> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.syntblaze.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Java Exports Directive
The `exports` directive is a statement within the Java Platform Module System (JPMS) used in a `module-info.java` declaration to explicitly expose a specific package to other modules. By default, all packages within a Java module are strongly encapsulated. The `exports` directive overrides this encapsulation, granting compile-time and runtime access to the `public` types residing in the specified package, as well as the `public` and `protected` members (which includes nested types) of those `public` types.
## Unqualified Exports
An unqualified `exports` directive makes the package accessible to any module that *reads* the exporting module. This readability can be established directly via a `requires` declaration or transitively (implied readability) via a `requires transitive` dependency on an intermediary module.
```java theme={"dark"}
module com.example.core {
// Exposes public types in this package to any reading module
exports com.example.core.api;
}
```
## Qualified Exports
A qualified `exports` directive restricts package visibility to a specific, comma-separated list of target modules. Modules not explicitly listed in the `to` clause are denied access, even if they read the exporting module.
```java theme={"dark"}
module com.example.core {
// Exposes the package exclusively to the 'com.example.metrics' and 'com.example.audit' modules
exports com.example.core.internal to com.example.metrics, com.example.audit;
}
```
## Technical Characteristics
* **Package-Level Granularity:** The directive operates strictly at the package level. You cannot export individual classes or interfaces.
* **Non-Transitive Sub-packages:** Exporting a package does not export its sub-packages. For example, `exports com.example.core;` does not expose `com.example.core.util`. Each package must be exported via its own distinct directive.
* **Access Modifier Enforcement:** The directive only crosses the module boundary. Standard Java access modifiers still apply. Package-private (default) types, as well as `private` or package-private members within an exported package, remain inaccessible to external modules.
* **Reflection Limitations:** While `exports` allows standard reflective access to `public` types, it does not permit deep reflection (e.g., using `setAccessible(true)` to access private fields or methods) from external modules. Deep reflective access requires the `opens` directive instead.
* **Intra-module Access:** The `exports` directive has no effect on code within the same module. All packages within a single module can freely interact with each other, subject only to standard access modifiers.
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