Sun upgrades low-cost skinny server

Sun Microsystems has upgraded its Netra X1 server, the lowest-cost version of its 1.75-inch-thick rack-mountable servers. Sun increased the speed of the UltraSparc IIe processor from 400MHz to 500MHz, boosted the hard disk from 5400rpm to 7200rpm, doubled the disk capacity from 40GB to 80GB, and increased the maximum memory capacity from 1GB to 2GB, the company said.

The price for entry-level versions remains $995, Sun said. Thin servers such as the Netra X1 are often stacked up by the dozens for housing large Web sites and other tasks in which numerous relatively simple servers suffice. In the market, Sun competes chiefly with Intel-based servers from Compaq Computer, IBM, Hewlett-Packard and Dell Computer.