Sun, Fujitsu unveil new high-end server line

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Data center managers waiting for the perfect machine to come along to justify an investment in Sun's Solaris 10 operating system should expect their phones to ring shortly. A new line of servers, the Sparc Enterprise Server brand, was just unleashed by Sun and Fujitsu.

The higher end of the new offerings, the Sparc Enterprise M series, run the gamut from a 6U-sized, quad-processor (8-core) machine to a 128-core free-standing behemoth. Each of the M-class systems uses Fujitsu's Olympus model Sparc64 VI chip. Fujitsu also offers entry-level rackmount machines in the Enterprise T line which run on a single, 8-core UltraSparc T1 chip.

When what is known as the "Sun/Fujitsu Alliance" was formed, it was speculated that Sparc-based computing might be on the way out, squeezed between high-end Power chips and the up-and-coming popularity of commodity x86 servers. Sun itself has come to support x86-based architectures as more than just a hedge, carrying that platform forward to its latest Solaris 10 release. After several public and painful rounds of layoffs and streamlining, however, Sun appears to have strengthened its position as a long-term player.

Fujitsu's reseller channel is already up and running taking Sparc Enterprise inquiries. The M-class range is expected to start around £25,000.

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