Do different JDK Updates produce different Java byte code?
compilation, compiler-construction, java
Solution
The generated code usually only differs in case of compiler bug fixes.
However the JLS does not specify a 1:1 mapping from source code to the generated byte code, so you should not rely on the exact same byte code to be generated.
Problem
A hypothetical scenario: I've got a project whose source compliance level is specified to 1.5. Now I compile this project with two different JDKs: At first with JDK 6 Update 7 and then with JDK 6 Update 20. Do these two different JDKs produce different Java byte code, although they only differ in their Update version?