From: mjm@sun.com (Michael Marchi - Santa Clara Systems Eng)
Newsgroups: misc.forsale.computers.workstation
Subject: Solaris 2.1
Date: 16 Dec 1992 21:20:28 GMT
Organization: Sun Microsystems, Inc.
Distribution: na
Reply-To: mjm@sun.com
NNTP-Posting-Host: knight.west.sun.com

Since so many people have had questions I've included the Solaris 2.1 announcement
below which includes supported platforms, options, performance expectations,
features, etc...

Because this does not include the features already in Solaris 2.0 (previous release),
I've included that also at bottom.

Hope this helps!

	MJM


PRODUCT HIGHLIGHTS
------------------

	*****************************************************************
	*								*
	*	Available on December 7 for ALL SPARC platforms!	*
	*								*
	*	The new SPARCclassic(TM) and SPARCstation(TM) LX(TM) 	*
	*	and ALL	currently available SuperSPARC(TM)		*
 	*	multiprocessor configurations will only run the		*
	*	Solaris 2.1 operating environment			*
	*								*
	*	Provides symmetric multiprocessing support on 		*
	*	SPARCserver 600MP Series (SPARC(R) and SuperSPARC	*
	*	processors) and	SPARCstation 10 and SPARCserver 10 	*
	*	(Model 41) multiprocessor configurations		*
	*								*
	*	New JumpStart(TM) feature enables customized 		*
	*	installation of users' operating environments and 	*
	*	application software; this feature will be preinstalled	* 
	*	on the internal disks of:				*
	*								*
	*		- SPARCclassic systems				*
	*		- SPARCstation LX systems			*
	*		- SPARCstation 10 and SPARCserver 10 		*
	*		  (uniprocessor and multiprocessor 		*
	*		  configurations)				*
	*								*
	*	Platforms with JumpStart as the default (SPARCclassic,	*
	*	SPARCstation LX, SPARCsystem 10 Models 30 and 41) MUST	*
	*	have access to a Solaris 2.1 CD-ROM (ordered 		*
	*	separately) to perform automatic installation.		*
	*								*
	*	SPARCstation ELC(TM), SPARCstation IPC(TM), 		*
	*	SPARCstation IPX(TM), and SPARCstation 2 ordering 	*
	*	procedures are UNCHANGED - they will continue to be	*
	*	preinstalled with Solaris 1.1 SMCC Version A.		*
	*								*
	*	Administration Tool provides an easy to use graphical	*
	*	interface that helps administrators set-up and		*
	*	administer printers, user accounts, hosts and NIS+	*
	*	databases						*
	*								*
	*	New localized versions of Solaris 2.1 will be available	*
	*	in January and February of 1993 (watch for the SUNINTRO	*
	*	email for localized Solaris versions in January)	*
	*								*
	*****************************************************************



ANNOUNCEMENT BRIEF
------------------

Introduction
------------
Solaris 2.1 is the second, and most important release in Sun's transition
to SVR4.  It is the first SVR4 release to support all SPARC platforms and
the first to be the default operating environment on Sun's high volume
desktop platforms.  The new SPARCclassic and SPARCstation LX systems and ALL
SuperSPARC multiprocessor configurations will, in fact,  ONLY run Solaris
2.1.  Sun has finally turned the corner on the migration to SVR4 and
immediately has the highest volume shipments of SVR4 in the industry!

Solaris 2.1 is now the hub of Sun's distributed computing strategy.
It contains important new functionality and significant quality and
performance enhancements over Solaris 2.0, making it the most robust
and complete SVR4 based operating environment in the industry!  This
fully production-ready environment fulfills the specific needs of all
end users, developers and system administrators.

Hardware Support
----------------
Specifically, Solaris 2.1 supports:


	Sun-4c architecture		SPARCstations 1, 1+, 2, IPC
					 IPX, SLC and ELC

	Sun-4m architecture		SPARCclassic, SPARCstation
					 LX, SPARCstation 10, SPARCstation
					 600MP Series

	Sun-4(TM) architecture		Sun-4/100s, -4/200s, -4/300s
					 and -4/400s

	Sun4e architecture		SPARCengine(TM) board


What's New in Solaris
---------------------
Sun is "cutting over" to Solaris 2.1 as the default operating
environment.  Preinstalled systems will feature JumpStart software, a new
SunSoft value-added enhancement.  JumpStart software enables administrators to
define and automatically install a customized environment (both system
software and application software) perfectly suited to each user's
predetermined profile.  Future releases of Solaris can be installed
automatically with very little involvement from the system administrator.
The reduced time, expertise and effort required to install or upgrade
software environments benefits users and system administrators.

Also new in Solaris 2.1 are several Administration Tool components.
The Administration Tool is a GUI-based tool that automates many tasks
that previously took a great deal of time and effort of system
administrators.  The tool has four components:  Printer Manager helps
setup and administer printers on the network; User Account manager
helps create a logon and a home directory (complete with NIS+
credentials and statup files); Host Manager installs and net configures
diskless and dataless clients and net configures standalone clients,
allowing the administrator to bypass the installation screens; Database
Manager is an interface to the NIS+ databases, allowing the
administrator to manage all entries in the databases.

Solaris 2.1 adds the XGL(TM) 3.0 Graphics Library runtime environment as 
the foundation library for all graphics applications.  Solaris 2.1 also
supports the Open Graphics initiative, a set of open, standard graphics
interfaces, allowing third party graphics drivers to be easily
integrated into customers' environments.

Solaris 2.1 marks the first release from Sun that provides symmetric
multiprocessing (SMP) support (all current SPARCserver 600MP Series
and SPARCstation 10 multiprocessor configurations).  SMP increases
system throughput and allows customers to take full advantage of their
hardware.  ALL current and future SuperSPARC multiprocessor configurations
REQUIRE Solaris 2.1 or a later release.  Full support for the SPARCcenter(TM)
2000 Series is contained in a future release of Solaris 2.x.

Localized versions of Solaris 2.1 will also be available (see Availability
section below for dates), providing a user environment that is completely
internationalized and localized in eight different languages:  German,
French, Swedish, Italian, Taiwan Chinese, PRC Chinese, Japanese and Korean.
Internationalization facilities in Solaris 2.1 also facilitate the 
internationalization and localization of customers' existing and new 
applications.

NOTE: The features listed above are all new to Solaris, above and beyond
the features already in Solaris 2.0.  For a list of those features, 
please refer to the Solaris 2.0 SunIntro email of July 7, 1992.

Performance
-----------
Solaris 2.1 exhibits significant performance improvements over Solaris
2.0!  In uniprocessor configurations, Solaris 2.1 provides superior CPU
performance and equivalent interactive performance to Solaris 1.x,
positioning Solaris 2.1 as the ideal desktop environment for the vast
majority of applications.

In multiprocessor configurations, Solaris 2.1 provides outstanding
performance and scaling for CPU-intensive applications and approximately
equivalent performance in other areas (averaging performance over the suite
of benchmarks - CPU, I/O, database, timesharing, networking, interactive).  
Therefore, Solaris 2.1 is very well positioned for compute-intensive 
applications that can harness the power of Sun's multiprocessor hardware.

In subsequent releases of Solaris 2.x, Sun will incorporate performance
enhancements that will provide superior performance throughout the 
operating environment and not just at the CPU and interactive levels.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------
FEATURES					BENEFITS
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
SVR4 Application Binary Interface	Provides source compatibility and
					portability across architectures
					and binary compatibility within
					an architecture

DDI/DKI					Device Driver Interface (DDI)
					provides binary and source compatibilty
					of drivers in successive Solaris
					releases; Device Kernel Interface
					(DKI) provides source compatibility
					among different SVR4 implementations

JumpStart utility - NEW!		Allows for fully automated, customized
					installation of system and application
					software

Administration Tool - NEW tools!	GUI-based tools for setup and
					easy administration of printers,
					user accounts, hosts and NIS+
					databases

Multithreaded Kernel and Symmetric	Increases system throughput and
Multiprocessing (SMP)			builds foundation for future multi-
					threaded applications

ToolTalk(TM) software			Provides networked interapplication
					messaging

Fixed Priority Scheduler		Enables running realtime applications
					with guaranteed response time

Internationalization Facilities		Enables porting and development of
					existing and new applications that
					are fully internationalized and
					localized

Localized Versions - NEW!		End user environment is completely
					localized in German, French, Swedish,
					Italian, Chinese (Taiwan and PRC),
					Japanese and Korean


HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE CONSIDERATIONS
------------------------------------

Configuration requirements:
--------------------------
	Memory		16 MB minimum
	Disk		200 MB

	NOTE: The requirements are for the full end user cluster
	including the OpenWindows(TM) environment.
The following options have been tested and are supported with Solaris 2.1.


	SCSI Disk:	104MB		141MB		207MB
			327MB embedded	327MB non-emb.	424MB
			669MB		1.3GB		LC 207MB
			1.05GB 3.5"	2.1GB

	IPI Disk:	911MB, 6MBps	1.3GB		1.0GB, 3MBps

	SMD Disk:	280MB		575MB		688MB
			892MB

	CD Drives:	CD-ROM drive

	Tape:		1/4" 60 MB SCSI
			1/4" 150 MB SCSI
			1/2" Front Load Tape (800/1600/6250 bpi)
			2.3 GB 8mm SCSI Tape
			5.0 GB 8mm SCSI Tape

	Floppy:		3-1/2" Floppy Drive
			Tri-density Floppy Drive

	Controllers:	VME-SCSI Host Adapter
			VME to Multibus
			XY450/451 SMD
			XY7053 SMD-4
			ISP-80
			SBus-SCSI Host Adapter (Sport8)

	SBus Graphics:	cg6 (GX and GXplus)
			bw2 (mono)
			cg3 8-bit color
			cg8 24-bit color

	VME Graphics:	cg2 8-bit color
			cg3 8-bit color
			cg5 8-bit double-buffered
			bw2 (mono)

	P4 Graphics:	bw2 (mono)
			cg4 8-bit color
			cg6 (GX)
			cg8 24-bit color

	tty:		SunDials(TM) utility
			SunButtons(TM) utility

	Networking/Communications:
			FDDI/S
			PrestoServe(TM) (SBus) NFS(R) Accelerator
			SBE/S (SBus Ethernet Controller)
			Second Ethernet Controller (VME)
			SunNet(TM) Ethernet Controller (VME)
			SPC/S (SBus Serial Parallel Controller)
			8-bits Fast SBus-SCSI Host Adapter
			Fast Differential SCSI Host Adapter

	Keyboards:	Type 3 (all native language versions)
			Type 4 (all native language versions)
			Type 5 (all native language versions)


Solaris 2.0
-----------

SOLARIS 2.0: THE KILLER ENVIRONMENT
	Designed to address the needs of end users, software developers
	and system administrators, Solaris 2.0 is comprised of three
components: the foundation technology the developer environment and the
user environment.


SOLARIS FOUNDATION: Turbo-Charged UNIX With Heterogeneous Connectivity
* SunOS 5.0
	SunOS 5.0, the foundation of Solaris 2.0, includes System V
Release 4 (SVR4), the industry-standard UNIX operating system
jointly developed by SunSoft and UNIX System Laboratories, Inc. Solaris
is the culmination of the leading versions of UNIX -- Xenix, BSD, SunOS
and System V-- that unites more than 80 percent of the over 10 million
UNIX users. Solaris extends the base SVR4 kernel to feature numerous
new technologies, designed to increase workgroup productivity. These
include:

* Built-In Networking
	With an installed base of more than 3 million nodes, Solaris
ONC is the industry standard for enterprise-wide multivendor
networks. More than 300 companies have licensed ONC, including IBM,
Apple, DEC, HP and Novell. ONC implementations provide interoperability
across all major types of computers from PCs to mainframes and across
all major operating systems including MS-DOS, MacOS, UNIX, MVS and
VMS.
	Solaris 2.0 includes a suite of enhancements for ONC. Called
ONC+, these services enable system administrators, end users
and developers to more effectively access, share and control
information across heterogeneous networks.Enhancements include:

* Powerful Naming Service
	NIS+ is a flexible and powerful naming service particularly
suited for streamlined system and network administration that
fully supports the global enterprise. It allows system administrators
to easily access and manage information across multiple heterogeneous
networks, increasing user productivityand lowering the cost of everyday
system administration.  

* Industry-Standard File Sharing
	Solaris 2.0 takes the industry-standard NFS file system and
ONC-based distributed computing mechanisms to the next level of
computing with the incorporation of a number of technologies. It
features a fully multithreaded NFS file system and support for new
authentication and encryption technologies.

* Network-Independent Protocols
	Solaris 2.0 features the transport-independent remote
procedure, called (TI-RPC), which enables developers to create
applications that run unmodified across different networking
environments.

* Solaris Federated Services
	The Solaris Federated Services allows third-party network
services to plug into Solaris. These include Novell's NetWare,
the Open Software Foundations's Distributed Computing Environment (DCE)
and the International Standards Organization's Open Systems
Interconnect (OSI). A technology demonstration of the naming, filing
and security features of the federated services is offered in the
Solaris 2.0 solution.

* Multithreading (MT)
	This feature greatly speeds up I/O processing and concurrency,
increasing the performance of mission-critical applications, such as
commercial databases and simulation software packages. It serves as the
base for system manufacturers to take advantage of symmetric
multiprocessing. In addition, multithreading serves as an underpinning
for SunSoft's future distributed object technologies.

* Symmetric Multiprocessing (SMP)
	Symmetric Multiprocessing significantly boosts overall system
performance. The multithreaded kernel in Solaris 2.0 allows hardware
manufacturers to fine tune SMP support for their specific hardware
implementations.

* Real-Time Support
	Real-time capabilities make Solaris ideal for applications that
require dependable and split-second response such as on-line
transaction processing, telecommunications switching and military
command and control. In addition, real-time provides an underpinning
for SunSoft's multimedia desktop features.

* Security
	Solaris 2.0 offers Kerberos and secure ONC RPC support for
network authentication. It also supports SunSoft's ARM and ASET
products for increased network security.

* Commercial Enhancements
	Solaris features a suite of commercial enhancements, critical
for managing large heterogenous networks in the commercial
market. These products include disk mirroring, in which the system
makes a "mirror" copy of a user's file on another disk and
automatically uses it in case of a system failure; disk striping that
increases application performance by spreading the I/O load across
several disks; and disk concatenation that enables system
administrators to easily move large files around the network without
interrupting users; and a terabyte file system for rapid recovery from
system folders.

* Internationalization
	Solaris 2.0 offers international support, enabling software
developers to localize their applications in different
languages and giving users a familiar desktop environment. Solaris
SunOS 5.0 provides 8-bit clean characters,international keyboards and
local language formatting and messaging. It supports localization of
Asian languages, including Japanese, Korean and two Chinese languages,
and a host of European languages such as French, German, Dutch and
Swedish.

* Standards
	Solaris complies with all major industry standards and
specifications including IEEE POSIX 1003.1, X/OPEN Portability
Guide (XPG) 3, ISO 9660, AT&T System V Interface Definition (SVID) 3
and the SPARC Compliance Definition (SCD) 2.0. Support of SCD 2.0 means
that software developers are able to create shrink-wrapped applications
that will run on all SPARC-based UNIX systems without modification.


SOLARIS DEVELOPER ENVIRONMENT: Tomorrow's Applications Today 
*OpenWindows Version 3
	Solaris 2.0 also offers a new developer environment, called
	OpenWindows Version 3 (OWV3). It features technologies and
products to accelerate user interface development and create
distributed applications that are easier to use and adapted for the
international market. These include:

* ToolTalk
	ToolTalk is SunSoft's popular object-oriented software that
enables multiple applications to share data across networks
regardless of hardware platform. Since its introduction last year,
ToolTalk has become the de-facto standard for network-based
interoperability between software applications.  ToolTalk has been
endorsed by more than 50 vendors including Lotus Development Corp.,
Cadence Design Systems, Frame Technology, Interleaf Corp., Centerline
Software and Clarity. In addition, Silicon Graphics Inc. will bundle
ToolTalk with its IRIS 4D systems by the end of 1992.

SOLARIS 2.0 USER ENVIRONMENT: So Easy, It Can't Be UNIX * DeskSet
Version 3
	The Solaris 2.0 user experience is defined by DeskSet Version
3, a full range of 15 productivity applications and utilities
based on the OPEN LOOK graphical user interface. The Solaris 2.0
Deskset also allows users in international countries to tailor their
desktops with date and time formats and local language messages. These
international applications include:

* Multimedia Mail
	The application offers users the ability to attach text,
graphics, sound and video to mail messages and send them across
networks.

* Audio Tool
	The new product enables users to record and play back audio, as
well as make, edit and listen to voice messages sent through
Multimedia Mail.

*Workgroup Calendar Manager
	 This features allows users to update and schedule their own
appointments on-line as well as access colleague's calendars across the
world to schedule times with them.

* Magnify Help 
	The application provides users with immediate help on the screen. 
Users need only click on a specific icon to get a brief help message. Users 
can also access the help handbooks that provide on-line detailed help on the 
use of specific icon or application. 



PROJECT DOE (DISTRIBUTED OBJECTS EVERYWHERE)
	Solaris provides the path toward Project DOE, SunSoft's vision
for a new computing paradigm where modular applications are
created out of distributed objects that can interpreted across multiple
platforms. ToolTalk is the first component of Project DOE. SunSoft was
also instrumental in defining the OMG standard for distributed objects,
which has been endorsed by 200 major computer vendors and consortia in
the United States and Europe. SunSoft is investing significant research
and development efforts on Project DOE. The company will begin
unveiling additional components of Project DOE in early 1993.


Newsgroups: misc.forsale.computers.workstation,comp.sys.next.marketplace,ne.forsale