Trap JVM shutdown - Real's Java How-to

Trap JVM shutdownTag(s): Varia

The Java virtual machine shuts down in response to two kinds of events:

The program exits normally, when the last non-daemon thread exits or when the exit (equivalently, System.exit) method is invoked.
The virtual machine is terminated in response to a user interrupt, such as typing ^C, or a system-wide event, such as user logoff or system shutdown.

JDK1.3

public class TrapBreak {

public static void main(String args[]) throws Exception{
    new TrapBreak().doit();
    }

   public void doit() throws Exception{
       Runtime.getRuntime().addShutdownHook(new Thread() {
              public void run() {
                    System.out.println("*** END ***");
                  }
              });

       while(true) { Thread.sleep(100); System.out.print("."); }
   }
}

To test it out on Windows, in DOS window, start the class with

C:\temp> java TrapBreak >out.log

Now close the DOS window by clicking on the upper-right X.

Now check the out.log file, you will find "*** END ***" written by our ShutdownHook.

..................*** END ***