Can you have 2 completely independent instances of Eclipse running at the same time?

Question

I'm sure there isn't really a way to do this, but figured it doesn't hurt to ask...

I use Eclipse a lot. I'm currently using it for both Java and Python (with PyDev). I often find that I have one project open, with lots of files, say in Java... And then for some reason I have to switch to a Python project for a bit. I want to leave my Java project the way it is, and I don't just want to open tons of Python files in the same place because then I have too much open at once and get a headache and confused. Is there any way I can just leave the Java project exactly the way it is, and sort of open a completely new session of Eclipse? (sort of the way you can do with a browser) Or is this just wishful thinking?

Answer 1

Yes, you can have two instances of Eclipse running at the same time. However, they can't both access the same workspace at the same time. If you try to do this, the second instance will complain about it on startup and ask you to choose a different workspace.

Also bear in mind that Eclipse tends to be a very memory-hungry application. Running two at once may put a significant strain on your system.

Answer 2

As long as each project uses its own workspace, yes, you absolutely can. This assumes that your system has sufficient memory and CPU resources to accommodate multiple instances, of course. (I do it all the time!)

Answer 3

If you want two instances accessing two workspaces, just run a second copy of eclipse

If you want two windows accessing the same workspace, you can create a second window with Window -> New Window

Answer 4

Yes, this is perfectly possible.

They have to run in a different workspace though. That is the only limitation (well. except for memory of course)

So just create a different workspace for your python projects and you'll be fine.

Answer 5

Yes, you can. Otherwise, no one could develop an Eclipse plug-in.

You have to uncheck the default workspace on startup. You can't have two instances of Eclipse referencing the same workspace.