Instructions to Test Drive an Alpha
for the Java™
Platform
Before you get started on your Test Drive, you need to have completed
and submitted the Test Drive registration form at http://www.testdrive.hp.com/accounts/.
You should then have received e-mail from the Test Drive team giving
you a username and a password
to use for logging in to the Test Drive systems.
If you are all set to go, here are instructions for your Test Drive.
What SDK versions are installed
on the Test Drive systems?
The SDK versions installed on most of the hp Alpha systems running
Tru64 UNIX includes: SDK v 1.3.1-5.
The Fast VM is
the hp next-generation, Just-In-Time (JIT) compiler designed to
increase Java application performance on hp Alpha Systems. Our Fast
VM is 4 to 7 times faster than the Classic.
How do I use SDK v 1.3.1-5
Prepend /usr/opt/java131/bin to your PATH environment variable.
For example, using csh:
% setenv PATH /usr/opt/java131/bin:$PATH
Then:
% java class-file # Fast VM is now the default
% java -classic class-file # Classic VM
How do I determine what version of the Java environment
I'm using?
% java -version
How do I determine what version of
the Fast VM I'm using?
% java -version #when using 1.3.1
Do I need to worry about the size of
the Java heap when using the Fast VM?
You may. The Fast VM chooses a heap size based on your quotas and
the physical memory on the system, but no default is ideal for every
application. If you do not find the Fast VM to be significantly
faster than the classic VM, try specifying an explicit heap size.
It may also be beneficial to use the multithreaded compacting garbage
collector, depending on the heap usage characteristics of your program.
Specify -Xgc:compacting to give this collector a test drive.
How reliable are the performance numbers that
I measure?
Please keep in mind that many of the systems at the Test Drive
site are not the latest hp Alpha systems that are available. In
addition, the Test Drive site allows multiple users to access each
system simultaneously in an open environment. The load on each system
will vary greatly depending upon the number of users logged in and
the processes they are running. Use the Test Drive systems as a
way to try out the 64-bit Alpha architecture, but not as a clinical
means of evaluating the performance of your Java application or
the hardware.
If you need performance proof of how fast your application runs
on the Fast VM on state-of-the-art, record-breaking 64-bit Alpha
systems, join the developer
& solution partner program and take a secure test drive
behind the test drive site firewall. Or visit one of hp's porting
centers in Marlboro, Massachusetts; Cupertino, California; and Reading,
England.
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