kozel@milano.cisco.com (Edward R. Kozel) (07/01/90)
NEW 10-PORT TERMINAL SERVER FROM CISCO SYSTEMS SUPPORTS TCP/IP, LAT, SNMP; ALLOWS REMOTE BOOTING MENLO PARK, Calif., June 25, 1990 -- A low-cost 10-port multi- protocol Ethernet terminal server that supports both the TCP/IP and LAT protocols as well as industry-standard SNMP-based network management and remote software loading has been introduced by cisco Systems. The new STS-10x terminal server is an enhanced version of cisco's STS-10, introduced last year as a TCP/IP-only server providing cost- effective Ethernet connectivity for up to 10 asynchronous devices -- terminals, printers, modems, etc. ROM Doubled for More Features In the STS-10x, ROM memory is doubled to 256 kilobytes, providing space to store software code for features available in cisco's larger terminal servers. The STS-10x retains the $2,995 price of the earlier model, which it replaces. .......... DEC-Licensed LAT Supported The STS-10x optionally supports Digital Equipment Corporation's Local Area Transport (LAT) protocol, in addition to the unit's standard TCP/IP, as the ASM and MSM servers have since March 1990. cisco licenses the LAT technology directly from Digital -- rather than "reverse-engineering" it as is common practice -- so that current and future compatibility with Digital's LAT are guaranteed. In addition to using LAT to establish connections to Digital VMS- based hosts. STS-10x users can use rlogin, Telnet or SLIP (serial line internet protocol) for communication with UNIX- or ULTRIX-based hosts. The STS-10x also will feature the remote booting capability of cisco's other terminal servers, allowing system software to be loaded from a remote host over the network as well as centrally stored and updated. Remote booting will be via the Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP) which is a standard part of the TCP/IP protocol suite and of many UNIX implementations. Local PROM loading will continue to be supported. ............... Pricing/Availability Available beginning in July, the STS-10x terminal server is priced at $2,995. The LAT option is $250. Users with existing STS-10 units can upgrade to STS-10x functionality under cisco's standard software maintenance contract. The upgrade, available in October, will be accomplished by installing a new PROM in the STS-10 and remotely booting the upgraded software from either an STS-10x unit or a TFTP host.