Buying a decent SPARC box

[HighOrbit]

I would like to buy myself a sparc box to play with solaris. Nothing for production, it will just be to learn solaris.

Since I am completely unfamiliar with sparc, I need some pointers as to what a decent affordable configuration should be and what I should expect to pay. Obviously, I'm not looking for top of line, but I don't want a dog either.

I would appreciate a suggestion on the lines of: UltraSparc2 or UltraSparc3 with ### mhz and ### mb ram in the cost range of $low to $high.

Thanx in advance

[JohnT]

If it's just Solaris you want....it is available also for X86.

http://wwws.sun.com/software/solaris/


For used.....http://www.recycledgoods.com/default.aspx

[HighOrbit]

Thanx for the reply. I've tried Solaris on Intel and I was not impressed (video card was unsupported and X was monochrome!), so I really want to give it a try on a sparc. Besides the fact that solaris and sparc are "made for each other", I've heard that solaris on sparc has some unique boot-up routines that differ from solaris on intel, and I want to see what that is all about.

[Alex Cavnar, aka alc6379]

If you're just looking to learn Solaris on a SPARC machine, I'd suggest a SPARCstation.

I paid $100 for mine:

SPARCStation 5
100mhz RISC processor
80MB RAM
4x CDROM
2GB SCSI hdd
500MB SCSI hdd

20" greyscale monitor

If you check eBay, you can find SS5's on there, without monitor for around $30 + s/h. If you luck out and find one with a monitor, you'll probably pay around $100 total, s/h included.

[xulfralos]

Heh, I just picked up a SPARC 10 for $130 (including shipping) from a guy who didn't sell his box on eBay:

Dual ROSS 125MHz CPUs
414 MB RAM
2x9G SCSI drives
10/100 SBUS NIC
Solaris 9 installed

I already had an extra Sun mouse/kb and a Sun 20" color monitor, so it was a good deal for me.

That recycledgoods.com place is dam expensive and they don't have much Sun inventory; eBay is your best bet for old Sun gear.

[JohnT]

Originally posted by xulfralos
Heh, I just picked up a SPARC 10 for $130 (including shipping) from a guy who didn't sell his box on eBay:

Dual ROSS 125MHz CPUs
414 MB RAM
2x9G SCSI drives
10/100 SBUS NIC
Solaris 9 installed

I already had an extra Sun mouse/kb and a Sun 20" color monitor, so it was a good deal for me.

That recycledgoods.com place is dam expensive and they don't have much Sun inventory; eBay is your best bet for old Sun gear.

Don't you think the term "dam expensive" is a little out there. There are guarantees and ability to return items to be considered. His Sparc 10 $195 vs yours at $130.

[xulfralos]

Originally posted by JohnT
Don't you think the term "dam expensive" is a little out there.No, but their prices sure are! Here's a price list I just found:

Sparc Station IPX 195.00
Sparc Station IPX 125.00
Sparc Station 5 Model 544 200.00
SparcPrinter Laser Printer 350.00
Sparc 10 Unix Workstation 195.00
Sparc 20 Unix Server 245.00
Sparc 4 200.00
Sparc 5 70Mhz / 32MB / 540 mb / TGX/ FDD 375.00
Sparc 5 70Mhz / 32MB / 540 mb / 185.00
SUN SparcServer/Station 330 495.00

The only items they have detailed (or any) specs are the two Sparc 5 boxen and the SparcServer 330. $195 for an IPX?!?

JohnT, I paid $195 for my first SS10... THREE years ago! I bought mine with dual CPUs and 64 MB of memory, I can't even compare that to what these guys offer, due to no specs given on their SS10s... They are offering the minimal configurations (540 MB hard drives?!?) on their other systems. If you buy (or have bought) anything from this site, you are a fool. They might have a good deal on an obscure piece of equipment, but stay away from their Sun stuff. For the prices they charge, you can find a decent ULTRA 1/2/5/10 for the same or a bit more.
There are guarantees and ability to return items to be considered.As far as their warranty goes, here it is in full:

"Warranty: Equipment sales are final and are generally sold "as is" and carry a 15 day right of return. Manufacturers warranties may apply. Unsatisfactory merchandise may be returned for a full refund if the equipment does not operate as specified. The purchaser is liable for all transportation and shipping costs to and from Recycled Goods. Equipment we sell is cleaned and tested for proper operation prior to shipment. Most all equipment is used, all equipment is cleaned and tested, some equipment is refurbished, or even brand new. For specialized laboratory, medical and test equipment we normally hire outside specialists, either independent service providers, or the manufacturer to checkout and refurbish the product if necessary for the customer. We can offer 30 day, 90 day, or one year warranties if you require a warranty. Prices for warranties vary depending upon the product and our expertise with the product we are selling. If in doubt please ask. Recycled Goods is "not" liable for mistakes or misprints in the web site or any other publication. We do accept returns of non defective merchandise within 30 days; however, we charge a 30 percent restocking fee. A return materials authorization number is required prior to returning equipment for warranty issues and should be clearly marked on the return box."

30% restocking fee! I'm sure these warranties add cost to their already 'dam expensive' prices.

I reiterate that eBay is the best place to get cheap Sun gear. Just be careful, do your homework and you'll find much better deals.

Here's an eBay tip... Search for the specific type of system you want after you've done your research. Now go into the 'Completed Items' section and look for systems that fit your description but didn't sell. When you find a good deal, just click on the seller's name and send a question to the seller. Mention that you noticed their item didn't sell and ask if they still want to get rid of it. Make an offer now or wait for their email reply. Ensure that they didn't relist the item before making an offer, or you'll be violating eBay rules. That is exactly how I found the SS10 I recently snagged for $100 (before shipping).
His Sparc 10 $195 vs yours at $130.Yah, their non-spec'd, probably minimally-configured (32 MB RAM, single 30 MHz CPU, single 540 MB drive, no Solaris) for $195, not including shipping/handling vs. my loaded dual ROSS with 414 MB RAM, 2 x 9G drives, a 10/100 NIC and Solaris 9 pre-installed for $127, with the shipping included in the price. I paid at least $100 less not including shipping (they slap on a $5 handling charge right off the bat), and to get all those upgrades individually would cost at least $200 and probably more...

Bottom line: find a loaded sparc if you just want to learn Solaris and not mess around. Buy a minimally-configured sparc if you want to learn about the hardware and build it up over time. Keep in mind that it will cost you a lot more money to build it up than to find a loaded sparc.

[JohnT]

While I do appreciate you insight and
sound advice in this area that I am not that knowledgable in, I do take one small exception to the extent of that knowledge and that is in the area of your perception of whether or not I am a fool.If you buy (or have bought) anything from this site, you are a fool. While not being a sound buying decision from your perception, your choice of words falls neatly in to that class also, as not being sound. I have not or do not have any intention of buying anything from this site...it was only a link for those to compare. I'm certain HighOrbit appreciates your input in this matter as you have done your homework.

[RWiggum]

I'll second using eBay as a good source for used Sun gear. They have their categories broken down well, so you can find the vintage you want fairly easily. From the main page, go to Browse --> Computers --> Networking & Telecom --> Workstations --> Sun

Under Sun you can choose Sparc, Ultra, or Other. The older 32-bit stuff (SparcStation 5, 10, 20, etc) is under Sparc. The newer UltraSparc 64-bit models (Ultra 1/2/30, 5/10/60, etc) are under Ultra. Dual-300MHz Ultra 2's are going for about $300. Ultra 10s at 440MHz go for about $400. Ultra 60s at 360 go for about $350. A 70-110MHz Sparc 5 usually goes for about $30-$70.

In April I bought a 400MHz/512MB Ultra 5 w/ KB and mouse for $340. They've gotten even cheaper lately, so the prices I gave above are probably high. For your purposes, either a Sparc or an Ultra would do nicely. My U5 runs Debian Woody very well. I haven't upgraded to Sarge yet, so I'm still running KDE2.2 on it. It's fairly responsive for a GUI desktop. It came with Solaris 9 on it, but I wasn't really interested in playing with it. It wasn't as fun as Linux, and I don't have a good reason to learn it, so I got rid of it.

The U5s and 10s can use a standard 15-pin SVGA monitor. Sparcstations have a 13W3 connector that can be adapted to 15-pin. You can find a ton of these adapters on eBay for $15 apiece. Just make sure you match the gender properly. Some of them are for using Sun monitors on PCs, but you want the other way around. The U5s and 10s also have ATA/33 IDE controllers and PCI busses, so you can swap out common PC hardware for cheap hdd/cd-rom upgrades. I put a 20GB WD and an 8x CD-RW in mine. The older Sparcs have much less common SCSI and Sbus parts.

I'll also second not buying from web vendors. Some of them had merchandise at web stores as well as on eBay, and they frequently had prices 2X-5X more expensive at their store. For instance, I was looking at Creator and Elite 3D cards. They go for $30-40 on eBay. Most of the web vendors had them for the original Sun price of $400-500. Prices for parts are so cheap on eBay you don't need their warranty or support. If something fails, you can almost buy another complete system and part it out if necessary.

[garskoci]

Look on eBay. I just bought two Ultra 5s and I picked up an Ultra 10 about a year ago. My U5s were $130 each. If you have the option, get an Ultra or better. The SparcStations are pretty old.

[Sepero]

Is it just me, or is anyone else wondering why this thread hasn't been closed yet? Am just missing how this relates to Linux or what?

[trc]

Originally posted by Sepero
Is it just me, or is anyone else wondering why this thread hasn't been closed yet? Am just missing how this relates to Linux or what?

its in the Other Unix-Based OS's forum

[Sepero]

Oh, sorry. I almost never look up there. :D

[xulfralos]

Originally posted by JohnT
While I do appreciate you insight and
sound advice in this area that I am not that knowledgable in, I do take one small exception to the extent of that knowledge and that is in the area of your perception of whether or not I am a fool. While not being a sound buying decision from your perception, your choice of words falls neatly in to that class also, as not being sound. I have not or do not have any intention of buying anything from this site...it was only a link for those to compare. I'm certain HighOrbit appreciates your input in this matter as you have done your homework. Take exception all you want, it was your response to my post that triggered this whole thing. As a person who's dealt with SPARCs, I'm trying to help the thread originator refrain from making a big mistake (ordering from that site). I could have used much stronger language than 'fool'.

Apparently, others here agree with me.

You're the one not giving sound advice, first by suggesting that the originator get Solaris for x86, when he clearly stated that he wanted a SPARC. Secondly, recommending that site for used Sun equipment (which you confess you've never even ordered from) is doing him and the community here a disservice.

Finally JohnT, if you are not that knowledgeable about a topic, why post at all?

[JohnT]

I would like to buy myself a sparc box to play with solaris. Nothing for production, it will just be to learn solaris.

That was only half of the request as I had read it and had made a suggestion as alternative. I'm sure you would at least like to see that someone had an interest in your topic if you posted, rather than it languish by the wayside.

[Alex Cavnar, aka alc6379]

I'd also recommend checking local Linux User groups.

Many people in those groups have old hardware like Sparcs, PPC systems and Alphas that they just have lying around. Actually, if you asked nicely, they might just give one to you to get it out of their house.

For example, I may be getting an HP 9000 server, because the guy doesn't need it. It's not a powerhouse, but it will be my first foray into running dual-processors...