ALISO VIEJO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 19, 2002--Supporting
its vision of a storage area network (SAN) in every business, QLogic
Corp. (Nasdaq:QLGC), today introduced the newest member of the award
winning SANbox2(TM) family of Fibre Channel switches. Targeted at
small to medium sized enterprises, the SANbox2 8-port switch is
designed from the ground up to deliver the price/performance of 1Gb
Ethernet switches with an expected street price of $5,000. The 2Gb
SANbox2 8-port switch incorporates the same architecture as the
SANbox2 16-port switch for plug compatibility with servers, storage,
switches and software that have already been certified with SANbox2
16-port switches. The ultra-compact SANbox2 8-port switch features a
full suite of switch and host bus adapter (HBA) management software at
no additional charge. The single field-replaceable-unit (FRU) is
suitable for a rack or desktop and for easy service. The SANbox2
8-port switch will be available in quantity in April 2002.
"Until now Fibre Channel has delivered superior performance and
reliability to large enterprises," said Frank Berry, vice president of
marketing, QLogic Corp. "Priced at parity with Ethernet switches, the
SANbox2 will lead expansion of storage area networking into the small
and medium business market."
Fibre Channel Price Parity With Ethernet
SANbox2 8-port switches deliver 2Gb Fibre Channel performance at
1Gb Ethernet prices. Popular 12-port 1Gb Ethernet switches sell to end
users at an average selling price of approximately $7,500 or $625 per
port. At $5,000, the SANbox2 is available at the same price per port.
A New Checklist for Fibre Channel Switches
The SANbox2 8-port switch includes a set of standard features that
are either not found in competitive offerings, or are only available
as chargeable options. The new checklist for Fibre Channel switches
includes:
1. Compatible with popular switches from Brocade and McData --
SANbox2 is the only Fibre Channel Switch that has been independently
verified as both 2 Gigabit capable by Network Test and Industry
Standard E-port compliant by the FCIA SANmark(TM) program.
2. Software included at no additional charge -- each SANbox2 is
shipped with SANsurfer(TM) Toolkit, a comprehensive suite of switch
and HBA management software. Most of the following standard features
of SANbox Toolkit are chargeable options with competitive products:
-- Embedded real-time operating system
-- Manages multiple switches and fabrics in real time
-- Administrative control point (GUI) for multiple functions
-- Application Programming Interface
-- Monitors the performance of SAN resources
-- Arranges devices into multiple zoning options
-- Extends FC fabrics to up to 100Km
-- Watches for potential faults-and automatically alert
-- Automatically groups inter-switch links (ISLs) into a single
logical ISL
-- Enables private-loop devices to attach to a Fabric
-- Enables customized SAN security
3. Industry leading latency and bandwidth -- In January 2002,
Light Reading conducted "the world's first-ever test of 2Gb Fibre
Channel technology" using the QLogic SANbox2. According to David
Newman, president of Network Test, "QLogic put up excellent latency
numbers. With large frames, the highest average latency we recorded
was just 600 nanoseconds -- and even that worst-case number beats any
latency number we've ever recorded in previous tests of other
high-speed technologies. Across a single switch, average latencies
were just 400 nanoseconds. (That's not just fast, incidentally --
that's incredibly fast."
4. Compact form-factor suitable for desktop workstations -- The
SANbox2 8-port switch is 8.5" wide (half-rack) and 1.7" (1U) high.
This footprint also allows SAN administrators to mount two SANbox2
8-port units in 1U of Rack space, and "dual-path" their smaller SANs
in one-half the footprint of other 8 port switches.
5. Single Field Replaceable Unit (FRU) for easy service -- Unlike
competitive designs with replaceable power supplies, fans, control
panels, etc., the SANbox2 8-port switch is designed for easy service.
SAN Administrators and service engineers require little or no training
because servicing a SANbox2 is as simple as unplugging one switch and
plugging in another.
About QLogic SANbox2 Switches
The SANbox2 family of switches are the foundation for the world's
highest performing SANs, providing fabric connections to servers,
storage devices, directors and other switches. With QLogic's
sixth-generation, highly integrated ASIC, SANbox2 switches are the
only 2 Gigabit solutions with true address translation, which fully
protects the extensive installed base of private loop devices. QLogic
2 Gigabit switches have the capability of networking storage at
distances in excess of 100 km and offer extended multi-stage fabric
capabilities, scalable to over seven million nodes. |
