Solaris(TM) 10 Operating System and Sun Java Platform, Standard Edition 5.0 Set Multiple World Records on Server-Side Java Benchmark Across Sun Fire P

May 18 2006

Sun Microsystems, Inc. (Nasdaq: SUNW), the creator and leading advocate of Java(TM) technology, today announced that industry-leading Sun Fire(TM) T1000 and T2000 servers running open source UltraSPARC T1 processors and the Solaris(TM) 10 Operating System (OS) -- the most advanced operating system on the planet -- set world-records for performance(1) and beat competitive systems from Dell/Microsoft and IBM/AIX in recent SPEC Java Business benchmark (SPECjbb2005) testing. Sun also extended its lead in performance per watt and SWaP ratings, further demonstrating CoolThreads(TM) systems as the most efficient platform ever for delivery of web and application services.

The Sun Fire T1000 and T2000 servers equipped with the single UltraSPARC T1 processor and Solaris 10 OS out-performed a range of Intel Xeon-based 2-4 way servers running Microsoft Windows Server 2003 OS, and IBM 2-4 way POWER5 and POWER5+ based servers running AIX, all while consuming less power, resulting in over five times better performance per watt, and using up to one fourth the space - critical factors affecting data center efficiency, capacity, and costs.

These latest benchmark tests showed:

-- The Sun Fire T1000 set a new World Record for single CPU systems in a

1U footprint for SPECjbb2005, delivering 60,323 SPECjbb2005 bops;(1)

-- The Sun Fire T1000 demonstrated a 2.5 times performance advantage over

a Dell PowerEdge SC1425 server with two 3.6 GHz Intel Xeon processors,

and nearly twice the performance of an IBM System 5 p5 520 server with

one dual core 1.9 GHz POWER5+ processor, while requiring one fourth the

space and less than half the electrical power;(2)

-- The Sun Fire T1000 Server also demonstrated up to 5X better performance

per watt than competitive systems;(3)

-- The Sun Fire T2000 set a new World Record on SPECjbb2005 for servers in

2U footprint by delivering 74,365 SPECjbb2005 bops;(1)

-- The Sun Fire T2000 demonstrated nearly twice the performance of an IBM

eServer xSeries 346 with two dual core 2.8 GHz Intel Xeon processors,

and 1/3 more performance than IBM's latest 4-way POWER5+ based p510Q

server. Performance per watt was at least 2 times higher than the

Dell/Microsoft and IBM/AIX systems described above.(2)

-- Java Platform, Standard Edition 5.0_08 with Java HotSpot (TM) Virtual

Machine technology and compiled with Sun Studio compilers extends Sun's

best in class Java server performance with the above two new

SPECjbb2005 world records running the open-source UltraSPARC T1

processor, demonstrating performance gains exceeding 17% over previous

performance numbers using Java SE 5.0_06.

Sun's CoolTheads servers also deliver compelling price/performance: the Sun Fire T1000 server starts at just $2,995 and the Sun Fire T2000 Server at $7,795(4).

In addition, the Sun Fire X4100 and X4200 servers, which are powered by the fastest single-core AMD Opteron(TM) Model 256 processors, set two new World Records on the SPECjbb2005 benchmark, highlighting the performance of the Java Platform, Standard Edition 5.0_08. The benchmark stresses overall JVM performance, producing two equally important metrics -- total system throughput (SPECjbb2005 bops) and JVM scalability (SPECjbb2005 bops/JVM).

The Sun Fire X4000 family of servers running the Solaris 10 OS showed record performance for 2-socket, 2-way systems(5):

-- New high score of 38,090 SPECjbb2005 bops for throughput;

-- New high score of 32,018 SPECjbb2005 bops/JVM for JVM scaling.

These results show up to 17% better throughput and up to 6% better scalability than the previous best scores in these categories(6), as well as showcase the ability of Java HotSpot Server Virtual Machine to deliver outstanding results and optimized performance regardless of the underlying system architecture.

The SPECjbb Benchmark

SPECjbb2005 (Java Business Benchmark) measures the performance of a Java implemented application tier (server-side Java) based on the order processing in a wholesale supplier application. It also measures the performance of CPUs, caches, memory hierarchy and the scalability of shared memory processors (SMPs). The metrics given are number of SPECjbb2005 bops (Business Operations per Second) and SPECjbb2005 bops/Java Virtual Machine.

About JavaOne, Sun's 2006 Worldwide Java Developer Conference

The JavaOne Conference is one of the leading events for Java technology developers. Established in 1996, the Conference provides Java technology enthusiasts the opportunity to learn about the latest Java technology innovations, get hands-on experience with the technology, network with their peers, and have the opportunity to network directly with technology experts from Java technology industry leaders. For more information about the JavaOne Conference, visit http://java.sun.com/javaone/sf.

About Sun Microsystems, Inc.

A singular vision -- "The Network Is The Computer" -- guides Sun in the development of technologies that power the world's most important markets. Sun's philosophy of sharing innovation and building communities is at the forefront of the next wave of computing: the Participation Age. Sun can be found in more than 100 countries and on the Web at http://sun.com.

NOTE: Sun, Sun Microsystems, the Sun Logo, CoolThreads, Solaris, Java, Sun Fire, Java HotSpot and The Network Is The Computer are trademarks or registered trademarks of Sun Microsystems, Inc. in the United States and other countries.

All SPARC trademarks are used under license and are trademarks or registered trademarks of SPARC International, Inc. in the United States and other countries. Products bearing SPARC trademarks are based upon an architecture developed by Sun Microsystems, Inc.

FOOTNOTES

SPEC, SPECjbb reg(TM) of Standard Performance Evaluation Corporation. Sun Fire T1000, Sun Fire T2000, Sun Fire X4100 and Sun Fire X4200 server results submitted to SPEC. Other results as of 05/11/2006 on http://www.spec.org.

(1) Sun Fire T1000 Server (1 chip, 8 cores, 1-way) 60,323 SPECjbb2005 bops, 15,081 SPECjbb2005 bops/JVM

Sun Fire T2000 Server (1 chip, 8 cores, 1-way) 74,365 SPECjbb2005 bops, 18,591 SPECjbb2005 bops/JVM

1U and 2U footprint system size information is taken from respective companies websites.

(2) IBM x346 (2 chip, 4 cores, 4-way) 39,585 SPECjbb2005 bops, 39,585 SPECjbb2005 bops/JVM

IBM p520 (1 chip, 2 cores, 2-way) 32,820 SPECjbb2005 bops, 32,820 SPECjbb2005 bops/JVM

IBM p510Q (2 chips, 4 cores, 4-way) 54,820 SPECjbb2005 bops, 54,820 SPECjbb2005 bops/JVM

Dell SC1425 (2 chip, 2 cores, 2-way) 24,208 SPECjbb2005 bops, 24,208 SPECjbb2005 bops/JVM

(3) IBM x346 Specifications from brochure, 09/05/05: http://www-03.ibm.com/servers/eserver/xseries/x346.html

IBM x346 power rating estimated by calculating 70% of the power supply data reported in the product brochure IBM p520 specifications, 10/06/05, from http://www-03.ibm.com/servers/eserver/pseries/hardware/entry/520.html

IBM p510Q specifications, 19/04/06, from http://www-03.ibm.com/systems/p/hardware/entry/510q/index.html

IBM POWER5 power specifications calculated by applying 70% of the power numbers published in "Facts and Features Report", 3/10/06, posted at http://www-03.ibm.com/servers/eserver/pseries/hardware/factsfeatures.html

Dell SC1425 power rating taken from Input Power reported on Dell Product Power Configuration Calculator, 11/24/05. System configured with 2 x Xeon processors, 8GB DDR2 memory and 1xHard Disk: http://www1.us.dell.com/content/topics/topic.aspx/global/products/pedge/top ics /en/config_calculator?c=us&cs=555&l=en&s=biz

Sun Fire T1000 and T2000 server power consumption taken from measurements made during the benchmark run.

(4) U.S. list price. All prices quoted are in U.S. Dollars.

(5) Sun Fire X4200 (2x Opteron Model 256, 2 chips, 2 cores) 32,018 SPECjbb2005 bops, 32,018 SPECjbb2005 bops/JVM

Sun Fire X4200 (2x Opteron Model 256, 2 chips, 2 cores) 38,090 SPECjbb2005 bops, 19,045 SPECjbb2005 bops/JVM

The results were measured on Sun Fire X4200. Sun Fire X4100 and Sun Fire X4200 are electronically equivalent. For comparison purposes socket implies chip and way implies core.

(6) Fabric7 Systems, Inc. Q80 (2xAMD Opteron 854, 2 chips, 2 cores) 32610 SPECjbb2005 bops, 16305 SPECjbb2005 bops/JVM. Tyan Computer Corporation S2895(2xAMD Opteron 256 , 2 chips, 2 cores) 30265 SPECjbb2005 bops, 30265 SPECjbb2005 bops/JVM.

Media Contact:

Alex Plant

Sun Microsystems

650-786-3345

alex.plant@sun.com