Ipsilon Networks to Enable Sun Workstations and Servers for Native IP Switching; Enhanced SunATM SBus adapters allow direct connections to IP Switched networks.

LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 2, 1996--Ipsilon Networks, Palo Alto, Calif., announced plans today to port its IP switching functionality to the SunATM SBus adapter line to allow high end Sun servers and workstations to attach directly to IP Switches for ATM- accelerated IP performance.

The IP Switching functionality will complement existing SunATM adapter support for ATM Forum standards to provide Sun customers with a range of choices for performance and interoperability, depending on their application requirements. The free software upgrade will be available mid-1996 and can be downloaded from the Ipsilon World Wide Web site (http://www.ipsilon.com). See Ipsilon at booth No. 1776 in Start-up City.

The SunATM SBus adapter software enhancement will implement the Ipsilon Flow Management Protocol (IFMP), enabling Sun servers and workstations equipped with the interface cards to participate in the flow-classification procedures that allow IP Switches to choose between dynamic store-and-forward and cut-through switching based on traffic characteristics.

Direct cut-through switching in the IP Switch's ATM hardware eliminates router processing overhead, boosting throughput of bandwidth-intensive applications%including large file transfers, collaborative computing, multimedia audio and video, and Web downloads%to more than 5 million packets per second (PPS) while maintaining complete IP compatibility.

According to Bill Lee, vice president of engineering for Sun's Network Communications Group, "Our customers operate on the leading and bleeding edges of application development and usage. They demand the highest possible performance, the greatest flexibility, and the most comprehensive features. The Ipsilon technology lets IP-centric users take advantage of the speed and scalability of ATM without modifying their current applications or network management strategy," Lee says. "Multiprotocol users can continue to rely on Sun's existing support for ATM Forum standards."

Sun high end servers, workstations, and adapters are the products of choice for major corporate intranets because they consistently deliver the features, performance, and quality that users need," says Don Jaworski, Ipsilon's vice president of engineering. "Customers that have chosen TCP/IP as their strategic networking protocol can increase the value of their Sun products by enabling them for IP Switch connectivity. Ipsilon's hardware-accelerated IP delivers unprecedented IP performance, a fivefold increase over anything that's available today, or even on the horizon."

A key advantage of the Ipsilon technolgy is its foundation in IP, a proven, robust, and widely understood technology. This factor ensures transparent compatibility with existing IP applications, including network management tools. All devices connected to the IP Switch network through the enhanced SunATM adapters will integrate naturally into the network views provided by SunNet Manager.

Founded in October 1994 and based in Palo Alto, Calif., Ipsilon Networks, Inc. is the premiere provider of high performance IP switches, a new product category designed specifically to accelerate IP networks. IP switches combine the intelligence and control of IP routing with the high speed and capacity of ATM switching into a single scalable platform to deliver millions of PPS throughput while maintaining full compatibility with existing IP networks, applications, and network management tools.

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Note to Editors: Customers wanting more information about Ipsilon solutions can contact the company headquarters at 1-888-IPSILON (415/846-4600) or visit its World Wide Web site at http://www.ipsilon.com.

CONTACT: Ipsilon Networks

Larry Blair, 415/846-4600

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Gallagher PR

Kevin Gallagher, 510/743-7830

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