ALANTEC licenses ANVL from Midnight Networks Inc.

WALTHAM, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 12, 1994--ALANTEC Corp., a leader in the intelligent LAN switching market, today announced that it has licensed the Automated Network Validation Library (ANVL) from Midnight Networks to assist in the testing process of its PowerHub family of intelligent switching hubs.

ANVL is an automated test system for network protocol implementations that allows developers and QA engineers to determine if a protocol conforms to specification.

ANVL is composed of test suites, each of which provide coverage for a specific network protocol such as IPX. An automated test system that accompanies the suites provides flexible test execution. ANVL benefits networking development and QA efforts by eliminating the need for large amounts of test equipment, reducing the amount of time needed for product validation, and providing the negative and stress testing necessary for verifying product robustness.

"The ANVL test system will play an important role in our development and manufacturing cycles," said David Newman, ALANTEC's vice president of engineering. "ANVL will help us meet our commitment to produce reliable, high-quality products by reducing our testing time, automating the testing process for better resource utilization and improving overall product quality."

"Since ALANTEC is a leader in the intelligent switching hub business, we find their confidence in ANVL particularly important," observes Peter H. Schmidt, president of Midnight Networks. "We look forward to a continuing relationship which will enrich both parties."

ANVL currently operates on Sun 3 and Sun 4 workstations using SunOS 4.1 and DECstation 3100s with Ultrix. An ANVL test system can be configured so that a single workstation can simulate a real-time network environment with many nodes and routers. ANVL also generates both correctly and incorrectly formed packets, giving ALANTEC's development team the ability to use it for both functional and error checking testing.

As part of the ANVL package, Midnight Networks provides source code licenses, code development (protocols or tests), test plan development, and training. ANVL's existing test suites include Internetwork Packet Exchange (IPX), Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP), TCP/IP Routing Information Protocol (RIP) versions 1 and 2, AppleTalk Router, AppleTalk Remote Access Protocol (ARAP), Van Jacobson TCP/IP compression, IPX Control Protocol (IPXCP), Internet Protocol Control Protocol (IPCP), and AppleTalk Control Protocol (ATCP). Hundreds of tests for these protocols are included in the ANVL package.

ALANTEC Corp., based in San Jose, Calif., designs, develops, manufactures, markets and supports intelligent switching hubs for Ethernet, FDDI and ATM local area networks. ALANTEC's PowerHub family of products increases network performance by reducing network congestion and increasing packet-forwarding capacity. The PowerHub family of products provides LAN managers with centralized network management tools, preserves the enterprise's investment in existing networking and information processing equipment and provides a foundation for evolving networking technologies. ALANTEC Corp.'s headquarters are located at 70 Plumeria Drive, San Jose, Calif. 95134. ALANTEC can be reached by telephone at [phone] or by fax at [phone].

Midnight Networks Inc., founded in 1992, provides software for network product development and network administration. The company also offers customized software development services to networking vendors and users. Midnight Networks' products include ANVL, an automated network validation system, and Recon/Map, an intelligent network management tool for TCP/IP-based networks. The company can be reached via phone at 617/890-1001 or via email at midnight(at)midnight.com.

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ANVL and Recon/Map are trademarks of Midnight Networks Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

CONTACT: Midnight Networks

              Hollie Schmidt, 617/890-1001
                     or
              ALANTEC Corp.
              Paul Schaller, 408/944-2312