New Rapier G6 and G6f Gigabit switches are the latest addition to the high-performance, highly rated Rapier switch family, delivering Rapier’s top-rated performance, advanced features and security in a Layer 3 switch that’s Gigabit fast

April 03, 2001- Allied Telesyn International (www.alliedtelesyn.com), a worldwide leader in simplifying IP networking for businesses of all sizes, today announced the newest member of its highly successful, high-performance Rapier family of Layer 3 switches, the all Gigabit Rapier G6 and its fiber cousin, the Rapier G6f.

Like the rest of the Rapier family, the G6 and G6f are based on the latest in high-level integration ASIC technology, exploiting Allied Telesyn’s proven software expertise to deliver a non-blocking, wire-speed IP switching solution, this time in a backbone-boosting Gigabit version – a 6-port Layer 3 Gigabit switch with two Gigabit uplink slots, for a total of 8 Gigabit ports.

"With the Rapier G6 and the fiber G6f, we are building on success – and defining the market for ultra-high performance Layer 3 capabilities. The Rapier family of switches has done extremely well – both in the market, and in independent performance testing," said Jim Berthot, Allied Telesyn’s Head of the Americas and Senior Vice-President. "As promised, we’re adding to and evolving the Rapier line – this is just the next step in the evolution of this very richly-featured, high performance, price-leading, Layer 3 fixed-configuration switch product line, and demonstrates very well our commitment to being the Layer 3 switching solutions provider."

The latest addition to Allied Telesyn’s Rapier family of Layer 3 IP, the G6 leverages Allied Telesyn’s proven AR-series router technology, combining silicon based wire-speed switching with advanced LAN and WAN routing features. With 6 x 1000Base-T ports and two 1000Base-X slots, Rapier G6 is not only the ‘fullest’ of Gigabit Layer 3 switches, but it is also the most flexible and scalable. Its wire-speed L2 and L3 IP switching, 16Gbps non-blocking bandwidth and 11.9Mpps forwarding/filtering rates, make the Rapier G6 a standard-setter for performance, and the availability of a -48V DC power supply version make it fit the bill for mission-critical networks of all kinds. Combined with other advanced features, like the Virtual Router Redundancy Protocol (VRRP) and significant QoS measures, the Rapier is a clear standout for 100% network availability, high performance and simplified network management. With its power and flexibility, the full-featured Rapier G6 is a great choice for a host of applications

Expanding Rapier Product Line

The highly successful, high-performance Rapier product line continues to grow, as the G6 joins the Rapier 24 and the all-fiber Rapier 16f, to be followed by a chassis-based Rapier platform scheduled early in the second half of this year.

The first three members of the Rapier G6 line are available immediately, with a price/feature combination that is very likely to accelerate adoption of high-performance Layer 3: the all-fiber Rapier G6f SX/SC and Rapier G6f SX/MT each carry an MSRP of $7495; and the Rapier G6f LX/SC, $13,995. 1000Base-X uplink modules in SX/SC and LX/SX, also available immediately, carry MSRPs of $495 and $925, respectively. The all-copper Rapier G6, with 6 1000BaseT ports and two 1000Base-X slots, will be available in Q2, 2001 at an MSRP of $5,495. Additional uplink modules will also ship in Q2, including an SX/MT-RJ uplink at an MSRP of $495 and a 1000Base-T uplink at an MSRP of $395.