Crossroads 8000 Certified ca smart With Computer Associates BrightStor.

Business Editors & High-Tech Writers

AUSTIN, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 7, 2002

Integration of Crossroads' 8000 Storage Router With CA's BrightStor

Enterprise Backup and BrightStor ARCserve Backup Storage Management

Solutions Enhances Performance of SAN Environments

Crossroads Systems Inc. (Nasdaq:CRDS), a global provider of connectivity for storage networking solutions, today announced that its Crossroads 8000 router has been certified ca smart(tm) with BrightStor, the family of integrated, high-performance, mobile-to-mainframe storage solutions from Computer Associates International Inc. (NYSE:CA).

The ca smart seal of excellence is earned by partners who deliver eBusiness value and technical excellence through the integration of their solutions with CA technologies.

CA's BrightStor Enterprise Backup is a premiere multi-platform backup and recovery solution. CA's popular BrightStor ARCserve Backup is the industry's leading backup solution for today's heterogeneous departmental server environments.

The Crossroads 8000 storage router provides seamless migration and data movement through open SANs offering unique interoperability and connectivity. Customers can free application server resources of mission critical applications, which enable them to minimize implementation time to build a successful SAN solution.

Leveraging the direct communication between the Serverless Backup Options of CA's BrightStor Enterprise Backup and BrightStor ARCserve Backup solutions and the Crossroads 8000 router, customers extend their ability to utilize SAN technology as part of a highly efficient severless storage solution strategy. As a result, organizations efficiently increase the availability of their valuable business data.

"Crossroads is a valued partner in our continued efforts to deliver the most cost-effective storage management solutions to our customers," said Nigel Turner, senior vice president, solution partner program, CA. "The combination of Crossroads 8000 with the Serverless Backup Options of CA's BrightStor Enterprise Backup and BrightStor ARCserve Backup solutions reduces storage-related network traffic and provides customers the highest levels of reliability and manageability in their SAN environments."

"Crossroads is committed to working with CA on solutions that better leverage SAN investments by maximizing server resources and decreasing backup cycles," said Rich Lautzenheiser, vice president of marketing, Crossroads Systems. "The ca smart certification earned by Crossroads 8000 assures customers will receive a state of the art, seamless, solution for effectively managing their data."

About Crossroads Systems Inc.

With headquarters in Austin, Texas, Crossroads Systems (Nasdaq:CRDS) is a leading global provider of connectivity for storage networks regardless of technology or location. Crossroads enables protocol-independent connectivity at gigabit speeds for a wide range of devices that scale for small businesses to global enterprises. Crossroads' products are in solutions from ADIC, ATL, Compaq, Dell, Fujitsu Siemens, Groupe Bull, Hewlett-Packard, Hitachi Data Systems, IBM, McDATA, StorageTek, Sun Microsystems, Unisys, ACAL, Bell Micro, Cranel/Adexis, Datalink and Tech Data. Crossroads is a voting member of the Storage Networking Industry Association (SNIA). For employment opportunities and more information about Crossroads Systems, please visit www.crossroads.com or call 800/643-7148.

Forward-Looking Statements

This release may contain forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Among the important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements are: the quarterly fluctuations of Crossroads' operating results and Crossroads' inability to accurately predict revenues and budget for expenses for future periods; the extent of Crossroads' future operating losses and negative cash flow; the company's ability to maintain its operating margins; the deteriorating economic environment, including in particular related expense reductions by organizations affecting their IT spending and budget; the dependence of Crossroads' business on the storage area network market which is evolving and unpredictable; the possibility that the pending shareholder class action lawsuits could result in an adverse outcome to the company; Crossroads' ability to develop new and enhanced products that achieve market acceptance; the effect of competition; the effect of undetected software or hardware errors, which may affect the company's results or reduce demand for Crossroads' products in the long term; Crossroads' inability to protect its intellectual property rights, including any adverse outcome in the company's pending patent litigation with certain of its competitors; the continuation of Crossroads' successful relationships with its limited number of OEM customers, including its ability to replace revenue from ADIC and Compaq Computer Corporation and/or to realize the benefit of the new agreement with Compaq; Crossroads' ability to retain and recruit key personnel to manage its business successfully; Crossroads' ability to successfully achieve the benefits of the acquisition of Polaris Communications and any subsequent acquisition or strategic relationship; and that Crossroads' stock price could be volatile regardless of Crossroads' actual financial performance and other factors detailed in Crossroads' filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Reports on 10-Q

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