Crossroads Names VP of Worldwide Sales and Support; Sales Veteran Brings Domestic and International Industry Experience to Fast-Growing Storage Market Leader.

Business Editors and High-Tech Writers

AUSTIN, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 16, 2001

Crossroads Systems Inc. (Nasdaq:CRDS), a leading provider of connectivity for storage networking solutions, today announced the appointment of Phillip (Randy) Bell as Vice President of Worldwide Sales and Support.

In his new position, Bell will draw on more than 20 years of experience in sales, product marketing and strategic program development with both national and global companies.

"We conducted an extensive industry-wide search for the right person, with the right qualifications and management style for this position," said Larry Sanders, president and COO of Crossroads. "Randy's experience and successful track record ensure we have the right sales leadership to meet our growth objectives."

Prior to joining Crossroads Systems, Bell was Vice President of Sales for Large Corporate Accounts at Dell Computer Corporation, where he was responsible for meeting a more than $2 billion annual revenue goal. Bell also served as Director of Sales and Service for the Internet Partner Division of Dell where he established and managed customer relationships with leading Internet service and infrastructure partners. Bell has held vice president of sales and marketing positions at such companies as AT&T Global Information Solutions (NCR), Structural Dynamics Research Corporation, and Integrated Systems.

About Crossroads Systems Inc.

Headquartered in Austin, Texas, Crossroads Systems (Nasdaq:CRDS) is the leading provider of connectivity for Storage Area Networks. Crossroads' family of storage routers provides multi-protocol connectivity to Fibre Channel storage networks for a wide range of devices, including servers, S/390 mainframes, and disk and tape storage systems. Crossroads' solutions enable key Internet, intranet and e-commerce applications to both small and mid-sized companies, as well as Global 500 enterprises. Crossroads' products are in solutions from ADIC, ATL, Compaq, Dell, Fujitsu-Siemens, Hewlett-Packard, Hitachi Data Systems, IBM, McDATA, StorageTek, Unisys, Bell Micro, Cranel, Datalink and Tech Data. Crossroads is a voting member of the Storage Networking Industry Association (SNIA) and the InfiniBand(sm) Trade Association.

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: Crossroads' limited operating history which makes it difficult to accurately predict revenues and budget for expenses for future periods; the extent of Crossroads' future operating losses and negative cash flow; the impact on Crossroads' result on operations due to changes in the Securities and Exchange Commission's accounting standards, including the implementation of SAB 101, with respect to revenue recognition; the dependence of Crossroads' business on the storage area network market which is new and unpredictable; Crossroads' ability to develop new and enhanced products that achieve market acceptance; the continuation of Crossroads' successful relationships with its limited number of OEM customers; Crossroads' ability to retain and recruit key personnel to manage its business successfully; the quarterly fluctuations of Crossroads' operating results; 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 Report on 10-Q.