Generally speaking, you can get patches only by purchasing support contracts, but see the end of this answer.

The primary support offering is Oracle Premier Support for Systems. This covers both Oracle hardware and Oracle Solaris. It is also possible to purchase just Oracle Solaris support through the Oracle Premium Support for Operating Systems offering.

When you buy Oracle systems, the right to run Oracle Solaris is included, and you receive a document outlining the terms for Oracle Solaris. To get support for Oracle Solaris on non-Oracle hardware, you must purchase Oracle Solaris Premier Subscriptions for Non-Oracle x86 Systems, which includes both the right to use the license as well as support. The subscription is renewable annually.

The final way to get patches is limited to partners that develop commercial applications that run on Oracle Solaris. In this case, it is possible to get patches through the Oracle Solaris Development Initiative. See that program for participation requirements.

See the Oracle Lifetime Support Policy: Oracle and Sun System Software document, available from the Oracle Lifetime Support Policies page, for specific dates for these phases for Oracle Solaris, Oracle Solaris Cluster, Oracle Solaris Legacy Containers, and other Oracle Solaris–related products.

For more information about the distinction between Premier, Extended, and Sustaining Support as well as details about all facets of the terms for support, see the Oracle Hardware and Systems Support Policies document available from the Oracle Technical Support Policies page.

The Oracle Solaris Binary Application Guarantee Program guarantees that existing applications written to the Oracle Solaris Application Binary Interface (ABI) will run without modification on the Oracle Solaris Operating System. The Oracle Solaris Binary Application Guarantee applies to source code compatibility between platforms: applications developed on SPARC systems can be easily recompiled on x86/x64 systems and vice versa.

Here is the documentation collection for the latest Oracle Solaris 10 release, including the What's New guide.

Also see the Oracle Solaris 10 documentation collection for Oracle Solaris 10 9/10 and later releases and the documentation collection for releases of Oracle Solaris prior to Oracle Solaris 10 9/10.

The Free and Open Source software in Oracle Solaris 10 page lists the software and where to find the terms for support.

Oracle VM Server for SPARC and Oracle Solaris Containers handle virtualization at different, complementary levels. So, they can be run together to address customer requirements for consolidating applications, operating systems, and servers.

Oracle VM Server for SPARC is the server virtualization and partitioning technology that allows customers to run multiple OS instances on Oracle’s SPARC T-Series servers.

Oracle Solaris Containers technology is an OS virtualization feature in Oracle Solaris 10 and 11. A container (also known as a zone) isolates software applications and services using flexible, software-defined boundaries, which enables customers to create many private execution environments within a single instance of the Oracle Solaris OS. See the Oracle Solaris 10 Virtualization FAQ for more details.

Oracle Solaris Containers do not have hardware dependencies and, therefore, run on any system running Oracle Solaris 10. Oracle VM Server for SPARC runs on SPARC T-Series servers.

• Interface Standards: UNIX platform 03 from Open Group
• EPA Energy Star Compliance: Oracle Solaris suspend/resume and power management features (SPARC only)
• Graphics Standards: X11, PostScript, Display PostScript, OpenGL, ISO-10646, and the ICC profile format standard
• Desktop Standards: CDE (Common Desktop Environment), Motif
• Connectivity Standards: ONC, ONC+, NFS andoptional SNA, SMB, J2SE 1.5, J2EE 1.4, XML, andother standards
• Internet Standards: HTTP, FTP, Telnet, DNS, NTP, IMAP4, DHCP, SNMP, SMTP, IPv6
• Object Standards: Java IDL

For Oracle systems purchased on the open market, you may obtain a license for Oracle Solaris and integrated software by purchasing Oracle Premier Support for Systems.

Note that if you choose Oracle Premier Support for Systems and the system you purchased/sold has been off of Oracle or legacy Sun support for more than 90 days, completion of the Premier Support Qualification Service is required to receive Oracle Premier Support for Systems coverage.

If you are the original lessee, contact the lessor about obtaining a license for Oracle Solaris and integrated software before the lease ends.

Visit the Oracle Technology Network Website.

See the Get Older Oracle Solaris Releases page.

It depends on the hardware system. The newest systems tend to come pre-installed with Oracle Solaris 11. See the specifications for the individual systems.

Built on Oracle Solaris, Oracle Solaris Cluster is the most comprehensive HA and DR solution on Oracle’s Sun SPARC and x86 servers in traditional and virtualized clusters. It supports a broad spectrum of Oracle technologies, seamlessly connecting all components and delivering orchestrated high availability for business agility. For more information, go to the Oracle Solaris Cluster page.

Go to the Oracle Solaris 10 Downloads site.

Oracle Solaris 10 is supported on both SPARC and x86 architectures.

Depending on the type of installation media used, the minimum (and recommended) requirements are shown on the System Requirements page.

You can learn more about the technologies included in Oracle Solaris 10 here.

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Oracle Solaris 10 provides proven, enterprise-class security, reliability, and performance for SPARC and x86 systems. It is the best platform to run your mission-critical applications.

Obtain critical knowledge through training and highly sought-after certifications from Oracle University to be more effective, proactive, and proficient at solving problems with this strategic platform that is designed to support today’s demanding enterprise requirements—such as lowering costs, simplifying system administration, and maintaining high service levels. Oracle University delivers superior training focused on 100% student satisfaction to enhance the adoption of Oracle Solaris technologies.

One of the best ways to understand the differences is to check out the What’s New guide for Oracle Solaris 11, the table of differences between Oracle Solaris 10 and Oracle Solaris 11, and the Transitioning From Oracle Solaris 10 JumpStart to Oracle Solaris 11Automated Installer guide.

There is no direct upgrade path from Oracle Solaris 10 to Oracle Solaris 11 due to the new packaging system of Oracle Solaris 11. However, applications can easily move to Oracle Solaris 11 directly—because of the binary compatibility guarantee—or they can be moved into Oracle Solaris 10 Containers (Zones) that are fully supported on Oracle Solaris 11. For more information on Oracle Solaris 10 Zones, see “Introduction to Oracle Solaris 10 Zones” in the product documentation.

The following will also be helpful in planning an upgrade from Oracle Solaris 10 to Oracle Solaris 11:

• Podcast: Tools To Help You Move From Oracle Solaris 10 to Oracle Solaris 11

For more information on Oracle Solaris 10, please visit the Oracle Technology Network Website.