QLogic Worldwide Partner Conference, DALLAS, May 23, 2006 (PRIMEZONE) -- QLogic(r) Corp. (Nasdaq:QLGC), the leader in Fibre Channel host bus adapters (HBAs), today announced its SANblade(tm) HBAs and InfiniPath(tm) host channel adapters (HCAs) are designed for optimal performance with the new Dual-Core Intel(r) Xeon(r) server platform. The Fibre Channel HBAs and InfiniBand HCAs were built from the ground up to meet the increased performance demands of multiple applications running on virtualized servers, making them the perfect complement to the hardware-enabled virtualization features of the Dual-Core architecture.
The new enterprise platform supports the second generation of Dual-Core Intel Xeon processors and uses the PCI Express bus interface. With the majority of its supported CPUs (Dual-Core Intel Xeon Processor 5000 and 5100 series) volume shipping below 100 watts, the Platform will deliver performance-per-watt leadership. The Platform includes several innovations such as Intel I/O Acceleration Technology and Intel Virtualization Technology, which makes it possible to run multiple operating systems or applications simultaneously and more efficiently.
"The new Dual-Core Intel(r) Xeon(r)-based server platform makes it possible for customers to optimize their IT resources using Intel Virtualization Technology which provides hardware-assisted server virtualization," said Jim Pappas, director of Initiatives Marketing for Intel's Digital Enterprise Group. "Having PCI Express(a) and Intel 64-bit Xeon-optimized Fibre Channel and InfiniBand connectivity solutions such as QLogic's that scale to meet the unique capabilities of this powerful new architecture will deliver customers a better return on their computing infrastructure investments."
QLogic InfiniPath HCAs Outperform the Competition on Bensley Platform
QLogic InfiniPath InfiniBand adapters for PCI Express outperform all competitive interconnect products and set new MPI latency records on Intel platforms. Running on the platform and using the well known Ohio State University Message Passing Interface (MPI) benchmark, QLogic InfiniPath adapters turned in record-breaking latency of less than 2.0 microseconds and peak unidirectional bandwidth of 954 MB/sec.
The InfiniPath HyperMessaging Architecture is the key to InfiniPath's tremendous performance advantage, delivering the highest message rate and highest effective bandwidth of any cluster interconnect available. It allows InfiniPath to support more than 10 million messages per second, which is over 6 times more messages per second than any other cluster interconnect. As a result, end-user organizations relying on InfiniBand-based clustered systems for high-performance computing tasks will significantly increase the scalability of their applications, reduce network fabric congestion and gain overall cluster efficiency.
QLogic SANblade HBAs Outperform the Competition on Bensley Platform
QLogic SANblade PCI Express HBAs outperform competitive solutions in reliability, performance and scalability. Exclusive features such as overlapping protection domains and HBA failover for Linux environments ensure superior reliability. A single QLogic HBA can support multiple Virtual SANs (VSANs) in Cisco MDS switch environments for better scalability. SANblade 4Gb HBAs also deliver features such as intelligent interleaved direct memory access, dual read direct memory access, and out-of-order frame reassembly, resulting in superior performance.
In side-by-side testing, the SANblade Pro 246x Series HBAs achieved more than 150,000 IOPS per port performance and 240 percent faster write performance than enterprise-class HBAs tested from the primary competitor.
"In order to tap into the full power of the platform, we've designed connectivity solutions that scale to wire speed," said Frank Berry, vice president of marketing, QLogic Corp. "Our 4Gb Fibre Channel HBAs deliver simultaneous read and write performance for synergy with server virtualization features, and QLogic InfiniPath InfiniBand products make it possible for customers to build high-performance computing clusters that scale to thousands of nodes for the first time on the Intel platform."
Availability
QLogic SANblade 4Gb Fibre Channel HBAs are available now and the company recently began first customer shipments of the QLogic InfiniPath InfiniBand Adapters for PCI Express.
About QLogic
QLogic is a leading supplier of high performance storage networking solutions including Fibre Channel host bus adapters (HBAs), blade server embedded Fibre Channel switches, Fibre Channel stackable switches, iSCSI HBAs, iSCSI routers and storage services platforms for enabling advanced storage management applications. The company is also a leading supplier of server networking products including InfiniBand host channel adapters that accelerate cluster performance. QLogic products are delivered to small-to-medium business and large enterprises around the world via its channel partner community. QLogic's products are also powering solutions from leading companies like Cisco, Dell, EMC, Hitachi Data Systems, HP, IBM, NEC, Network Appliance and Sun Microsystems. QLogic is a member of the S&P 500 Index. For more information go to www.qlogic.com.
Note: All QLogic-issued press releases appear on the Company's website (www.qlogic.com). Any announcement that does not appear on the QLogic website has not been issued by QLogic.
Disclaimer - Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains statements relating to future results of the Company (including certain beliefs and projections regarding business trends) that are "forward-looking statements" as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected or implied in the forward-looking statements. The Company advises readers that these potential risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: potential fluctuations in operating results; gross margins that may vary over time; revenues may be affected by changes in IT spending levels; the stock price of the Company may be volatile; the Company's dependence on the storage area network market; the ability to maintain and gain market or industry acceptance of the Company's products; the Company's dependence on a limited number of customers; seasonal fluctuations and uneven sales patterns in orders from customers; the Company's ability to compete effectively with other companies; declining average unit sales prices of comparable products; a reduction in sales efforts by current distributors; reliance on third party licenses; dependence on sole source and limited source suppliers; the Company's dependence on relationships with certain silicon chip suppliers; the complexity of the Company's products; sales fluctuations arising from customer transitions to new products; the uncertainty associated with SOX 404 compliance; environmental compliance costs; terrorist activities and resulting military actions; international, economic, regulatory, political and other risks; uncertain benefits from strategic business combinations; the ability to maintain or expand upon strategic alliances; the strain on resources caused by growth and expansion; the ability to attract and retain key personnel; the decreased effectiveness of equity compensation; difficulties in transitioning to smaller geometry process technologies; the ability to protect proprietary rights; the ability to satisfactorily resolve any infringement claims; changes in tax laws or adverse tax audit results; computer viruses and other tampering with the Company's computer systems; charter documents and stockholder rights plan that may discourage a business combination; and facilities of the Company and its suppliers and customers are located in areas subject to natural disasters. More detailed information on these and additional factors which could affect the Company's operating and financial results are described in the Company's Forms 10-K, 10-Q and other reports filed, or to be filed, with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company urges all interested parties to read these reports to gain a better understanding of the many business and other risks that the Company faces. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made only as of the date hereof, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
QLogic and the QLogic logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of QLogic Corporation. SANblade is a registered trademark in the United States. Other trademarks and registered trademarks are the property of the companies with which they are associated.
(a) Other names and brands may be claimed as the property of others.