Cisco 3600 series delivers cost-effective dial access, modularity and investment protection
SAN JOSE, Calif. - October 28, 1996 - Cisco Systems, Inc. today announced the Cisco 3600 series, a family of modular cost-effective dial Access Solutions targeted at regional and branch offices and small- to-medium-sized Internet service providers (ISPs).
Integrated routing capabilities enable models in the Cisco 3600 series to deliver complete remote-access solutions to a growing number of dial access users. Both the Cisco 3620 and Cisco 3640 eliminate the need to purchase separate equipment for remote dial-up or wide-area network (WAN) connectivity, translating to cost savings and investment protection.
The Cisco 3600 series strengthens Cisco's Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) dial access product offering and offers customers the flexibility to customize networking solutions for multiple dial access or WAN requirements. With support for a full suite of Cisco IOS(TM) software features, the Cisco 3600 series enables a broad range of cost-conscious customers to deploy advanced Internet/intranet Multimedia applications securely. Educational facilities can now affordably access the Internet or deploy interactive applications across their intranets.
The Cisco 3600 series firmly establishes new price/performance standards for ISDN dial access connectivity. The Cisco 3640 supports high-density ISDN Primary Rate Interface (PRI) or Basic Rate Interface (BRI) concentration in a single chassis, with support for as many as six PRI connections or 24 BRI connections. The Cisco 3620 can be affordably configured with one Ethernet 1 PRI (1E1P) or one Ethernet 4 BRI (1E4B) and incrementally upgraded as density requirements increase or new WAN technologies become available.
Modularity Translates to Flexibility and Investment Protection
Based on a modular design, the Cisco 3640 is equipped with four network module expansion slots, and the Cisco 3620 is equipped with two network module expansion slots, both delivering flexible migration paths to increased dial access density and evolving LAN and WAN technologies. Mixed-media network module cards support single or dual LAN connectivity and have two user-configurable WAN Interface Card (WIC) slots for wide-area connectivity.The Cisco 3600 series supports ISDN PRI, BRI and synchronous/asynchronous connectivity. ISDN PRI interfaces include an optional onboard Channel Service Unit (CSU)/Data Service Unit (DSU) for end-user connection and signal timing with a local digital telephone loop; ISDN BRI interfaces include an optional integrated Network Termination (NT-1) device ideal for North American customers. In addition, the Cisco 3600 series shares modular WICs with the newly announced Cisco 1600 series, delivering cross-platform solution flexibility and further protection of investment.
"As networking technology continues to move beyond the enterprise environment and into remote user sites, customers require secure, flexible solutions that deliver investment protection and a clear path toward future growth," said Kevin Kennedy, vice president and general manager of the Access Business Unit at Cisco. "The Cisco 3600 series provides customers with the ability to cost-effectively deploy advanced Internet/intranet applications and scale those solutions to meet their growing and changing remote access requirements."
Cisco IOS Features
The Cisco 3600 series is fully supported by a host of Cisco IOS software features, including dial access connectivity, LAN-to-LAN routing, Security and WAN optimization features. The Cisco 3600 series will support multi-chassis multilink PPP, ensuring scalability and investment protection as user concentration requirements increase. In addition, the Cisco 3600 series will also support advanced multimedia protocols, including Resource Reservation (RSVP), Protocol Independent Multicast (PIM) and Weighted Fair Queuing (WFQ), ensuring customers can immediately deploy advanced Internet/ intranet applications as they become available. Furthermore, the Cisco 3600 series addresses ease-of-use concerns with support for dialer profiles and upcoming support for initial configuration with Cisco's Web-based ClickStart(TM) configuration and monitoring tool.Dial access security is enhanced through a rich set of Cisco IOS software security features, including firewalling capabilities and future payload encryption. End-to-end security can be addressed through deployment of a CiscoSecure(TM) AAA security server.
With support for CiscoWorks(TM), an SNMP-based network management software application, customers can easily monitor, configure and troubleshoot their entire network from a central location.
End-to-End Access Solutions
With the addition of the Cisco 3600 series, Cisco now offers the most comprehensive line of end-to-end remote access solutions available today. The Cisco 3600 series delivers both ISDN and asynchronous connectivity, complementing the Cisco AS5100 and Cisco AS5200 universal access servers in the regional and branch concentration points. The Cisco 4500/4700 series delivers high-performance ISDN connectivity and is ideally suited for environments where high-speed LAN connectivity over Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM), Fiber Distributed Data Interface (FDDI) or Fast Ethernet is required. The Cisco 2500 Series continues to deliver low-cost, reliable, asynchronous dial-up connectivity, and now the Cisco 3600 series fills the remote access product line, delivering cost-effective, high-density ISDN connectivity in a modular single chassis design."With the addition of the Cisco 3600 series to our dial access product line, we are now capable of fulfilling the connectivity requirements of any size branch office - whether solutions require the integrated modems of the Cisco AS5200, the high- or low-density ISDN of the Cisco 3600 or a combination of ISDN and async, or async only," said Kevin Kennedy. "Since users can now support multiple sites with a single chassis, per-port costs are significantly reduced and management complexity is simplified."
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