# Running EclipseTrader

After you install (unzip) the EclipseTrader package in a directory (such as c:\eclipsetrader), start the program by running the EclipseTrader executable file found in the top level install directory. The executable file is called trader.exe on Windows systems and trader on Linux systems. Note: the following discussion describes setting up on Windows systems. Setup on Linux is analogous.

## Setting the Java VM using -vm

It is recommended that you explicitly specify which Java VM to use when running EclipseTrader. This is achieved with the -vm command line argument (for example, -vm c:\jre\bin\javaw.exe). If you don't use -vm, EclipseTrader will use the first Java VM found on the O/S path. When you install other products, they may change your path, resulting in a different Java VM being used when you next launch EclipseTrader.

## Advanced Topics in Running EclipseTrader

The EclipseTrader executable offer a number of execution options. This is a list of the commonly used options. The general form of running the EclipseTrader executable is:

>     trader [program options] [-vmargs [Java VM arguments]]

EclipseTrader Startup Parameters
Command | Description
--- | ---
    -consolelog
| Mirrors the EclipseTrader's error log to the console used to run the program..
    -data workspacePath
| The path of the workspace on which to run the EclipseTrader product.
    -nl locale
| Defines the name of the locale on which the EclipseTrader product is running. The program ordinarily computes the optimal setting automatically. If specified here, this is the value that the program uses. Example values: "en_US" and "fr_FR_EURO".
    -vm vmPath
| The location of Java Runtime Environment (JRE) to use to run the program. If not specified, the JRE is at `jre`, sibling of the EclipseTrader executable. Relative paths are interpreted relative to the directory that EclipseTrader was started from.
    -vmargs args
| When passed to the program, this option is used to customize the operation of the Java VM used to run EclipseTrader. If specified, this option must come at the end of the command line. The given arguments are dependant on VM that is being run.

All arguments following (but not including) the -vmargs entry are passed directly through to the indicated Java VM as virtual machine arguments (that is, before the class to run). Note: If an EclipseTrader startup argument, such as -data, is provided after the Java vm arguments (-vmargs), EclipseTrader will not start and you will receive a "JVM terminated. Exit code=1" error.