Two best-of-show finalists, Torrent NetworkingTechnologies and Netsation Corporation, announce...

LANDOVER, MD.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--October 6, 1997--

Gigabit Router Maker to Partner with Network Configuration

Vendor to Make it Easier to Install and Use Next-Generation

Routers

Torrent Networking Technologies, the leading

innovator of Gigabit Routing solutions, and Netsation Corporation, developers of the first Java-based, platform-independent network configuration tool, today announced a strategic alliance under which the two companies will collaborate in an effort to make it easier for companies to install and use next-generation routers. Under the alliance, Torrent and Netsation will share their knowledge and technology to facilitate the integration of their products. Netsation's Network Configurator product, which began shipping last week, will support the configuration of torrent's IP9000 Gigabit Router, slated to ship by year's end, in a new soon-to-be-released version.

Both companies are finalists this week in the Networld+Interop '97 Atlanta Best of Show Awards, sponsored by Data Communications and LAN TIMES. Netsation is competing in the network management and analysis category. Torrent is competing in the network infrastructure category. Both companies will demonstrate their products at the show. Netsation's exhibit will be in Booth #7650 in Start-Up City and Torrent will be located in Booth #1119.

Network Configurator is a Web-based, client-server configuration tool that takes the drudgery and complexity out of the once-complex task of router and switch configuration. Unlike any other configuration tool, Network Configurator is a GUI-based, vendor- and platform-independent tool, allowing network administrators to rapidly deploy new devices and dependably update existing ones. Network Configurator Release 1 supports Cisco routers and will support Cascade switches in a future release to be demonstrated at the show. Torrent's IP9000 Gigabit Router product family is the first to deliver leading-edge IP (Internet Protocol) internetworks with ATM-like guaranteed service based on industry standards at the price/performance level of LAN switching. The IP9000's ability to offer precise control over individual traffic flows makes it ideal for supporting new applications such as streaming video, audio and multimedia traffic across Internet, Extranet and Intranet backbones.

"The explosion of the Web, multicasting and `push' technologies are making networks even more dynamic. Therefore, networks must be restructured frequently to maintain optimal service quality," said John McConnell, president of McConnell Consulting Inc., a Boulder, Colo. consulting firm. "Most administrators have been reluctant to change their configurations because of the difficulty, complexity and likelihood of introducing new problems. Cooperation between Torrent and Netsation is a welcome development since managing configuration of an entire fabric is getting easier. Netsation is addressing multivendor networks - the reality that we all must deal with."

Dr. Hemant Kanakia, founder and president of Torrent Networking Technologies, commented, "We're very pleased to be working closely with Netsation, who are taking the lead in eliminating the painstaking manual labor required to configure routers. With Netsation's support of IP9000, our customers can use a simple graphical interface to configure both their Torrent and Cisco routers. Together, Torrent and Netsation can greatly improve the ease with which customers can migrate their networks to include affordable Gigabit Routing solutions."

Sean Harrison, president and CEO of Netsation, said, "We're excited to partner with Torrent, who are pioneering Gigabit Routing with a strong offering for customers who need both higher performance and guaranteed service levels for their IP networks. Less than one week after we shipped our first release, we are delivering on our promise to aggressively add to our vendor support."

Network Configurator provides a drag-and-drop, graphical user interface with a centralized configuration database to automate the configuration process and use its knowledge of the network at large to perform validation, syntax and parameter checks. As a result, the product catches many more configuration errors than current device-centric tools. Both the client and server subsystems of Network Configurator are written entirely in Java version 1.0.2, and the product can run on any Java-enabled system, including Windows 95, Windows NT and Sun Solaris.

The Torrent IP9000's Per-Flow Service Provisioning technology matches incoming packets to data flows on the fly without using proprietary protocols. This enables service profiles to be applied to the traffic flows so that high-priority applications can be guaranteed minimum bandwidth, while still assuring other applications receive adequate available network capacity at best-effort levels. The IP9000 also supports a comprehensive range of routing protocols for both Intranets and Internets, and offers both high-speed LAN and WAN interfaces. Its routing table capacity scales to hundreds of thousands of networks -- many times the size of the global Internet today.

Netsation, based in Research Triangle Park, N.C., was formed in August, 1996 to satisfy unmet needs in network management with products that take advantage of the convergence of new technologies such as Java and the Web. More information about Netsation and Netsation Network Configurator is available at its Web page at www.netsation.com . Customers can order Network Configurator through the Web site or by calling 919-859-5200. Network Configurator can also be ordered through your local Wandel & Goltermann sales representative.

Torrent Networking Technologies is the leading innovator of next- generation, Gigabit-scaled IP routing technology for IP Internetworks. The company's IP9000 Gigabit Router product family simplifies and dramatically lowers the cost of building robust IP networks combining Gigabit performance, guaranteed service levels, industry standard protocol support and low cost. Torrent was founded in August 1996 by Dr. Hemant Kanakia, who previously developed breakthrough switching architectures for AT&T Bell Laboratories, and is privately held. Headquartered in Silver Spring, Md., the company holds active memberships in the IP Multicast Initiative, the Gigabit Ethernet Alliance and the Northern Virginia Technology Council, and maintains its Web site at www.torrentnet.com .

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Torrent and the Torrent IP9000 Gigabit Router are trademarks of Torrent Networking Technologies Inc.

CONTACT: Parker, Nichols & Company Inc. (for Torrent)

Brenda Nichols or Derek Lane, 978/369-2100

dlane@parker-nichols.com

URL: www.torrentnet.com

Networld+Interop: Booth #1119

or

Brodeur Porter Novelli (for Netsation)

Lauri Zuckerman, 919/854-0550

lzuckerman@brodeur.com

URL:www.netsation.com

Networld+Interop: Booth #7650