Demo limitations. The data for a demo installation is stored in a HypersonicSQL database (HSQLDB) that is stored in memory and then written out to files when Tomcat is shut down. These files are located at sakai-demo/sakai/db/sakai.db.*. Second, certain features such as e-mail and search are disabled.
Installing the Sakai Demo involves only a few steps. The most technically challenging aspect of a demo install is making sure that your Java environment is compatible with Sakai.
The Sakai Demo archive is available at http://source.sakaiproject.org/release/.
Once you have downloaded the archive, choose a location to unpack the files (your home directory is fine). When unpacked you will see a directory named sakai-src. Unix/Mac users should make sure that they have write permissions to the Tomcat servlet container files and directories before proceeding or startup permission errors may occur.