--- a/hotspot/src/cpu/sparc/vm/vm_version_sparc.cpp	Wed Dec 09 22:27:37 2015 +0000
+++ b/hotspot/src/cpu/sparc/vm/vm_version_sparc.cpp	Tue Nov 24 15:56:40 2015 -0800
@@ -35,7 +35,10 @@
 unsigned int VM_Version::_L2_data_cache_line_size = 0;
 
 void VM_Version::initialize() {
-  _features = determine_features();
+
+  assert(_features != VM_Version::unknown_m, "System pre-initialization is not complete.");
+  guarantee(VM_Version::has_v9(), "only SPARC v9 is supported");
+
   PrefetchCopyIntervalInBytes = prefetch_copy_interval_in_bytes();
   PrefetchScanIntervalInBytes = prefetch_scan_interval_in_bytes();
   PrefetchFieldsAhead         = prefetch_fields_ahead();
@@ -60,8 +63,6 @@
     FLAG_SET_DEFAULT(AllocatePrefetchStyle, 1);
   }
 
-  guarantee(VM_Version::has_v9(), "only SPARC v9 is supported");
-
   UseSSE = 0; // Only on x86 and x64
 
   _supports_cx8 = has_v9();