10GBASE-T is Number One Technology
for 10 Gigabit Ethernet

Survey results highlight significant demand for 10GBASE-T over other 10 Gigabit technologies to support new applications
and network devices

IRVINE, Calif. – September 30, 2008 – Results of a survey conducted during VMworld in Las Vegas last week demonstrate widespread preference among IT and data center managers for 10GBASE-T over FibreChannel, Optical 10G or InfiniBand technologies. The survey of 200 tradeshow attendees was conducted by Solarflare Communications, the leading standards-compliant 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE) silicon provider.

The survey results clearly demonstrate the need for 10GBASE-T to easily and inexpensively integrate new applications and devices into existing Ethernet networks. 87 percent of the respondents have Twisted Pair copper Ethernet cabling installed as their primary physical medium, either Category 5, 5E or 6, and 66 percent agree it is vital for new applications and devices to support the installed cabling. Solutions will need to provide a cost-effective way for IT administrators to upgrade to 10GbE and still work with existing data center infrastructure.

“The growth of virtualization drives demand for 10GbE, because the more virtual machines deployed, the more those virtual machines need fatter pipes to sustain the network,” said Bruce Tolley, vice president of marketing at Solarflare. “Solarflare’s technology addresses this issue and our standards-compliant 10GBASE-T allows for an easy and cost-effective upgrade, without requiring a network overhaul.”

About Solarflare® 10 Gigabit Products
Solarflare designs and develops the highest-performing, lowest-power, standards-compliant 10GbE controllers and 10GBASE-T transceivers on the market. Optimized for all key virtualization platforms including Citrix XenEnterprise, Microsoft’s Hyper-V and VMware’s ESX server, Solarflare’s Solarstorm® Ethernet controller consumes less than 2.2 watts at full line-rate performance delivering the optimal balance in performance and power efficiency. Solarflare's 10Xpress® 10GBASE-T PHY supports distances of greater than 100 meters on UTP Category 6A cabling, 100 meters on STP Category 6, 55 meters on UTP Category 6, and 45 meters on UTP Category 5E cabling. When combined on a server adapter, Solarflare’s 10Xpress 10GBASE-T PHY and Solarstorm 10GbE controller deliver 10 times the performance of a 1 Gigabit NIC at half the power consumption of previous 10GbE server adapters. For additional product information and pricing, send a request to productinfo@solarflare.com .

About Solarflare Communications, Inc.
Solarflare Communications is a semiconductor company delivering the next level of high-performance 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE). As the leading provider of standards-compliant 10GbE silicon, Solarflare’s robust and power-efficient solutions are cost effective and easy to deploy. Now real and ready for primetime, Solarflare 10 Gigabit Ethernet makes possible next-generation applications such as streaming rich media, Web 2.0, server virtualization and network convergence. Solarflare is working with key industry partners and customers to ensure interoperability and drive a complete 10GBASE-T ecosystem. The privately held company is headquartered in Irvine, California, with a development center in Cambridge, UK, and has announced relationships with Accton, Citrix, CommScope, Delta, Ixia, Panduit, SMC and VMware.

All product and company names herein may be trademarks of their registered owners.
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Amy Robinson/Katie Eakins
LEWIS PR for Solarflare 
619.677.2700
solarflare@lewispr.com