On-Ramp Indiana Selects RAServers to Provide Internet Access to Corporate Customers.

SALEM, N.H.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 7, 1998--RAScom, Inc. today announced that On-Ramp Indiana (http://www.ori.net) has selected the RAServer Series 2000 remote access servers from RAScom for delivering corporate Internet access services.

On-Ramp Indiana is a dedicated Windows NT shop, so the company had a preference for open systems remote access. Michael LePere, founder and owner, said, "Even with our Windows expertise, we didn't want to cobble together a board-level solution. We focus on solving customer problems, and didn't want to try to assemble a server based on mix-and-match components. We considered proprietary servers from Ascend and Cisco, but we really didn't want to learn new operating systems and interfaces."

He continued, "We already had Windows expertise in-house and wanted a system solution we could maintain ourselves. I believe that focus is critical in any service business, and I wanted us to remain focused on the Windows environment without getting distracted by learning other remote access environments. It would have cost us thousands of dollars to get certified in Cisco or Ascend technology, and we would have had much higher maintenance fees and probably much lower levels of technical support. RAScom offers a much lower cost of ownership and we've eliminated training costs since we already know enough about Windows to support the RAServer ourselves."

On-Ramp Indiana initially selected a RAServer 2124 with a Primary Rate ISDN (PRI) interface and 24 digital modem ports. Later, On-Ramp Indiana installed a second RAServer in its server cluster to accommodate increased demand. A RAServer 2148 was deployed with two PRI interfaces and 48 digital modem ports.

On-Ramp Indiana now services over 500 remote access accounts with about seventy percent of these subscribers corporate accounts. The firm is planning to add RAServers to broaden the service area and add remote POP connectivity. "We will probably deploy RAServers in surrounding LATAs and backhaul calls to our server cluster so we can support a broader geographic base with local calling numbers," said LePere.

On-Ramp implements policy-based management using the Remote Access Manager utility that ships with each RAServer. Using the point-and-click interface, the administrator is able to customize subscriber accounts. For example, some companies with telecommuters online throughout the day receive unlimited connect times, while subscribers dialing in from home after hours will be disconnected after thirty minutes without activity.

Remote Windows clients receive high-speed performance, since Microsoft Point-to-Point Compression (MPPC) is automatically negotiated between the RAServer port and any 32-bit Windows client to deliver up to 8:1 compression. Basic Rate ISDN (BRI) is favorably tariffed in the Indianapolis area, so many users connect over BRI.

On-Ramp Indiana offers a dual call aggregation service that allows multiple calls to be aggregated as a single logical connection using Multilink PPP. Subscribers can be allowed to aggregate either two 56 Kbps modem calls or two ISDN B channels to improve throughput, and the firm offers these capabilities as value-added services to corporate accounts. "There is a lot of ISDN in this area and although we hear that getting ISDN remote access to work can be difficult, we've had no problems. More and more of our subscribers are using BRI." Some accounts use Demand Dial Routing over BRI to connect remote servers over the Internet in Virtual Private Network (VPN) applications.

On-Ramp Indiana is evaluating methods of using idle server capacity during off-hours to generate additional revenues. "We will be trialing fax-out utilities that are offered under the RASware Partnership Program to potentially launch broadcast fax services during evening hours," said LePere.

About RAScom

RAScom is the pioneer in the swiftly growing market for remote access server technology based on PC architectures and Microsoft's (NASDAQ:MSFT) Windows NT Server operating system and a Microsoft Certified Solution Provider. RAScom's innovative remote access server technology continues to be recognized in the industry with major awards. RAScom won the Editor's Choice for Windows NT-Based Remote Access Servers award from Network Computing Magazine; Easiest to Use Remote Access Server award from Business Communications Review Magazine, and the Networks As Advertised award from Mier Communications. In the Mier Communications study, the independent testing firm found that RAServers provide nearly double the dial-up throughput of proprietary remote access servers from Ascend Communications (NASDAQ:ASND) and Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO).

RAScom, Inc. is based in Salem, New Hampshire with a European subsidiary based in Germany. RAScom, recently named one of the "Hot 100 Small Businesses in the Country" by Entrepreneur Magazine, provides the wide area network interfaces, communications software, and integration services that allow enterprise networks and ISPs to implement high-performance, secure, flexible, and scalable remote access solutions. For more information on RAScom or its products, call the company at [phone], or visit the company's World Wide Web site at www.rascom.com.