ProCurve Networking by HP Introduces New Security, Performance and Management Products; Offerings Help Reduce Network and Business Complexity and Provide Choice for Customers.

PALO ALTO, Calif. -- ProCurve Networking by HP today announced hardware and software products that reduce network and business complexity, increase performance and security, and allow customers to get more from and do more with their networks.

Building on the ProCurve portfolio, which delivers a holistic approach for secure, mobile, multiservice networks using the Adaptive EDGE Architecture strategy, ProCurve introduced the following products:

--ProCurve Routing Switch 9400sl series -- A new generation core interconnect routing switch featuring high-performance, high-density, secure and multilayer switching and routing;

--ProCurve Manager 2.0 and ProCurve Manager Plus 2.0 -- Upgraded network management software that provides automatic control and better management of the overall health of the physical network as well as a web access interface that simplifies the product registration process for customers;

--No-cost software enhancements for the ProCurve 5300xl switch family enable the enterprise to improve security and mobility, reduce costs and safeguard IT investments;

--ProCurve Wireless Access Point 420 series complimentary software updates to provide a broad and flexible choice of security and authentication schemes, and quality of service support for applications like wireless VoIP.

"Customers expect more value from their network investment and the ability to meet changing business needs with enhancements that are both evolutionary and industry standard," said John McHugh, vice president and general manager, ProCurve Networking by HP. "Today's announcement continues our innovative approach of creating a dynamic network infrastructure using the Adaptive EDGE Architecture strategy. This unique strategy keeps up with advancing technology and user needs, while helping protect customers' business investments."

ProCurve Routing Switch 9400sl Series

The ProCurve Routing Switch 9400sl series meets the challenge and needs of the most demanding edge interconnect network designs by delivering a new generation of high-performance, high-density and multilayer switching and routing network solutions. Core routing switches protect current investments with support for high-density and wire-speed 10 Gigabit Ethernet (GbE) for up to 32 ports and IPv6 support in the hardware. The Routing Switch 9408sl enables network managers to build high-performance, scalable, highly available networks to support mission-critical applications and protect corporate assets.

"As our clients adopt Gigabit to the edge of their networks, we see the need for high-bandwidth uplinks to the wiring closet and core," said Ashley Snelling, managing director, ADA Networks, a reseller based in the United Kingdom. "The ProCurve Routing Switch 9408sl enables more efficient software applications to be delivered to the end user's desktop faster and more efficiently, thereby saving time and increasing productivity. In addition, because the ProCurve solution supports emerging technologies, such as wire-speed Internet Protocol v6 and 10 Gigabit Ethernet, and has software updates at no cost, our clients do not have to worry about reworking their networks as the times change."

ProCurve Manager 2.0 and ProCurve Manager Plus 2.0

ProCurve Manager 2.0 and ProCurve Manager Plus 2.0 centrally manage device health and control ProCurve configurations of edge devices. This enables customers to enforce appropriate user access with continuous command from center and control to the network edge -- where users connect and policies are enforced.

ProCurve Manager 2.0, a Windows(R)-based network management solution, is included with all manageable ProCurve devices at no additional cost. It provides basic discovery, topology mapping and event browsing. It now offers LLDP (802.1ab) discovery and will automate the registration process of ProCurve products so that the accounting burden is taken off the network administrator.

ProCurve Manager Plus 2.0 includes the additional benefits:

--Configurable event-driven policies allow ProCurve Manager Plus 2.0 to interpret SNMP events from devices or third-party software and take automated or semi-automated actions. One immediate application is shutting down virus-infected ports recognized by ProCurve virus throttling software or by third-party IDS/IPS systems;

--Event-driven template policies allowing mass changes to groups of devices;

--HP OpenView Network Node Manager seamless integration;

--Group configuration functions including password setting and software updates;

--New diagnostics including consistency checking between switches and "find port" using IP or Mac addresses;

--Improved security with SNMPv3, SSH for telnet/CLI and RADIUS authenticated administrators; and

--Ability to create new buttons on the toolbar to execute saved policies that are often repeated.

ACL Configurability, Additional Throttling and More Added to ProCurve 5300xl Switch Series

The no-cost software enhancement to the ProCurve 5300xl Switch series offers increased secure network access and services, increased network uptime and reduced cost of deployment.

With the Adaptive EDGE Architecture strategy, security is enforced at the edge of the network. ICMP throttling automatically reduces denial of service attacks from affecting network availability, and ECMP improves network redundancy, both of which build security and resiliency into the network edge. LLDP-MED provides automated configuration avoiding mistakes associated with manual configuration from IP phones, and ECMP simplifies adding bandwidth to support new users and applications, helping make the 5300xl series even easier to use.

Using identity-driven per-port ACL, granular security policy is implemented and enforced at the point of entry after users authenticate to the network. Identity-driven per-port ACL allows more granular and flexible secured access, and RADIUS accounting enhancement provides more data on network usage.

ProCurve Wireless Access Point 420 Series Software Update

A free software enhancement for the ProCurve Wireless Access Point 420 series delivers more control to the edge and more security to networking infrastructures. ProCurve's history of driving and adopting industry standards gives businesses more choice and flexibility to develop their network around their business needs rather than the limitations of individual vendor offerings.

Following in this tradition, the updated single radio access point conforms to new and evolved industry standards such as IEEE 802.11i, industry-standard 802.1X EAP authentication and WPA pre-802.11i implementation for backward compatibility. The ProCurve Wireless Access Point 420 with the free software update also provides a broad and flexible choice of security and authentication schemes.

New capabilities such as multiple SSIDs with separate authentications, security and VLAN configuration options ensure network security and integrity by extending appropriate accessibility based on user credentials and type of security enabled on the wireless connection. Rogue access point detection protects against unauthorized access. Highly secure management protects against unauthorized wireless access to the network and unauthorized changes to configuration. In addition, the access point offers RADIUS accounting and quality of service support for applications like Wireless VoIP.

Pricing and Availability

Pricing for the ProCurve Routing Switch 9408sl with a 20 10-Gigabit port configuration is $310,000 and is expected to be available in August.(1) ProCurve Manager 2.0 and ProCurve Manager Plus 2.0 are expected to be available later this summer. ProCurve Manager Plus 2.0 has a starting price of $3,199.(1) The no-cost software enhancements for the ProCurve 5300xl Switch series and Wireless Access Point 420 series are planned to be available soon.

About ProCurve Networking by HP

The ProCurve Networking business unit of HP is a supplier of enterprise networking solutions comprising wired and wireless networking products, services and solutions -- including WAN routers, Ethernet switches, routing switches, wireless access points and network-management applications -- which allow customers to build networks based on open standards that meet current and future needs for security, performance and reliability. Recognizing the necessary migration of intelligence and functionality to the network edge, the ProCurve Adaptive EDGE Architecture strategy gives companies a cost-effective, easy-to-manage strategy for achieving command from the center with control to the edge and the industry's only holistic, standards-based strategy for secure, mobile, multiservice networks. ProCurve was positioned in the challenger quadrant in research and advisory firm Gartner, Inc.'s 2004 Magic Quadrant Report for Global Campus LANs.

Further information on ProCurve networking solutions and products is available at www.procurve.com.

About HP

HP is a technology solutions provider to consumers, businesses and institutions globally. The company's offerings span IT infrastructure, global services, business and home computing, and imaging and printing. For the four fiscal quarters ended April 30, 2005, HP revenue totaled $83.3 billion. More information about HP (NYSE:HPQ) (Nasdaq:HPQ) is available at www.hp.com.

(1) Estimated U.S. list prices. Actual prices may vary.

Windows is a U.S. registered trademark of Microsoft Corp.

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