Re: Netra T5220

[Don NetBSD <netbsd-embedded%gmx.com@localhost>]

On 11/15/2018 3:46 AM, Sad Clouds wrote:
> On Wed, 14 Nov 2018 17:00:06 -0700
> Don NetBSD <netbsd-embedded%gmx.com@localhost> wrote:
>
> > I've rescued a Netra T5220 (haven't attached a console, yet).

> 2. Solaris 11.3 is pretty good and has many features not available
> in NetBSD, such as LDOMs, Zones, ZFS, good multithreading in kernel. It
> also has its native pkg, so you can install additional software, or you
> can use pkgsrc. I've not tried it yet, but I think you could run
> Solaris as a primary LDOM and then a number of Solaris/OpenBSD
> instances in guest LDOMs.

These (and the 20 inch depth) are what originally attracted me to the box.
I was hoping I could add a pair of dual channel SAS controller PCIe
cards to attach external arrays (I see *some* support for these under 11).

> 3. Not sure how Solaris is licensed these days, but if you're going to
> use it for commercial purpose, you will probably need to pay. It may
> also need latest firmware upgrades, which you cannot get without Oracle
> support contract.

This may well be the killer.  Someone appears to have flashed a custom OFW
image -- which I'll have to rid the machine of before I can do ANYTHING
with it.

I have a colleague who worked for Sun before the Oracle buyout who may still
have access to current (or even previous!) patches.  If not, I'll probably swap
the box for something more convenient.

> 4. Future versions of Solaris have a tendency of removing support for
> older hardware, so your upgrade path is rather limited. However if
> you're not using hardware in a production environment, then you may not
> need all the latest features and bug fixes.

Exactly.  OTOH, NetBSD support would have left that door open for me...  :-/