Ericsson Migrates U.S. Headquarters to Fully Switched Network Based On 3Com Layer 3 Systems
New 3Com CoreBuilder 3500 Switches Optimize Network Performance for World-Leading
Telecommunications Provider's Preeminent Business Applications
SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 18, 1998-- 3Com Corporation (Nasdaq:COMS - news) today announced that
Ericsson, Inc., the Sweden-based telecommunications systems leader, is standardizing a fully switched network at its U.S. headquarters in
Richardson, TX, on 3Com CoreBuilder 3500 Layer 3 high-function switches. The redundant Fast Ethernet local area network (LAN) today
provides 2,000 users at Ericsson's 10-story headquarters facility with faster, more reliable access to a wide range of business information.
Ericsson is also deploying CoreBuilder 3500 switches at its Richardson data center serving North and South American users and across its
34-building, 5000-user U.S. central region campus, also in Richardson. The interconnected headquarters, data center and regional office
LANs are based on 3Com's Transcend Networking architecture, enabling Ericsson to scale, extend and manage network growth to sustain its
business expansion.
Driven by Transcend Networking, Ericsson is expediting more than 600 business-critical applications supporting the company's research and
development, product design, production, shipping, sales and marketing, human resources and financial programs. Network services include
multimedia applications such as desktop videoconferencing, enabling Richardson users to hold face-to-face meetings with worldwide
colleagues; an enterprise-wide intranet used by departments to post internal Web sites; and high-speed Internet access. The Richardson
LANs also deliver the full suite of Microsoft Office applications, plus IBM Memo, Microsoft Outlook and Microsoft Exchange email.
''Ericsson's commitment to developing new products and continuous growth is making networked communications more important to our
success than ever before,'' said Bill Edwards, Ericsson's network communications manager, central region. ''Using 3Com's CoreBuilder 3500
switches and 3Com edge devices, we now have a fast, reliable and manageable architecture to accomplish these objectives for many years to
come.''
Optimal Layer 3 Speed and Control
Ericsson's new LANs emanated from the firm's need to boost network performance to support rising numbers of users and applications.
Having previously used router-based shared Ethernet/FDDI LANs with no redundancy, Ericsson encountered increasing network congestion
and outages that hindered its overall efficiency.
''Any disturbance on an FDDI ring put everyone on that ring at risk,'' Edwards recalled. ''Moving one person to a different collision domain,
a task we did up to four times a week as we grew, required us to manually add bridging to our routers, and we couldn't respond to increasing
demands by product developers and other power users for 100 megabit per second desktop connections.''
To rectify this, Ericsson sought greater speed, stability and control using a fully redundant, standards-based infrastructure able to support
Layer 3 switching. After evaluating solutions from three leading vendors, the company selected 3Com CoreBuilder 3500 Layer 3 switches as
the core systems for its Richardson headquarters, data center and central region. The CoreBuilder 3500 Layer 3 switch provides
non-blocking, multi-protocol, wire-speed routing at 10 times the performance of a traditional backbone router for as low as one-tenth the
cost. The switch also features advanced policy-based management and Fast Ethernet, Gigabit Ethernet, FDDI and ATM interfaces.
''The CoreBuilder 3500 switch was the only system we saw with the out-of-box capacity to support Layer 3 switching,'' said Edwards. ''Using
Layer 3 switching, we can configure and control each port on the switch, enabling us to optimize uptime, performance and throughput with a
lot less overhead than routers.
''The CoreBuilder 3500 switch also provides full RMON capabilities and support of the OSPF routing protocol, ensuring that all traffic is
routed at top networking speed. It delivers 100 Mbps connections to power users and will provide a smooth migration path from Fast Ethernet
to Gigabit Ethernet or ATM if needed.''
Deployed beginning last December, four CoreBuilder 3500 systems at Ericsson's data center cross-linked to two CoreBuilder 3500 units two
miles away at the company's headquarters will form a six-switch redundant Fast Ethernet core. The CoreBuilder 3500 switches -- beyond
providing backbone connectivity -- also serve as the gateway to Ericsson's wide area network, replacing core routers originally assigned to
that task. Ericsson also standardized on 3Com SuperStack II desktop switches, which provide switched 10 megabit per second (Mbps) Ethernet
links from wiring closets to users.
The telecommunications company additionally plans to use 3Com's Transcend Enterprise Manager network management application to
proactively manage and monitor the Richardson LANs. Ericsson is also using 3Com EtherLink III network interface cards on PCs and
workstations.
''3Com is enabling our users to access and share business information with no delay or downtime,'' Edwards concluded. ''Applications that
once took several minutes to load when we used core routers, FDDI rings and shared media now take less than 30 seconds, and network
response times have never been better.''
About Ericsson
Ericsson's 100,000 employees are active in more than 130 countries. Their combined expertise in fixed and mobile networks, mobile phones
and infocom systems makes Ericsson a world-leading supplier in telecommunications.
About 3Com
3Com Corporation enables individuals and organizations worldwide to communicate and share information and resources at anytime from
anywhere. As one of the world's preeminent suppliers of data, voice and video communications technology, 3Com has delivered networking
solutions to more than 100 million customers worldwide. The company provides enterprises, network service providers and carriers, small
businesses and consumers with comprehensive, innovative information access products and system solutions for building intelligent, reliable
and high performance local and wide area networks. For further information, visit 3Com's World Wide Web site at 3com.com, or
the press site at 3com.com.
3Com, Transcend, SuperStack and EtherLink are registered trademarks and CoreBuilder is a trademark of 3Com Corporation. All other
brands and names are the property of their respective owners.
Contact:
3Com Public Relations
Susan Ursch
978/264-1486
Susan_Ursch@3Com.com
or
The Brisson Group
David Brisson
508/653-4091 |
