ODS Integrates New VLAN Switch with CDDI/FDDI Uplink Port

The New 1094-CS1201 Adds VLAN Capabilities and LAN-to-100-Mbps FDDI/CDDI
Switching to Infinity Hub Line

Richardson, Texas -- May 8, 1995 -- Today, Optical Data Systems, Inc.
(ODS), (NASDAQ-NMS:ODSI) the leading provider of intelligent switching
hubs, announced the integration of the 1094-CS1201 Ethernet Workgroup
Switch (The ODS version of the Cisco Catalyst 1201) into its family of
Infinity intelligent switching hubs. The 1094-CS1201 is an Ethernet switch
that provides workgroups with translation bridging as well as limited
routing functionality. The switch comes equipped with eight 10BaseT ports
that provide dedicated 10-Mbps connections to each user port and one
100-Mbps CDDI/FDDI port. The combination of switched 10-Mbps ports and the
100-Mbps uplinks will provide the necessary connections and bandwidth to
solve the bottleneck problems commonly experienced at dedicated servers,
backbones and WAN connections.

"The great thing about the 1094-CS1201 is that 10-Mbps switching increases
bandwidth which enhances productivity within workgroups while also
ensuring security and stability," said Robert Hoskings, ODS product
marketing manager. He added, "not only do users get increased local
bandwidth, but users also get a 100-Mbps interface to provide high-speed
access to backbones, network servers and core routers. This cost-effective
module combines the performance enhancement qualities of switching with
the access control and the firewall protection derived from upstream
routers attached via the high-speed uplink. This gives network managers
more latitude to distribute performance among workgroups while ensuring
control and stability across the corporate network."

RISC-Based Processing Engine

The 1094-CS1201 is powered by a RISC-based processor that maximizes
bandwidth to the desktop. Unlike bridges or switches with only Application
Specific Integrated Circuits (ASIC) based processors, RISC processors
offer better network performance because they provide better network
management, ensure better network traffic integrity and provide custom
broadcast filters. One of the features made possible by RISC processors is
the Automatic Packet Recognition Translation (APaRT) technology. APaRT
performs important frame "conversion" functions as well as frame
"translation." For example, APaRT will translate Novell IPX frames from
Ether RAW format to FDDI SNAP (the accepted standard).

To complement the RISC processor, the 1094-CS1201 also uses an embedded
ASIC-based RMON agent to monitor traffic flow, identify heavy users and
decode switched traffic for troubleshooting. The RMON agent is important
because it can monitor multiple Ethernet segments simultaneously by
capturing information off the Infinity's backplane.

The 1094-CS1201 takes up two slots in the Infinity hub S-class chassis and
can attach to any one of the four Ethernet collapsed backbone (backplane)
segments. Other features include MIC connectors that can be single- or
dual-attached; flash memory for easy upgrades of switch software; and,
enhanced address memory support for 1,024 addresses with the 1K version
and 4,096 addresses for the 4K version.

Workgroup Director GUI Interface

The Workgroup Director is an easy-to-use, feature-rich SNMP-based network
management tool that allows network managers to launch, monitor and
control all Cisco products, including adapters using an intuitive
graphical user interface (GUI). The 1094-CS1201 comes standard with
Workgroup Director software and can be upgraded to include the following
optional software modules: Virtual Network Services (VNS) with Virtual IP
Services (VIP) and Enhanced Monitoring Services (EMS) with Switched Port
Analyzer (SPAN).

SNMP Network Management

The Workgroup Director supports full SNMP management and can be launched
directly from the Infinity LanVision hub tool on any SNMP compatible
device. The Infinity LanVision hub tool can be used to manage many
different aspects of SNMP management including Agent-to-Agent support
which enables a network manager to monitor all devices attached to the
Infinity hub chassis. Workgroup Director and LanVision can also be
integrated with other SNMP-based platforms such as HP OpenView, IBM
NetView 6000, SunNet Manager, or the CiscoWorks series of management
applications.

The 1094-CS1201 supports IEEE 802.1d Spanning Tree algorithms and provides
a rich set of management features including an SNMP agent to support MIB
II, FDDI MIB and Ethernet MIB. The LanVision hub tool supports all nine
groups of RMON for Ethernet. Another feature, the Password Admin
Interface, allows out-of-band local network management, remote dial-up
access or remote in-band access via a Telnet session. The Admin Interface
can also be used to download new software releases locally over the
network.

Virtual Network Services

Virtual Networking Services (VNS) provides the 1094-CS1201 with a
comprehensive set of features to manage switched network traffic. The VNS
lets network managers add, move and change individuals of multiple virtual
workgroups across a connected stack of switches. VNS also helps managers
implement multiple workgroups on the same switched network, provide for
security controls to sensitive resources within these workgroups and
provide broadcast services that optimize the performance of switched
workgroups.

Another workgroup segmentation feature in VNS is Virtual IP (VIP) services.
VIP also allows for the creation of multiple, segmented, IP-based
workgroups, but lets these users communicate between workgroups as well.
The network manager can use VIP along with VNS' access lists to limit the
kinds of communications allowed between workgroups. Access lists are user
definable and customizable so that the network manager can control the
kind of information that is shared between and even within workgroups.

Enhanced Monitoring Services

Optional Enhanced Monitoring Services (EMS) monitors switched workgroup
traffic on the 1094-CS1201. The Switched Port Analyzer (SPAN) function
lets a single network analyzer monitor all of 1094-CS1201's switched
Ethernet segments. The 1094-CS1201's embedded RMON agent also monitors
traffic flow, identifies the network's heavy users and decodes switched
traffic for troubleshooting purposes.

The 1094-CS1201's Switched Port Analyzer (SPAN) feature lets a single
network analyzer monitor traffic off any one of the 1094-CS1201's switched
ports. The network manager simply attaches the network analyzer to the
SPAN port and then configures the 1094-CS1201 to mirror the traffic of an
Ethernet port to the SPAN port. With SPAN, managers can now remotely
"dial-in" to analyzer to any of the 1094-CS1201's switched segments, thus
simplifying remote diagnostics and troubleshooting of network problems
across the 1094-CS1201 switch. The 1094-CS1201's EMS also provides the
industry's first RMON agent embedded on the switch. The two key advantages
to an embedded RMON agent are the ability to monitor communications
passing through the switch and the ability to use a variety of third party
RMON console monitors to collect data from the switch.

Availability and Pricing

The 1094-CS1201 and 1094-CS1202 will begin shipping in volume quantities in
May. They are priced at $11,520 and $13,320 respectively. The only
difference between the two models is that the 1094-CS1201 comes with 1K of
address memory and the 1094-CS1202 comes with 4K. The VNS and EMS optional
software modules are priced at $3,594 each.

Optical Data Systems, Inc. (ODS)

ODS sells a full range of intelligent switching hubs; high-speed
multi-protocol routers, bridges, switches and sophisticated network
management modules to large corporations that build very large and
advanced enterprise-wide information internetworks including LANs, MANs
and WANs. Its mainstay product, the ODS Infinity intelligent switching
hub, is the largest and only hub on the market that supports all four of
the industry standards -- Ethernet, Token Ring, Fiber Distributed Data
Interface (FDDI) and Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM). The Infinity hub
provides superior local and remote SNMP-based management that supports all
groups of RMON for both Ethernet, Token Ring and FDDI networks. ODS can be
reached at (214) 234-6400.

Optical Data Systems Inc
1101 E. Arapaho Rd
Richardson, TX 75081
214-301-3811,  fax 214-301-3893

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