Monday January 4, 10:27 am Eastern Time
Company Press Release
Sequent Extends Fibre Channel
Leadership With Industry's Only True
Switched Fabric Storage Area Network
Sequent and Brocade Work to Map Future SAN Implementations for Mixed
UNIX/Windows NT Environments
BEAVERTON, Ore.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 4, 1999--Sequent Computer Systems
(Nasdaq:SQNT - news) today announced plans to deliver in 1999 the industry's first heterogeneous
storage area network (SAN) supporting UNIX and Windows NT. A heterogeneous SAN allows an
array of systems to access a single large-scale data store via high-speed fibre channel connections.
Sequent in 1997 was the first server vendor to support fibre channel switched fabric technology,
delivering significant gains in system throughput and availability over arbitrated loop technology. Key
to Sequent's switched fabric support is mainframe-style multi-pathing in its DYNIX/ptx® UNIX
operating system -- a feature currently unique to the UNIX marketplace.
Fibre channel fabrics, leveraging switching technology from Brocade Communications, allowed
Sequent to deliver the industry's only true fibre channel storage area network. Sequent is working
with Brocade and other key vendors to deliver the same heterogeneous capability for its
NUMACenter™ mixed-mode UNIX/Windows NT environment.
''Sequent's focus on delivering data center services underlies our leadership in storage area
networks. Multi-pathing, for example, is a significant achievement and a feature that Sequent first
introduced to the UNIX market,'' said Jeff Pancottine, vice president, Sequent Computer Systems.
''Partnering with Brocade, we offer the only true SAN capability today and are extending that to
heterogeneous environments.''
''Brocade is pleased to partner with Sequent to provide our fibre channel fabric switches as the
backbone of the Sequent integrated storage area network. Our mutual customers will benefit from
Sequent's innovative approach to storage area networking through increased device performance
and availability -- all within in a scalable, networked environment,'' said Peter Tarrant, vice president
of marketing and business development at Brocade.
Sequent Delivers Storage Area Networks
Sequent has hundreds of fibre channel SANs in production at customer sites worldwide. Sequent
key partners are Brocade, EMC, CLARiiON and STK. Key components include Sequent's
NUMA-Q™ 2000 servers, Brocade's SilkWorm™ fibre channel switch and storage devices such
as disk subsystems and tape libraries.
Sequent is the only vendor in the industry with an OS that supports multi-pathing, multi-ported fibre
channel. As in a mainframe environment, having multiple paths to storage devices allows for
continuous uptime of the network, even if one of the devices fails. A switched environment also
delivers unmatched scalability. Unlike fibre channel arbitrated loop, which has the considerable
drawback of bandwidth being split with each device added, switched fibre channel increases
bandwidth as the system scales to allow more storage. This is possible, since each device is
independently connected at a speed of 100MB/sec. By using cascading switches, distances of up to
10 kilometers can be achieved between system nodes and or storage devices. Fibre channel
arbitrated loops are limited to 500 meters at full performance, making switched fabric an ideal
solution where increased distances between devices are necessary.
The future of SAN
Sequent and Brocade are developing a single, multi-pathing SAN environment for heterogeneous
infrastructures. This environment will allow systems to be named and detected much in the same way
they are on wide area networks today. Unlike today's SAN, which requires a homogeneous
environment, tomorrow's solution will allow for mixed devices. In this environment any devices
connected to a fabric may be configured into one or more zones. Devices in different zones will not
see each other, thereby eliminating the risk of systems taking other systems' resources or slowing
traffic as downed devices are being brought back online. The first step in this direction will be the
addition of mixed UNIX and NT support in 1999.
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Sequent Firsts in Fibre Channel
-- The first and only vendor to offer switched fibre channel,
shipping for over a year
-- The only vendor to provide full speed cascaded fibre channel at
10 kilometer distance
-- The only vendor with an OS that supports multi-pathing,
multi-ported fiber channel offering mainframe caliber
availability and scalability
About Sequent Computer Systems, Inc.
Sequent Computer Systems (Nasdaq:SQNT - news), the leader in Intel-based solutions for the data
center, is committed to the success of its end-user and system integrator customers. Sequent's
platform architectures and services are optimized for the scalability, availability and manageability
requirements of corporate and institutional data center environments leveraging industry-standard
technologies and best-in-class partnerships.
Sequent supports more than 10,000 installations worldwide, including many of the world's largest
and most sophisticated OLTP, DSS and RDBMS applications.
For further information, phone Sequent at 503/626-5700 or 800/257-9044, or visit our Web site at
www.sequent.com.
Note to Editors: Sequent and DYNIX/ptx are registered trademarks and NUMACenter and
NUMA-Q are trademarks of Sequent Computer Systems, Inc. All brand and product names
appearing in this release are registered trademarks or trademarks of their respective holder. |
