The Forked VM Terminated Without Saying Properly Goodbye. VM Crash or System.exit Called

java

maven

troubleshooting

jvm

To cut to the chase, here is how you can manage the abrupt termination of the forked VM:

Detect hidden exceptions: Swiftly scan your code for missed exceptions that may be triggering sudden JVM shutdowns.
Check System.exit() usage: Review your application for System.exit() calls and adjust their usage to avoid unexpected VM shutdowns.
Upgrade VM memory capacity: Augment the memory for Maven Surefire VMs to prevent crashes due to low memory:
```

<argLine>-Xmx1024m</argLine>
```
Customize Surefire configuration: Enhance the Maven Surefire plugin setup. A prime strategy is to assign forkCount to 0 which helps to minimize parallel VM forks, often strengthening the build:
```

<forkCount>0</forkCount>
```
Activate comprehensive logs: If the quick solutions aren't quite hitting the mark, ramp up your debugging with detailed logs or debugging flags, zeroing in on the crash point:
```

-XX:+HeapDumpOnOutOfMemoryError
```

These are your first line of defense and an effective starting stage for resolving VM crashes during test executions.

Deep Dive into Troubleshooting

When basic solutions don't cut it, it's time to roll up your sleeves and dive deeper:

Upgrade Surefire version: Ensuring a fresh updated version always helps. Make sure you use 2.22.0 or higher version:
```

<version>2.22.0</version>
```
Refine parallel execution: If running tests in parallel, judicious forkCount and reuseForks configuration can help fix intermittent VM termination:
```

<forkCount>1C</forkCount>
<reuseForks>true</reuseForks>
```
Capturing exhaustive diagnostics: Redirecting Maven log output to a file on your computer can be a savior. Yes, really. Especially on Windows:
```

mvn clean install > log-file.log
```
Finding incompatible packages: If any libraries using System.exit() are creating issues, don't hesitate to file a bug report with the vendor/library.
Make sense of Surefire reports: You can always lean on target/surefire-reports directory to dig deeper into the individual test case logs.

On a more strenuous note, we'll need to review and adjust several other things:

Juggle memory and perm space settings: You may avoid the infamous OOM errors or perm space exhaustion by increasing Java memory and perm space limits:
```

<argLine>-Xmx3072m -XX:MaxPermSize=768m</argLine>
```
Make sure the environment is right: Your Java environment, such as JDK versions, should align with Surefire's needs and your project's setup.
Check existing crash reports: Look for any "hs_err*" files. JVMs often leave these crash notes and it could be a gold mine of information.
Harmonize your environments: Variances in development, testing, and CI environments can cause inconsistent behavior and VM crashes. Try to keep these as consistent as possible.
Be prepared to shuffle JDK versions: Occasional JVM crashes could be due to specific JDK versions or bugs, don't hesitate to switch it up a bit.
Enable test failure resistance: Even with test failures, you can keep your build process running by using the testFailureIgnore in your pom.xml.