From: Tom “spot” Callaway”
To: The Rescue List
Subject: [rescue] E10000 looking for a new home

This is an incredibly hard email to write, especially given all the trouble I went through to acquire this system, but I’m looking for a new home for my E10000.

The obvious questions:

Q: What are the specs?
A: It is a maxed out Sun Enterprise 10000, 64 CPUs (400 MHz UltraSPARC-II), 64 GB Memory. The original owner stripped out the disk, but there are several empty D130s that came with it. It also has an Ultra 5 which acts as the domain controller.

Q: Why are you getting rid of it?
A: There are a few reasons:
1. It is extremely expensive to run. It runs off 200-240 VAC, 47-63 Hz, 24 A, per cord. There are 5 cords, although, I think you can run the system with less (depending on how many system boards you spin up). Sun says “Input Power: 13,456 W”. They also say “Heat Output: 52,000 BTU/hr”, so cooling is a factor as well.
2. It is extremely difficult to move. It is currently located in downtown Chicago (in the Red Hat office), but getting it there was very painful (I literally had to strip the system down to the frame just to get it in the building). On top of that, I’m no longer in Chicago (I’m in Boston now), and it couldn’t move with me. Oh yes, did I mention that it weighs approximately 2000 lb?
Dimensions are 70 inches H x 38.25 inches W x 49.9 inches D. (basically, slightly wider and deeper than a full rack).
3. It is loud. Not “wow, that thing is loud”, but “bleeding from my ears” loud. Even when it is idle, with no domains spun up, the white noise coming off that thing is unbelievable.
4. It is slow. Not so much of a concern from a collection/rescue perspective, but aside from a bragging perspective, it isn’t terribly useful for Linux/SPARC work (the original reason for donation). I asked several entities whether they would consider picking up the bill for moving it, and none of them could justify the cost (although, some of them offered to replace it with newer equipment).
5. It is expensive to move to Boston. Red Hat agreed to let it sit in their facility in Boston (powered off), but it would cost about $8000 to move it properly (SunMoves), and about half that to do it with volunteers, which is still a lot of money that neither I nor the Fedora SPARC effort has.

Q: Why don’t you just sell it?
A: I would much rather see this go to a good home. Selling this thing is likely as much trouble as moving it.

Q: Where is it now?
A: Downtown Chicago.

Q: Does it work?
A: Yes. It worked perfectly the last time I powered it up (summer 2007), and I have no reason to believe that it would not work now. Nevertheless, YMMV. This box is definitely not under maintainence.

Are you interested in giving this system a good home? It would be a crime to put this on the curb, but unless I can find a home for it, that is where it will end up.

Please feel free to contact me directly if you have any questions or want more specific details.

~spot