ATTO Partners with Brocade to Provide SAN Connectivity for Media and Entertainment Customers.

ATTO Technology, Inc., a global leader of storage connectivity and infrastructure solutions for data-intensive computing environments, today introduced the FibreConnect 8300, a series of high-performance 8Gb/s Fibre Channel switches. FibreConnect switches are easy-to-configure storage area network (SAN) switches that enable small to mid-range organizations to more efficiently and reliably share data. With this announcement ATTO now offers a complete Fibre Channel SAN connectivity solution when combined with 8Gb/s Celerity Fibre Channel host bus adapters. The FibreConnect 8300 family of switches is the perfect complement to ATTO’s 8Gb/s Fibre Channel product portfolio for bandwidth-intensive streaming media and transactional application environments.

By partnering with Brocade Communications Systems Inc., ATTO leverages extensive interoperability and industry-leading engineering to enable high performance and low latency collaborative workflows in media and entertainment and general IT environments. ATTO offers a full range of 8Gb/s Fibre Channel products for both the edge and center of the SAN, including Celerity host bust adapters, FibreConnect switches, FibreBridge bridges and FastStream RAID storage controllers. Celerity Fibre Channel HBAs include single, dual and quad channel configurations, offer 8Gb/s or 4Gb/s performance and support Windows, Linux, Mac OS X, and VMware.

ATTO’s FibreConnect 8300 series of 8Gb/s Fibre Channel switches deliver high-performance connectivity with 8-, 16- or 24-ports of 8Gb/s performance in an energy-efficient 1U form factor. ATTO-exclusive latency management features ensure smooth and reliable data transfers on the SAN, which is a critical requirement for HD video streaming, post production, video-on-demand, complex databases and other applications that run on multiple workstations or servers. The FibreConnect family allows multiple users to share media resources while working simultaneously on projects, creating a productive and efficient workflow.

“We are excited to add a new line of 8Gb/s Fibre Channel switches to our current portfolio of storage connectivity products,” states Tim Klein, president and CEO of ATTO Technology. “By partnering with an industry leader like Brocade, we can now offer media and entertainment and general IT customers a high performance, completely scalable end-to-end SAN connectivity solution with our 8Gb/s FibreConnect switches and 8Gb/s Celerity host bus adapters.”

“ATTO was looking for a cost-effective, high performance portfolio of SAN solutions to help address their customers' growing networking requirements without sacrificing reliability and I am pleased they've selected Brocade to meet that need," said Barbara Spicek, vice president of worldwide channels at Brocade. "By adding Brocade products to their portfolio, ATTO will help address the stringent bandwidth-intensive requirements of their media and entertainment customers, while enjoying a high 'Return On Partnership' with Brocade."

FibreConnect combines auto-sensing 2, 4 and 8Gb/s throughput with innovative hardware and software features, making them easy to deploy into a wide-range of high bandwidth video streaming or backup storage environments. With the flexible Ports-on-Demand option, a “pay-as-you-grow” upgrade path that allows organizations to expand their SAN infrastructure at their own pace in a non-disruptive manner, the FibreConnect 8300 series are ideal for both new and existing SAN environments.

Other features of FibreConnect 8Gb/s Fibre Channel switches include:

• Web Tools interface for simplified configuration and management

• Low power consumption (less than 2.5W/port)

• Inter-Switch Link (ISL) Trunking for higher throughput

• Proven interoperability with leading video and IT infrastructure vendors

The FibreConnect 8308, 8316 and 8324 are now available worldwide through distribution.