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# SPARC-HOWTO.

## Lionel, trollhunter Bouchpan-Lerust-Juéry <trollhunter@linuxfr.org>

v0.0.7 August 2004

The SPARC family of microprocessors is a very good implementation of the RISC design and SPARC based computing devices cover a very wide spectrum of applications, from mainframe class computers to radhard microprocessors used by the aerospace industry in its space segment. SPARC based computers are usually very well engineered products, thus Linux on SPARC is a winning combination both in performance and ease of use. Actually this combination is not as widspread as the Linux/x86; this HOWTO should help you step by step to make an informed decision: try it you will not regret it.

## 1. Preface.

- 1.1 Translations.

## 2. SPARC, which one ?

- 2.1 Sun SPARC
- 2.2 Super SPARC
- 2.3 Micro SPARC
- 2.4 Hyper SPARC
- 2.5 ERC32
- 2.6 LEON
- 2.7 Ultra SPARC
- 2.8 SPARC64 V
- 2.9 Deciphering the CPUs
- 2.10 The javastation.

## 3. Buying a SPARC computer.

- 3.1 Gaigning a visual familiarity with SPARC hardware
- 3.2 Sun made hardware or clones ?
- 3.3 Where to buy.
- 3.4 Checklist

## 4. SPARC based laptops

## 5. The wonderful SparcStation Voyager

## 6. Sun's Netra servers

## 7. Sun's Enterprise servers

## 8. Tatung's Workstations

## 9. Tatung's SPARC Servers

## 10. Fujitsu's supercomputers

## 11. Linux on SPARC: 2 kernels.

## 12. Choosing a distribution.

- 12.1 Aurora SPARC Linux
- 12.2 Debian GNU/Linux.
- 12.3 Gentoo
- 12.4 PLD.
- 12.5 RedHat Linux.
- 12.6 Slackware
- 12.7 SLXT
- 12.8 Linux Terminal Server Project
- 12.9 SplackLinux
- 12.10 SuSE Linux.
- 12.11 Vine Linux

## 13. Installing Linux

## 14. Working with the Openboot.

- 14.1 What is the OpenBoot?
- 14.2 Diagnostics commands.
- 14.3 Boot commands.
- 14.4 Misc commands.

## 15. Hard drive buses.

- 15.1 SCSI-SCA.
- 15.2 EIDE.
- 15.3 FC-AL

## 16. CDROM: specific settings.

## 17. SILO.

## 18. Compiling a kernel

## 19. Keyboard and mouse.

## 20. X Window.

## 21. SMP.

## 22. The sound.

## 23. Serial port.

## 24. Ressources.

- 24.1 Information sites.
- 24.2 Auction sites.
- 24.3 A Good Provider based in France

## 25. Thanks and Credits.

- 25.1 Thanks.
- 25.2 Credits.

## 26. Copyright, Disclaimer and Trademarks

- 26.1 Copyright.
- 26.2 Administrativia.

## 27. Revision History.

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