Access restriction: The type 'Application' is not API (restriction on required library rt.jar)

Question

Here is the code:

package mscontroller;

import javax.swing.*;
import com.apple.eawt.Application;

public class Main {
    public static void main(String[] args)
    {
        Application app = new Application();
        app.setEnabledAboutMenu(true);

        AMEListener listener = new AMEListener();
        app.addApplicationListener(listener);
        JFrame mainFrame = new JFrame("Application Menu Example");
        mainFrame.setSize(500, 500);
        mainFrame.setVisible(true);
    }
}

here is the error:

Exception in thread "main" java.lang.Error: Unresolved compilation
problems:   Access restriction: The type 'Application' is not API
(restriction on required library
'/Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/jdk1.8.0_11.jdk/Contents/Home/jre/lib/rt.jar')
    Access restriction: The constructor 'Application()' is not API
(restriction on required library
'/Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/jdk1.8.0_11.jdk/Contents/Home/jre/lib/rt.jar')
    Access restriction: The type 'Application' is not API (restriction on
required library
'/Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/jdk1.8.0_11.jdk/Contents/Home/jre/lib/rt.jar')
    Access restriction: The method
'Application.setEnabledAboutMenu(boolean)' is not API (restriction on
required library
'/Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/jdk1.8.0_11.jdk/Contents/Home/jre/lib/rt.jar')
    AMEListener cannot be resolved to a type    AMEListener cannot be
resolved to a type

    at mscontroller.Main.main(Main.java:9)

eclipse says this:

Access restriction: The type 'Application' is not API (restriction on required library '/Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/jdk1.8.0_11.jdk/Contents/Home/jre/lib/rt.jar')

Answer 1

This happened to me as well, and the answers given here already were not satisfying, so I did my own research.

Background: Eclipse access restrictions

Eclipse has a mechanism called access restrictions to prevent you from accidentally using classes which Eclipse thinks are not part of the public API. Usually, Eclipse is right about that, in both senses: We usually do not want to use something which is not part of the public API. And Eclipse is usually right about what is and what isn't part of the public API.

Problem

Now, there can be situations, where you want to use public Non-API, like sun.misc (you shouldn't, unless you know what you're doing). And there can be situations, where Eclipse is not really right (that's what happened to me, I just wanted to use javax.smartcardio). In that case, we get this error in Eclipse.

Solution

The solution is to change the access restrictions.

• Go to the properties of your Java project,
  • i.e. by selecting "Properties" from the context menu of the project in the "Package Explorer".
• Go to "Java Build Path", tab "Libraries".
• Expand the library entry
• select
  • "Access rules",
  • "Edit..." and
  • "Add..." a "Resolution: Accessible" with a corresponding rule pattern. For me that was "javax/smartcardio/**", for you it might instead be "com/apple/eawt/**".