Emulex Participates in the Microsoft Systems Architecture Program.

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

COSTA MESA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 31, 2002

Emulex Joins Industry Leading Storage and Server Companies to

Provide Infrastructure Solutions Utilizing the Windows 2000

Server Operating System 

Emulex Corp. (NYSE:ELX), the world's leading supplier of storage networking host bus adapters (HBAs), today announced that it will participate in a partner-led prescriptive architecture guide (PAG) that is part of the Microsoft System Architecture (MSA) program.

The program provides pre-tested and qualified architectural guidance to support enterprise customers looking to install core implementations and reduce the costs associated with deployment.

Microsoft, together with Emulex and its other strategic industry partners, is focused on delivering an integrated systems architecture solution that has been fully tested, and is proven to help lower implementation risks, while improving ROI and reducing time-to-market.

Emulex 2Gb/s LP9002L and 1Gb/s LP8000 Fibre Channel host bus adapters, which provide the flexible and reliable connectivity solution needed for complex and highly scalable SAN environments, are the only Fibre Channel connectivity solution selected for the program.

"We're very pleased that Emulex is contributing its enterprise HBA technology to the first partner-led PAG as part of the MSA program," said Cliff Reeves, vice president for the Windows .NET Product Management Group at Microsoft Corp.

"Emulex and the other strategic industry partners represent a collection of superior technology companies committed to making the MSA vision of pre-tested data center solutions based on a Windows 2000 infrastructure a success."

The Microsoft System Architecture integrates operating systems, servers, storage and networking technologies to provide a best-of-breed Windows-based infrastructure that has been pre-tested, lab-implemented and faster time-to-benefit. The architecture, which is scalable across departmental, enterprise and global initiatives, includes infrastructure implementations that Microsoft has co-developed with leading technology partners such as Emulex, Brocade, Cisco, Dell, EMC, HP, Hitachi Data Systems, Nortel and Unisys.

The Microsoft System Architecture seeks to take advantage of the Windows 2000 Server system through infrastructure solutions that support always-on access, enterprise storage requirements and the delivery of XML-based Web services. Each infrastructure solution, which features Emulex HBAs exclusively, has been tested and designated MSA Qualified by Microsoft, and detailed information has been documented in a prescriptive architecture guide (PAG), available through Microsoft.

"Emulex believes that aligning with industry-leading partners to design and implement leading technologies offers end-users the most robust and reliable solutions to improve their mission-critical businesses," said Mike Smith, Emulex executive vice president of worldwide marketing.

"The Microsoft System Architecture is bringing together the industry's leading technology suppliers and leveraging them to provide solutions that ensure optimum scalability, availability and stability through pre-tested and qualified configurations."

The Emulex Family of Host Bus Adapters

The Emulex family of HBAs offers high performance, standards-based connectivity solutions for both Fibre Channel and Internet protocol (IP) storage networking environments. Emulex host bus adapters provide a unique combination of features required for mission-critical enterprise environments that deliver reliability, high bandwidth, server CPU offload, low latency and scalable connectivity.

Emulex HBAs also offer a unique driver architecture that enables compatibility of a single operating system driver across Emulex's entire product line and a firmware-based architecture. These features help to lower the customer's total cost of ownership and reduce management complexity, while enabling a seamless migration path to next-generation technologies. For information about how Emulex HBAs increase SAN productivity and efficiency, visit the Emulex Web site and download the IDC whitepaper titled, "Measuring the HBA's Role in SAN Management."

The Emulex LightPulse family of Fibre Channel HBAs offers full fabric support, high data integrity, full-duplex operation, data buffering for up to 100km of cabling and support for all Fibre Channel topologies. The Emulex LightPulse family of Fibre Channel products includes the 2Gb/s LP9802 and LP982 PCI-X HBAs, the LP9002L and LP952L PCI HBAs, the LP9002C CompactPCI HBA, the LP9002S SBus-based HBA and the market-leading LP8000.

The Emulex family of IP-based storage networking host bus adapters includes the GN9000/SI iSCSI host bus adapter and the GN9000/VI VI/IP host bus adapter. The Emulex GN9000/SI is designed to provide the high performance iSCSI connectivity over gigabit Ethernet for PCI-based systems. The Emulex GN9000/VI VI/IP HBA enables network attached storage (NAS) appliances and hosts to exchange file system data over IP networks, while gaining the high throughput, low latency and reduced CPU overhead benefits of the virtual interface (VI) architecture.

For more information on the Emulex product families, visit www.emulex.com.

About Emulex

Emulex is a leading supplier and developer of storage networking host bus adapters based on both Fibre Channel and IP networking technologies. The Emulex product families are based on internally developed ASIC, firmware and software technologies, and offer customers high performance, scalability, flexibility and reduced total cost of ownership.

The company's products have been selected by the world's leading server and storage providers, including Dell, EMC, Fujitsu Siemens, Groupe Bull, Hewlett-Packard Co., Hitachi Data Systems, IBM, NEC, Network Appliance and Unisys. In addition, Emulex includes industry leaders Brocade, INRANGE, Intel, Legato, McDATA, Microsoft and VERITAS among its strategic partners.

Emulex markets to OEMs and end-users through its own worldwide selling organization, as well as its two-tier distribution partners, including ACAL, Avnet, Bell Microproducts, Info-X, Netmarks, Tech Data, TidalWire and Tokyo Electron. Corporate headquarters are located in Costa Mesa. News releases and other information about Emulex are available at www.emulex.com.

EMULEX -- We network storage

"Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: With the exception of historical information, the statements set forth above include forward-looking statements that involve risk and uncertainties. The company wishes to caution readers that a number of important factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Those factors include the rapidly changing nature of technology, evolving industry standards and frequent introductions of new products and enhancements by competitors; fluctuation in the growth of Fibre Channel and IP markets; changes in economic conditions or changes in end-user demand for technology solutions; fluctuations or delays in customer orders; the highly competitive nature of the markets for Emulex's products; Emulex's ability to gain market acceptance for its products; the company's ability to attract and retain skilled personnel; the company's reliance on third-party suppliers. These and other factors which could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements are also discussed in the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its recent filings on Forms 8-K, 10-K and 10-Q.

Note to Editors: This news release refers to various products and companies by their trade names. In most, if not all cases, these designations are claimed as trademarks or registered trademarks by their respective companies.