Sun Microsystems and Aduva announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement pursuant to which Sun will acquire Aduva. Aduva technology allows enterprises to automate the processes associated with patch and dependency management -- providing a solution that scales from individual servers, up to large scale data centers with tens of thousands of machines in complex networks. Aduva currently runs an active dependency service for Solaris and Linux servers, easing the burden on systems administrators deploying a continuous stream of patches, updates, and changes required throughout the data center lifecycle. Aduva's multi-platform services will be available for operation by individual customers behind their own firewalls, or as an automated service from Sun's Grid. "By acquiring Aduva, Sun will be addressing the number one pain point we hear from IT administrators -- patch management -- while addressing the principle cause of service downtime and system vulnerability: out of date systems and patches," said Don Grantham, executive vice president of Sun Services. "By integrating this technology into our offerings and services, Sun can enable customers to update thousands of systems at the touch of a button." Grantham continued, "At Sun, we know how hard customers are working to reduce risk, increase compliance, and automate more manual jobs in the data center, as they rely on the network for a growing array of computing services. As the vendor most committed to delivering computing as a network service, Sun can deliver on even more compelling offerings with the addition of the Aduva technology." The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to be completed during the fourth quarter of Sun's 2006 fiscal year which begins on March 27, 2006. The terms of the deal were not disclosed as the transaction is immaterial to Sun's earnings per share.