Can we execute a java program without a main() method? [duplicate]

Now – no

Prior to Java 7:

Yes, sequence is as follows:

• jvm loads class
• executes static blocks
• looks for main method and invokes it

So, if there’s code in a static block, it will be executed. But there’s no point in doing that.

How to test that:

public final class Test {
    static {
        System.out.println("FOO");
    }
}

Then if you try to run the class (either form command line with java Test or with an IDE), the result is:

FOO
java.lang.NoSuchMethodError: main