Sun Releases Sun Logical Domains 1.1 Virtualization Software; Sun SPARC Enterprise Servers with CoolThreads Technology and the Solaris OS Drive Down Cost, Space and Power Consumption
Sun Microsystems, Inc. (NASDAQ: JAVA) today highlighted new software updates and record-breaking performance of its chip multi-threaded (CMT) Sun SPARC Enterprise server family running the Solaris Operating System (OS). With updated virtualization software, a new world record on the SPECjAppServer2004 benchmark, and double-digit revenue growth, Sun’s CMT server portfolio continues to provide customers with competitive advantage while reducing cost and power consumption. The numerous advantages of Sun CMT servers over IBM Power systems are at http://www.sun.com/coolthreads/migratetosun/ibm/realitycheck. Sun is also extending free 60-day trials on Sun servers with CoolThreads technology via its Try and Buy program at: http://www.sun.com/tryandbuy.
“Sun CMT servers pack in an incredible amount of innovation with UltraSPARC processors, Solaris and LDoms, giving customers a killer combination of performance, scale, and energy efficiency,” said John Fowler, executive vice president, System Group, Sun Microsystems. “This platform is a complete package built for virtualization and consolidation with massive cost savings in power, space and cooling. And with double-or-triple digit growth for 10 consecutive quarters, CMT servers are what customers want and need in these challenging times.”
Sun’s servers with CoolThreads technology feature built-in, open source virtualization at no additional cost via Solaris Containers and Sun Logical Domains (LDoms) software, making them an ideal platform for consolidating hundreds of existing enterprise class workloads onto a single system. Sun has released the latest version of its Sun LDoms software, which features the following advanced capabilities:
* Domain Mobility – Enables the dynamic migration of domains to accommodate increased resource demands, maintenance requirements, or to reduce energy consumption during low utilization periods via a single migration command.
* Virtual I/O Dynamic Reconfiguration – Allows virtual services and virtual devices to be added to a domain without having to reboot the domain.
* Hybrid I/O for Network Interface Units – Enables a virtual network interface from a guest domain to directly access a physical network interface owned by an I/O domain.
These new features dramatically extend the capabilities, performance and usability of Sun LDoms software and help customers drive greater data center efficiency. The latest version is available to existing SPARC Enterprise server customers download at: http://www.sun.com/servers/coolthreads/ldoms/index.jsp
Additionally, with Solaris 8 and 9 Containers capability built into Solaris 10, customers can run multiple Solaris 8 or 9 environments on a single SPARC-based system, immediately gaining the benefits of the scalability and performance of Sun CMT servers without changes to existing applications.
Sun CMT Technology Versus IBM Power: 60 World Records Prove Sun’s Servers Offer Superior Performance and TCO
Sun’s server family with CoolThreads technology is a performance powerhouse with more than 60 world records to date on key enterprise and HPC benchmarks. In head-to-head systems comparisons, Sun CMT servers deliver better performance, price/performance and overall TCO. In typical ERP and CRM deployments, customers can consolidate up to four racks of IBM Power 570 servers to just two SPARC Enterprise T5440 servers – at nearly 1/5 the hardware cost. Customers are also able to cut their power and cooling costs by up to 70 percent.
The newest member of the Sun CMT server family, the Sun SPARC Enterprise T5440 system is particularly adept at handling enterprise workloads including ERP, CRM, database, transaction processing and modeling/simulations. The server’s latest achievement is a world record single node application server result with the SPECjAppServer2004 benchmark. Two SPARC Enterprise T5440 servers worked in unison on the application and database tiers of this benchmark to deliver 6334.86 SPECjAppServer2004 JOPS@Standard. More information on Sun CMT server benchmarks is available at http://www.sun.com/benchmarks.
The SPARC Enterprise T5440 server also set a world record for CRM performance with 14,000 users on a single server on the Oracle Siebel CRM Release 8.0 Platform Sizing and Performance Program (PSPP) benchmark. More information on the Sun Optimized Oracle CRM Solution is available at http://www.sun.com/solutions/enterprise/siebel/
With massive throughput capacity in compact, efficient server designs, Sun servers with CoolThreads technology coupled with the Solaris OS are also ideal platforms for IBM WebSphere deployments. Leveraging key Solaris features including Dynamic Tracing (DTrace) and Predictive Self Healing, along with Solaris Containers and LDoms, customers can consolidate WebSphere deployments and leverage the scalability and performance of Sun’s CMT servers to reduce the cost of their WebSphere solution. More information on the benefits of running WebSphere on Solaris and CMT technology is available at: http://www.sun.com/servers/coolthreads/t5440/websphere.pdf
Upgrades and Free Trials Available Today
Sun is also extending offers with discounts of up to 40 percent on select CMT systems. More information is available at http://www.sun.com/tradeins/offerings/entry.jsp#promos. Customers interested in Sun’s SPARC Enterprise CMT servers may also try select systems free for 60 days via Sun’s Try and Buy program, with a 40 percent discount if the system is purchased. More information is available at http://www.sun.com/tryandbuy.