Sun Ray Appliance Technology Summary

What is Sun Ray?

Sun Ray Appliances are stateless, zero administration, desktop clients that process only keyboard input and screen output, leaving all of the application processing and storage to the server.

The Sun Ray appliance contains no fan, thereby reducing the power draw and completely eliminating the omnipresent noise associated with a fan that is always on with a PC, even when the PC is in a "sleep state". The Sun Ray appliance also contains no disk drives, which are merely superfluous hardware for many institutional applications. The Sun Ray 1 appliance is a very simple machine, using a moderate-performance SPARC CPU and little RAM (about 2 MB). Without unnecessary components and peripherals the Sun Ray consumes less material to manufacture thereby avoiding energy costs and other environmental burdens associated with extracting, processing, and transporting raw materials (even recycled materials) and their ultimate disposal.

Another way Sun Ray 1 appliances are different from PCs lies in how they retain (or lose) their value over time. Today, after about one year of service, the most valuable part of a PC is the monitor. With Sun Ray technology, each appliance unit will be worth the same in 2006 as it was in 2001. With no moving parts and nothing to upgrade, it will also function as well in five years as it does today, thereby avoiding the churning and constant upgrading of traditional desktop PC's, keeping its material out of landfills and the waste recycler.

Reduction in energy consumption resulting from the no/low maintenance model of Sun Ray appliances can also be a factor. A case study at the Electronic Information Network (EIN), a collaborative project by the Carnegie Library in Pittsburgh and other libraries in Pennsylvania is illustrative. EIN deployed 200 Sun Ray 1 enterprise appliances. Before deploying the Sun Ray appliances EIN struggled with PC desktop failures, especially at remote sites. According to EIN's Chief Technology Officer "EIN had at least 2% of its desktops in repair every week. And for a thousand plus desktops, that's just an enormous workload." For each failure, a member of the technical staff had to drive out to the site to pick up the PC, return to a central lab to perform repairs or reload software and then deliver the PC back to the site. Software upgrades presented similar challenges, requiring someone to physically visit each site when new features or functions were added. These kinds of personal automobile trips can be greatly reduced, if not eliminated entirely, with Sun Ray appliances.

Sun's innovative Sun Ray technology enables users to instantly access their own personal desktop and any work in progress from any appliance in the workgroup. Smart cards, similar in size and appearance to a credit card, provide secure access to the system and enable easy mobility - users can withdraw their smart card to stop mid-sentence in an application, then continue where they left off by re-inserting their smart card into any appliance in the workgroup. This functionality enables an employer to exploit the opportunities of "office hoteling" or a flexible office environment. Since a worker's files and tools are not contained at a single, dedicated desktop/office, the employer can allow highly mobile employees (e.g. sales personnel who are often on sales calls) to share office resources, thereby reducing the demand for and costs associated with operating additional office space. Ratios of employees to offices can be increased from the traditional 1:1 to a 1.2:1 or multiples of 1:1. Less office space means reductions in HVAC and lighting needs.

Power Profile:

AC Power 100-240 VAC autoranging power supply, 50-60 Hz, 0.5A

Power Consumption

Sun Ray 1: 30w AC maximum, less than 20W typical. Energy Star compliant

Sun Ray 150: 45 W AC maximum, 30W AC typical, 15W AC maximum in powerSaver mode. Energy Star compliant.

Servers: Of course the Sun Ray appliance does not work in a vacuum, a server is still required to allow the Sun Ray to operate. Sun Ray enterprise servers provide the computational resources for the Sun Ray desktop appliances. However, today virtually all commercial, industrial, educational and financial applications are already utilizing servers. The efficiency of the Sun Ray architecture and operating model is that servers need not be dedicated to serving only the Sun Ray appliances but can be used for other purposes. For example, a server running Sun Ray enterprise server software can also provide database services or act as a Web server. This is particularly useful at smaller sites, eliminating the need to purchase and operate a second server.

Energy Efficiency Benefits Summary:

Energy is saved at the desktop because the desktop appliance draws less power than conventional PC's. Energy is saved in its manufacture and ultimately in its disposal because fewer materials and components are contained in the appliance and it has a longer useful life than traditional desktop computers. The "hot desking" feature of the appliance creates the opportunity for reduced facilities operating costs as the employer is able reduce the ratio of employees to offices/desktops from 1:1 to 1+:1

More Info: Sun Microsystems' web site offers in-depth articles on the Sun Ray family of appliances. Go to the Web site at: http://wwws.sun.com/sunray/whitepapers.html