SANTA CLARA, Calif. and NEW YORK, Sept. 17, 2008 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Foundry Networks(r), Inc. (Nasdaq:FDRY), a performance and total solutions leader for end-to-end switching and routing, today announced the FastIron(tm) WS Series of one rack unit (1RU) fixed form factor Layer 2/3 switches. Available in eight models, including Power over Ethernet (PoE) models, and field upgradeable to Layer 3 routing, the FastIron WS (FWS) Series is one of the most complete family of compact convergence-ready Layer 2/3 switches in the industry. The FastIron WS Series expands Foundry's(r) intelligent edge portfolio with a product family designed for small and medium businesses (SMB), branch offices and large distributed enterprises. The FastIron WS switches are available as 24- and 48-port 10/100 or 10/100/1000 Mbps models. Each switch model is orderable with or without Power over Ethernet (PoE). FastIron WS series PoE switches support the IEEE 802.3af standard for delivering up to 12.95 watts of power to an Ethernet endpoint. The standards-based PoE is a popular method for powering network endpoints such as Voice over IP (VoIP) equipment, video surveillance cameras and wireless LAN access points.
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The FastIron WS Series switches are built for environments in which space, power and and fan noise are important deployment considerations. Designed for reduced power consumption, the FastIron WS series is one of the industry's most power efficient family of Layer 2/3 edge switches enabling operators to save on energy costs without compromising performance or functionality. The FastIron WS compact design (4.3 cm x 44 cm x 35 cm, HxWxD) is well-suited for sites in which installation space is limited. Additionally, the switches' low fan noise will be attractive in environments that require low ambient noise.
The FastIron FWS series switches are built on a wire-speed hardware architecture and support Foundry's extensive suite of embedded security and advanced Layer 2 networking services. For added network flexibility, the FastIron WS switches support an upgrade option for edge Layer 3 routing (RIP and OSPF). This combination of performance and intelligence makes the FastIron WS Series a compelling network access solution for both enterprise and service provider customers.
For the enterprise, the FastIron WS Series provides cost-effective network access for desktops, servers, workstations, wireless LAN networks and other Ethernet connected endpoints. To simplify operations in VoIP environments, the FastIron WS supports IEEE 802.1ab LLDP and ANSI TIA 1057 LLDP-MED, enabling organizations to build standards-based and interoperable best-of-breed networks. Additionally, the FastIron WS is available with IEEE 802.3af Power over Ethernet for powering next-generation IP devices such as VoIP handsets, wireless LAN access points, and IP video cameras.
Extending beyond the enterprise, the FastIron WS series can be used in metro area environments with features that include Foundry's Metro Ring Protocol (MRP) for building resilient ring-based topologies, VLAN stacking and advanced multicast capabilities including Internet Group Management Protocol (IGMP) and MLD v1/v2 snooping for controlling multicast traffic in content distribution applications.
The FastIron WS Series features embedded hardware-based sFlow traffic monitoring providing a powerful tool for an array of security, accounting and network engineering purposes. FastIron WS Series switches support a suite of security features including DHCP snooping and dynamic ARP inspection to prevent address spoofing and man-in-the-middle attacks, rate limiting, protection against TCP and ICMP denial of service (DoS) attacks, and standards-based network access control (NAC) with multi-endpoint authentication. Additionally, spanning tree Root Guard and BPDU guard protect the network topology from protocol-level attacks.
"Foundry continues to expand its networking solutions with the introduction of the FastIron WS Series," said Steven J. Schuchart Jr., principal analyst, Current Analysis. "This product allows Foundry to extend its enterprise switching portfolio to cover additional segments of the market and allows customers greater flexibility."
Key Features Include:
* Compact 1RU, high-performance 24-port and 48-port 10/100 and 10/100/1000 Mbps base models and 802.3af Power over Ethernet (PoE) models * Each model supports four combination RJ45/SFP Gigabit Ethernet ports for high-capacity aggregation * Industry-leading power efficiency for Layer 2/3 switches (e.g., 35 watts for FWS 624 model) * Wire-speed Layer 2/3 hardware forwarding * IPv4/IPv6 management access and advanced Layer 2 Ethernet switching and high-availability features including VSRP, VRRP, Voice VLAN, DHCP-based auto-configuration and Metro Ring Protocol (MRP) * Field upgradeable to edge Layer 3 routing supporting RIP, OSPF and equal cost multipath routing (ECMP) * Robust suite of security capabilities including extended ACLs, MAC filters, TCP SYN and ICMP denial of service protection, DHCP snooping and Dynamic ARP Inspection, spanning tree BPDU guard and root guard, unknown unicast, broadcast and multicast rate limiting and enhanced Lawful Intercept compliance features * Advanced hardware-based Quality of Service (QoS) architecture supports multiple traffic queues and combined strict priority and weighted round robin scheduling for dependable and high-quality network convergence * Open and standards-based network access control featuring multi-host 802.1X access control, multi-device MAC authentication and policy- controlled MAC-based VLANs * IronShield 360 intrusion protection delivers complete, dynamic and real-time protection from network and host-based attacks * Concurrent port mirroring and hardware-based sFlow traffic sampling enable network-wide traffic monitoring for traffic accounting, intrusion detection, 802.1X identity monitoring, link utilization and fault isolation
"Foundry continues to extend its leadership in delivering intelligent solutions for convergence and security at the network edge," said Bob Schiff, vice president and general manager for Foundry's Enterprise Business Unit. "The FastIron WS Series provides our customers with compelling solutions for the network edge with an array of compact and power-efficient switch models. The FastIron WS Series brings a powerful and proven feature set to a market segment that will benefit from Foundry's ability to deliver enhanced networking solutions throughout the organization."
The FastIron WS Series starts at US$1,195 and will be available in the fourth quarter of 2008.
About Foundry Networks
Foundry Networks, Inc. (Nasdaq:FDRY) is a leading provider of high-performance enterprise and service provider switching, routing, security and Web traffic management solutions, including Layer 2/3 LAN switches, Layer 3 Backbone switches, Layer 4-7 application switches, wireless LAN and access points, metro and core routers. Foundry's customers include the world's premier ISPs, metro service providers, and enterprises, including e-commerce sites, universities, entertainment, health and wellness, government, financial and manufacturing companies. For more information about the company and its products, call 1.888.TURBOLAN or visit www.foundrynet.com.
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The foregoing may contain "forward-looking statements" which are based on management's current information and beliefs as well as on a number of assumptions concerning future events made by management. These forward-looking statements include, without limitation, statements by executives or spokespeople regarding Foundry's positioning and potential plans. The forward-looking statements in this press release are only predictions and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ materially. Foundry assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements contained in this press release. Furthermore, no statements made by Foundry Networks, Inc. ("Foundry") in this press release, or information contained herein, may be deemed to constitute either an amendment of an existing agreement or an implied new commitment, promise or legal obligation by Foundry to develop or deliver any specific product, feature or functionality. The development, release, and timing of any product, feature, or functionality described herein remains at Foundry's sole discretion.
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