SPECIAL COVERAGE FROM ISC2006 - Sun Microsystems, today announced at the International Supercomputer Conference in Dresden, Germany, that it has created the Sun Partner Community for HPC program to make High Performance Computing (HPC) solutions practical and attainable for a wide array of customers. Several global partners have already joined the program and begun integrating HPC solutions around the world, including Grid Gateway and GTSI Corp. in the United States; DSI in the UK; and Gridcore in Sweden. NEC has already worked with Sun on multiple HPC projects and is in discussions to join the program as a worldwide HPC partner. The Sun Partner Community for HPC provides global partners with immediate access to a comprehensive portfolio of Sun's HPC solutions, including its Sun Fire x64 (x86, 64-bit) systems powered by AMD Opteron processors -- among the industry's highest performing, most energy efficient systems that help customers solve highly complex scientific and engineering compute-problems. Additionally, members of the Sun Partner Community for HPC will be able to leverage a comprehensive set of Sun's sales tools and training programs. By collaborating with key partners, system integrators and technology providers, Sun is creating an HPC ecosystem that provides customers with access to tightly integrated solutions and expertise that eliminate the need for customers to deploy and integrate point-product offerings on their own. For example, several partners are qualified to sell and deliver the Sun N1 Grid Engine software, enabling enterprises to significantly increase the utilization of compute resources for increased productivity in more powerful grids. A number of recent ISV ports to the Solaris 10 Operating System (OS) have also bolstered Sun's HPC stack. "The Sun Partner Community for HPC is designed to meet the unique computing needs of our HPC customers by removing the complexity and cost typically associated with the purchase, deployment and support of leading edge technologies through a tight collaboration with leading HPC partners and system integrators," said Bjorn Andersson, director of HPC and grid computing at Sun Microsystems. "Flexibility and choice are the cornerstones of our HPC solutions, and Sun recognizes that partner participation is a critical element in providing customers with the right set of tools and technologies to further innovate in the market. By collaborating with HPC partners around the world, Sun is accelerating innovation and extending customer's access to industry-leading technology." "As a global HPC solution provider I am looking forward to joining the Sun Partner Community for HPC, where I am expecting to build on our joint success with Sun at Tokyo Institute of Technology," said Makoto Tsukakoshi, managing director of NEC High Performance Computing Europe. "Sun has a compelling product and technology portfolio for HPC that perfectly complements our own offering and enables us to give more flexibility and choice to our customers." "We are excited to be part of the Sun Partner Community for HPC," said Hakon Bugge, founder and chief technology officer of Scali. "With Sun's innovative Solaris 10 OS for x86 and x64 platforms, and Sun N1 Grid Engine software, Sun is taking the right action to gain a leadership position in HPC. Our customers will benefit from the expanded flexibility of running Scali products on a choice of Sun hardware platforms, for both Solaris 10 and Linux operating systems. From a business standpoint, that's a train we need to be on." The formation of the Sun Partner Community for HPC follows today's news that Sun's industry-leading Sun Fire x64 systems using AMD Opteron processors are powering Asia's largest supercomputer named TSUBAME at the Tokyo Institute of Technology, which appears for the first time on the Top500 supercomputer list at 7th place. Additional information on Sun's leadership ranking on the Top500 list can be found at: its Web site. To learn more about Sun's HPC solutions, please visit: its web site.