Gee whiz I'd like to hack FreeBSD/sparc64.. ;)
Brad Knowles
brad at stop.mail-abuse.org
Thu Nov 4 03:23:44 PST 2004
At 4:31 AM -0600 2004-11-04, R. Tyler Ballance wrote:
> Howdy there, I've been listening in on this list, I also listen in on
> the NetBSD/sparc64 list (I run NetBSD on my Ultra2, FreeBSD doesn't
> support it :/)
Yes, FreeBSD probably does support your U2. Maybe not the video
controller, or not well, but certainly you should be able to use it
in serial console mode.
> Problem being, FreeBSD doesn't support the SCSI controller (IIRC) on
> Ultra2's,
Yes, it does. Check the hardware compatibility page again
(assuming that it has been appropriately updated). If it hasn't been
updated, then a search of the archives of this mailing list should
result in more up-to-date information.
> so I'm wondering where I could acquire a low priced
> Ultra5/10/anythingthatwouldwork ;)
Try eBay. For example, they have a current listing for a Sun
UltraSPARC 60 for a buy-it-now price of $49.99 (see
<http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=51239&item=5729853405&rd=1>)
or an Ultra 10 for a buy-it-now price of $135 (
<http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=51239&item=5729620676&rd=1>).
I've seen various UltraSPARC machines going for even less. Of
course, with anything on eBay, you're taking a certain risk. But
with prices this low, you might be willing to take that risk.
Also try your local universities and companies who may be
excessing old equipment. They might just give you a machine for
free. I know that Philip Paeps and I recently picked up something
like fifteen excess Ultra10s (and other miscellaneous stuff) from a
university that was giving them away, although I'm sure all those
machines were allocated before we had even gotten our hands on them.
Myself, I bought four U10 clones from a friend in the US who was
helping his company unload them (the shipping to Europe cost me way
more than the machines), I got one U2 from another friend here in
Europe, and I helped put together a group purchase of a large set of
machines that were being excessed in London, which resulted in
several U5s that should be coming my way for a very reasonable price.
I'm planning on using the U2 as my main firewall system, and using
the U10s and U5s as a cluster playground.
You just have to keep an eye out for these sorts of things. You
never know what you might stumble across or where.
--
Brad Knowles, <brad at stop.mail-abuse.org>
"Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little
temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
-- Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790), reply of the Pennsylvania
Assembly to the Governor, November 11, 1755
SAGE member since 1995. See <http://www.sage.org/> for more info.
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