Cisco Systems Breaks New Ground in Managed, Fast Ethernet Hubs; Stackable product family provides unmatched configuration flexibility and scalability.

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 14, 1996--Cisco Systems, Inc. today announced the FastHub 300 Series of manageable, stackable Fast Ethernet hubs.

Supporting 100-Mbps peak and aggregate throughput, the Cisco FastHub 300 Series hubs combine ten times the performance of traditional Ethernet hubs with unmatched flexibility, manageability and resiliency to support customers' high-speed workgroup applications and server connectivity requirements.

The FastHub 300 Series repeaters are the first 100BaseT hubs in the industry to offer port expansion and network management in a single unit, providing network managers with unprecedented configuration flexibility.

By expanding from 16 to 32 managed ports in a single hub and up to 128 ports within a stack, the FastHub 300 Series enables customers to incrementally grow their network as needed. The FastHub 300 Series' Class II design allows customers to scale a solution up to 254 ports within a single collision domain by directly cascading two stacks together and to distribute and connect hubs in separate wiring closets - without requiring a bridge, router or switch.

The FastHub 300 Series is fully integrated with Cisco's existing Fast Ethernet product offerings, including its LAN switches, routers and Fast Ethernet repeaters. The FastHub 300 Series incorporates Cisco IOS software technologies to provide customers with consistent and integrated management and monitoring capabilities across all of their Cisco Fast Ethernet products. The hubs are also interoperable with other 100BaseT products through support of the IEEE 802.3u standard.

"With the FastHub 300 Series, customers have the most flexible and affordable high-performance LAN solution that leverages Cisco's technical leadership in Fast Ethernet and provides the Cisco guarantee for quality and service," said Jean Young, senior product line manager for Cisco's Small Internetworks Business Unit.

Product features/benefits

The FastHub 300 Series is available in two base unit versions for cabling flexibility: a 100BaseTX model, or a combination 100BaseTX and 100BaseFX configuration. Two extra slots are included to support a 100BaseTX port expansion module and a network management module in one unit. Both base units support 16 ports and are expandable up to 32 ports in a single unit.

The FastHub 300 Series provides the most network management options of any 100BaseT hub. Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP), Telnet, terminal based out-of-band management and remote monitoring (RMON) are supported, and the products are manageable through CiscoWorks Windows, Cisco's network management system. Management data can be gathered on a per-port, per-unit or per-stack basis, and a single management module can provide manageability for up to 128 ports in a fully configured stack.

In addition, the FastHub 300 Series supports up to two management modules in a stack to provide automatic back-up management redundancy in the case of a power or other failure of the main management module. FastHub 300 Series hubs will also provide support for an optional Redundant Power Supply (RPS), providing improved fault tolerance and ensuring network availability.

Fast Ethernet connections are supported across Category 5 UTP cable for low-cost connectivity and also across fiber uplinks for noise immunity and extended distances.

Pricing and availability

The FastHub 300 Series hubs are available in October and will be distributed through CiscoPro resellers worldwide. Estimated street pricing ranges from $125-150 per unmanaged port and $140-240 per managed port, depending upon configuration.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ: CSCO) is the leading global supplier of internetworking solutions for corporate intranets and the global Internet. Cisco's products - including routers, LAN and WAN switches, dial-up access servers and network management software - are integrated by Cisco IOS software to link geographically dispersed LANs, WANs and IBM networks. Company news and product/service information are available at World Wide Web site http://www.cisco.com. Cisco is headquartered in San Jose, Calif.

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CONTACT: Cisco Systems Inc.

Jennifer Wenker, 408/882-2663

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