The NetBeans Platform Manager is a tool for registering different NetBeans platforms with the IDE.
A NetBeans platform can be an installation of the NetBeans Platform or an
installation of the NetBeans IDE.
The NetBeans Platform Manager lists all your registered NetBeans platforms in the left pane and
lists the platform that the IDE currently deploys to as the default.
You can open the NetBeans Platform Manager by choosing Tools > NetBeans Platform Manager.
The NetBeans Platform Manager lets you view, select, or register the following:
Platform. Lets you register a new NetBeans platform. A NetBeans platform
can be the NetBeans Platform, the NetBeans IDE, or any derivative product. Once you
have registered a NetBeans platform, associate it with a module project in its
Libraries page.
Modules. Lets you view a registered platform's available modules.
Sources. Lets you register source code for a platform in the Sources
tab. If you register the sources, you do not need to register Javadoc separately, because Javadoc is
included in the sources. Either the ZIP file containing the sources or the unpacked root folder
can be registered in the Sources tab. You can download the NetBeans sources from
Javadoc. Lets you register Javadoc documentation
for a platform in the Javadoc tab. Javadoc is available from the Plugins manager as "NetBeans API Documentation".
Choose Tools > Plugins to access the Plugins manager.
Harness. Lets you register or select an alternative build harness.
With a build harness, you can build modules outside of the netbeans.org CVS tree
against a NetBeans-based application—the NetBeans Platform, the NetBeans IDE, or any
derivative product. By default,
the harness supplied by the current IDE installation is used. Some build functionality,
such as setting a module project's target JDK, is supported by one harness but not
by another.
Once you have registered a platform, you can configure a module project to use
that platform for deployment. Go to the project's Project
Properties dialog box, select the Libraries node, and choose the appropriate
platform in the NetBeans Platform drop-down list.