Cabletron unveils new family of industry's most highly manageable and reliable switches; SmartSwitch is key platform for building scalable, VNET capable switched internetworks.ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 27, 1995-- Cabletron Systems (NYSE NYSE See: New York Stock Exchange :CS) unveiled at a news conference here today a new family of the industry's most highly manageable and reliable, "virtual network ready" switches. The MMAC MMAC Multimedia Mobile Access Communication MMAC Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce MMAC Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center MMAC Mutated in Multiple Advanced Cancers MMAC Multi Media Access Center (Cabletron) SmartSwitch family leverages Cabletron's extensive experience as the intelligent modular hub A network hub that is configured by adding different modules, each supporting a topology, such as Ethernet, Token Ring, FDDI, etc. See hub. market leader to deliver customers an unprecedented level of manageability and reliability for building enterprise switched virtual networks. During the next six months, Cabletron is expected to announce SmartSwitches addressing wiring closet The central distribution or servicing point for cables in a network. See MDF and wire center. , backbone and enterprise switching applications. These switches will be available as modules for the company's cornerstone MMAC and MMAC-Plus switching platforms, as well as a new modular switch. SmartSwitching- The New Business Utility Strategic Products for Crucial Enterprise Applications Developed under Cabletron's Synthesis framework for migrating customers to switched virtual networks, the MMAC SmartSwitch family leverages features of the modular hub including fault tolerance See fault tolerant. (architecture) fault tolerance - 1. The ability of a system or component to continue normal operation despite the presence of hardware or software faults. This often involves some degree of redundancy. 2. , port-level management, security, redundant power and links. By leveraging the features of Cabletron's industry-leading MMAC smart hub See intelligent hub. technology, the MMAC SmartSwitch family allows corporations to rely on the switched network infrastructure as a strategic and reliable utility for managing the business. "Through Cabletron's switching framework, customers can utilize their existing modular hub infrastructure to migrate to switched virtual networking and still receive the reliability and management advantages that the MMAC has brought to the wiring closet," said Robert Levine, Cabletron's president and CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. . "Network managers expect a high level of reliability and manageability for their shared networks and should expect nothing less as they implement switching throughout their enterprise networks." The new family deploys innovative SmartSwitch application-specific integrated circuit (hardware) Application-Specific Integrated Circuit - (ASIC) An integrated circuit designed to perform a particular function by defining the interconnection of a set of basic circuit building blocks drawn from a library provided by the circuit manufacturer. (ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) Pronounced "a-sick." A chip that is custom designed for a specific application rather than a general-purpose chip such as a microprocessor. ) technology which was developed in conjunction with LSI LSI: see integrated circuit. (Large Scale Integration) Between 3,000 and 100,000 transistors on a chip. See SSI, MSI, VLSI and ULSI. Logic Corp. The ASIC technology boosts switching capacity from 150,000 to 750,000 packets-per-second. With support for 16,000 MAC addresses per switch, Cabletron's SmartSwitches can be implemented in large enterprise networks comprised of thousands of clients and servers. The switches can also be used for user-per-port switching, dedicating bandwidth and network resources per desktop. The ASIC's topology independent design allows for scalable use of technology across multiple switch platforms and form factors. The design also enables different protocols, including Ethernet, Token Ring A local area network (LAN) access method developed by IBM. Conforming to the IEEE 802.5 standard, Token Ring uses a token ring access method and connects up to 255 nodes in a star topology at 4, 16 or 100 Mbps. , FDDI (Fiber Distributed Data Interface) Often pronounced "fiddy," it was a LAN and MAN access method that had its heyday in the mid-1990s. FDDI was an ANSI standard token passing network that transmitted 100 Mbps over optical fiber up to 10 kilometers. , 100Base-T, VGAnyLAN and ATM to be easily supported within a single chassis. Through SmartSwitching, organizations can successfully deploy leading-edge groupware, client-server, multimedia and video-conference applications using installed desktop technologies. The SmartSwitches' fault-tolerant, scalable architecture is designed to easily support multi-function, high-availability applications. With simultaneous per-port RMON (Remote MONitoring) Enhancements to the management information base (MIB) structure used by the simple network management protocol (SNMP). In 1991, RMON added comprehensive network monitoring capabilities. support, the family also includes the only ASIC-based switching implementation to embed extensive network trend and analysis tools. Support for port-level management statistics, threshold, frame size and error breakdowns is also included. The switches can be managed using local management tools or remotely controlled through any SNMP-compliant network management system, including Cabletron's SPECTRUM for Open Systems suite of enterprise and element management products. "The ability to manage a switched network from end-to-end is a key feature for corporations implementing an enterprise-wide switched network strategy," said Skip MacAskill, senior research analyst at the Gartner Group (company) Gartner Group - One of the biggest IT industry research firms. Address: Connecticut, USA. , Inc. "Integrated management capabilities are paramount in the switched network environment and will contribute to the widespread adoption of the technology for large, enterprise applications." MMAC-PLUS SmartSwitch 9000- BACKBONE/ENTERPRISE Ethernet Module Offers Industry's Highest Port Density The first products to be introduced under the SmartSwitch family are two new single slot modules for the MMAC-Plus -- a 24-port Ethernet switch A device that connects clients and servers to each other in an Ethernet network. See switched Ethernet. module and a two port FDDI switch module. The ASIC-based SmartSwitch 9000 series for the MMAC-Plus delivers the industry's highest port density for enterprise and backbone switching applications, quadrupling the Ethernet port density of the MMAC-Plus to 336 ports per chassis and doubling FDDI ports to 28. The new SmartSwitch 9000 series modules increase the aggregate switching performance of the MMAC-Plus by a factor of 10, to 10.5 million pps. Cabletron Demonstrates Modular SmartSwitch Futures Workgroup/Wiring Closet Switch Connectivity In conjunction with the new family, Cabletron also demonstrated prototypes of new modular switch chassis targeted at providing high-speed, manageable connectivity for workgroup and wiring closet applications. The new modular switches will be introduced as a standalone chassis, as well as a Media Interface Module for Cabletron's MMAC. The SecureFast Advantage Two-Phase Strategy For Building + Managing VLANs and VNETs Cabletron's new SmartSwitches, as well as its existing installed base of switches, encompass support for SecureFast Virtual Networking -- a revolutionary two-phase virtual networking strategy that allows organizations to automate network management policy. SecureFast is an integrated hardware/software solution that will be delivered to customers as three distinct components: a SecureFast Virtual Network Server, SecureFast Switches and SecureFast management applications. SecureFast allows customers to seamlessly implement virtual routing, policy, call management and accounting services. Phase I - Building VLANs The first phase of Cabletron's SecureFast allows Cabletron switches to be configured based on logical user groups instead of geographic location. Physical views of each Cabletron switch in the network can be displayed, with users assigned to ports according to the virtual networks in which they are members. Phase II - Managing Virtual Networks Support for Phase II of Cabletron's SecureFast Virtual Networking guarantees customers can extend VLAN See virtual LAN. VLAN - Virtual Local Area Network implementations to encompass management support for enterprise virtual networks. Phase II extends virtual capabilities beyond the limited port assignment capabilities offered by competing vendors to encompass management support for virtual networks. Phase II allows companies to build networks that mirror the organizational model of their business. Users can be automatically assigned to multiple virtual networks throughout an organization, depending on pre-defined criteria such as workgroup and server access needs. SecureFast Virtual Networking capabilities are expected to be available in the first quarter of 1996. Headquartered in Rochester, N.H., Cabletron employs more than 5,300 people in over 80 offices around the world. The worldwide modular hub market leader(a), Cabletron is ISO- iso- or is- pref. 1. Equal; uniform: isobar. 2. Isomeric: isopropyl. 3. 9001 certified. Cabletron develops, manufactures and markets Ethernet, FDDI, Token Ring, ATM internetworking and Enterprise Management software products based on its Synthesis product framework. Cabletron directly services more than 80,000 customer sites around the globe and provides 7 x 24 support coverage, with free phone support during normal business hours BUSINESS HOURS. The time of the day during which business is transacted. In respect to the time of presentment and demand of bills and notes, business hours generally range through the whole day down to the hours of rest in the evening, except when the paper is payable it a bank or by a . A component of the S&P 500 index, Cabletron's common stock is traded over the New York Stock Exchange New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) World's largest marketplace for securities. The exchange began as an informal meeting of 24 men in 1792 on what is now Wall Street in New York City. under the symbol CS. Over the last four quarters, the company has reported record revenue of $934 million and earnings of $188 million. -0- (a)Source: Dataquest Inc.; February 1995 Cabletron's World Wide Web site can be reached on the Internet at http://www.ctron.com. Cabletron, SecureFast, MMAC, MMAC-Plus, SmartSwitch, SPECTRUM and SPECTRUM for Open Systems are trademarks or registered trademarks of Cabletron Systems. All other products or services found in this document are identified by the trademarks or service marks of their respective companies or organizations. CONTACT: Cabletron Systems Darren Orzechowski, 603/337-1282 e-mail: darreno@ctron.com |
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