• First network switch designed for I2O specification
• Programmable Switch Engine delivers unparalleled flexibility and superior performance
• PCI-to-PCI bridging supports multiple concurrent network channels

COMDEX/Spring - Chicago, Illinois - June 4, 1996 - At an Intel Corporation briefing today, ZNYX Corporation previewed a new PCI-based Fast Ethernet switching architecture designed with Intel's i960® RP processor. By implementing the Intel RISC processor as a Programmable Switch Engine (PSE) in ZNYX's pciSwitch™ family of products, scheduled to be released later this month, ZNYX intends to become the first networking company to take advantage of the power of the new intelligent I/O specification, I2O, bringing on-board intelligence and LAN switching technology together. The result is a new, powerful PCI-based switching fabric that will extend 10/100 Mbps packet switching for bandwidth-restricted networks at a fraction of the cost of conventional switching products.

ZNYX's new pciSwitch is an innovative modular switching design that integrates multi-port 10/100 Mbps switching on a single PCI card or system. The pciSwitch family is designed to offer multiple 10 and 100 Mbps media types on a single board or PCI-bus system that maintains a high-speed 1 Gbps (1,000 Mbps) link directly to network servers.

"We are pleased ZNYX has chosen to embrace the technology offered by the i960 RP I/O processor and the I2O architecture," said Alan Steinberg, General Manager, Intel's Enterprise Computing I/O Operation. "Products based on the I2O specification promise to set a new performance standard in high-volume servers and switching products. The ZNYX pciSwitch marks the realization of the potential the I2O spec has to offer. With its innovative pciSwitch design, ZNYX will be one of the first vendors to unlock both the full processing power of the processor and take full advantage of I2O spec for even faster performance and greater compatibility."

"Once again ZNYX is in the forefront of PCI networking technology with its introduction of the pciSwitch," stated Carlton G. Amdahl, CEO of Amdahl Associates. "ZNYX's decision to use the I2O architecture provides the means for enormous flexibility and greater performance."

By designing the pciSwitch using Intel's new i960 RP processor, ZNYX has created the industry's first Programmable Switch Engine (PSE). Proprietary switching software developed by ZNYX's engineers takes advantage of the Intel RISC architecture to deliver superior switching performance and flexibility than proprietary ASIC technology. For example, by developing software that uses i960 RP I/O processor as an integrated switching engine, users can upgrade their PCI switching products to support new technologies, such as VLAN and RMON, without having to replace their switch. The ZNYX switching software can be implemented in FLASH memory or system DRAM memory for simplified upgrades.

The Modular Switching Architecture (MSA) of ZNYX's pciSwitch software solution is well suited to take advantage of the I2O intelligent I/O specification and the i960 I/O processor. The i960 I/O processor increases overall system performance by providing a subsystem to handle interrupt-intensive tasks typically handled by the host CPU, which means even faster host performance. The I2O specification provides a consistent driver model across multiple operating systems and any I2O-compatible hardware device, improving system performance and reducing maintenance costs. This makes it easier for ZNYX to support third-party products. For example, when the pciSwitch Chassis is released with the I2O-compliant driver support module, it will include two PCI slots to support I2O-compatible products, such as ZNYX pciSwitch hardware elements.

The Intel i960 RP I/O processor includes PCI-to-PCI bridging, so the pciSwitch will be able to support multiple, simultaneous network channels with mixed media and topologies, all on the same PCI board. This means customers not only get more flexibility, but they also realize substantial savings since simultaneous network channels can be handled by a single RISC processor.

"The i960 RP processor represents a quantum leap in the extension of the PCI framework," stated Alan Deikman, Chief Technology Officer of ZNYX. "The three-way bridge capabilities of the i960 RP enables our new pciSwitch product family to achieve unprecedented levels of integration flexibility and switching performance. For example, in our pciSwitch Chassis, the i960 RP I/O processor makes it possible for ZNYX to offer multiple network channels, additional PCI slots, and a high-performance switch engine. By taking advantage of the Intel RISC architecture we can deliver a high-performance, PCI-based switching solution at a fraction of the cost of stand-alone switches."

"By designing our new pciSwitch Programmable Switch Engine with Intel's i960 RP I/O processor, we can give our customers more processing power and more versatility," said Jim Hsia, Vice President of Marketing for ZNYX. "The result is a line of PCI-based, modular switching products capable of growing with their networking needs."

ZNYX expects to release the full line of pciSwitch products later this month. Pricing, availability, and other details will be disclosed at that time.