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							The Florida SunFlash

     SunConnect Introduces Token Ring Interface SPARC System
   
SunFLASH Vol 36 #2					       December 1991 
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      First Switchable 4/16 Mbps Interface for SBus Systems

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. -- December 9, 1991-- SunConnect(TM), a Sun
Microsystems, Inc. business, today unveiled the SunLink(R) Token Ring
Interface/SBus (TRI/S(TM)) card, a product that brings Token Ring
connectivity to SPARC computer systems. The product is the first 4- or
16-Mbps switchable Token Ring Interface for SBus systems.

"SunLink TRI/S is the technology that will enable SPARC systems to be
integrated into industry-standard Token Ring LAN environments --
including those running IBM's SNA," said Cheryl Vedoe, vice president
and general manager of SunConnect. "It facilitates Sun's move into
commercial markets by allowing customers to add workstation
functionality while using their existing Token Ring environments."

According to International Data Corp. (IDC), twenty-one percent of all
LANs currently run on Token Ring, and forty-five percent of all LANs
will be Token Ring-based by 1994. Token Ring is an alternative to
Ethernet and fiber-based interfaces such as FDDI (Fiber Distributed
Data Interface). With the addition of the SunLink TRI/S product,
SunConnect now offers industry-standard interfaces for Ethernet, FDDI
and Token Ring environments.

The SunLink TRI/S product consists of a single-slot SBus printed
circuit board assembly, TCP/IP driver software, and network monitoring
utilities. These components allow SPARC computers to transparently
coexist and share data with other systems on a Token Ring LAN. Based on
the proven Texas Instruments TMS 380 Token Ring chip set, the SunLink
TRI/S interface card fully conforms with the IEEE 802.5 standard.

The SunLink TRI/S interface permits TCP/IP and Open Network Computing
(ONC(TM)) applications and services to be shared seamlessly with
computers in Token Ring networks. The TCP/IP driver is included with
the SunLink TRI/S product. Other network applications can also be
developed using the Sbus.

In related news, SunConnect's PC-NFS(R) product family now supports
PC-to-UNIX connectivity over Token Ring; and new releases of
SunConnect's SunLink SNA 3270 and SunLink SNA Peer-to-Peer products now
include Token Ring support.

The SunLink TRI/S interface card is available immediately through Sun
Microsystems Computer Corp., and will be available through SunExpress
in January 1992. The suggested U.S. retail price is $1195.

SunConnect:			Erica Vener (415) 336-3566
Hi-Tech Public Relations:	Claudia Carasso (415) 864-5600


SunConnect was formed July 1, 1991 as a business unit of Sun
Microsystems, Inc. Headquartered in Mountain View, Calif., SunConnect
develops and markets products that enable customers to reliably and
transparently integrate UNIX systems into mixed-vendor environments and
efficiently manage enterprise-wide networks.

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John McLaughlin, SunFlash editor, flash@sunvice.East.Sun.COM. (305) 776-7770.