SANTA CLARA, CA -- May 13, 2002 -- Sun Microsystems, Inc. is making the delivery of network applications simpler and more affordable than ever with the introduction of the Sun Cobalt RaQ(tm) 550 server appliance.

Starting at only $1699, Sun's highest performing server appliance is pre-configured with the hardware and software companies need to deploy e-mail, Web hosting and other Internet applications in minutes -- without prior server experience. The new appliance expands Sun's network edge offerings and brings reliable turnkey services to small and medium enterprises.

Sun's 1U rack-mountable server appliance offers customers a total cost of ownership well below conventional servers. The RaQ 550 is extremely easy to deploy, reduces power consumption and virtually eliminates administration and management costs. Sun has integrated the hardware, Linux operating system, applications, database, key aspects of the Sun(tm) ONE platform and point-and-click user interface to make deploying network applications as simple and reliable as plugging in a household appliance.

"Customers want a no-hassle solution for delivering content and network applications," said Vivek Mehra, vice president and general manager of Sun Cobalt. "The RaQ 550 is the perfect server appliance for network infrastructure applications because it's easy to implement, highly affordable and simple to manage. The RaQ 550 is built to help companies reduce administration costs and get a fast return on investment."

The RaQ 550 is ideal for small to medium enterprises and companies in markets, such as retail and education, seeking to bring their Web hosting  infrastructure in-house. The new server appliance also offers improved performance to the thousands of service providers currently using Sun Cobalt appliances as a platform for shared, dedicated and co-location Web hosting.

Developers can use the RaQ 550 to create appliance solutions by adding customer specific applications such as firewall software, CRM or eCommerce software. The Linux developer community and members of Sun's 8,500-plus Cobalt Developer Network will benefit from the improved modular software architecture and a full suite of development tools for customizing and deploying applications in record time.

"Sun Cobalt server appliances extend the value proposition in the server appliance market by integrating the tools and applications into a low-cost, reliable appliance platform," said John Humphreys, server analyst, IDC. "By introducing the RaQ 550, Sun Cobalt continues to innovate and create momentum in the server appliance space as they focus on delivering services to the edge of the network."

The Strongbolt server appliance comes pre-configured with high-value software including the latest versions of the Apache Web server, ProFTPd FTP server, Sendmail Email services, Bind DNS server, MySQL, PHP, Perl, Python, SSHv2 server, 128-bit SSL, Telnet server, SNMP agent, and bandwidth Management service.