[SunRescue] RE: starter system (future purchase)

[Les]

To the best of my knowledge the only difference is use of
an on-board Frame Buffer. There may be other differences of
which I am not aware.
One of the more SUN experienced people can probably give you
a better handle on which SS20 model(s) would be capable of  SX
but I have 3 SS20s right now and all could be SX if I added a VSIMM to
use the onboard Frame Buffer. The existence of the 13W3 video
connector at the bottom slot below the processors is what I use to
determine that a given SS20 can be capable of SX.
One of mine is running with 2 VSIMMs in it and I can use it dual headed.
The 4MB VSIMM usually goes for about $50, but the 8MB one can
be as much as $150.

All SS20s, to my knowledge, are capable of SMP.
The boot prom determines what processors you can use.
One of mine has 2 of the ROSS 100mhz processors 
and another has a ROSS dual 90mhz processor card.
I had to have a boot prom - version 2.25R - to get them to
work in both boxes.
I'm afraid I have quite a bit more than $200 (or 3 or 4) stuck
into my machines though.

By the way, adding VSIMMs reduces memory slots but
resolution is better and the machine "seems" a fair bit
quicker than with a regular Frame Buffer, but I have no 
quantitative data to prove it so.
I also have an Ultra 1 and the SS20 SMP boxes make 
it look and feel SLOW!!!
Les

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Matthew Haas" <wedge at lightlink.com>
To: <rescue at sunhelp.org>
Sent: Tuesday, April 10, 2001 10:44 AM
Subject: Re: [SunRescue] RE: starter system (future purchase)


On Tue, 10 Apr 2001, Ken Hansen wrote:
>
> Up to $200 (not incl. monitor) - Look for a nice, low-end SS/20 (w/64
> Meg RAM) and an SM*1 CPU (something that can be mated for SMP, like an
> SM41, SM51, SM61, etc.).
>

My first question is: Where can one find such a beasty?

> Up to $300 (not incl. monitor) - either a nice SMP SS/20 (w/128 Meg
> RAM) or a nice SS/5-170 (w/64 Meg RAM).
>

Next question: I just want to get things straight in my mind-- all SS20s
are SMP capable, right? There isn't a lite and deluxe model, correct? (If
I get A SS20, it's just as capable as any other SS20?)

And what is the difference in a SS20 and SS20SX?

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