Designed to meet the needs of enterprise-class Java^TM applications, the Java^TM 2 SDK for the Solaris^TM Operating Environment combines the power and performance of Solaris with the latest in Java^TM technology. The result is a highly reliable platform that delivers outstanding speed and scalability.

This release provides substantially increased scalability and performance compared to JDK^TM 1.1 releases, delivering anywhere from two to 10 times the performance of earlier versions. Large-scale Java applications that are multi-threaded, computationally intensive, or generate large amounts of memory receive the greatest benefit.

New Features

Java 2 SDK for the Solaris operating environment includes significant new functionality. In addition to new APIs, this release provides industry-leading, server-side performance and scalability by utilizing:

• High-performance, JIT compiler
• Improved class libraries, including the new Java 2 APIs
• Enhanced memory system
• Native threads support
• High-performing, scalable Java virtual machine

Requirements

• Solaris 2.6 or Solaris 7 Operating Environment on SPARC^TM processor-based, Intel 486 (100MHz), and Pentium platforms
• Disk space: 100 MB minimum
• Memory: 32 MB for SPARC processor and Intel platforms (64 MB recommended)

Competition

Although Java performance and scalability data for the Solaris Operating Environment will change dramatically between the release of the Solaris 8 Beta and the time the final product ships (FCS), the following benchmark data reflects the current state of the JDK. It was taken from the Volano Report located at http://www.volano.com/report.html.

VolanoMark 2.0 (higher is better)
Performance (under default load of 400 threads; w/ 1 CPU)
IBM JDK 1.1.7 OS/2	1857
Tower TowerJ 2.2.7 Linux	1817
* Sun JDK 1.2 Solaris (SPARC)	1653
IBM JDK 1.1.7 Windows	1660
Microsoft SDK 3.1 Windows	1412
Sun JDK 1.2 Windows	1344
Novell JDK 1.1.5 NetWare	1218
* Sun JDK 1.2 Solaris (Intel)	883
Blackdown JDK 1.1.7 Linux	448
JDK 1.1.7 FreeBSD	166

* Native Java Compiler

VolanoMark 2.0 (higher is better)
Scalability (under peak performance load; w/ 2 CPUs)
Number of Threads	600	1200	1800	2400	3000	3600	4200
* Sun JDK 1.2 Solaris (SPARC)	2631	2311	2130	1894	1780	1628	1488
* Sun JDK 1.2 Solaris (Intel)	1612	1513	1448	1285	1321	1248	1184
IBM JDK 1.1.7 Windows	2535	2181	1753	1499	1452	755	498
Novell JDK 1.1.5 NetWare	2486	2041	1844	1293	1505
Microsoft SDK 3.1 Windows	2368	1943	1554
Sun JDK 1.2 Windows	2340	1831	1482
IBM JDK 1.1.7 OS/2	2192	1907
JDK 1.1.7 FreeBSD	237	135
Tower TowerJ 2.2.7 Linux
Blackdown JDK 1.1.7 Linux

* Native Java Compiler

What is VolanoMark?

(Note: The following information was assembled from information taken directly from the Volano web site).

VolanoMark is a 100% Pure Java^TM server benchmark characterized by long lasting network connections and high thread counts. In this context, long lasting means the connections last several minutes or longer, rather than just a few seconds. The VolanoMark benchmark creates client connections in groups of 20 and measures how long it takes for the clients to broadcast their messages to the group. At the end of the test, it reports a score as the average number of messages transferred by the server per second. Its results have accurately predicted the real-world Java performance and scalability of the VolanoChat product line for more than two years.

In addition, the Java 2 SDK performs extremely well on the industry-standard, client-side performance benchmark SpecJVM98. It currently measures in at 26.7 on this mark.

Benefits

Geared toward delivering the best possible performance and scalability to server-side Java applications running on the Solaris Operating Environment, this Java 2 SDK software (formerly known as JDK 1.2 software) includes an enhanced Java virtual machine with a just-in-time (JIT) compiler, fast-thread synchronization, and memory system which significantly increase scalability and more than double performance.

• A highly-reliable platform that delivers outstanding speed and scalability that meets the needs of enterprise-class Java applications.

• This release provides substantially increased scalability and performance compared to the JDK 1.1.x software releases, delivering anywhere from two to 10 times the performance of earlier versions.

• Large-scale Java applications that are multithreaded, computationally intensive, and/or generate large amounts of memory will receive the greatest benefit.

• Mission-critical support for the Java 2 SDK is included in the standard Solaris support contract.

Enhanced Java Virtual Machine

The Java virtual machine for the Solaris Operating Environment is designed to meet the needs of Java technology-based enterprise applications. As the cornerstone of the Java platform, the Java virtual machine provides a fast, efficient runtime system that can scale to support the uncertain loads and usage of the network. Tuned and tested for the Solaris Operating Environment platform, it delivers reliable delivery,high performance, and fast response times--even under peak performance loads.

Superior Performance

Breaking new ground in virtual machine design, the Java virtual machine for the Solaris Operating Environment provides significantly higher performance than other platforms. This is because Java virtual machine improves performance by using ultra-fast thread synchronization of thread-safe Java applications. It also employs an entirely new memory management system that significantly reduces system crashes when executing large Java applications. These enhancements, combined with an optimized JIT compiler, enable fast, reliable, and secure application delivery.

Increased Scalability and Reliability

As an industry leader in scalability, the Java virtual machine for the Solaris Operating Environment takes advantage of the software's symmetric multiprocessing capabilities. That means applications designed today in the Java language can easily adapt to meet the growing demands of the enterprise while making the most efficient use of existing system resources.