NBase-Xyplex Introduces Industry's First High- Performance Linux Switch Router.CHATSWORTH, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 6, 1999-- The OSR OSR Orchestre de La Suisse Romande OSR OEM Service Release OSR Ontario Student Record OSR Office of School Readiness (various locales) OSR Office of Scientific Research OSR Overseas Service Ribbon OSR Ohio State Reformatory 8000 is the First High Performance Enterprise Routing Switch to Integrate the Linux Operating System NBase-Xyplex, a leading provider of high-speed networking solutions, today announced the first high performance enterprise switch router to integrate the Linux Operating System. The OSR8000 is a Linux switch router in an 18-slot chassis with a 40-Gigabit per second routing fabric, frame and cell scheduling and high speed ASICs, supporting up to 26 million packets per second of throughput. High performance has been integrated with the "Open" architecture of Linux to create a seamless, high performance enterprise switch routing package for enterprise and service provider networks. This revolutionary first Linux-based router was featured in this week's issues of PC Week, Network World, Internet Week and EE Times. This is the first high performance Linux Router using the strength, flexibility and scalability of an "Open" architecture, giving the customer basic block functions and programmable interfaces. A special feature is the programmable "Packet Flow Processors" for smart networking applications. These new features can be deployed without additional hardware upgrades, saving customers time and resources. "The OSR8000 has addressed the market demand for a flexible, high performance enterprise solution that increases network bandwidth on demand and preserves mission critical application requirements for enterprise and service provider networks," said Noam Lotan, president and CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. of NBase-Xyplex. A Common Routing Platform Approach Today, "Open Source" routing is rapidly gaining favor among developers. A recent survey by Evans Marketing Services showed that 53% of surveyed developers are in favor of open source software. A recent series of key developments is helping Linux to emerge as a new viable standard in Enterprise Operating Systems. New enhancements to Linux are beginning to catch the attention of the corporate IT groups. Improved interfaces, symmetric multi- processing performance and an extended file system are, but a few of the improvements that place Linux on a par with NT and NetWare. These improvements have attracted industry leaders such as IBM, Oracle, Hewlett-Packard, Compaq, Intel and Dell computers in support of the Linux Open architecture. Breakthrough Capabilities in Application Development Most competing high-end switch router vendors require their customers to use a proprietary software engine for all routing features. The proprietary software running their routers restricts users who wish to add new applications to their products. With Linux as its software systems base, the OSR8000 allows customers who require this capability access to the basic block functions and programmable interfaces needed for application development. "The industry is growing and changing fast, but our average (service) contract is seven to 10 years," said Tejas Vashi, data communications product manager at Broadband Network Inc., in State College, Pa., and NBase user. "There will be (a) lot of changes over that time, so we'll need to change, scale and migrate that system over (the) life of the contract. Something like (the OSR8040-L) lets us add and delete things as we require on the core. It lets us tailor the applications to the network itself." (PC Week, April 5, 1999) Customers who are unable to build their own applications will also benefit from the open system routing design. As new networking technologies and capabilities become available, they must first be ported to a router's base code before the new features can be utilized. The Linux Open architecture encourages the thousands of software developers to continue releasing new features. To further complement enhanced routing, the OSR8000 includes integrated application services with the multi-service functions of the Linux OS. These include programmable Packet Flow Processors for `smart' networking applications, the CODA distributed file system Software that keeps track of files stored across multiple networks. When the data are requested, it converts the file names into the physical location of the file so it can be found. , improved directory services, enhanced symmetric multiprocessing performance, load balancing and fault tolerance. Configuration The OSR8000 is an 18-slot modular chassis with a 40-Gigabit per second routing fabric, frame and cell scheduling, and high speed ASICs. Optional modules provide a flexible selection of port density and speed with 128 x 10/100 Ethernet ports, 64 OC12 ports or 32 x 1Gbps ports. Future modules will include 128 ATM or POS (1) See point of sale and packet over SONET. (2) "Parent over shoulder." See digispeak. POS - point of sale OC3 ports and WDM and long-reach optics. To ensure high-end scalability, the Linux Operating System supports multiple processors and also supports IPsec. The OSR8000 includes support for Quality of Service, numerous security features, policy-based management, SNMP (Simple Network Management Protocol) A widely used network monitoring and control protocol. Data are passed from SNMP agents, which are hardware and/or software processes reporting activity in each network device (hub, router, bridge, etc. , RMON (Remote MONitoring) Enhancements to the management information base (MIB) structure used by the simple network management protocol (SNMP). In 1991, RMON added comprehensive network monitoring capabilities. , VLANS, IP CIDR (Classless Inter-Domain Routing) An expansion of the IP addressing system that allows for a more efficient and appropriate allocation of addresses. The original class-based method used fixed fields for network IDs, which was wasteful. and router clustering. It also includes a full suite of routing protocols and applications, including: IP, RIP1/2, OSPF (Open Shortest Path First) A routing protocol that determines the best path for routing IP traffic over a TCP/IP network based on distance between nodes and several quality parameters. DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol) Software that automatically assigns temporary IP addresses to client stations logging into an IP network. It eliminates having to manually assign permanent "static" IP addresses. DHCP software runs in servers and routers. , ICMP (Internet Control Message Protocol) A TCP/IP protocol used to send error and control messages. For example, a router uses ICMP to notify the sender that its destination node is not available. , EGP (1) (Exterior Gateway Protocol) A broad category of routing protocols that are designed to span different autonomous systems. Contrast with IGP. (2) (Exterior Gateway P , GDP GDP (guanosine diphosphate): see guanine. , IRDP IRDP - ICMP Router Discovery Protocol , IPX, MBR, IGMP (Internet Group Multicast Protocol) The protocol that governs the management of multicast groups in a TCP/IP network. To sign up for a multicast group, a Host Membership Report is sent by a user's machine to its nearest routers, which forward that data to , DVMRP (Distance Vector Multicast Routing Protocol) The first popular routing protocol to support multicast. Stemming from RIP and used in the Internet's Mbone (multicast backbone), DVMRP allows for tunneling multicast messages within unicast packets. , PIM, SAP, NetBios, AppleTalk, DECnet, NAT and IP Masquerading. Availability The base chassis and initial modules of the OSR8000 routing switch will be available in the 3rd quarter of 1999. The Linux Switch Router was developed and will be manufactured by MRV's NBase division in Yokneam, Israel. About NBase-Xyplex NBase-Xyplex, a leading provider of high speed networking, uses its leading edge products and services to enhance network infrastructures for enterprise and carrier customers. Leveraging its industry-leading optical expertise along with its broad range of switches, routers and access servers, NBase-Xyplex provides enlightened solutions for long distance fiber-based LANs, remote network access, and network control and management. With a track record of several industry firsts, including the first multi-protocol terminal server, first 10/100 autosensing switch and first Gigabit Ethernet networks, the company is continuing to build on its commitment to smarter networks. As a member of the Optical Interoperability Forum, a consortium charged with accelerating deployment of advanced optical networks, NBase-Xyplex is bringing to market an entirely new network architecture, combining DWDM (Dense WDM) The term given to wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) when significantly more channels were being added. Since WDM is increasingly more "dense" all the time, both terms are used synonymously. See WDM. DWDM - wavelength division multiplexing and Gigabit switching to deliver high bandwidth metro-networks at a fraction of the cost of today's solutions. With outstanding manufacturing capabilities, global service and support, and strong channel relationships, NBase-Xyplex offers a bright `New World' of unlimited connectivity providing leadership in networking for the next millennium. NBase-Xyplex can be reached on the World Wide Web at www.nbase-xyplex.com. |
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