Setting up a static IP address on a SPARCstation 5 running Solaris 8 involves several steps. Here's how you can do it:

1. Become the Superuser Before you make changes to the network configuration, you'll need to have superuser privileges. You can switch to the superuser by typing su and entering the root password.

2. Identify the Network Interface Determine the name of the network interface you want to configure. On Solaris, this is typically something like le0 or hme0. You can use the ifconfig -a command to list all interfaces.

3. Set the IP Address Use the ifconfig command to set the static IP address. Replace hme0 with your actual interface name and 192.168.1.100 with the desired IP address.

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   ifconfig hme0 plumb
   
   ifconfig hme0 192.168.1.100 netmask 255.255.255.0 up
   

   The plumb command initializes the interface, and up activates it with the new settings.

4. Set the Default Gateway To set the default gateway, add the route to the system:

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   route add default 192.168.1.1
   

   Replace 192.168.1.1 with the IP address of your gateway.

5. Edit the /etc/hosts File Add the static IP address and the corresponding hostname to the /etc/hosts file.

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   192.168.1.100 myhostname.mydomain myhostname
   

6. Edit the /etc/netmasks File If your network uses non-standard netmasks, you may need to add or edit the netmask for your network in the /etc/netmasks file.

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   192.168.1.0 255.255.255.0
   

7. Edit the /etc/defaultrouter File Add the IP address of your default gateway to the /etc/defaultrouter file. This ensures the routing table is properly populated at boot time.

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   192.168.1.1
   

8. Make the Changes Persistent Across Reboots For Solaris 8, you may need to create or edit the hostname file corresponding to your network interface in the /etc directory. This file should be named /etc/hostname.<interface>, for example, /etc/hostname.hme0, with the file containing just the hostname.

9. Restart Network Services You can either restart the network services or simply reboot the system to ensure all settings take effect.

10. Test the Configuration After the system comes back up, test your configuration with ping, netstat, and ifconfig commands to make sure the network is configured correctly.

Be very cautious when performing these actions, as incorrect settings can result in loss of network connectivity. It's also worth noting that Solaris 8 is a very old system, so some commands or file locations might be slightly different. Always check the system documentation or consult with a Solaris 8 expert if you're unsure about the steps.