Sun Microsystems, Fujitsu Unveil Next-Gen SPARC Enterprise Servers

July 14, 2008

Sun Microsystems and Fujitsu have enhanced a line of SPARC Enterprise servers - M4000, M5000, M8000 and M9000 -- that delivers a highly scalable, enterprise-class virtualization and consolidation platform with up to 80 percent better performance on commercial applications and 2x better performance on HPC workloads and using 44 percent less energy per core. Based on the quad-core SPARC64 VII processor and the Solaris Operating System (OS), the new SPARC Enterprise servers are ideal platforms for high-availability, mission-critical enterprise applications including large-scale databases, BIDW, ERP and CRM. The new processor is also available as an option for seamless upgrades in existing SPARC Enterprise servers.

"The new SPARC Enterprise systems up the ante on performance and deliver the flexibility to address the most demanding enterprise workloads," said John Fowler, executive vice president, Systems Group, Sun Microsystems. "Today, we're freeing customers from the constraints of the mainframe with open systems that deliver the scalability, consolidation and virtualization they want along with long-term investment protection features that can future-proof their datacenters."

"The SPARC Enterprise servers advanced to a new stage with the SPARC64 VII processor, which provides spectacular performance, reliability and eco-efficiency and benefits from Fujitsu's unparalleled mainframe heritage," said Tatsuo Tomita, corporate senior executive vice president and a board member at Fujitsu. "We are confident that the SPARC64 VII processor which powers the world's most scalable and flexible systems, not only protects but also increases the value of our customer's investments."

The SPARC Enterprise servers build on the existing systems co-designed by Sun and Fujitsu and extend long-term customer investment protection through binary compatibility, hardware and software partitioning and the ultra-flexible "mix and match" SPARC64 processor architecture. These SPARC Enterprise servers are the only systems on the market with the ability to mix SPARC64 VI and VII processors in a single domain, enabling customers to increase performance - without downtime and without requiring other hardware changes. Customers can also minimize upgrade costs by using the new SPARC64 VII option in current SPARC Enterprise servers.

With the addition of the new quad-core SPARC64 VII processor, the SPARC Enterprise servers also offer unmatched scalability in a single symmetric multi-processor system (SMP) system - from 16 to 256 cores. The SPARC64 VII processor also delivers the RAS functions of SPARC64 VI, including hardware instruction retry, dynamic degradation and parity-protected processor registers, to maintain the levels of performance and reliability needed in mission-critical systems.

The new processor consumes 44 percent less energy per core than the SPARC64 VI chip, enabling customers to consolidate and minimize energy consumption. Leveraging built-in hardware partitioning features and Solaris Containers, the new SPARC Enterprise servers form an ultra-high density environment that provides exceptional virtualization capabilities. As a result, customers can increase system utilization by supporting larger application workloads and services on their existing infrastructure, while controlling operating costs and reducing environmental impact.

SPARC Enterprise Systems

The new SPARC Enterprise systems are available immediately directly from Sun and Fujitsu and their authorized resellers. Continuing to provide investment protection for customers, the SPARC64 VII processors will also be available as upgrades for existing systems.