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posted on 14 March 2008 16:14

ALISO VIEJO, Calif., March 10, 2008 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- QLogic Corp. (Nasdaq:QLGC), a leader in networking for storage and high performance computing (HPC), today announced its 8Gb Fibre Channel products have been shipping as part of the HP StorageWorks Simple SAN Connection Portfolio since February 26.

The portfolio is a family of SAN infrastructure products including an 8Gb switch, end-to-end SAN management software included with each switch, and 8Gb PCI-Express HBAs.

Switches and HBAs may be purchased separately or as an HP StorageWorks 8Gb Simple SAN Connection Kit that includes the switch, 4 HBAs, 8Gb SFP+ optics and cables. The new portfolio of products is available today and the Simple SAN Connection Kit is list priced at $8,199. QLogic also announced the availability of QLogic(r) SANbox(r) 5800 Series 8Gb Fibre Channel switches and QLogic 2500 Series 8Gb Fibre Channel HBAs through QLogic authorized distributors and resellers.

"The most daunting challenge to future consolidated and virtualized infrastructure plans is a looming crisis in administration. Server virtualization, bladed server form factors, and networked storage are increasingly about more than boosting performance. The enablement of data and application mobility capabilities for low-cost disaster recovery and optimized asset utilization are new capabilities that organizations want to exploit," said Richard Villars, vice president of storage systems research, IDC. "Solutions like HP's 8Gb Simple SAN Connection solutions, based on QLogic technology, along with service offerings from HP's business partners allow IT managers to shift the focus from physical consolidation of servers or storage devices to structural consolidation efforts that boost the use of IT assets, enable central control of information processes, and support dramatic improvements in IT management efficiency."

"With the launch of the industry's first 8Gb Fibre Channel SAN infrastructure, HP is at the forefront of storage networking technology," said Jeff Benck, president and chief operating officer, QLogic Corp. "And by leveraging QLogic technology, they have created a powerful SAN solution that is easy to use, scalable and affordable."

"QLogic has been a strategic partner in the development of HP StorageWorks SAN solutions for many years," said Rick Steffens, vice president, StorageWorks Division, HP. "By providing the HBA and switch technology in our latest generation of StorageWorks SAN solutions, they have allowed us to deliver to the marketplace the first 8Gb end-to-end SAN infrastructure solution. The HP StorageWorks 8Gb Simple SAN Connection Kit makes it easy for SAN novices to implement their first SAN and for SAN experts to optimize their storage resources and improve business productivity."

QLogic 2500 Series HBAs -- Transforming Server Connectivity into Competitive Advantage

The QLogic 2500 Series is a family of 8Gb Fibre Channel-to-PCIe Gen2 HBAs designed for next generation virtualized data centers with powerful multi-processor, multi-core servers. QLogic 2500 Series HBAs are optimized for virtualization, power, RAS (reliability, availability, serviceability), security and management to transform server connectivity into competitive advantage. The 2500 Series HBAs provides complete investment protection by maintaining backward compatibility with previous Fibre Channel network and PCIe host bus speeds, and are set apart from all other 8Gb Fibre Channel HBAs thanks to two breakthrough innovations under the QLogic Star Power(tm) Green Initiative -- Dynamic Power Management and Cool HBA(tm) technologies. Dynamic power management is the unique ability of the QLogic 2500 to sense the type of PCI Express bus that is present and consume only the amount of power necessary to run at full speed. QLogic Cool HBA technology is the ability of QLogic products like 2500 HBAs to operate without any air flow, unlike competitive products which require fans to be cool.

SANbox 5800 8Gb Fibre Channel Switches -- For Superior Scalability

The SANbox 5800 Series is a family of 8Gb Fibre Channel switches designed to provide the absolute most cost-efficient way to scale a storage network. In addition to blazing 8Gb performance, SANbox 5800 Series switches help eliminate the cost and complexity of trunking inter-switch links (ISLs) with QLogic stackable switch technology that's turbo-charged by the industry's first implementation of 20Gb Fibre Channel.

With stackable switch technology, SAN architects can scale a fabric with no wasted ports for ISLs, fees for trunking, or disruption to the fabric, and with 20Gb Fibre Channel stack interconnects, the SANbox 5800 is the only 8Gb Fibre Channel switch with the ability to handle more than 8Gb of inter-switch traffic without the cost and complexity of trunking.

About QLogic

QLogic is a leading supplier of high performance storage networking solutions, which include the controller chips, host adapters and fabric switches that are the backbone of storage networks for most Global 2000 corporations. The company delivers a broad and diverse portfolio of products that includes Fibre Channel HBAs, blade server embedded Fibre Channel switches, Fibre Channel stackable switches, iSCSI HBAs and iSCSI routers. The company is also a leading supplier of InfiniBand switches and InfiniBand host channel adapters for the emerging high performance computing market. QLogic products are delivered to small-to-medium businesses and large enterprises around the world via its channel partner community. QLogic products are also powering solutions from leading companies like Cisco, Dell, EMC, Hitachi Data Systems, HP, IBM, Network Appliance and Sun Microsystems. QLogic is a member of the S&P 500 Index.

[Formatted by Majid Soltani.]