How do I set environment variables from Java?

For use in scenarios where you need to set specific environment values for unit tests, you might find the following hack useful. It will change the environment variables throughout the JVM (so make sure you reset any changes after your test), but will not alter your system environment.

I found that a combination of the two dirty hacks by Edward Campbell and anonymous works best, as one of the does not work under linux, one does not work under windows 7. So to get a multiplatform evil hack I combined them:

protected static void setEnv(Map<String, String> newenv) throws Exception {
  try {
    Class<?> processEnvironmentClass = Class.forName("java.lang.ProcessEnvironment");
    Field theEnvironmentField = processEnvironmentClass.getDeclaredField("theEnvironment");
    theEnvironmentField.setAccessible(true);
    Map<String, String> env = (Map<String, String>) theEnvironmentField.get(null);
    env.putAll(newenv);
    Field theCaseInsensitiveEnvironmentField = processEnvironmentClass.getDeclaredField("theCaseInsensitiveEnvironment");
    theCaseInsensitiveEnvironmentField.setAccessible(true);
    Map<String, String> cienv = (Map<String, String>)     theCaseInsensitiveEnvironmentField.get(null);
    cienv.putAll(newenv);
  } catch (NoSuchFieldException e) {
    Class[] classes = Collections.class.getDeclaredClasses();
    Map<String, String> env = System.getenv();
    for(Class cl : classes) {
      if("java.util.Collections$UnmodifiableMap".equals(cl.getName())) {
        Field field = cl.getDeclaredField("m");
        field.setAccessible(true);
        Object obj = field.get(env);
        Map<String, String> map = (Map<String, String>) obj;
        map.clear();
        map.putAll(newenv);
      }
    }
  }
}

This Works like a charm. Full credits to the two authors of these hacks.

(Is it because this is Java and therefore I shouldn't be doing evil nonportable obsolete things like touching my environment?)

I think you've hit the nail on the head.

A possible way to ease the burden would be to factor out a method

void setUpEnvironment(ProcessBuilder builder) {
    Map<String, String> env = builder.environment();
    // blah blah
}

and pass any ProcessBuilders through it before starting them.

Also, you probably already know this, but you can start more than one process with the same ProcessBuilder. So if your subprocesses are the same, you don't need to do this setup over and over.

public static void set(Map<String, String> newenv) throws Exception {
    Class[] classes = Collections.class.getDeclaredClasses();
    Map<String, String> env = System.getenv();
    for(Class cl : classes) {
        if("java.util.Collections$UnmodifiableMap".equals(cl.getName())) {
            Field field = cl.getDeclaredField("m");
            field.setAccessible(true);
            Object obj = field.get(env);
            Map<String, String> map = (Map<String, String>) obj;
            map.clear();
            map.putAll(newenv);
        }
    }
}

Or to add/update a single var and removing the loop as per thejoshwolfe's suggestion.

@SuppressWarnings({ "unchecked" })
  public static void updateEnv(String name, String val) throws ReflectiveOperationException {
    Map<String, String> env = System.getenv();
    Field field = env.getClass().getDeclaredField("m");
    field.setAccessible(true);
    ((Map<String, String>) field.get(env)).put(name, val);
  }