# Can't upgrade VASSAL on MacOS **URL:** \ **Category:** Technical Support & Bugs\ **Created:** [May 4, 2024, 6:30pm UTC](https://forum.vassalengine.org/t/cant-upgrade-vassal-on-macos/79553 "2024-05-04T18:30:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![uckelman](https://forum.vassalengine.org/user_avatar/forum.vassalengine.org/uckelman/32/10020_2.png) [@uckelman](https://forum.vassalengine.org/u/uckelman)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2024, 8:14am UTC](https://forum.vassalengine.org/t/cant-upgrade-vassal-on-macos/79553/21 "2024-06-07T08:14:21Z")
Try running ```plaintext JAVA=/Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/temurin-17.jdk/Contents/Home/bin/java ./VASSAL.sh ``` ---
**Author:** ![Breaker](https://forum.vassalengine.org/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/b/9fc348/32.png) [@Breaker](https://forum.vassalengine.org/u/Breaker)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2024, 10:20am UTC](https://forum.vassalengine.org/t/cant-upgrade-vassal-on-macos/79553/22 "2024-06-07T10:20:46Z")
No go: imacgc:~ greg$ JAVA=/Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/temurin-17.jdk/Contents/Home/bin/java ./VASSAL.sh -bash: ./VASSAL.sh: No such file or directory Do I need to move the Vassal directory and files into the same folder containing the Java components? ---
**Author:** ![jrwatts](https://forum.vassalengine.org/user_avatar/forum.vassalengine.org/jrwatts/32/6972_2.png) [@jrwatts](https://forum.vassalengine.org/u/jrwatts)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2024, 10:43am UTC](https://forum.vassalengine.org/t/cant-upgrade-vassal-on-macos/79553/23 "2024-06-07T10:43:10Z")
You need to be in the directory holding VASSAL.sh when you run that command. ---
**Author:** ![Breaker](https://forum.vassalengine.org/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/b/9fc348/32.png) [@Breaker](https://forum.vassalengine.org/u/Breaker)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2024, 12:26pm UTC](https://forum.vassalengine.org/t/cant-upgrade-vassal-on-macos/79553/24 "2024-06-07T12:26:36Z")
Like this? The VASSAL.sh file is in the folder VASSAL-3.7.12: imacgc:VASSAL-3.7.12 greg$ JAVA=/Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/temurin-17.jdk/Contents/Home/bin/java ./VASSAL.sh Error: /Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/temurin-17.jdk/Contents/Home/bin/java is too old to run this version of Vassal. Please use Java 11 or later. ---
**Author:** ![uckelman](https://forum.vassalengine.org/user_avatar/forum.vassalengine.org/uckelman/32/10020_2.png) [@uckelman](https://forum.vassalengine.org/u/uckelman)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2024, 10:42pm UTC](https://forum.vassalengine.org/t/cant-upgrade-vassal-on-macos/79553/25 "2024-06-07T22:42:20Z")
Would you verify that the path set for `JAVA` is correct? What is the output of the following command? ```plaintext ls /Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/temurin-17.jdk/Contents/Home/bin/java ``` ---
**Author:** ![Breaker](https://forum.vassalengine.org/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/b/9fc348/32.png) [@Breaker](https://forum.vassalengine.org/u/Breaker)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2024, 7:53am UTC](https://forum.vassalengine.org/t/cant-upgrade-vassal-on-macos/79553/26 "2024-06-08T07:53:07Z")
This is the pathway where the Java file can be found: ![Screen Shot 2024-06-08 at 3.45.42 pm](https://forum.vassalengine.org/uploads/default/optimized/2X/6/68d3b64981a5968ae5db6bed55c6305564b1d46d_2_690x38.png) If I input that command while in the VASSAL-3.7.12 folder, I get this: /Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/temurin-17.jdk/Contents/Home/bin/java imacgc:VASSAL-3.7.12 greg$ ---
**Author:** ![uckelman](https://forum.vassalengine.org/user_avatar/forum.vassalengine.org/uckelman/32/10020_2.png) [@uckelman](https://forum.vassalengine.org/u/uckelman)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2024, 9:38am UTC](https://forum.vassalengine.org/t/cant-upgrade-vassal-on-macos/79553/27 "2024-06-08T09:38:53Z")
The next thing we need to check is the output of the following command, run from the `VASSAL-3.7.12` directory: ```plaintext /Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/temurin-17.jdk/Contents/Home/bin/java -classpath lib/Vengine.jar VASSAL.launch.JavaVersionChecker ``` (btw, it’s a “path”, not a a “pathway”.) ---
**Author:** ![Breaker](https://forum.vassalengine.org/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/b/9fc348/32.png) [@Breaker](https://forum.vassalengine.org/u/Breaker)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2024, 2:05pm UTC](https://forum.vassalengine.org/t/cant-upgrade-vassal-on-macos/79553/28 "2024-06-09T14:05:47Z")
OK, this is what I get: imacgc:VASSAL-3.7.12 greg$ /Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/temurin-17.jdk/Contents/Home/bin/java -classpath lib/Vengine.jar VASSAL.launch.JavaVersionChecker You have new mail in /var/mail/greg ---
**Author:** ![uckelman](https://forum.vassalengine.org/user_avatar/forum.vassalengine.org/uckelman/32/10020_2.png) [@uckelman](https://forum.vassalengine.org/u/uckelman)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2024, 2:53pm UTC](https://forum.vassalengine.org/t/cant-upgrade-vassal-on-macos/79553/29 "2024-06-09T14:53:00Z")
That is not at all what I expected to see. What is the output if you run ```plaintext /Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/temurin-17.jdk/Contents/Home/bin/java --version ``` ? ---
**Author:** ![Breaker](https://forum.vassalengine.org/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/b/9fc348/32.png) [@Breaker](https://forum.vassalengine.org/u/Breaker)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2024, 1:35am UTC](https://forum.vassalengine.org/t/cant-upgrade-vassal-on-macos/79553/30 "2024-06-10T01:35:24Z")
Here you go: imacgc:VASSAL-3.7.12 greg$ /Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/temurin-17.jdk/Contents/Home/bin/java --version openjdk 17.0.11 2024-04-16 OpenJDK Runtime Environment Temurin-17.0.11+9 (build 17.0.11+9) OpenJDK 64-Bit Server VM Temurin-17.0.11+9 (build 17.0.11+9, mixed mode) imacgc:VASSAL-3.7.12 greg$ ---
**Author:** ![uckelman](https://forum.vassalengine.org/user_avatar/forum.vassalengine.org/uckelman/32/10020_2.png) [@uckelman](https://forum.vassalengine.org/u/uckelman)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2024, 1:36pm UTC](https://forum.vassalengine.org/t/cant-upgrade-vassal-on-macos/79553/31 "2024-06-10T13:36:09Z")
That establishes that the Java you installed can run. Please run ```plaintext /Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/temurin-17.jdk/Contents/Home/bin/java -classpath lib/Vengine.jar VASSAL.launch.JavaVersionChecker && echo success ``` from the directory where you’ve installed Vassal. What is the output? (BTW, you can put triple backticks ````` before and after terminal output in posts to make it easier to read.) ---
**Author:** ![Breaker](https://forum.vassalengine.org/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/b/9fc348/32.png) [@Breaker](https://forum.vassalengine.org/u/Breaker)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2024, 8:13am UTC](https://forum.vassalengine.org/t/cant-upgrade-vassal-on-macos/79553/33 "2024-06-11T08:13:35Z")
Here you go: ` ` ` imacgc:VASSAL-3.7.12 greg$ /Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/temurin-17.jdk/Contents/Home/bin/java -classpath lib/Vengine.jar VASSAL.launch.JavaVersionChecker && echo success success You have new mail in /var/mail/greg imacgc:VASSAL-3.7.12 greg$ ` ` ` ---
**Author:** ![uckelman](https://forum.vassalengine.org/user_avatar/forum.vassalengine.org/uckelman/32/10020_2.png) [@uckelman](https://forum.vassalengine.org/u/uckelman)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2024, 10:39am UTC](https://forum.vassalengine.org/t/cant-upgrade-vassal-on-macos/79553/34 "2024-06-11T10:39:45Z")
> [@Breaker](#): > > You have new mail in /var/mail/greg Have you looked into what this is? It’s happened both times that you’ve run the version checker. Please run ```plaintext /Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/temurin-17.jdk/Contents/Home/bin/java -Duser.dir=. -classpath lib/Vengine.jar VASSAL.launch.ModuleManager ``` from the directory where you’ve installed Vassal. Does Vassal start? If there is other output, what is it? (The triple backticks need to be on their own line to work: ```auto ''' stuff ''' ``` ) ---
**Author:** ![Breaker](https://forum.vassalengine.org/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/b/9fc348/32.png) [@Breaker](https://forum.vassalengine.org/u/Breaker)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2024, 1:35am UTC](https://forum.vassalengine.org/t/cant-upgrade-vassal-on-macos/79553/35 "2024-06-13T01:35:16Z")
Here you go. the /var file is a text edit file that makes no sense to me. Seems to report results of scans. ```auto imacgc:VASSAL-3.7.12 greg$ /Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/temurin-17.jdk/Contents/Home/bin/java -Duser.dir=. -classpath lib/Vengine.jar VASSAL.launch.ModuleManager Error: LinkageError occurred while loading main class VASSAL.launch.ModuleManager java.lang.ExceptionInInitializerError: null You have mail in /var/mail/greg imacgc:VASSAL-3.7.12 greg$ ``` ---
**Author:** ![uckelman](https://forum.vassalengine.org/user_avatar/forum.vassalengine.org/uckelman/32/10020_2.png) [@uckelman](https://forum.vassalengine.org/u/uckelman)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2024, 9:46am UTC](https://forum.vassalengine.org/t/cant-upgrade-vassal-on-macos/79553/36 "2024-06-13T09:46:51Z")
> [@Breaker](#): > > the /var file is a text edit file that makes no sense to me. Seems to report results of scans. This could be important. May we see the contents? ---
**Author:** ![Breaker](https://forum.vassalengine.org/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/b/9fc348/32.png) [@Breaker](https://forum.vassalengine.org/u/Breaker)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2024, 3:21am UTC](https://forum.vassalengine.org/t/cant-upgrade-vassal-on-macos/79553/37 "2024-06-14T03:21:50Z")
There is a lot of content in it…sorry, I would rather not. ---
**Author:** ![uckelman](https://forum.vassalengine.org/user_avatar/forum.vassalengine.org/uckelman/32/10020_2.png) [@uckelman](https://forum.vassalengine.org/u/uckelman)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2024, 10:29am UTC](https://forum.vassalengine.org/t/cant-upgrade-vassal-on-macos/79553/38 "2024-06-14T10:29:16Z")
It’s a message spool file. What I’m interested in is the _last_ message—the one which `You have mail in /var/mail/greg` indicates was added when you tried starting Vassal. You could ensure that the last message is this one by trying to run Vassal and immediately checking `/var/mail/greg`. This is the obvious next step to continue troubleshooting with Java 17. Otherwise, you could install [Java 11](https://adoptium.net/temurin/releases/?version=11&os=mac&arch=x64) and try the same steps with that. ---
**Author:** ![Breaker](https://forum.vassalengine.org/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/b/9fc348/32.png) [@Breaker](https://forum.vassalengine.org/u/Breaker)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2024, 3:48am UTC](https://forum.vassalengine.org/t/cant-upgrade-vassal-on-macos/79553/39 "2024-06-18T03:48:18Z")
I ran that command line again and this time it did not include any ref to the /var file: ```auto imacgc:VASSAL-3.7.12 greg$ /Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/temurin-17.jdk/Contents/Home/bin/java -Duser.dir=. -classpath lib/Vengine.jar VASSAL.launch.ModuleManager Error: LinkageError occurred while loading main class VASSAL.launch.ModuleManager java.lang.ExceptionInInitializerError: null imacgc:VASSAL-3.7.12 greg$ ``` I found the file and it had not been updated after I repeated the command. I looked into the file for the date on which the /var entry was generated, and on that date the reference was to a Norton Utilities Application Support file, which doesn’t even exist where it said it should. So, seems to me that the text edit file offers no guidance. ---
**Author:** ![uckelman](https://forum.vassalengine.org/user_avatar/forum.vassalengine.org/uckelman/32/10020_2.png) [@uckelman](https://forum.vassalengine.org/u/uckelman)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2024, 10:07am UTC](https://forum.vassalengine.org/t/cant-upgrade-vassal-on-macos/79553/40 "2024-06-18T10:07:53Z")
Alright. Next, try Java 11 instead, working through the same steps as above. ---
**Author:** ![Breaker](https://forum.vassalengine.org/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/b/9fc348/32.png) [@Breaker](https://forum.vassalengine.org/u/Breaker)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2024, 7:03am UTC](https://forum.vassalengine.org/t/cant-upgrade-vassal-on-macos/79553/41 "2024-06-22T07:03:49Z")
OK, I loaded temurins-11.jdk and ran the following command inside the Vassal-3.7.12 folder, with the ensuing reply: ```auto imacgc:VASSAL-3.7.12 greg$ JAVA=/Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/temurin-11.jdk/Contents/Home/bin/java ./VASSAL.sh Error: /Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/temurin-11.jdk/Contents/Home/bin/java is too old to run this version of Vassal. Please use Java 11 or later. imacgc:VASSAL-3.7.12 greg$ ``` For some reason, it is not recognising this pathway? [Previous page](https://forum.vassalengine.org/t/cant-upgrade-vassal-on-macos/79553.md?page=1) [Next page](https://forum.vassalengine.org/t/cant-upgrade-vassal-on-macos/79553.md?page=3)