CISCO'S WORKGROUP ATM SWITCH GAINS ENHANCED CONNECTIVITY, EASIER ADMINISTRATION THROUGH NEW INTERFACE CARDS AND SOFTWARE.

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- March 20, 1995 -- Cisco Systems has enhanced its LightStream 100 ATM switch with new software and hardware features that enhance the product's connectivity to wide-area networks, simplify administration and extend ATM connectivity direct to the desktop.

The LightStream 100 modular workgroup/campus ATM switch supports up to 16 ATM interfaces. Originally introduced as the HyperSwitch A100, it has been shipping since September 1994. Along with Cisco's LightStream 2020 enterprise ATM switch, it provides the only full end-to-end solution for ATM connectivity across the enterprise.

Extending ATM Connectivity To WANs, MANs

Three new hardware interfaces and specialized software will extend the LightStream 100's high-performance ATM connectivity beyond the LAN arena it has already supported via 155-megabit-per-second SONET/SDH OC3 multimode and 100-Mbps TAXI 4B/5B interfaces. The new modules will support 45-Mbps DS3 and 34-Mbps E3 over coaxial cable, and 155-Mbps SONET/SDH OC3 over single-mode fiber.

Equivalent interfaces will be available for the ATM Interface Processor (AIP), which operates in the Cisco 7000 multiprotocol router family. The LightStream 100 and AIP combination will let users create high-speed switched internetworks that address the congestion problems typical of corporate backbones.

Larry Lang, Cisco's director of marketing for ATM products, said, "The new cards will let users set up ATM networks of their own or tap into the ATM services their long-distance carriers are beginning to offer. With DS3 and E3 they can connect to a carrier's wide-area ATM network to link up remote locations. And with OC3 they can interconnect sites within a large campus."

In addition, a new software feature, permanent virtual path (PVP) tunneling, will enable the network manager to set up temporary switched virtual connections over previously established PVPs. Even if a carrier's ATM service offers only permanent connections, for example, PVP tunneling will allow a user who is setting up an ATM network signal through that service.

"Soft" PVCs Ease Switched Network Administration

The introduction of "soft" permanent virtual circuit software for the LightStream 100 will allow network managers to create permanent connections across multi-switch networks simply by designating the two end-points of the connection. This will dramatically shorten the time-consuming process of manually creating connections between all devices along the connection path. The administrator need only specify two switches, for example, and the intelligent software does the rest.

Soft PVCs operate in conjunction with Cisco's implementation of the ATM Forum's Interim Inter-Switch Signaling Protocol (IISP) -- formerly called Private Network-to-Network Interface (PNNI) Phase 0 -- the only standard mechanism for switch-to-switch connection and signaling.

Cisco was the first vendor to offer an ATM switch compliant with the IISP specification (which the company helped define and standardize within the ATM Forum), and the first to offer ATM Forum UNI 3.0 standards-based signaling. Cisco's soft PVC feature is being introduced in anticipation of the Forum's forthcoming specification for soft PVC capability.

Bringing ATM to the Desktop

For those "power" users who require high-speed ATM connectivity direct to their desktops, the LightStream 100 will provide a fourth new hardware interface, supporting 155-Mbps STS3 over Category 5 unshielded twisted pair (UTP-5). This will enable organizations to take advantage of the low-cost copper-wire connections already in place for desktop connections, and still enjoy the benefits of ATM-speed data transmission.

Pricing and Availability

New LightStream 100 interface cards are priced as follows: DS3 interface $3,500 Now shipping E3 interface $3,500 Now shipping Single-mode OC3 interface $3,800 Now shipping UTP-5 STS3c interface $ 995 April 1995

The soft PVC and tunneling software options will ship beginning in April as part of the standard software upgrade available to LightStream 100 users enrolled in Cisco's software maintenance program.

Cisco Systems, Inc. is the leading global supplier of enterprise networks, including routers, LAN and ATM switches, dial-up access servers and network management software. These products, integrated by Cisco's Internetwork Operating System* (CISCO IOS*) link geographically dispersed LANs, WANs and IBM networks. Cisco is headquartered in San Jose, Calif., and in the U.S. is traded under the NASDAQ symbol CSCO.

CONTACT: Cisco Systems Inc.

Steve Bauer, 408/526-4433

Ulevich & Orrange, Inc.

William Orrange or Janis Ulevich, 415/329-1590