Sun Hardware Reference: Overview

THE SUN HARDWARE REFERENCE

compiled by James W. Birdsall (jwbirdsa@picarefy.com)
Version: 1.4/1.6 - April 1995

Overview

This primary focus of this document is to cover Sun-badged hardware in detail sufficient to be useful to buyers and collectors of used Sun hardware, much of which comes without documentation. Details on hardware commonly used with Suns, especially hardware specifically designed for Suns, are also included where available. The focus is generally on older equipment, since information on newer equipment is more readily available, from Sun itself if nowhere else. In particular, no effort is made to keep up with Sun's introduction of new SPARC models.

Note that there is no warranty of any kind on the information in this document. It has been assembled from a variety of sources of varying reliability. Efforts have been made to exclude information known to be incorrect, and to include only information deemed reasonably reliable, but there is no guarantee on any of it, especially since official Sun documents occasionally contradict each other.

THIS DOCUMENT IS A WORK IN PROGRESS. I still have a fair amount of information which I have not had time to integrate yet. In addition, if you have documentation for systems or boards not listed here, speak up! I would really like to get ahold of a Sun Field Engineer's Handbook, but I can't afford $500 for a new one and nobody seems to want to part with an old one. Even the opportunity to borrow one would be appreciated.

This document is available via anonymous FTP from ftp.netcom.com: /pub/ru/rubicon/sun.hdwr.ref. The file reference.zip contains all the parts; individual parts are available in the reference.parts directory.

This document is organized into the following sections:

                             *** PART I ***
OVERVIEW
CPU/CHASSIS
 Sun-1  Sun-2  Sun-3  Sun 386i  Sun-4/SPARC
        General descriptions of the models, including
        processor/fpu/speed, bus, chassis type, OS support, etc.
 Processor Data
        Info on SuperSPARC, microSPARC, etc.

                            *** PART II ***

FAQ
 ROM Monitors
        How to use the ROM monitor built into every Sun (boot
        instructions and other tips).
 Using a Terminal as Console
        Notes on using a serial terminal instead of a Sun framebuffer
        and keyboard.
 Memory Display on Startup
        How much memory a system has.
 Miscellaneous Questions and Answers
 Facts in Search of a Home
 Miscellaneous Pinouts
 SIMM Compatbility Chart

                            *** PART III ***

BOARDS
 CPU, memory, video, SCSI
        Descriptions of boards by type and part number, including
        pinouts, jumpers, DIP switch settings, and LEDs.

                            *** PART IV ***

BOARDS (cont'd)
 non-SCSI disk controllers, tape controllers, Ethernet,
 serial/parallel/other commo, floating-point/system accelerator,
 backplanes, other, crossreference by bus
        Descriptions of boards by type and part number, including
        pinouts, jumpers, DIP switch settings, and LEDs.
DISKS
 SMD, MFM, ESDI, SCSI
        Descriptions of models commonly used, including jumpers and
        switch settings.
KEYBOARDS
 Types 1-5c
        Descriptions of types of keyboards, what CPUs they work with,
        and any configuration information.
 Alternatives
        Ergonomic keyboards.
MICE
 Sun-1, Sun-2, Sun-3, Sun-4
        Descriptions of types of mice, what CPUs they work with, and any
        configuration information.
 Alternatives
        Trackballs, etc.
MONITORS
 TTL mono, ECL/TTL mono, color
        Descriptions of types of monitors, what video boards they work
        with, and any configuration information.
FLOPPY DRIVES
        Descriptions of models commonly used, including jumpers and
        switch settings.
TAPE DRIVES
 9-track, QIC-11, QIC-24
        Descriptions of models commonly used, including jumpers and
        switch settings.

                             *** PART V ***

APPENDICES
 Cardcage configuration tables
        What cards go in which slots in which machines.
 Part number index
        Index of all known part numbers, with references to larger
        descriptions, if any, in the main body
 Repairs and Modifications
        Repair and modification information as contributed by various
        net.people.
 Announcement Dates/List Prices
        Announcement dates and list prices for various configurations.
 Author's Notes
        Miscellanea.
 Bibliography/Acknowledgments
        Contributors, and documents used in compiling this reference.