Attachmate Provides Enterprise-Wide LAN-to-Host Messaging Solutions for Microsoft Exchange Server; Microsoft Exchange Server and Attachmate EXTRA! Connectors help customers seamlessly integrate PROFS, OfficeVision, and SNADS with Microsoft Exchange

Business Wire, April 2, 1996

LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 2, 1996--Attachmate - The Intranet Co.(TM) - announced today that it will provide comprehensive LAN-to-host messaging and scheduling connectivity solutions to IBM host-based office systems users.

Attachmate's EXTRA!(r) Connector product suite offers the only products available to help large organizations migrate from host-based office systems to Microsoft(R) Exchange Server. The products, EXTRA! Connector for PROFS/OV and EXTRA! Connector for SNADS, provide messaging and scheduling connectivity between LAN-based systems and IBM host-based office systems including PROFS, OfficeVision, SNADS and Verimation Memo. By combining Microsoft Exchange Server and the Attachmate(r) EXTRA! Connectors, companies get all the tools necessary to seamlessly move from traditional host-based messaging servers to Microsoft Windows NT(r) operating system-based Microsoft Exchange servers.

"Attachmate is a leading vendor for Microsoft desktop messaging and scheduling connectivity requirements to and from IBM host applications," said Rob Shurtleff, general manager, Microsoft Exchange Server Connectivity at Microsoft Corp. "Attachmate's EXTRA! Connectors are important products for Exchange Server and for large enterprise accounts that need to link host messaging systems to Microsoft Exchange."

"The EXTRA! Connectors for PROFS/OV and SNADS add yet another important component to our complete package of Intranet communications solutions," said Larry Zito, executive vice president of products at Attachmate Corp. "Our goal is to give companies access to information across virtually any collection of enterprise and Internet systems, including LAN-to-host messaging and scheduling connectivity. The Attachmate EXTRA! Connectors preserve enterprise host data access, allowing corporations currently running systems such as PROFS to confidently embrace the Exchange platform."

"It is impossible to completely eliminate our host-based PROFS messaging systems as we deploy Microsoft Exchange Server," said Tom Webb, manager, electronic messaging for Shell Services Corp. "Shell needed a strong integration facility to ease the transition. The Microsoft/Attachmate integrated solution, EXTRA! Connector for PROFS/OV, allowed us to start deploying our next-generation LAN-based messaging system while maintaining mission critical access to IBM host resources."

The EXTRA! Connector products are gateways that run on Windows NT-based servers. Both products encapsulate Microsoft Exchange messages across the host messaging backbone without loss of data integrity. They provide confirmation of delivery and read status, and support OfficeVision notes, attachments, and documents. The EXTRA! Connector products can reside on the same machine as Microsoft Exchange Server, and require no host code.

-- The EXTRA! Connector for PROFS/OV allows Microsoft Exchange Server clients to transparently share information, and schedule meetings in real-time with PROFS and OfficeVision/VM users. The EXTRA! Connector for PROFS/OV is the only solution that provides real-time, bi-directional scheduling between PROFS/OfficeVision and Microsoft Exchange Server and Microsoft Schedule .

-- The EXTRA! Connector for SNADS allows users of Microsoft Exchange Server to transparently send and receive electronic mail information to and from users on IBM.

-- MVS and AS/400 messaging systems such as OfficeVision/MVS, OfficeVision/400, and Verimation MEMO.

Microsoft recommends Attachmate's EXTRA! Connectors for PROFS/OV and SNADS to all IBM host office systems users planning on implementing Microsoft Exchange Server. In addition, Microsoft and Attachmate are combining field efforts to help corporate customers understand and evaluate the EXTRA! Connector solutions. Attachmate has trained systems engineers to provide technical support to sales forces at both Microsoft and Attachmate. In return, Microsoft's Enterprise Customer Unit is building an Intranet home page to provide EXTRA! Connector products marketing and technical information to its entire sales force.

Consulting Services at both companies will help enterprise customers architect seamless transitions from PROFS to Microsoft Exchange Server. In addition, Attachmate and Microsoft are working together to present the combined solution to enterprise customers at their respective Executive Briefing Centers.

Attachmate and Microsoft also selected key Solution Providers that provide professional consulting services to enterprise customers needing help implementing migration paths from PROFS to Microsoft Exchange Server. These Solution Providers are: New Technology Partners, Compucom, and 3S Software. Each company is certified on the Microsoft BackOffice(TM) family, Microsoft Exchange Server, and Attachmate EXTRA! Connectors and has in-depth experience servicing large client organizations with critical host connectivity needs.

Pricing and Availability

The EXTRA! Connector for PROFS list at a US price of $12,500, which consists of single server license and 250 client access licenses. Additional client licenses are available in 250 client access user packs at a list price of $12,500. The product will be generally available on April 4, 1996.