difference between synchronizing a static method and a non static method

Synchronization in Java is basically an implementation of monitors. When synchronizing a non static method, the monitor belongs to the instance. When synchronizing on a static method, the monitor belongs to the class. Synchronizing a block of code is the same idea, but the monitor belongs to the specified object. If you can get away with it, synchronized blocks are preferable because they minimize the time each thread spends in the critical section

I will try and add an example to make this extra clear.

As has been mentioned, synchronized in Java is an implementation of the Monitor concept. When you mark a block of code as synchronized you use an object as a parameter. When an executing thread comes to such a block of code, it has to first wait until there is no other executing thread in a synchronized block on that same object.

Object a = new Object();
Object b = new Object();
...
synchronized(a){
    doStuff();
}
...
synchronized(b){
    doSomeStuff();
}
...
synchronized(a){
    doOtherStuff();
}

In the above example, a thread running doOtherStuff() would block another thread from entering the block of code protecting doStuff(). However, a thread could enter the block around doSomeStuff() without a problem as that is synchronized on Object b, not Object a.

When you use the synchronized modifier on an instance method (a non-static method), it is very similar to having a synchronized block with "this" as the argument. So in the following example, methodA() and methodB() will act the same way:

public synchronized void methodA() {
  doStuff();
}
...
public void methodB() {
    synchronized(this) {
        doStuff();
    }
}

Note that if you have a methodC() in that class which is not synchronized and does not have a synchronized block, nothing will stop a thread from entering that method and careless programming could let that thread access non-safe code in the object.

If you have a static method with the synchronized modifier, it is practically the same thing as having a synchronized block with ClassName.class as the argument (if you have an object of that class, ClassName cn = new ClassName();, you can access that object with Class c = cn.getClass();)

class ClassName {
  public void static synchronized staticMethodA() {
    doStaticStuff();
  }
  public static void staticMethodB() {
    synchronized(ClassName.class) {
      doStaticStuff();
    }
  }
  public void nonStaticMethodC() {
    synchronized(this.getClass()) {
      doStuff();
    }
  }
  public static void unSafeStaticMethodD() {
   doStaticStuff();
  }
}

So in the above example, staticMethodA() and staticMethodB() act the same way. An executing thread will also be blocked from accessing the code block in nonStaticMethodC() as it is synchronizing on the same object.

However, it is important to know that nothing will stop an executing thread from accessing unSafeStaticMethodD(). Even if we say that a static method "synchronizes on the Class object", it does not mean that it synchronizes all accesses to methods in that class. It simply means that it uses the Class object to synchronize on. Non-safe access is still possible.

In short if you synchronize on a static method you will synchronize on the class (object) and not on an instance (object). That means while execution of a static method the whole class is blocked. So other static synchronized methods are also blocked.