UNIX for Dummies Questions & Answers

I need a computer to try Solaris. I'm learning with UNIX Academy training DVDs and after spending much time with Linux I want to try and learn on Solaris. I'll have to buy a computer for my training anyway. I found on ebay plenty of inexpensive Sun boxes. Would it be beneficial for learning to have Solaris on Sparc rather than on PC?

The only real benefit is access to the Openboot PROM (OBP) for training purposes.

fpmurphy, thanks for openboot! Wouldn't a familiarity with an actual Sun equipment be an asset? Isn't there anything is Solaris on Sparc that makes it special when compared to Solaris on PC?

Yes. Disk geometry, OBP, LOM, ALOM, etc. In other words, hardware differences and startup/booting differences.

How important these differences are? Would you recommend get Sparc-based machine for Solaris training? I guess, I can use it for few months and sell it back on ebay...

I would say go for PC version. To be more precise, go for Solaris installed in VirtualBox or VMware. IMO, for testing/learning purposes it is much better solution. If you break something, you can quickly revert to usable state (in VirtualBox using snapshots). Using virtualization you can easily simulate different hardware configurations (multiple disks which then can be used to test SVM or ZFS, multiple network cards to test different network configurations for example for zones, etc).

bartus11, thanks! Is Solaris on PC in as snappy and fast as Linux? Should I take care of anything special before buying a pc for it, or any newer i5 or i7 will do?