ORLANDO, Fla., Oct. 27, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- Storage Networking World 2003 -- QLogic Corp. (Nasdaq:QLGC), the company that powers storage area networks (SANs), today achieved two industry firsts. With the introduction of the SANbox 5200 stackable switch, the company is first to market with stackable Fibre Channel switches and 10 gigabit Fibre Channel technology. Capitalizing on features that made stackable IP switches the best selling type of IP switch, the SANbox 5200 offers a low cost of entry with an 8-port configuration, breakthrough ease-of-use with wizard-based installation, the ability to scale to 64 ports without losing a single port to inter-switch links, blazing 10Gb performance, and complete stack management from a single application. (Editors' Note: High resolution graphics available at www.qlogic.com/go/sanbox5200).
Stackable Switches in the Ethernet and LAN Switch Market
Based on market data for stackable switches in the Ethernet market, IT professionals are expected to quickly adopt stackable Fibre Channel switches. According the 2003 Dell'Oro Group Ethernet Switch Five-Year Forecast, more than 68 million stackable switch ports shipped into the Ethernet and LAN switch market in 2002, accounting for more than 74% of ports shipped.
"QLogic has essentially changed the playing field with this switch," said Nancy Marrone-Hurley, senior analyst, Enterprise Storage Group. "The SANbox 5200 offers high end features at a very low price point, and we expect QLogic will gain significant market share with this product. If the Ethernet switch analogy is applicable, this new category of stackable Fibre Channel switches should win a substantial share of the Fibre Channel switch market."
SANbox 5200 -- The First Stackable Fibre Channel Switch
IP networking vendors including Cisco, Nortel Networks, and 3Com, bridged the gap between cost and port density with stackable IP switches, providing network administrators with a low cost of entry plus scalability to high port-count configurations -- without sacrificing performance and manageability along the way. Now QLogic introduces the SANbox 5000 Series, the industry's first stackable Fibre Channel switches. SANbox stackable switches deliver the scalability and performance of a modular switch in a pay-as-you-grow solution.
Summary of SANbox 5200 Features and Benefits
Incredibly Low Cost -- Starting at 8 ports, SANbox stackable switches offer an entry point affordable to the smallest business. And with an easy-to-use graphical user interface (GUI), users won't have to hire an expensive SAN expert to manage stacks.
Modular Scalability -- Grow by adding ports in 4, 8, 12, and 16-port increments up to 64 ports in a single stack. Add, change or delete switch features without disrupting your storage network with non-disruptive code load and activation (NDCLA). Users also save money when building large 64-port fabrics by using 50% fewer ports than a mesh of fixed port switches.
Breakthrough Ease of Use -- The SANbox 5200 is the first Fibre Channel switch to be configured and zoned with simple wizards. Plus, SANsurfer Management Suite(tm) makes stack management easy throughout the SAN lifecycle by helping users install, configure, monitor, diagnose and upgrade -- all from one application.
Blazing 10Gb Performance -- The SANbox 5200 is the first SAN product to support traffic between switches, servers and storage at up to 10Gb per second -- actually six times faster than 2Gb networks being deployed today. A single, 10Gb inter-switch link (ISL) ensures low latency between switches and eliminates the cost and complexity of trunking 2Gb ports.
Pervasive Interoperability -- Interoperable with popular servers, storage and networking products from major manufacturers including: ADIC, Brocade, Cisco, Computer Associates, Dell, EMC, Emulex, HDS, HP, IBM, LSI Logic, McData, Microsoft, Quantum, StorageTek, Sun, VERITAS, and many others.
Availability -- The SANbox 5200 is now sampling to OEMs. The product will be available from commercial distributors in Q1 2004.
Powered by QLogic
Since 1993, over 45 million QLogic products have shipped inside servers, workstations, RAID subsystems, tape libraries, disk and tape drives. These products were delivered to small, medium and large enterprises around the world. Powering solutions from leading companies like Cisco, Dell, EMC, Fujitsu, Hitachi, HP, IBM, Network Appliance, Quantum, StorageTek and Sun Microsystems, the broad line of QLogic controller chips, host bus adapters, network switches and management software move data from storage devices through the network fabric to servers. A member of the S&P 500 and NASDAQ 100, QLogic was recently named to Business Week's list of 100 Hot Growth Companies for 2003. In addition, QLogic was named to Forbes' Best 200 Small Companies for the fourth consecutive year and was named to Fortune's 100 Fastest Growing Companies list for the third consecutive year during fiscal year 2003. For more information visit www.qlogic.com.
Note: All QLogic-issued press releases appear on the company's web site (www.qlogic.com). Any announcement that does not appear on the QLogic web site has not been issued by QLogic.
Disclaimer- Forward Looking Statements
With the exception of historical information, the statements set forth above include forward-looking statements as defined within the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected or implied in the forward-looking statements. QLogic wishes to advise readers that these potential risks and uncertainties relate to, but are not limited to, in no particular order: the introduction of new and changing technologies in our industry and customer acceptance of those technologies; a change in semiconductor foundry capacity or conditions; fluctuations in the growth of I/O markets; fluctuations or cancellations in orders from OEM customers; QLogic's ability to compete effectively with other companies; cancellation of OEM products associated with design wins; and fluctuations in our operating results and our stock price.
More detailed information on these and additional factors which could affect QLogic's operating and financial results are described in QLogic's Forms 10-Q, 10-K and other reports, filed or to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. QLogic urges all interested parties to read these reports to gain a better understanding of the many business and other risks that QLogic faces. Additionally, QLogic undertakes no obligation to publicly release the results of any revisions to these forward-looking statements, which may be made to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.
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