Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

BEDFORD, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 9, 2003

PeerDirect(TM) Mobilized Enterprise Extends Centralized

Applications and Data to Mobile Users by Providing Data Integration

and Centralized Management of Updates and Schema Upgrades

PeerDirect Corporation today announced PeerDirect Mobilized Enterprise, a product that provides independent software vendors (ISVs) and enterprise IT departments with the technology needed to add "mobility" attributes to their existing and new enterprise applications. PeerDirect Mobilized Enterprise is the newest product in the PeerDirect Distributed Enterprise 2.0 suite and leverages patented technology for application distribution and data synchronization.

PeerDirect Mobilized Enterprise enables centralized control of applications and their databases, while automatically provisioning the same application on mobile computers. PeerDirect Mobilized Enterprise also provides mobile users access to a subset of the application database whether they are online or offline.

PeerDirect mobilized applications can be deployed, without modification, directly to any number of notebook computers and other mobile platforms. The PeerDirect architecture includes database synchronization technology that automates integration of data from different sources, and embedded application management that makes installation, updates and support a centralized function, without the overhead costs associated with traditional distributed application support. This efficient synchronization technology takes advantage of periods of connectivity to keep the network of users transparently synchronized with data and application updates.

PeerDirect Mobilized Enterprise is ideal for mobile workers because it frees them from having to be connected to a network to access their applications. All application and data synchronization and management occurs using an "occasionally connected" model whenever users happen to be online. This architecture is also a powerful solution for remote offices, because it eliminates the network as a point of failure and ensures that business can proceed unimpeded, even if network connectivity is down.

"With the notebook computer fast replacing the desktop PC as the standard end-user computing environment, it makes no sense for mobile platforms to be bogged down by inherently immobile centralized application architectures," said Darius Knight, vice president of sales and marketing for Casebank Technologies, a developer of knowledge management systems for the aerospace industry. "PeerDirect has enabled us to fully mobilize our knowledge management system so our customers can gain full benefit from the use of mobile computers. Having a mobilized system means our customers' maintenance workers can take their applications with them to the airplanes, rather than waiting for the airplanes to come to them in the hangar. This shortens repair times, improves the productivity of highly skilled and compensated employees, and eliminates the connectivity problems that are common in remote airfields. With PeerDirect we can upgrade the system automatically on a global scale without interrupting application availability."

The PeerDirect Mobilized Enterprise features the following two core components:

-- Application Distribution technology combines a centralized

server and remote agents for managing mobile application

deployments. The Application Distribution Server automatically

distributes software and software updates to remote and mobile

workers, requiring no manual intervention from IT. A Web-based

console enables end users to manage and monitor distributed

databases and applications. The console can be branded and

embedded in new or existing applications to provide

centralized management of application updates across hundreds

or even thousands of distributed users. It also enables the

central management of database schema updates and rolling

upgrades, eliminating the need to disrupt application

availability by "bringing down" databases for updates.

-- Data Synchronization technology includes PeerDirect's flagship

bi-directional, heterogeneous replication engine. The

PeerDirect Replication Engine enables the distribution of

perfectly synchronized databases across hundreds or even

thousands of mobile machines. PeerDirect's Data Distribution

Server provides two-way, read-write replication between any

combination of databases from all leading vendors. The Data

Synchronization Server is capable of distributing and

synchronizing partial datasets and can mobilize select pieces

of data that are required by a remote user or office - making

more efficient use of periods of connectivity. This enables

companies to create a replication network of distributed

databases, which delivers superior availability, performance

and resiliency when compared to traditional centralized

applications. The Data Distribution Server can be deployed in

"managed" distributed environments by enterprise IT

departments, or embedded into ISV applications.

"PeerDirect now provides the components required for a fully mobilized application architecture: mechanisms for distributing applications and data, and a management console for keeping all instances of applications and data in sync," said Steve Garone, chief analyst and managing partner of The AlignIT Group. "The AlignIT Group believes that many ISVs and end-user organizations could benefit from the greater performance, reliability and resiliency provided by this type of distributed application architecture."

"In its first generation, PeerDirect solved the hardest problem associated with mobilized applications - keeping distributed heterogeneous databases synchronized," said PeerDirect Chief Technology Officer D. Britton Johnston. "With PeerDirect Mobilized Enterprise, we've taken the next step and provided a full solution for the rapid deployment and straightforward management of database-powered applications. These new capabilities provide software developers with a way to create a distinct competitive advantage, and for enterprise IT departments to create application architectures that deliver unprecedented availability and resiliency, so end-users always have access to their applications when they need them."

About PeerDirect Corporation

PeerDirect Corporation is a leading supplier of advanced, patented technology for distributed application and database deployment and management. The company's flagship product suite, PeerDirect Distributed Enterprise, allows companies to centrally manage distributed applications with fully synchronized databases deployed across widely distributed locations and mobile users. PeerDirect Distributed Enterprise accomplishes this with a core technology that replicates, distributes and synchronizes data and applications across multiple locations, giving customers more responsive and reliable applications with less dependency on network connectivity to a central data center.

Based in Bedford, Mass., with additional development operations in Toronto, PeerDirect Corporation is an operating company of Progress Software Corporation (Nasdaq: PRGS) and provides customers with a comprehensive range of enterprise technical support, consulting and training for PeerDirect products. More information on PeerDirect can be found at www.peerdirect.com, or by calling +1-781-280-4080.

About Progress Software Corporation

Progress Software Corporation (PSC) (Nasdaq: PRGS) supplies industry-leading technologies for all aspects of the development, deployment, integration, and management of business applications. PSC, headquartered in Bedford, MA, operates through the Progress Company, Sonic Software Corporation, and PeerDirect Corporation. PSC can be reached at www.progress.com or +1-781-280-4000.

PeerDirect is a trademark or registered trademark of PeerDirect Corporation in the U.S. and in Canada. Any other trademarks or service marks contained herein are the property of their respective owners.