QLogic ships Fast!SCSI PCI Ultra PCI-to-Ultra SCSI host adapter cards; QLogic's Fast!SCSI PCI Ultra host adapter cards double SCSI data transfer rates to 40 MB sec, the fastest, most cost-effective I O throughput available for narrow and wide SCSI buses.

COSTA MESA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 4, 1996--QLogic Corp. Thursday announced the immediate production availability of its Fast!SCSI PCI Ultra host adapters.

These Ultra SCSI products deliver a 40 MB/sec SCSI data transfer rate with direct connection to the popular Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) bus.

"Installing our new high performance Ultra SCSI host adapter cards allows users significantly improved throughput by doubling the SCSI I/O transfer rate to 40 MB/sec when using Ultra SCSI hard disk drives," said Dave Tovey, QLogic marketing vice president.

"The cards protect the user's investment in existing SCSI peripherals by allowing 8 and 16 bit Ultra SCSI and Fast SCSI devices to be mixed on the same cable. By installing the card now, the user can prepare for future Ultra SCSI peripheral upgrades."

The Fast!SCSI PCI Ultra Family includes a full line of host adapter cards in narrow, wide and wide differential versions:

o Fast!SCSI PCI Ultra-N allows a narrow SCSI bus (8-bit wide) to support 20 MB/sec data transfer rates and delivers cost-effective I/O RISC processor performance to workstations and small network servers;

o Fast!SCSI PCI Ultra-W brings both Fast (20 MB/sec) and Wide (40 MB/sec) connectivity to high performance SCSI bus applications such as servers and workstations. It supports up to 15 peripherals and provides I/O RISC processor performance to manage I/O queuing capability with minimal host involvement; and

o Fast!SCSI PCI Ultra-D, is a differential version of the Ultra-W product and supports cable lengths of up to 25 meters for up to 15 differential SCSI peripherals at a 40 MB/sec data transfer rate.

The QLogic cards also have flash BIOS capability that supports easy modification for future application enhancements.

Meeting the Needs of Next Generation Peripherals

"Our Fast!SCSI PCI Ultra host adapter cards can deliver three times the maximum I/O throughput available with Enhanced IDE solutions and use a tried and true interface that is already installed in millions of systems worldwide," explained Tovey.

"By supporting real-time video capture data rates and up to 1100 concurrent I/Os, the cards allow today's multitasking operating systems to finally provide high quality multimedia operation for the average PC user. We also expect our new cards to be quickly adopted in speed-intensive application such as video-on-demand, video and audio broadcast editing and environments employing RAID subsystems."

Enhanced Server Oriented Technology

Because the emerging transaction-intensive server environments differ substantially from those encountered in desktop systems, the Fast!SCSI PCI Ultra host adapter cards feature an intelligent bus master design developed specifically for the I/O intensive server environment.

Use of QLogic's widely accepted dual processor, single chip ISP1040 architecture provides an on-chip 12 MIPS RISC processor that executes operations at the I/O control-block level from host memory, requiring no CPU intervention to execute SCSI operations from start to finish -- even in heavily loaded multithreaded operating environments. This ensures that the SCSI I/O processing doesn't bottleneck system performance.

Installation and Drivers Supported

Supporting the entire range of SCSI devices including hard disk drives, removable disk drives, CD-ROM drives, tape drives and scanners, the Fast!SCSI PCI Ultra host adapter cards are simple to install. They require no jumper settings and feature automatic configuration software and comprehensive documentation.

All of the Fast!SCSI PCI Ultra host adapter cards come with drivers for DOS/Windows (including WinASPI and FastDisk VxD drivers), Windows 95, Windows NT, OS/2, SCO UNIX and Novell NetWare, thereby ensuring comprehensive software support. In addition, a copy of CorelSCSI VERSION 2 with NetWare support comes bundled with the products.

Pricing

The entire line of QLogic Fast!SCSI PCI Ultra host adapter cards are available immediately to OEMs and through QLogic's authorized distributors. Suggested retail pricing for the Fast!SCSI PCI Ultra-N is $249, the Fast!SCSI PCI Ultra-W is priced at $349 and the Fast!SCSI PCI Ultra-D is $535. QLogic offers customers free support including a toll-free customer support telephone line, a 24-hour electronic bulletin board and a five-year warranty.

In addition to making its card products available through a worldwide distributor and reseller network, QLogic sells both card and chip products to an international base of large PC and workstation OEMs and peripheral manufacturers.

QLogic Corp. (NASDAQ:QLGC), with headquarters in Costa Mesa, Calif., is a pioneer and market leader of high performance I/O technology that facilitates faster, more efficient data transfer between computers and peripherals. The company has shipped more than 26 million SCSI solutions to the peripheral OEM, computer OEM and distribution markets.

For additional information, contact QLogic Corp. -- 3545 Harbor Blvd., Costa Mesa, Calif. 92636; Telephone: [phone] or 800/TOP SCSI (800/867-7274). QLogic's World Wide Web page address is: http://www.qlc.com.

Note to Editors: QLogic and Fast!SCSI are trademarks of QLogic Corp. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Photos are available upon request.

CONTACT: QLogic Corp.

Irene Santoyo, 714/668-5359