May 08, 2000 08:14
Fibre Channel Switch Developers Respond To Customers' Needs for
Interoperability
Competitors to Demonstrate Switch-to-Switch Interoperability
LAS VEGAS, May 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Switch manufacturers Ancor Communications Inc. (Nasdaq: ANCR), Gadzoox Networks
Inc. (Nasdaq: ZOOX), McDATA Corporation and Vixel Corporation (Nasdaq: VIXL) today announced that they will
demonstrate interoperability of switch products in the Fibre Channel Industry Association (FCIA) exhibit at spring
Networld+Interop, May 9-11, Las Vegas Convention Center, North Hall, Booth 2955, Las Vegas. The demonstration
represents a milestone towards the Open Standards Fabric Initiative (OSFI) to accelerate the normal standards adoption
process by jointly defining the critical elements required for Fibre Channel switch-to-switch interoperability -- an integral
part of high-performing storage area networks (SANs).
The OSFI is comprised of the five leading Fibre Channel switch vendors: Ancor Communications Inc., Brocade
Communications, Gadzoox Networks Inc., McDATA Corporation and Vixel Corporation. The OSFI's intent is to develop a
single standard that defines heterogeneous switching among multiple vendors' switches. Once completed, customers will
have the freedom to choose solutions based upon need without worrying about interoperability issues or proprietary
solutions, provided that the switch vendor adheres to the FC-SW-2 and FC-GS-3 standards.
The Process
Key engineers from each company have held regular face-to-face meetings since July of last year. They identified and
defined the elements crucial to allowing data to pass among heterogeneous switches, and will present their conclusions to
the National Committee for Information Technology Standards (NCITS) T11 working group for approval and American
National Standards Institute (ANSI) publication. The final submittal is slated for the T11 group's June meeting with
ratification expected in August. The T11 group is the ANSI governing body for the Fibre Channel FC-SW-2 and FC-GS-3
standards.
Joint interoperability testing is underway to validate in the lab the proposed standards. As such, the participants will be
able to rapidly deploy working, interoperable solutions into the marketplace.
"Without OSFI, switch-to-switch interoperability could have been years away," said Robert Gray, research director for
storage systems at IDC. "I admire the determination of these companies to set aside their competitive hats, devote the
considerable resources, and develop a standard that addresses the SAN industry's needs."
"The creation and support of multi-vendor interoperability standards is a cornerstone of Compaq's strategy for the open
SAN market," said Darren Thomas, VP of Compaq's Multivendor Storage Business Unit. "Compaq is pleased to support
OSFI initiatives that accelerate the interoperability of Fibre Channel based SAN products."
"Hewlett-Packard is a strong proponent for switch interoperability," said Charlie Trentacosti, marketing manager at
Hewlett-Packard. "Hewlett-Packard is excited about the impact that the OSFI interoperability between SAN switches will
have in further advancing the use of SANs in enterprise environments. Customers will benefit from the ability to use
standards-based solutions with HP's SureStore E SAN Manager DM and LM software to efficiently and proactively manage
their distributed storage environment."
About Ancor Communications
Ancor Communications Inc. provides high-performance SANbox(TM) Fibre Channel switches for storage area networks
(SANs). The company's customers include EMC, Hitatchi Data Systems, INRANGE Corporation, MTI Technology Corp., and
Sun Microsystems, as well as premier SAN systems integrators, including Bell Microproducts and Datalink. The company
was the first to deliver a Fibre Channel switch, and the first to hit the one-gigabit performance level. Ancor, an ISO 9001
quality certified company, is a member of the Fibre Channel Industry Association, the Storage Networking Industry
Alliance, the ANSI Standards Committee, the InfiniBand Trade Association, and the University of New Hampshire Fibre
Channel Consortium to promote the advancement of Fibre Channel standards and interoperability. Information on Ancor is
available on the Web at www.ancor.com .
About Gadzoox Networks, Inc.
The Company provides networking solutions for enterprise storage with scalable, managed SAN solutions based on
Gadzoox' Fibre Channel hubs, switches and management products. Serving as modular building blocks, Gadzoox' products
are designed to address the growth in enterprise data through the evolving capabilities of SANs. According to the most
recent report from market research firm IDC dated February 2000, Gadzoox holds the largest installed base of combined
managed switch and hub port shipments from 1997 through 1999. Gadzoox is an ISO 9001 certified Company. Gadzoox
corporate headquarters is located at: 5850 Hellyer Avenue, San Jose, CA 95138. For more information, visit the company's
Web site at www.gadzoox.com or call 888-423-3222.
About McDATA Corporation
McDATA specializes in providing highly available, scalable and centrally managed SAN solutions. Our goal is to deliver
SAN solutions that truly address the storage problems of the enterprise. McDATA offers end-to-end SAN solutions designed
to improve the reliability and availability of data, greatly simplify SAN management and reduce the total cost of
ownership. These enterprise SAN solutions provide IT organizations with comprehensive tools, methodologies and support
to implement robust SANs. McDATA distributes its products through its OEMs, network of resellers and Elite Solution
Partners. For more information on McDATA, visit the web site at mcdata.com .
About Vixel Corporation
Vixel Corporation is a leading provider of Storage Area Network (SAN) solutions. The company's comprehensive product
portfolio of switches, hubs and transceivers with a single management software application delivers a reliable,
interoperable solution to its customers and partners. Established in 1991, the company continues to develop innovative
Fibre Channel products to optimize the deployment, performance and management of SAN solutions. Vixel products are
available through its network of value-added resellers, alliances and OEMs.
For more information, visit Vixel's web site at www.vixel.com . Vixel Corporation is headquartered at 11911 North Creek
Parkway South, Bothell, Washington 98011 and can be contacted by phone at 425-806-5509 or e-mail at
marketing@vixel.com.
All trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
SOURCE Ancor Communications Inc.
/CONTACT: Mary Miller of Ancor Communications, 612-932-4071, or
marym@ancor.com; or Mary Lindstrom of McDATA Corporation, 303-460-3474, or
mlindstrom@mcdata.com; or Dominique Pheiffer of Gadzoox Networks,
408-361-6143, or dominique@gadzoox.com; or Christine Goetz of Vixel
Corporation, 425-806-4511, or cgoetz@vixel.com/
/Web site: ancor.com
mcdata.com
vixel.com
gadzoox.com /
(ANCR ZOOX VIXL) |
