FlowWise Networks Introduces Breakthrough Layer 3 Enhancement for Cisco Catalyst Switches

Business Wire, May 3, 1999

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 3, 1999--

CatStak Software Allows Stacking of FlowWise Router Accelerators

with Catalysts, To Support Up To 896 Wire-Speed Layer 3 Ports

FlowWise Networks, a pioneering developer of router acceleration products, today added new software capabilities to its award-winning Router Accelerator family.

Its new CatStak(TM) software allows users to stack multiple FlowWise Router Accelerators with a Cisco Catalyst switch to add up to 896 wire-speed layer 3 Fast Ethernet ports to a production network. FlowWise also introduced AutoPort(TM) software, which enables its Router Accelerators to support more accelerated LAN segments without the risk of human error during the setup process. Like all FlowWise products, CatStak and AutoPort are completely self-configuring and work with all types of routers and FlowWise Router Accelerators.

CatStak works with existing equipment to easily expand an organization's campus backbone network. Up to 64 FlowWise Router Accelerators can be stacked using a standard Cisco Catalyst switch. CatStak can be used either in a collapsed backbone configuration, offering a very large number of ports for centralized routing, or in a distributed campus configuration, accelerating multiple routers. CatStak leverages Cisco's EtherChannel technology, allowing organizations to quickly deploy a high-speed, scalable campus backbone network.

"Network managers are finding that the installation of Cisco's new NetFlow Feature Card requires a huge amount of reconfiguration of their routers and Catalyst switches. And the resulting layer 3 switching performance is only a small fraction of wire speed," said Randy Fardal, vice president of marketing at FlowWise Networks. "CatStak delivers the performance and port expansion they need, without an extensive network overhaul, and AutoPort makes our Router Accelerators so easy to use that they cannot be set up incorrectly."

CatStak and AutoPort take advantage of the FlowWise Router Accelerators' hardware-based IP packet-processing ASICs to deliver up to 130 million packets per second in a single stack. With this extraordinary level of performance, FlowWise is able to provide full wire-speed performance on each 100Mbps port. When compared with the software-based packet processing of a high-end Cisco, Nortel Networks, or 3Com router, FlowWise Router Accelerators provide many times more throughput and ports.

Zero Configuration/Zero Administration

The entire FlowWise Router Accelerator family, including CatStak and AutoPort, requires zero configuration and zero ongoing administration. Using a unique capability called AutoRoute(TM), FlowWise Router Accelerators automatically discover the network topology, then automatically start performing all standard layer three routing operations for local data, including header modifications, TTL updates, and checksum recalculation. WAN data is simply passed on to the conventional router, without modification or delay.

The conventional router continues to handle DECnet, AppleTalk, and all other legacy protocols. This guarantees that installation of any FlowWise Router Accelerator will not disrupt any network applications. Because AutoRoute is routing protocol independent, it works equally well in networks that use RIP, OSPF, or Cisco's IGRP (Interior Gateway Routing Protocol) and EIGRP.

CatStak works with an unmodified Cisco Catalyst 4000, 5000, or 6000 switch to interconnect the Router Accelerators. Customers can use Cisco's EtherChannel to provide scalable and reliable interconnection by trunking multiple Fast Ethernet ports. With support for 896 Fast Ethernet ports, 192Gbps backplane capacity, and 130 million packet-per-second routing, CatStak delivers world-class Router Accelerator performance. This is more than 100 times the performance of a Cisco Catalyst with a NetFlow Feature Card.

Pricing and Live Demonstration

CatStak and AutoPort are available for $2000, as an upgrade to any FlowWise Router Accelerator already installed. For products purchased after April 30, 1999, CatStak and AutoPort will be available as a free upgrade. FlowWise will demonstrate the software with operational Router Accelerators, in booth number 1231, at NetWorld Interop Las Vegas, May 11-13, 1999. The software will be available for field trials following the show, and will be generally available in August.

Award Winning Products

Named by Data Communications as a Top 25 Hot Startup of 1998, FlowWise offers two general-purpose Router Accelerators, the IMS 800 and IMS 1600, for use with any type of router, as well as the integral RA 7000 module, for use with Cisco 7000 series routers. The company also offers AutoGuard(TM), an automatic Router Accelerator bypass switch, for business-critical networks. FlowWise products have received a number of honors, including Data Communications Hot Product of the Year (1999), Best of LAN Times, Best of Show (NetWorld Interop 98), Users Choice Award (CMA Telecom 98), and the CRN Test Center's Recommended Product (Comdex 98).