Installing SQL Developer on your Windows machine

Step 1: Installing JDK

Before we install SQL Developer, we need to make sure that we have the correct version of Java JDK installed. For SQL Developer to work properly, we need either JDK 8 or 11. You can check whether you already have Java installed by inputing the following command into your command prompt.

java -version

You can open your command prompt by searching for it in the start menu in the bottom left-hand corner of your desktop.

If your command returns a result that resembles this, you most likely do not have Java installed on your computer.

Navigate to this page to download JDK 8. Download jdk1.8.0_77.zip.

Make a mental note of wherever this zip file is saved. It should have been saved, by default, in your Downloads folder. If you open your File Explorer and navigate to the Downloads folder, you should see the zip file there. Your File Explorer should look like this.

We can extract the zip file by right-clicking on the zip file and then by selecting the “Extract All…” option in the right-click menu. A new window should pop-up that looks like this.

Where it says “Files will be extracted to this folder:”, we are going to change the extraction location to this.

C:\Program Files\Java

Copy and paste the above directory path into this address bar. The window should now look like this.

When you are ready, click “Extract.” If a window pops-up that looks like this, click “Continue.”

Click “Continue”

Once this is completed, we are now going to navigate to where Java is installed on our computer using the File Explorer. Double-click on the address bar where it says > Quick Access > in the File Explorer. I have where you need to double-click circled in red below.

Then, copy and paste this command in the address bar.

C:\Program Files\Java

Your File Explorer should now look like this.

Then, hit enter. This will take you to your Java installation location. Your File Explorer should now look like this.

Double-click on the jdk1.8.0_77 folder. Your File Explorer should look like this. Circled in red is the bin folder. Double-click on this.

Your File Explorer should now look like this.

This is where all of your important Java related executable files are stored. We now want to set this bin folder as our environment variable, so that we can run all of the related Java commands inside the command prompt and the Windows PowerShell. Double-click on the address bar, circled in red above. Make a note of the path. The path should be as follows.

C:\Program Files\Java\jdk1.8.0_77\bin

We are going to add this directory to our path. First, click on the start menu in the bottom left-hand corner of your screen. Then, open your settings app by clicking on the gear icon, circled in red.

Your screen should now look like this. Click-on “System.”

Your screen should now looks like this.

Inside the “Find a setting” search bar, search for the following.

Edit the system environment variables

Select the only option below.

A new window should pop-up that now looks like this. Click on “Environment Variables,” which I have circled in red below.

A new window should pop-up that now looks like this. Click on “Path” under “System variables.” Then, click “edit.”

A new window should pop-up that now looks like this. Click the “New” button and paste the Java/bin path here.

Your screen should now look like this. Click “OK.”

We are now going to set our JAVA_HOME environment variable. In your Environment Variables screen, click the “New” button, circled in red below.

A new window should pop-up that looks like this.

Set “Variable name” as follows.

JAVA_HOME

Set the “Variable value” as follows.

C:\Program Files\Java\jdk1.8.0_77

Note that we are not including the bin in out path here. The window should now look like this. Click “OK.”

Finally, click “OK” in the Environment Variables window, as circled in red below.

Click “OK” in the System Properties window, as circled in red below.

We are once again going to check to see if we installed Java correctly by inputing the following command into our command prompt.

java -version

You can open your command prompt by searching for it in the start menu in the bottom left-hand corner of your desktop.

If your command returns a result that resembles the one below — congratulations, you have successfully installed Java on your computer. Let us now move onto installing SQL Developer.

Step 2: Installing SQL Developer

We now need to install SQL Developer. To install SQL Developer, navigate to this page and download the Windows 32-bit/64-bit file. Before the download can commence, you will be prompted to log into your Oracle SSO account. Make a mental note of where this zip file was saved. It should have been saved, by default, in your downloads folder.

Open your File Explorer and navigate to the Downloads folder. You should see the zip file there. Your File Explorer should look like this.

We can extract the zip file by right-clicking on the zip file and then by selecting the “Extract All…” option in the right-click menu. A new window should pop-up that looks like this.

When you are ready, click “Extract.” You can extract SQL Developer where ever you would like on your computer. For the purposes of this blog, I kept it in my downloads folder. Your File Explorer should now look like this. Double-click on the sqldeveloper-21.2.1.204.1703-no-jre folder.

Your File Explorer should now look like this. Double-click on the sqldeveloper folder.

Once you are inside the sqldeveloper folder, locate the sqldeveloper application, which I have circled in red below. After you locate it, double click on the application.

If you receive this message, check the “Skip This Message Next Time” and select “Yes.”

If this window pops-up, press “No.”

Oracle SQL Developer should now have successfully loaded and opened. Your screen should look like this.

Bonus: access SQL Developer from anywhere on your computer

If you want to access SQL Developer from your command prompt or your Power Shell, add SQL Developer to your PATH and to your environmental variables. Navigate back to the environmental variables. Your screen should look like this. Click the “New” button, circled in red below.

Your screen should now look like this.

Set “Variable name” as follows.

sqldeveloper

Set the “Variable value” as follows.

C:\Downloads\sqldeveloper-21.2.1.204.1703-no-jre\sqldeveloper\sqldeveloper.exe

Note that we are not including the bin in out path here. The window should now look like this. Click “OK.”

Let’s now add SQL Developer to our PATH. Click on “Path” under “System variables.” Then, click “edit.”

A new window should pop-up that now looks like this. Click the “New” button and paste the SQL Developer path here.

Your screen should now look like this. Click “OK.”

Finally, click “OK” in the Environment Variables window, as circled in red below.

Click “OK” in the System Properties window, as circled in red below.

Finally, click “OK” in the Environment Variables window, as circled in red below.

Click “OK” in the System Properties window, as circled in red below.

Now, if you input sqldeveloper, like I have it below, into your command prompt or your Power Shell, SQL Developer should launch —it’s super convenient.

Hit “Enter” and then watch SQL Developer launch with glee and happiness in your heart.

Give yourself a round of applause and enjoy SQL Developer.