Ixia ships advanced network test platform to Cisco Systems, Extreme Networks, and Force10 Networks

17 November 2003 Calabasas, CA Lightwave - Ixia, a global provider of IP network testing equipment, announced today that Cisco Systems, Extreme Networks, and Force10 Networks have adopted the advanced network test platform Optixia. Optixia offers the highest port density available, which is necessary to validate next-generation networking equipment. Ixia developed the Optixia platform in direct response to requests from leading network equipment manufacturers to provide greater economy of scale and significantly higher throughput testing capabilities.

"Extreme Networks chose Ixia's testing platform because accurate testing is key to enabling the delivery of a next-generation core switch that is highly scalable and resilient, the first to support 48 10-Gigabit Ethernet ports," said Timon Sloane, director of product management for Extreme Networks. "Our testing platform had to be able to stress test such a high-end configuration. The Optixia platform delivers, with its unique ability to scale to these exceptional port counts while delivering the throughput and instrumentation to test the stringent performance, switch failover and quality of service metrics of Extreme's BlackDiamond series of switches."

Optixia has no match in the industry with respect to port density and scalability. Next generation networking products are driving toward the six-sigma quality levels demanded by customers. Optixia provides the necessary performance capability and economy of scale to make these quality objectives a reality.

"With the maturing of the networking industry, users have grown intolerant of products that do not meet their performance and quality expectations," said Errol Ginsberg, president and chief executive officer of Ixia. "Because of our close relationship with leading network equipment manufacturers, Ixia was directly tasked to develop a test platform that made it possible to produce next-generation products where quality is a given, not an option. Optixia is that platform."

Optixia won Best of Show at Networld + Interop 2003, and was recognized for its innovation and execution, integrating both a copper 10/100/1000 Ethernet and Gigabit Ethernet fiber interface on every test port, along with a processor per port, allowing verification of complex networking protocols, such as IPv4 and IPv6 versions of multicast and routing protocols (BGP, OSPF, IS-IS, RIP), as well as LDP, Layer 2 VPNs, Layer 3 VPNs, VPLS, and MPLS RSVP-TE. Optixia also runs the Real World Traffic Suite - Ixia's line of Layer 4-7 applications for testing devices and networks. Because of the flexibility of the Optixia platform, it can function as a customer's single test tool, capable of running a comprehensive set of performance analysis applications for both positive and negative test cases, as well as providing automated testing using Ixia's automation tools.