Southborough, Massachusetts-based Chipcom Corp has launched its next-generation switching hub, which was jointly developed with IBM Corp and is designed to enable users to migrate from existing local networks to high-speed switched networks. For its part, IBM is expected to announce its version of the product in the next two weeks. The 17-slot hub is designed to enable users to link Ethernet, Token Ring and FDDI networks with Asynchronous Transfer Mode, cell-switching and local network packet switching networks. It is based around the company’s TriChannel Architecture, originally announced in 1992 and for this reason can accept all of the modules from Chipcom’s existing ONline System Concentrator hub family. Chipcom is particularly keen to push this aspect of the product as an advantage, since it enables users to protect their existing investment. According to Chipcom, the ONcore has an aggregate backplane capacity of over 13Gbps and supports module, bank, port and cell-switching. It is said to have a bandwidth capacity of over 8Gbps for Asynchronous Transfer Mode applications, and Chipcom says that this, combined with the backplane capacity, enables the product to deliver Asynchronous Transfer Mode switching to the desktop. The product is manageable via SNMP, and full redundancy for every critical system component is claimed. In addition, it is said to have a unique inventory management capacity which enables a user to interrogate every ONcore System hub, module and daughter card for inventory information such as the model number, serial number and revision level. Still on the network management front, Chipcom says that each module incorporates a Motorola 68000-class chip for on-card management processing, while remote download of software updates is also supported. The company is not giving out precise pricing details, but says that the ONcore is to cost under $9,000. Separately, Chipcom announced a deal to resell enterprise management products from IBM. The deal gives Chipcom the right to sell IBM’s NetView/6000 line of enterprise systems management software along with its own OnDemand network control software.
