Console Subsystem Enhancements

The following console subsystem enhancement has been added to the Solaris Solaris 10 8/07 release.

Coherent Console

The coherent console feature implements a part of the kernel console subsystem to facilitate rendering console output, The coherent console uses the Solaris kernel mechanisms to render console output rather than Programmable Read-Only Memory (PROM) interfaces. This reduces the console rendering dependence on OnBoot PROM (OBP).

The coherent console uses a kernel-resident framebuffer driver to generate console output. The generated console output is more efficient than using OBP rendering. The coherent console also avoids idling CPUs during SPARC console output and enhances the user experience.

For example, the coherent console increases the SPARC console text throughput and scrolling rate and provides ANSI color.