Exception Handling in Java

The Exception Handling in Java is one of the powerful mechanism to handle the
runtime errors so that normal flow of the application can be maintained.

In this page, we will learn about Java exceptions, its type and the difference between
checked and unchecked exceptions.

What is Exception in Java?

Dictionary Meaning: Exception is an abnormal condition.

In Java, an exception is an event that disrupts the normal flow of the program. It is
an object which is thrown at runtime.

What is Exception Handling?

Exception Handling is a mechanism to handle runtime errors such as

ClassNotFoundException, IOException, SQLException, RemoteException, etc.

Advantage of Exception Handling

The core advantage of exception handling is to maintain the normal flow of the
application. An exception normally disrupts the normal flow of the application that is
why we use exception handling. Let's take a scenario:

1. statement 1;
2. statement 2;
3. statement 3;
4. statement 4;
5. statement 5;//exception occurs
6. statement 6;
7. statement 7;
8. statement 8;
9. statement 9;
10. statement 10;

Suppose there are 10 statements in your program and there occurs an exception at
statement 5, the rest of the code will not be executed i.e. statement 6 to 10 will not
be executed. If we perform exception handling, the rest of the statement will be
executed. That is why we use exception handling in Java.

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 Hierarchy of Java Exception classes

The [Link] class is the root class of Java Exception hierarchy which is
inherited by two subclasses: Exception and Error. A hierarchy of Java Exception
classes are given below:

Types of Java Exceptions

There are mainly two types of exceptions: checked and unchecked. Here, an error is
considered as the unchecked exception. According to Oracle, there are three types
of exceptions:

1. Checked Exception
2. Unchecked Exception
3. Error

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 Difference between Checked and Unchecked Exceptions

1) Checked Exception

The classes which directly inherit Throwable class except RuntimeException and
Error are known as checked exceptions e.g. IOException, SQLException etc.
Checked exceptions are checked at compile-time.

2) Unchecked Exception

The classes which inherit RuntimeException are known as unchecked exceptions

e.g. ArithmeticException, NullPointerException, ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException
etc. Unchecked exceptions are not checked at compile-time, but they are checked at
runtime.

3) Error

Error is irrecoverable e.g. OutOfMemoryError, VirtualMachineError, AssertionError

etc.

Java Exception Keywords

There are 5 keywords which are used in handling exceptions in Java.

Keyword Description

try The "try" keyword is used to specify a block where we should place
exception code. The try block must be followed by either catch or finally.
It means, we can't use try block alone.

catch The "catch" block is used to handle the exception. It must be preceded
by try block which means we can't use catch block alone. It can be
followed by finally block later.

finally The "finally" block is used to execute the important code of the program.
It is executed whether an exception is handled or not.

throw The "throw" keyword is used to throw an exception.

throws The "throws" keyword is used to declare exceptions. It doesn't throw an

exception. It specifies that there may occur an exception in the method. It
is always used with method signature.

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 Java Exception Handling Example

Let's see an example of Java Exception Handling where we using a try-catch

statement to handle the exception.

public class JavaExceptionExample{

public static void main(String args[]){
try{
//code that may raise exception
int data=100/0;
}catch(ArithmeticException e){[Link](e);}
//rest code of the program
[Link]("rest of the code...");
}
}

Output:

Exception in thread main [Link]:/ by zero

rest of the code...

In the above example, 100/0 raises an ArithmeticException which is handled by a

try-catch block.

Common Scenarios of Java Exceptions

There are given some scenarios where unchecked exceptions may occur. They are
as follows:

1) A scenario where ArithmeticException occurs

If we divide any number by zero, there occurs an ArithmeticException.

int a=50/0;//ArithmeticException

2) A scenario where NullPointerException occurs

If we have a null value in any variable, performing any operation on the variable
throws a NullPointerException.

String s=null;
[Link]([Link]());//NullPointerException

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3) A scenario where NumberFormatException occurs

The wrong formatting of any value may occur NumberFormatException. Suppose I

have a string variable that has characters, converting this variable into digit will occur
NumberFormatException.

String s="abc";
int i=[Link](s);//NumberFormatException

4) A scenario where ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException occurs

If you are inserting any value in the wrong index, it would result in
ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException as shown below:

int a[]=new int[5];

a[10]=50; //ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException

Java try-catch block

Java try block

Java try block is used to enclose the code that might throw an exception. It must be
used within the method.

If an exception occurs at the particular statement of try block, the rest of the block
code will not execute. So, it is recommended not to keeping the code in try block that
will not throw an exception.

Java try block must be followed by either catch or finally block.

Syntax of Java try-catch

try{
//code that may throw an exception
}catch(Exception_class_Name ref){}

Syntax of try-finally block

try{
//code that may throw an exception
}finally{}

Java catch block

Java catch block is used to handle the Exception by declaring the type of exception
within the parameter. The declared exception must be the parent class exception

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 ( i.e., Exception) or the generated exception type. However, the good approach is to
declare the generated type of exception.

The catch block must be used after the try block only. You can use multiple catch
block with a single try block.

Problem without exception handling

Let's try to understand the problem if we don't use a try-catch block.

Example 1
public class TryCatchExample1 {

public static void main(String[] args) {

int data=50/0; //may throw exception

[Link]("rest of the code");

Output:

Exception in thread "main" [Link]: / by zero

As displayed in the above example, the rest of the code is not executed (in such
case, the rest of the code statement is not printed).

There can be 100 lines of code after exception. So all the code after exception will
not be executed.

Solution by exception handling

Let's see the solution of the above problem by a java try-catch block.

Example 2
public class TryCatchExample2 {

public static void main(String[] args) {

try
{
int data=50/0; //may throw exception

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 }
//handling the exception
catch(ArithmeticException e)
{
[Link](e);
}
[Link]("rest of the code");
}

Output:

[Link]: / by zero
rest of the code

Now, as displayed in the above example, the rest of the code is executed, i.e.,
the rest of the code statement is printed.

Example 3

In this example, we also kept the code in a try block that will not throw an exception.

public class TryCatchExample3 {

public static void main(String[] args) {

try
{
int data=50/0; //may throw exception
// if exception occurs, the remaining statement will not exceute
[Link]("rest of the code");
}
// handling the exception
catch(ArithmeticException e)
{
[Link](e);
}

Output:

[Link]: / by zero

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 Here, we can see that if an exception occurs in the try block, the rest of the block
code will not execute.

Example 4

Here, we handle the exception using the parent class exception.

Output:

[Link]: / by zero
rest of the code

Example 5

Let's see an example to print a custom message on exception.

public class TryCatchExample5 {

public static void main(String[] args) {

try
{
int data=50/0; //may throw exception
}
// handling the exception
catch(Exception e)
{
// displaying the custom message
[Link]("Can't divided by zero");
}
}

Output:

Can't divided by zero

Example 6

Let's see an example to resolve the exception in a catch block.

public class TryCatchExample6 {

public static void main(String[] args) {

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 int i=50;
int j=0;
int data;
try
{
data=i/j; //may throw exception
}
// handling the exception
catch(Exception e)
{
// resolving the exception in catch block
[Link](i/(j+2));
}
}
}

Output:

25

Example 7

In this example, along with try block, we also enclose exception code in a catch
block.

public class TryCatchExample7 {

public static void main(String[] args) {

try
{
int data1=50/0; //may throw exception

}
// handling the exception
catch(Exception e)
{
// generating the exception in catch block
int data2=50/0; //may throw exception

}
[Link]("rest of the code");
}
}

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 Output:

Exception in thread "main" [Link]: / by zero

Here, we can see that the catch block didn't contain the exception code. So, enclose
exception code within a try block and use catch block only to handle the exceptions.

Example 8

In this example, we handle the generated exception (Arithmetic Exception) with a

different type of exception class (ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException).

public class TryCatchExample8 {

public static void main(String[] args) {

try
{
int data=50/0; //may throw exception

}
// try to handle the ArithmeticException using ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException
catch(ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException e)
{
[Link](e);
}
[Link]("rest of the code");
}

Output:

Exception in thread "main" [Link]: / by zero

Example 9

Let's see an example to handle another unchecked exception.

public class TryCatchExample9 {

public static void main(String[] args) {

try
{
int arr[]= {1,3,5,7};

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 [Link](arr[10]); //may throw exception
}
// handling the array exception
catch(ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException e)
{
[Link](e);
}
[Link]("rest of the code");
}

Output:

[Link]: 10
rest of the code

Example 10

Let's see an example to handle checked exception.

import [Link];
import [Link];

public class TryCatchExample10 {

public static void main(String[] args) {

PrintWriter pw;
try {
pw = new PrintWriter("[Link]"); //may throw exception
[Link]("saved");
}
// providing the checked exception handler
catch (FileNotFoundException e) {

[Link](e);
}
[Link]("File saved successfully");
}
} Output:
File saved successfully

Internal working of java try-catch block

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The JVM firstly checks whether the exception is handled or not. If exception is not
handled, JVM provides a default exception handler that performs the following tasks:

o Prints out exception description.

o Prints the stack trace (Hierarchy of methods where the exception occurred).
o Causes the program to terminate.

But if exception is handled by the application programmer, normal flow of the

application is maintained i.e. rest of the code is executed.

Java catch multiple exceptions

Java Multi-catch block

A try block can be followed by one or more catch blocks. Each catch block must
contain a different exception handler. So, if you have to perform different tasks at the
occurrence of different exceptions, use java multi-catch block.

Points to remember

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 o At a time only one exception occurs and at a time only one catch block is
executed.
o All catch blocks must be ordered from most specific to most general, i.e. catch
for ArithmeticException must come before catch for Exception.

Example 1

Let's see a simple example of java multi-catch block.

public class MultipleCatchBlock1 {

public static void main(String[] args) {

try{
int a[]=new int[5];
a[5]=30/0;
}
catch(ArithmeticException e)
{
[Link]("Arithmetic Exception occurs");
}
catch(ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException e)
{
[Link]("ArrayIndexOutOfBounds Exception occurs");
}
catch(Exception e)
{
[Link]("Parent Exception occurs");
}
[Link]("rest of the code");
}
}

Output:

Arithmetic Exception occurs

rest of the code

Example 2
public class MultipleCatchBlock2 {

public static void main(String[] args) {

try{
int a[]=new int[5];

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 [Link](a[10]);
}
catch(ArithmeticException e)
{
[Link]("Arithmetic Exception occurs");
}
catch(ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException e)
{
[Link]("ArrayIndexOutOfBounds Exception occurs");
}
catch(Exception e)
{
[Link]("Parent Exception occurs");
}
[Link]("rest of the code");
}
}

Output:

ArrayIndexOutOfBounds Exception occurs

rest of the code

Example 3

In this example, try block contains two exceptions. But at a time only one exception
occurs and its corresponding catch block is invoked.

public class MultipleCatchBlock3 {

public static void main(String[] args) {

try{
int a[]=new int[5];
a[5]=30/0;
[Link](a[10]);
}
catch(ArithmeticException e)
{
[Link]("Arithmetic Exception occurs");
}
catch(ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException e)
{

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 [Link]("ArrayIndexOutOfBounds Exception occurs");
}
catch(Exception e)
{
[Link]("Parent Exception occurs");
}
[Link]("rest of the code");
}
}

Output:

Arithmetic Exception occurs

rest of the code

Example 4

In this example, we generate NullPointerException, but didn't provide the

corresponding exception type. In such case, the catch block containing the parent
exception class Exception will invoked.

public class MultipleCatchBlock4 {

public static void main(String[] args) {

try{
String s=null;
[Link]([Link]());
}
catch(ArithmeticException e)
{
[Link]("Arithmetic Exception occurs");
}
catch(ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException e)
{
[Link]("ArrayIndexOutOfBounds Exception occurs");
}
catch(Exception e)
{
[Link]("Parent Exception occurs");
}
[Link]("rest of the code");
}
}

Output:

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 Parent Exception occurs
rest of the code

Example 5

Let's see an example, to handle the exception without maintaining the order of
exceptions (i.e. from most specific to most general).

class MultipleCatchBlock5{
public static void main(String args[]){
try{
int a[]=new int[5];
a[5]=30/0;
}
catch(Exception e){[Link]("common task completed");}
catch(ArithmeticException e){[Link]("task1 is completed");}
catch(ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException e){[Link]("task 2 completed");}
[Link]("rest of the code...");
}
}

Output:

Compile-time error

Java Nested try block

The try block within a try block is known as nested try block in java.

Why use nested try block?

Sometimes a situation may arise where a part of a block may cause one error and
the entire block itself may cause another error. In such cases, exception handlers
have to be nested.

Syntax:
....
try
{
statement 1;
statement 2;
try
{
statement 1;
statement 2;
}

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 catch(Exception e)
{
}
}
catch(Exception e)
{
}
....

Java nested try example

Let's see a simple example of java nested try block.

class Excep6{
public static void main(String args[]){
try{
try{
[Link]("going to divide");
int b =39/0;
}catch(ArithmeticException e){[Link](e);}

try{
int a[]=new int[5];
a[5]=4;
}catch(ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException e){[Link](e);}

[Link]("other statement);
}catch(Exception e){[Link]("handeled");}

[Link]("normal flow..");
}
}

Java finally block

Java finally block is a block that is used to execute important code such as closing
connection, stream etc.

Java finally block is always executed whether exception is handled or not.

Java finally block follows try or catch block.

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Note: If you don't handle exception, before terminating the program, JVM executes
finally block(if any).

Why use java finally?

o Finally block in java can be used to put "cleanup" code such as closing a file,
closing connection etc.

Usage of Java finally :-

Let's see the different cases where java finally block can be used.

Case 1 -

Let's see the java finally example where exception doesn't occur.

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class TestFinallyBlock{
public static void main(String args[]){
try{
int data=25/5;
[Link](data);
}
catch(NullPointerException e){[Link](e);}
finally{[Link]("finally block is always executed");}
[Link]("rest of the code...");
}
}

Output:5
finally block is always executed
rest of the code...

Case 2 -

Let's see the java finally example where exception occurs and not handled.

class TestFinallyBlock1{
public static void main(String args[]){
try{
int data=25/0;
[Link](data);
}
catch(NullPointerException e){[Link](e);}
finally{[Link]("finally block is always executed");}
[Link]("rest of the code...");
}
}
Output:finally block is always executed
Exception in thread main [Link]:/ by zero

Case 3 -

Let's see the java finally example where exception occurs and handled.

public class TestFinallyBlock2{

public static void main(String args[]){
try{
int data=25/0;
[Link](data);
}
catch(ArithmeticException e){[Link](e);}

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 finally{[Link]("finally block is always executed");}
[Link]("rest of the code...");
}
}

Output:Exception in thread main [Link]:/ by zero

finally block is always executed
rest of the code...

Rule: For each try block there can be zero or more catch blocks, but only one finally
block.

Note: The finally block will not be executed if program exits(either by calling
[Link]() or by causing a fatal error that causes the process to abort).

Java throw exception

Java throw keyword

The Java throw keyword is used to explicitly throw an exception.

We can throw either checked or uncheked exception in java by throw keyword. The
throw keyword is mainly used to throw custom exception. We will see custom
exceptions later.

The syntax of java throw keyword is given below.

1. throw exception;

Let's see the example of throw IOException.

1. throw new IOException("sorry device error);

java throw keyword example

In this example, we have created the validate method that takes integer value as a
parameter. If the age is less than 18, we are throwing the ArithmeticException
otherwise print a message welcome to vote.

public class TestThrow1{

static void validate(int age){
if(age<18)
throw new ArithmeticException("not valid");

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 else
[Link]("welcome to vote");
}
public static void main(String args[]){
validate(13);
[Link]("rest of the code...");
}
}

Output:

Exception in thread main [Link]:not valid

Java throws keyword

The Java throws keyword is used to declare an exception. It gives an information

to the programmer that there may occur an exception so it is better for the
programmer to provide the exception handling code so that normal flow can be
maintained.

Exception Handling is mainly used to handle the checked exceptions. If there occurs
any unchecked exception such as NullPointerException, it is programmers fault that
he is not performing check up before the code being used.

Syntax of java throws

return_type method_name() throws exception_class_name
{
//method code
}

Which exception should be declared?

Ans) checked exception only, because:

o unchecked Exception: under your control so correct your code.

o error: beyond your control e.g. you are unable to do anything if there occurs
VirtualMachineError or StackOverflowError.

Advantage of Java throws keyword -

Now Checked Exception can be propagated (forwarded in call stack).

It provides information to the caller of the method about the exception.

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 Java throws example

Let's see the example of java throws clause which describes that checked exceptions can be
propagated by throws keyword.

import [Link];
class Testthrows1{
void m()throws IOException{
throw new IOException("device error");//checked exception
}
void n()throws IOException{
m();
}
void p(){
try{
n();
}catch(Exception e){[Link]("exception handled");}
}
public static void main(String args[]){
Testthrows1 obj=new Testthrows1();
obj.p();
[Link]("normal flow...");
}
}

Output:

exception handled
normal flow...

Rule: If you are calling a method that declares an exception, you must either caught or
declare the exception.

There are two cases:

1. Case1:You caught the exception i.e. handle the exception using try/catch.
2. Case2:You declare the exception i.e. specifying throws with the method.

Case 1: You handle the exception

o In case you handle the exception, the code will be executed fine whether exception

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 occurs during the program or not.

import [Link].*;
class M{
void method()throws IOException{
throw new IOException("device error");
}
}
public class Testthrows2{
public static void main(String args[]){
try{
M m=new M();
[Link]();
}catch(Exception e){[Link]("exception handled");}

[Link]("normal flow...");
}
}

Output:exception handled
normal flow...

Case2: You declare the exception

o A)In case you declare the exception, if exception does not occur, the code will be
executed fine.
o B)In case you declare the exception if exception occures, an exception will be thrown at
runtime because throws does not handle the exception.

A)Program if exception does not occur

import [Link].*;
class M{
void method()throws IOException{
[Link]("device operation performed");
}
}
class Testthrows3{
public static void main(String args[])throws IOException{//declare exception
M m=new M();
[Link]();

[Link]("normal flow...");
}

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}

Output:device operation performed

normal flow...

B)Program if exception occurs

import [Link].*;
class M{
void method()throws IOException{
throw new IOException("device error");
}
}
class Testthrows4{
public static void main(String args[])throws IOException{//declare exception
M m=new M();
[Link]();

[Link]("normal flow...");
}
}

Output:Runtime Exception

Que) Can we rethrow an exception?

Yes, by throwing same exception in catch block.

Difference between throw and throws in Java

There are many differences between throw and throws keywords. A list of differences between
throw and throws are given below:

No. throw throws

1) Java throw keyword is used to Java throws keyword is used to declare

explicitly throw an exception. an exception.

2) Checked exception cannot be Checked exception can be propagated

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 propagated using throw only. with throws.

3) Throw is followed by an instance. Throws is followed by class.

4) Throw is used within the method. Throws is used with the method
signature.

5) You cannot throw multiple You can declare multiple exceptions e.g.
exceptions. public void method()throws
IOException,SQLException.
Java throw example

void m(){
throw new ArithmeticException("sorry");
}

Java throws example

void m()throws ArithmeticException{

//method code
}

Java throw and throws example

void m()throws ArithmeticException{

throw new ArithmeticException("sorry");
}

Java User-Defied /Custom Exception

If you are creating your own Exception that is known as custom exception or user-defined
exception. Java custom exceptions are used to customize the exception according to user need.

By the help of custom exception, you can have your own exception and message.

Let's see a simple example of java custom exception.

class InvalidAgeException extends Exception{

InvalidAgeException(String s){
super(s);
}
}
class TestCustomException1{

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 static void validate(int age)throws InvalidAgeException{
if(age<18)
throw new InvalidAgeException("not valid");
else
[Link]("welcome to vote");
}

10. public static void main(String args[]){

11. try{
12. validate(13);
13. }catch(Exception m){[Link]("Exception occured: "+m);}
14.
15. [Link]("rest of the code...");
16. }
17. }

Output:Exception occured: InvalidAgeException:not valid

rest of the code...

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