PMCS (MM)

PMC-Sierra, Inc. (Nasdaq:PMCS): -- PMC-Sierra's Tachyon QE4, Together with Its CTS Loop Switch and MaxSAS Disk Interconnect Families, Delivers the Industry's Highest Performance, End-to-End Enterprise-Class Storage Solution PMC-Sierra, Inc. (Nasdaq:PMCS) today announced its latest generation Tachyon(R) Fibre Channel controller, the HPFC-6600 QE4, enabling a new class of high-performance networked storage systems. The quad channel 4G Fibre Channel controller with PCI-Express interfaces seamlessly to PMC-Sierra's 4G Fibre Channel loop switch devices, delivering a complete fabric-to-disk-drive solution for enterprise storage systems (see Figure 1). In addition, the QE4 can be used with PMC-Sierra's 3G MaxSAS(TM) expander switches and SAS/SATA multiplexers to enable cost-optimized tiered storage system architectures (see Figure 2). The Tachyon QE4 provides 4 Gbit/s Fibre Channel SAN connectivity for Fibre Channel, SAS and SATA HDD-based storage systems and is fully compatible with existing 2G and 1G networks. The controller interfaces to external CPUs for RAID and customer-specific application processing through an eight-lane native PCI express bus, and provides advanced features to offload external processors and increase system performance. Furthermore, the QE4 provides 4G Fibre Channel hard disk connectivity through assured interoperability with PMC-Sierra's CTS loop switch product family. "PMC-Sierra worked closely with the industry's leading storage OEMs to deliver a 4G Fibre Channel controller that enables our customers to achieve new levels of performance and capabilities, while leveraging their existing hardware and software infrastructure," said Mark Stibitz, vice president and general manager of PMC-Sierra's Enterprise Storage Division. "With the recent acquisition of the Agilent Storage Semiconductor Business, PMC-Sierra is in a unique position to offer the industry's most complete and interoperable solutions to our customers." "With 4G SAN ports ramping sharply this year, storage array OEMs worldwide are looking to accelerate the delivery of their next generation systems," said Ian Eigenbrod, senior research analyst with IDC. "Leading silicon vendors are enabling this transition to 4G by owning the storage signal path with end-to-end chipset solutions, guaranteeing component interoperability from controller to disk and minimizing time to market for these new high-performance systems." The Tachyon QE4 supports four channels of 4 Gbit/s data transfer, achieves up to 3.2 Gbit/s throughput and greater than 1.4 million input/output per second (IOPS) performance. The QE4 integrates a host of leading-edge features including: -- A native eight-lane PCI-Express bus; -- Reducing PCI-Express bus overhead by supporting 4096 TLP sizes; -- Multi-DMA to enable system cache mirroring with minimal CPU overhead; -- Frame steering for hardware assisted virtualization; -- Multi-CPU support to extend processor scalability and to allow special frame handling within a single Fibre Channel port; and -- Support for the T-10 Standard "Protection Information" via ADIF (Advanced Data Integrity Field) to ensure complete integrity in the I/O data path. PMC-Sierra provides a Tachyon Software Development Kit (TSDK) that encapsulates the Fibre Channel protocol behind an architected Application Programming Interface (API), managing all chip-specific control of the Tachyon devices. This software, including sample drivers, allows users to focus their engineering resources on system-level software development, significantly improving time to market. Pricing and Availability HPFC-6600 Tachyon QE4 device is available now, packaged in 544-pin FC PBGA package using 0.13 micron technology, and priced at $225 in prototype quantities. HPFC-6640, the lead-reduced QE4, is also available. For further information, including datasheets, please visit http://www.pmc-sierra.com/storage or contact PMC-Sierra at sales@pmc-sierra.com. -0- *T PMC-Sierra 4G Tachyon Fibre Channel PCI-Express Controller Product Family Product Features Package/Process ---------------------------------------------------------------------- HPFC-6400 Quad Channel 4G Fibre Channel 27 mm x 27 mm QX4 Controller with PCI-Express x8 544-pin FPBGA- Interface 4L 0.13(mu)m CMOS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- HPFC-6440 Quad Channel 4G Fibre Channel 27 mm x 27 mm QX4 Controller with PCI-Express x8 544-pin FPBGA- (Reduced Pb) Interface (Lead reduced) 4L 0.13(mu)m CMOS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- HPFC-6700 Dual Channel 4G Fibre Channel 23 mm x 23 mm DE4 Controller with PCI-Express x4 320-pin PBGA Interface 0.13(mu)m CMOS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- HPFC-6750 Dual Channel 4G Fibre Channel 23 mm x 23 mm DE4 Controller with PCI-Express x4 320-pin PBGA (Pb free) Interface (Lead free) 0.13(mu)m CMOS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- HPFC-6600 QE4 Quad Channel 4G Fibre Channel 27 mm x 27 mm Controller with PCI-Express x8 544-pin FPBGA- Interface with multi-DMA and Multi- 4L CPU support 0.13(mu)m CMOS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- HPFC-6640 QE4 Quad Channel 4G Fibre Channel 27 mm x 27 mm (Reduced Pb) Controller with PCI-Express x8 544pin FPBGA-4L Interface with multi-DMA and Multi- 0.13(mu)m CMOS CPU support (Lead reduced) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- PMC-Sierra 4G Fibre Channel Loop Switch Product Family Product Features Package/Process ---------------------------------------------------------------------- PM8393 4.25, 2.125, and 1.0625 Gbit/s Fibre 23 mm x 23 mm SMC Channel Storage Management Controller 324-ball PBGA 0.18(mu)m CMOS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- PM8379 CTS 20x4G 20 port 4.25, 2.125 and 1.0625 Gbit/s 27 mm x 27 mm Fibre Channel Cut-Through-Switch 352-ball CSBGA 0.13(mu)m CMOS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- PM8378 CTS 18x4G 18 port 4.25, 2.125 and 1.0625 Gbit/s 23 mm x 23 mm Fibre Channel Cut-Through-Switch 228-ball CSBGA 0.13(mu)m CMOS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- PM8375 CTS 4x4G 4 port 4.25, 2.125 and 1.0625 Gbit/s 15 mm x 15 mm Fibre Channel Cut-Through-Switch and 196-ball CABGA link retimer/extender 0.13(mu)m CMOS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- PMC-Sierra 3G MaxSAS SAS/SATA Product Family Product Features Package/Process ---------------------------------------------------------------------- PM8389 SMC-L SAS/SATA Storage Management 15mm x 15mm Controller 196-ball CABGA 0.18(mu)m CMOS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- PM8387 SXP 36x3G 36 port 1.5 and 3 Gbit/s SAS 27mm x 27mm Expander with Integrated 352-ball CSBGA Enclosure Management 0.13(mu)m CMOS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- PM8398 SXP 36x3GSec 36 port 1.5 and 3 Gbit/s SAS 27mm x 27mm Expander with Secure Zoning and 352-ball CSBGA Integrated Enclosure Management 0.13(mu)m CMOS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- PM8388 SXP 24x3G 24 port 1.5 and 3 Gbit/s SAS 27mm x 27mm Expander with Integrated 352-ball CSBGA Enclosure Management 0.13(mu)m CMOS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- PM8399 SXP 24x3GSec 24 port 1.5 and 3 Gbit/s SAS 27mm x 27mm Expander with Secure Zoning and 352-ball CSBGA Integrated Enclosure Management 0.13(mu)m CMOS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- PM8305 SPS 3G 4 port 1.5 and 3 Gbit/s SATA/SAS 10 mm x 10 mm Active/Active Mux with Native 80-ball TQFP Command Queuing 0.18(mu)m CMOS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- PM8307 SPS 3GT 3 port 1.5 and 3 Gbit/s SATA/SAS 10 mm x 10 mm Active/Active Mux with Native 80-ball TQFP Command Queuing 0.18(mu)m CMOS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- *T About PMC-Sierra's Storage Products PMC-Sierra is a leading provider of enterprise storage system solutions for networked (SAN/NAS) and server storage applications, with a broad portfolio of Fibre Channel and SAS/SATA protocol controllers and disk interconnect products. PMC-Sierra's Tachyon protocol controllers, Fibre Channel loop switches, enclosure management controllers and MaxSAS expander switches and multiplexers provide the most comprehensive solution for enterprise-class storage systems. Together, these products are providing end-to-end semiconductor and software solutions to the industry's leading storage OEMs and ODMs. For more information, visit www.pmc-sierra.com/storage. About PMC-Sierra PMC-Sierra(TM) is a leading provider of broadband communications and storage semiconductors for enterprise, access, metro, storage, wireless infrastructure, laser printers and customer premises equipment. The company offers worldwide technical and sales support, including a network of offices throughout North America, Europe and Asia. The company is publicly traded on the NASDAQ Stock Market under the PMCS symbol and is included in the S&P 500 Index. For more information, visit www.pmc-sierra.com. Figure 1: 4G SAN-Attached Fibre Channel Storage System Figure 2: 4G SAN-Attached SAS/SATA Storage System For figures visit: http://www.pmc-sierra.com/pressRoom/pdf/QE4_figures.pdf For photos visit: http://www.pmc-sierra.com/pressRoom/images/Tachyon_QE4.jpg Resources to Extend Your Product Knowledge and Understanding PMC-Sierra Storage Products www.pmc-sierra.com/storage PMC-Sierra New Products www.pmc-sierra.com/products/newProducts.html PMC-Sierra Storage Webinars www.pmc-sierra.com/webinars (C) Copyright PMC-Sierra, Inc. 2006. All rights reserved. Tachyon is a registered trademark of PMC-Sierra, Inc. PMC, PMCS, PMC-Sierra, and "Thinking You can Build On" are trademarks of PMC-Sierra, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of the respective owners.