In early July Oracle suddenly and without warning shut down the three servers Sun contributed to the build and verify farm used to test developments in PostgreSQL, the open source database, according to itnews.com.au.

The build farm is vital to PostgreSQL, which is sometimes cast these days as a possible alternative to MySQL but it's really an alternative to Oracle's own database, which is why IBM and Red Hat have equity positions in PostgreSQL commercializer EnterpriseDB.

Other than Sun's utter conversion to open source, it used to have a commercial reason for lending support to Postgres. It used to handle the high-end widgetry turned out by Postgres-based Green Plum now gone to EMC. The servers Sun kicked in were for testing Postgres on Solaris.

The Australian blog says "The move raises questions as to whether Oracle is willing to embrace open source ethics as the new custodian of the MySQL database, acquired as part of the Sun buy."

It also says that "Oracle may have been alarmed by reports that downloads of migration tools offered to take MySQL customers to PostgreSQL have shot through the roof in the wake of the Sun acquisition."

EnterpriseDB, by the way, came up with replacement hardware.