Apple Unveils Its Latest Internetworking Router - 01/1993

Date:         Tue, 12 Jan 93 21:11:43 EST
From: [email protected]
Subject:      Apple PR release for InterNet Router


MOVED OVER PR NEWSWIRE AT 7:01 AM, PST, TUESDAY, JANUARY 12, 1993.


Contacts:
Emilio Robles
Apple Computer, Inc.
408/862-5671

John McCreadie
Regis McKenna, Inc.
408/974-4398


Apple Unveils Its Latest Internetworking Router

New technology allows AppleTalk network users to easily connect local
and remote workgroups together

BOSTON, Massachusetts--January 12, 1993--Apple Computer, Inc. today
announced a family of internetworking router software products
enabling organizations to easily increase the size, performance and
manageability of their AppleTalk networks.
    The Apple Internet Router product family provides wide-area
networking (WAN) connectivity by implementing a new technology--
called the AppleTalk Update-based Routing Protocol (AURP)--which
significantly reduces network traffic.  Additionally, the new router
software provides enhanced local area networking (LAN) support,
routing data between industry standard LocalTalk, Ethernet, Token-
Ring and other network types.
    "AURP technology is an important step to providing organizations of
all sizes with a completely scalable network system," said Morris
Taradalsky, vice president and general manager for Apple's Enterprise
Systems Division (ESD).  "AURP and its implementation in the Apple
Internet Router leverage Apple's traditional strengths in making
technology that is powerful, yet easy to deploy, as well as easy to
administer."
    Apple's latest internet router is a cost-effective solution which
allows AppleTalk networks to be "tunneled" through dial-up
connections via standard modems, or over networks using X.25 and
TCP/IP as well as other industry standards.
    The Apple Internet Router product family includes a base connectivity
kit and two Apple extension kits for moving AppleTalk data across
foreign (non-AppleTalk) networks.  The Basic Connectivity Package
provides the core routing software and technology, including a dial-
up extension for connecting remote workgroups together over standard
telephone lines as well as network management support through the
industry-standard Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP).
It also provides the base product on which other extensions can be
built.  Apple's two extension packages--the AppleTalk/IP Wide Area
Extension and the AppleTalk/X.25 Wide Area Extension--provide wide
area AppleTalk routing over TCP/IP and X.25 networks, respectively.
The extension kits are sold separately.
    The Apple Internet Router product family will replace Apple's current
router--the AppleTalk Internet Router 2.0.  The new router is a
completely redesigned product with many capabilities beyond the 2.0
router, yet it provides all the functionality of its predecessor.
    The Apple Internet Router, like all Apple products, is easy to set up
and configure.  It includes many advanced features, such as network
number remapping, which allows users to connect independently
administered networks without concern for network numbering
conflicts.  Additional features include security options to protect
networks from unauthorized use and built-in data compression for
increased throughput.  Also, built-in SNMP support enables the router
to be monitored from any SNMP-based network management console.
    The modular design of the Apple Internet Router allows for current
and future Apple and third party extension products to be easily
added as an organization's network grows.  Many third party
developers, such as MultiAccess Computing Corp., Farallon Computing
Inc. and The AG Group, among others, are currently providing
extension products that add value to the new line of router software.
These companies offer products that support technologies such as
Frame Relay, ISDN, T1 and SMDS data links, remote administration
support, and hierarchical choosing.
    "The modular architecture of  Apple's new router products creates a
wonderful opportunity for third parties that support AURP to easily
build add-on capabilities, such as the SMDS nubus adapter MulitAccess
is currently shipping," said Tom Barich, vice president of sales and
marketing for Multiaccess Computing.  "The routing foundation that
Apple provides, combined with third party extension products, gives
both small and large organizations a very powerful and scalable
solution for interconnecting LANs and WANs."

 New AURP Technology
    AURP was designed to improve AppleTalk for use on wide-area networks
(WANs), including telecommunication links and campus-like backbone
networks.  It is an enhancement to the AppleTalk architecture that
improves the efficiency and scalability of AppleTalk internets,
allowing users to easily interconnect local and remote Macintosh
computers and PC workgroups.
    AURP specifies a standard way of tunneling AppleTalk through foreign
network systems, such as TCP/IP, X.25, OSI and DECnet.  "AURP
provides the basis for building global AppleTalk networks, as well as
for hosting AppleTalk within established global networks such as the
TCP/IP Internet," said Apple Product Line Manager Dana Harrison.
    It also provides for efficient routing over point-to-point lines or
multipoint connections.  As its name implies, AURP updates routing
tables only when a change occurs in the network and does so by
transmitting only the changed information, thereby greatly reducing
network traffic.  This contrasts the AppleTalk Routing Table
Maintenance Protocol (RTMP) which sends full routing information
every 10 seconds.

Pricing and Availability
    The Apple Internet Router software operates on all Macintosh
computers with at least 4 megabytes of memory and System 7.0 or
later.  The software was designed for AppleTalk Phase 2 networks
only.  Pricing and availability is as follows:

Apple Internet Router Products             Price    Availability

 Basic Connectivity Package                US$ 499   February '93
  Includes Apple Internet Router software and installer,
  DialUp Wide Area Extension and SNMP Router Agent.

 AppleTalk/IP Wide Area Extension          US$ 499   February '93
  Requires purchase of Basic Connectivity Package,
  and includes Router IP software and installer.

 AppleTalk/X.25 Wide Area Extension        US$1,299  March '93
  Requires purchase of Basic Connectivity Package,
  and includes Router X.25 software and installer,
  and MacX25 server software.

These products will be available worldwide from Apple authorized
resellers and in the United States by calling The Apple Catalog at
1-800-795-1000.

Upgrade Program
    For a limited time, upgrades from the AppleTalk Internet Router 2.0
to the new Apple Internet Router Basic Connectivity Package will be
available.  For customers with 2.0 router versions purchased before
November 1, 1992, upgrade packages will be available for $149.  For
2.0 routers purchased after November 1, 1992, the cost is $49.
Upgrade packages will only be available through June 12, 1993, and
proof of purchase will be required.

-30-

Apple, the Apple logo, Macintosh, AppleTalk and LocalTalk are
registered trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc.  DECnet is a trademark
of Digital Equipment Corp.

END

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