On 10/03/10 11:37, Chris Smith wrote: > Hi, > > What is considered to be a relatively hassle free sparc64 box to run > OpenBSD 4.7/4.8 on? > > Requirements are fairly minimal: headless, MP if possible. To > support: NAT via pf, apache, postfix, shell for 2-3 users. > > Was looking at Ultra30/60 as they are cheap here in the UK. Any > comments/experiences to share? > > Best Regards, > > Chris Smith
To be honest, the sparc64 systems I've tried Just Work, as far as OpenBSD goes. Interestingly, it seems that OpenBSD may be the best non-Solaris OS for Sparc64 hardware. A lot of other projects support certain vintage sparc64 hw, but OpenBSD seems to cover the entire range better than anything else other than Solaris... and since Solaris 10 has abandoned the UltraSPARC1 CPUs, probably BETTER than Solaris, too. :) (and now that solaris 10 is licensed in such a way to make it almost unusable ...) It really comes down to the Sun hardware features. Buy a machine with the RAM you want/need, upgrading Sun systems can be..interesting. Some random thoughts: U5/U10 are nice in that if you DID want to put a head on 'em, you just plug in a standard VGA connector monitor, no Sun adapter needed (still need a special keyboard, though). However, the U5/U10 HW more or less sucks (not an OpenBSD issue, just that the U5/U10 sucks). IDE disks, but you will HAVE to use surplus disks, as the thing supposedly barfs on >128G disks. Good introduction to the Sparc64 platform in a lightweight, modest power consumption package. (while the IDE disk interface is probably the worst seen in on a PCI bus, I've actually not found them THAT much slower than other semi-comparable Sun systems for "make build"). (note: I've found some Compaq server RAM will work nicely in U5/U10 machines, but at "half" capacity -- i.e., a 256M module will report as 128M.) U60s rock, though they suck some power. SCSI, two SCA disks. Don't let the U60's plastic case fool you, they are heavy! Lots of different CPUs, 300MHz to 450MHz. SCSI CDROMs...if yours is good, great, otherwise you get a quick intro to netbooting, as finding a working SCSI CDROM is getting harder and harder. (I have a lot, but they are buried under other stuff, so even I have trouble finding 'em. :) E220 are just a U60 with dual power supply, rack mount, and an amazingly butt-ugly front grill, and take up a lot of space for only two internal disks. Good parts donors to upgrade your U60, though. :) Blade100 draws surprisingly little power (45w, pretty loaded IIRC). The USB ports will make you think you can plug a standard USB keyboard into them for local console, and you ALMOST can, but you can't hit "STOP-A" to control the dang thing. So, you need a Sun keyboard (or serial console) to set up the machine. IDE disks. E450 make great end-tables, but suck a large amount of power and space for what they do now. Can hold a snootload of disks, but needs a lot of disk controllers to do that, and draw even more power if fully loaded. Might look good painted to look like a Borg Cube. E250: strange machine, looks like it wants to be a desk-side machine, but usually decked out to be a server (i.e., no video), but very strange when converted to rack-mount. Six SCA disks, dual CPU. Blade 1000: screamer, but uses FC disks (probably NOT sitting in your scrap pile), so can be frustrating. USB machine, like Blade 100. Netra T1-105: lot of machine in a 1U package, two SCA disks, total serial console control (power machine on and off via serial!), but wacko memory (odder than most Sun systems, actually). What you get with the thing is what you will live with. (there were several other 1U USIIi machines, most used more normal RAM, but the T1-105 is the only one I have loaded OpenBSD on recently). Sunfire v240: Duuuude. Beautiful machine. As good looking as the e220 is butt-ugly. Fast, too. :) Too old for most real-world apps, but as long as I'm babbling: U1: slow. SCA disks (capable of 1 half-height drive, one 1/3 height drive). 'e' variants are 16 bit SCSI, 100mbps NIC, non-'e' variants are 8 bit SCSI, 10mbps. I've had strange issues with the things dying on me, they may have hit their practical life span. sbus expansion cards. breaths from the sides (not front to back like most systems), disks on side. U2: Usually slow, but if you can get anything from one 200MHz CPU to dual 400MHz. You aren't going to get lucky and find a 2x400MHz machine just sitting around (mine was built out from a 2x200mhz w/ parts from a stripped E250). (ok, the best Sun/Solaris guy I know once showed up with a dual 400MHz U2, and now that I have one too, I feel overly cool). Two SCA 1/3height disks. breaths from the sides, but disks are on the front (yay!). Nick.
