[java] "Error: Main method not found in class MyClass, please define the main method as..."

New Java programmers often encounter these messages when they attempt to run a Java program.

Error: Main method not found in class MyClass, please define the main method as:
   public static void main(String[] args)
or a JavaFX application class must extend javafx.application.Application

Error: Main method is not static in class MyClass, please define the main method as:
   public static void main(String[] args)

Error: Main method must return a value of type void in class MyClass, please
define the main method as:
   public static void main(String[] args)

java.lang.NoSuchMethodError: main
Exception in thread "main"

What does this mean, what can cause it, and what should one do to fix it?

I feel the above answers miss a scenario where this error occurs even when your code has a main(). When you are using JNI that uses Reflection to invoke a method. During runtime if the method is not found, you will get a

java.lang.NoSuchMethodError: No virtual method

If you are running the correct class and the main is properly defined, also check if you have a class called String defined in the same package. This definition of String class will be considered and since it doesn't confirm to main(java.lang.String[] args), you will get the same exception.

• It's not a compile time error since compiler just assumes you are defining a custom main method.

Suggestion is to never hide library java classes in your package.

Few min back i was facing " main method not defined".Now its resolved.I tried all above thing but nothing was working.There was not compilation error in my java file. I followed below things

• simply did maven update in all dependent project (alt+F5).

Now problem solved.Getting required result.

Generally, it means the program you are trying to run does not have a "main" method. If you are going to execute a Java program, the class being executed must have a main method:

For example, in the file Foo.java

public class Foo {
    public static void main(final String args[]) {
        System.out.println("hello");
    }
}

This program should compile and run no problem - if main was called something else, or was not static, it would generate the error you experienced.

Every executable program, regardless of language, needs an entry point, to tell the interpreter, operating system or machine where to start execution. In Java's case, this is the static method main, which is passed the parameter args[] containing the command line arguments. This method is equivalent to int main(int argc, char** argv) in C language.

Other answers are doing a good job of summarizing the requirements of main. I want to gather references to where those requirements are documented.

The most authoritative source is the VM spec (second edition cited). As main is not a language feature, it is not considered in the Java Language Specification.

• 2.17.1 Execution - Virtual Machine Start-up
• 5.2 Virtual Machine Start-up

Another good resource is the documentation for the application launcher itself:

• java - the Java application launcher

The problem is that you do not have a public void main(String[] args) method in the class you attempt to invoke.

It

• must be static
• must have exactly one String array argument (which may be named anything)
• must be spelled m-a-i-n in lowercase.

Note, that you HAVE actually specified an existing class (otherwise the error would have been different), but that class lacks the main method.

The name of the exception suggests that the program tried to call a method that doesn't exist. In this context, it sounds like the program does not have a main method, though it would help if you posted the code that caused the error and the context in which the code was run.

This might have happened if the user tried to run a .class file or a .jar file that has no main method - in Java, the main method is the entry point to begin executing the program.

Normally the compiler is supposed to prevent this from happening so if this does happen, it's usually because the name of the method being called is getting determined ar run-time, rather than compile-time.

To fix this problem, a new programmer must either add the midding method (assuming still that it's main that's missing) or change the method call to the name of a method that does exist.

Read more about the main method here: http://csis.pace.edu/~bergin/KarelJava2ed/ch2/javamain.html