Xylan shipping superswitch hardware for OmniSwitch products

Calabasas, California -- May 3, 1996 -- XYLAN CORPORATION TODAY ANNOUNCED
THAT IT HAS CREATED AND IS SHIPPING AN ENTIRELY NEW GENERATION OF HARDWARE
FOR ITS HIGH-END OMNISWITCH PRODUCT LINE.

All of the OmniSwitch physical interfaces -- Ethernet, token ring, FDDI,
CDDI, Fast Ethernet, and ATM -- are included in the new release. The new
switching modules use large numbers of ASICs and RISC processors to
support powerful software capabilities like any-to-any switching, IP and
IPX routing, ATM LAN Emulation, and network-wide virtual LANs.

A nine-slot OmniSwitch filled with the new generation of hardware contains
17 RISC processors, 40 ASICs, at least 24 MB of RAM, and enough CAM
(Content-Addressable Memory) to support 8,000 - 12,000 devices. This is
more processing power than any other switch on the market.

The result of the new Xylan technology is that the largest OmniSwitch is
now positioned into the same applications as a "superhub". It can support
up to 96 Ethernet segments and up to 48 token rings, with every Ethernet
and token ring port fully switched. But unlike superhubs, the Xylan
"superswitch":

* links any type of device or LAN to any other type of device or LAN,
without having to use routing

* supports a large number of Ethernet segments and token rings -- not just
a lot of ports on a limited number of segments and rings

* implements powerful VLANs, across FDDI, ATM and Fast Ethernet backbones,
grouping users by port, by MAC address, by protocol type, by IP subnet, or
by IPX network.

Each of the new modules incorporates Xylan's Pizza ASIC set, which uses
leading-edge .35 micron CMOS ASIC technology.

TWELVE-PORT ETHERNET SWITCHING MODULE (ESM-C-12)

The ESM-C-12 switches 12 Ethernet ports, on RJ-45 connectors, over Category
3, 4 and 5 cable. The ESM connects to 10 Mbps Ethernet devices or hubs.
The ESM-12 now shipping.

TWELVE-PORT TELCO ETHERNET SWITCHING MODULE (ESM-T-12)

ESM-T-12 is similar to the ESM-C-12, but uses a single 50-pin "telco"
("RJ-21," "AMP," etc.) connector. It's intended for applications where a
connectorized cross-connect block is used for wire distribution. The
module is now being field tested, and will be in general customer release
in May.

EIGHT-PORT ETHERNET FIBER OPTIC SWITCHING MODULE (ESM-F-8)

The ESM-F-8 is similar to the ESM-C-12, but supports eight Ethernet
segments on 62.5/125 micron multimode fiber optic cable. It is compatible
with 10BaseFL Ethernet. As many as 64 direct fiber connections to
individual Ethernet devices or to hubs are supported in a single nine-slot
OmniSwitch. The module is now being field tested, and will be in general
customer release in May.

OMNISWITCH HIGH-SPEED SWITCHING MODULE (HSM)

The High-Speed Switching Module is the basis for token ring, FDDI, CDDI,
Fast Ethernet and ATM switching in the OmniSwitch. It provides apowerful
generalized switching platform, onto which each of the MAC-layer options
can be mounted. This makes it easy to transition from one technology to
another. For example, an HSM can be easily converted from an FDDI module
to an ATM access module when a backbone transition is needed.

The new version of the High-Speed switching module replaces the earlier
FPGAs (Field-Programmable Gate Arrays) with custom ASICs, and provides two
RISC processors instead of one. One of the two processors is used for
traffic received from the network, the other for traffic transmitted to
the network. This greatly increases speed and throughput.

The price of the HSM is included in the prices of the various complete
modules (token ring, FDDI, ATM, etc.). The module is now being tested, and
will be in general customer release in July.

FOUR-PORT AND EIGHT-PORT FAST ETHERNET MODULES (ESM-100C-4 AND ESM-
100C-8)

The ESM-100 switching modules support four or eight 100BaseTX fast Ethernet
interfaces, grouped into one or two segments per module. As many as 16
fast Ethernet segments can be connected to a single nine-slot OmniSwitch.
The ESM 100C module supports IEEE-standard 100BaseTX devices or hubs over
Category 5 UTP cable, using RJ- 45 connectors.

Both the ESM-100-4 and the ESM-100-8 are shipping now.

SIX-PORT FIBER OPTIC TOKEN RING MODULE (TSM-F-6)

The TSM-F-6 provides six 4/16 Mbps token ring ports over 62.5/125 micron
multimode fiber optic cable, using dual ST connectors for each port. The
power budget is 12 dBm. A cable length of up to 2000 meters is supported
for long cable runs.

Each port can be individually configured by user software selection as a
lobe port, station port, or RI/RO (Ring In/Ring Out) port. The lobe and
station ports conform to the IEEE 802.5j specification. The RI/RO ports
conform to vendor-specific implementations, since no standard is
available; the first options supported are SynOptics and Bytex, and others
are being added.

The module is shipping now.

FDDI SINGLE MODE MODULE (FSM-S-1 AND FSM-S-2)

The FSM-S supports one or two dual-ring FDDI interfaces over single mode
fiber optic cable, using dual SC connectors for each port. Both SAS
(single-attached stations) and DAS (dual-attached stations) are supported.
The power budget is 13 dBm and a distance of up to two kilometers is
supported for long cable runs.

The OmniSwitch has supported FDDI for some time, over multimode and UTP
cable. The new single mode option makes it easy to extend an OmniSwitch
FDDI backbone over longer distances. The module is released and shipping
now.

SINGLE MODE FIBER OPTIC ETHERNET ADAPTER BOARD (ESM-AB-FL-S)

ESM-AB-FL-S is a single mode 10BaseFL adapter board which mounts in Xylan's
Universal Ethernet Switching Module (ESM-U). The ESM-U also supports
10BaseT, 10Base5, 10Base2, and multimode 10BaseFL. The new adapter board
uses dual ST connectors, has a power budget of 13 dBm, and connects to a
10BaseFL hub port or device.

The ESM-FL adapter board is released and shipping now.

Headquartered in Calabasas, California, Xylan Corporation is a leading
provider of high-bandwidth switching systems that enhance the performance
of existing local area networks and facilitate migration to next
generation networking technologies such as ATM. Its OmniSwitch and
PizzaSwitch products connect Ethernet, token ring, FDDI, CDDI, 100BaseT,
and ATM, at wire-speed, with automatic any-to-any translation. Low cost is
coupled with powerful software features, including: AutoTracker virtual
LANs; ATM PVCs, SVCs, and LAN Emulation; IP and IPX routing; and graphical
network management on a broad set of standard management platforms. Xylan
provides a wide range of platforms, all of which use the same hardware
technologies and run the same code. Extensive redundancy and reliability
features are integrated into the products.

Xylan anticipates that OmniCell, Xylan's cell switching capability, will be
integrated into the OmniSwitch backplane in the first half of 1996 and
that modules to support 25Mbps, OC-3, and OC-12 rates will be available in
the second half of 1996. Xylan anticipates that the OmniSwitch with
OmniCell will be both a powerful backbone ATM switch and a cost-effective
ATM desktop switch.

This news release includes forward-looking statements that involve risks
and uncertainties, including the timely availability of new products and
other risks detailed in the company's prospectus and report Form 10-Q for
the quarter ending March 31, 1996.
 
 =========================================================
 From the 'New Product News' Electronic News Service on...
 AOL (Keyword = New Products) and Delphi (GO COMP PROD)
 =========================================================
 This information was processed from data provided by the
 company/author mentioned. For additional details, please
 contact them directly at the address/phone# indicated.
 Trademarks are the property of their respective owners!
 =========================================================
 All submissions for this service should be addressed to:
 BAKER ENTERPRISES,  20 Ferro Dr,  Sewell, NJ  08080  USA
 Email:   rbakerpc@aol.com   --or--   rbakerpc@delphi.com
 =========================================================
