH = /opt/SAPClients/SAPGUI7.20rev5/bin/guilogon
PLATINHOME = /opt/SAPClients/SAPGUI7.20rev5
PLATIN_JAVA = java
PLATIN_DEBUG =
JRE_ARGS = -Xms32M -Xmx256M
START_JARS = /opt/SAPClients/SAPGUI7.20rev5/jar/GuiStartS.jar
STARTCLASS = com.sap.platin.Gui
RFC_TRACE =
Command to start:
java -Xms32M -Xmx256M -cp /opt/SAPClients/SAPGUI7.20rev5/jar/GuiStartS.jar com.sap.platin.Gui
Thanks in advance for your help !

[Lazra]

Follow-up update:

I tried to install it on a fresh Ubuntu 12.04 64bits VM with Unity (in a virtual machine), and it runs without any issue: install openjdk-6-jre and use the .jar file provided by SAP and that's it.

I then tried to remove/re-install openjdk-6-jre on my main machine, and re-install SAPGUI, and I still have the same error when I try to use it.

As a workaround for now I can use the install in the VM, but it's not very convenient ...

[Lazra]

Solved !

I downloaded oracle's java 6 binaries from oracle's website ( http://java.com/en/download/manual_v6.jsp - Linux x64 .bin file) and deployed it in /opt/jre1.6.0_33 . Then I set the environment variable PLATIN_JAVA to /opt/jre1.6.0_33/bin/java and SAPGUI launch normally, without error.

I don't know why it's working with openjdk-6 in my test VM and not on my physical machine though.

I don't know how to mark the post as solved.