Exception Handling in Java
1. Exception Handling
2. Advantage of Exception Handling
3. Hierarchy of Exception classes
4. Types of Exception
5. Exception Example
6. Scenarios where an exception may occur
The Exception Handling in Java is one of the powerful mechanism to
handle the runtime errors so that the normal flow of the application can be
maintained.
In this chapter, we will learn about Java exceptions, it's types, 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 need to handle exceptions. Let's consider 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 a Java program and an exception occurs at statement 5; the
rest of the code will not be executed, i.e., statements 6 to 10 will not be executed. However,
when we perform exception handling, the rest of the statements will be executed. That is why we
use exception handling in Java.
Do You Know?
o What is the difference between checked and unchecked exceptions?
o What happens behind the code int data=50/0;?
o Why use multiple catch block?
o Is there any possibility when the finally block is not executed?
o What is exception propagation?
o What is the difference between the throw and throws keyword?
o What are the 4 rules for using exception handling with method overriding?
Hierarchy of Java Exception classes
The java.lang.Throwable class is the root class of Java Exception hierarchy inherited by two
subclasses: Exception and Error. The hierarchy of Java Exception classes is given below:
Types of Java Exceptions
There are mainly two types of exceptions: checked and unchecked. An error is considered as the
unchecked exception. However, according to Oracle, there are three types of exceptions namely:
1. Checked Exception
2. Unchecked Exception
3. Error
Difference between Checked and Unchecked
Exceptions
1) Checked Exception
The classes that directly inherit the Throwable class except RuntimeException and Error are
known as checked exceptions. For example, IOException, SQLException, etc. Checked
exceptions are checked at compile-time.
2) Unchecked Exception
The classes that inherit the RuntimeException are known as unchecked exceptions. For example,
ArithmeticException, NullPointerException, ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException, etc.
Unchecked exceptions are not checked at compile-time, but they are checked at runtime.
3) Error
Error is irrecoverable. Some example of errors are OutOfMemoryError,
VirtualMachineError, AssertionError etc.
Java Exception Keywords
Java provides five keywords that are used to handle the exception. The
following table describes each.
Keyword Description
try The "try" keyword is used to specify a block where we should place a
exception code. It means we can't use try block alone. The try block must b
followed by either catch or finally.
catch The "catch" block is used to handle the exception. It must be preceded by tr
block which means we can't use catch block alone. It can be followed b
finally block later.
finally The "finally" block is used to execute the necessary code of the program. It i
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 specifies that ther
may occur an exception in the method. It doesn't throw an exception. It i
always used with method signature.
Java Exception Handling Example
Let's see an example of Java Exception Handling in which we are using a try-
catch statement to handle the exception.
JavaExceptionExample.java
1. public class JavaExceptionExample{
2. public static void main(String args[]){
3. try{
4. //code that may raise exception
5. int data=100/0;
6. }catch(ArithmeticException e){System.out.println(e);}
7. //rest code of the program
8. System.out.println("rest of the code...");
9. }
10. }
Test it Now
Output:
Exception in thread main java.lang.ArithmeticException:/ 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.
1. 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.
1. String s=null;
2. System.out.println(s.length());//NullPointerException
3) A scenario where NumberFormatException occurs
If the formatting of any variable or number is mismatched, it may result into
NumberFormatException. Suppose we have a string variable that has
characters; converting this variable into digit will cause
NumberFormatException.
1. String s="abc";
2. int i=Integer.parseInt(s);//NumberFormatException
4) A scenario where ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException occurs
When an array exceeds to it's size, the ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException
occurs. there may be other reasons to occur
ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException. Consider the following statements.
1. int a[]=new int[5];
2. a[10]=50; //ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException
Java Exceptions Index
1. Java Try-Catch Block
2. Java Multiple Catch Block
3. Java Nested Try
4. Java Finally Block
5. Java Throw Keyword
6. Java Exception Propagation
7. Java Throws Keyword
8. Java Throw vs Throws
9. Java Final vs Finally vs Finalize
10. Java Exception Handling with Method Overriding
11. Java Custom Exceptions
