The release includes the Java Runtime Environment (JRE) for OS X, as well as the Java Development Kit (JDK), the JavaFX 2.2 rich client platform, and the new JavaFX Scene Builder.

The JRE will allow OS X users to run Java applications and applets, while the JDK and JavaFX platform lets programmers build Java software right on their Mac, in some cases even allowing them to provide a more platform-native experience for users.

Until Lion, Java SE6 was installed by default on most versions of OS X. In October 2010, Apple announced that it was . As of Lion and later, running an application that requires Java prompts users to download and install the software. Last November, Apple announced that it would , but that future updates for Java on OS X would instead fall to its developer, Oracle.

In April, on Mac, PC, Linux, and Solaris platforms moving forward. This after for long periods of time, which proved problematic earlier this year when exploited a hole in the then current version of Java.

Java SE7 Update 6 is .