News and Events

2003

FORCE10 NETWORKS INTRODUCES THE INDUSTRY’S FIRST LINE-RATE SMALL FORM FACTOR GIGABIT AND 10 GIGABIT ETHERNET SWITCH/ROUTER

MILPITAS, Calif., November 17, 2003 — Force10 Networks, Inc., the pioneer in resilient switching and routing, today redefined Gigabit and 10 Gigabit Ethernet networking with the introduction of the E300. As the industry’s smallest and most cost-effective platform, the E300 reduces the entry cost of 10 Gigabit Ethernet technology, bringing line-rate performance and unmatched resiliency to small and mid-size data centers and server farms. With the addition of the E300, Force10 is the first to offer a family of line-rate 10 Gigabit Ethernet solutions designed to deliver superior price performance for a range of advanced networking environments.

“The E300 changes the landscape in high performance networking,” said Mark Bieberich, senior analyst for the Yankee Group. “By driving down the entry cost of 10 Gigabit Ethernet with a small form factor solution, the Force10 E300 provides smaller server farms and data centers with cost-effective access to next generation solutions.”

As the newest addition to the E-Series, the E300 delivers the same performance and reliability as the E600 and E1200. The built-in redundancy that characterizes the Force10 E-Series simplifies network topology, management and troubleshooting while line-rate Gigabit and 10 Gigabit throughput, regardless of traffic conditions, enables predictable and resilient application performance.

“At RR Donnelley, we have exceptionally stringent requirements for networking equipment. As a global leader in content management including digital photography, printing, online services and logistics, our network infrastructure must simultaneously deliver line-rate performance and behave predictably in all situations,” said John Schaefer, vice president for infrastructure at RR Donnelley, a multinational company with 30,000 employees in more than 200 locations in North America, South America, Europe and the Asia/Pacific Basin. “Force10’s E-Series is an industry leader in delivering the Gigabit and 10 Gigabit performance and resiliency that ensures applications run smoothly and predictably.”

Joining the E1200 and E600, the E300 extends scalable and cost-effective 10 Gigabit Ethernet technology to mid-size data centers, clusters and Fortune 1000 campus networks. The E300 is a six slot chassis measuring 14 inch tall and can be deployed with as many as 72 Gigabit Ethernet ports or six 10 Gigabit Ethernet ports per chassis, providing the scalability that allows network operators to expand their networks according to performance needs.

“As a multiprogram lab, we need a flexible, small switch that still achieves line-rate 10 Gigabit throughput for the computing needs of our data centers,” said Mike Bennett, senior network engineer of Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, a leading research institution managed by the University of California for the U.S. Department of Energy. “We’ve put the E300 to the test in our high performance network and think it would fit well in the high density computing cluster space.”

To ensure the maximum performance advanced networking environments demand, the E300 combines Force10’s EtherScale architecture with its modular Force10 Operating System (FTOS) software, providing a new level of network-based security. Leveraging the architectural innovations of the E-Series, separate data and control planes isolate malicious traffic to prevent attacks from disabling the network infrastructure while built-in hardware redundancy guarantees performance continuity.

“Force10 was the first to deliver line-rate 10 Gigabit Ethernet a year ago and, with the E300, is now the first to deliver a complete product family that features the resiliency and scalability that are essential to predictable network performance,” said Stephen Garrison, vice president of corporate marketing at Force10. “The E300 provides a cost-effective entry point into 10 Gigabit Ethernet technology without compromising performance and functionality, bringing high performance networking within reach of small and mid-size data centers and server farms that require a rapid return on investment.”

Contact:
Peter Ruzicka
Force10 Networks Inc.
408-965-5151
pruzicka@force10networks.com

Contact:
Jennifer Arculeo
Force10 Networks Inc.
408-965-5194
jarculeo@force10networks.com

About Force10 Networks
Force10 Networks is the pioneer in building and securing high performance networks. Based on a revolutionary system architecture that delivers best-in-class resiliency and massive scalability, Force10’s TeraScale E-Series switch/routers ensure predictable application performance, increase network availability, and reduce operating costs. Today, many of the world’s largest Gigabit Ethernet and 10 Gigabit Ethernet networks depend on Force10 Networks. For additional information, please visit www.force10networks.com.

Force10 Networks and E-Series are registered trademarks, and P-Series, S-Series, TeraScale and FTOS are trademarks of Force10 Networks, Inc. All other company names are trademarks of their respective holders.