ENTERASYS NETWORKSTM ANNOUNCES SUPPORT FOR THE 802.1X STANDARD

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ENTERASYS NETWORKSTM ANNOUNCES SUPPORT FOR THE 802.1X STANDARD

MatrixTM Switching Platform and NetSight Management Applications Will Be the First to Support 802.1X

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ROCHESTER, NH -- March 7, 2001--Enterasys NetworksTM continues to build on its vision for network security by today announcing its planned support for the emerging IEEE 802.1X industry standard. 802.1X, a comprehensive method for authenticating users before granting access to networked resources, will first be supported in Enterasys’ MatrixTM switching line and NetSight family of network management products. Additional Enterasys solutions will offer 802.1X support later in 2001 as well.

John Roese, Enterasys’ Chief Technology Officer and co-author of 802.1X, said that the proposed standard offers unique customer benefits by authenticating users and creating the ability to map network-based services to individual users. "Authentication is a critical element for effectively enforcing security and business-based policies throughout a LAN, WAN or MAN environment. By accurately defining and authenticating users at the network edge, one can provide pinpoint control of network resources, which allows us to give end users the exact resources that they need to do their jobs effectively -anytime, anyplace - without compromising the integrity of the network," he added.

802.1X complements Enterasys’ Secure Harbour architecture, a holistic framework for defining and enforcing security across wired and wireless enterprise networks. Secure Harbor is designed to remedy attacks from both inside and outside a corporate or campus network (see related press release, "Enterasys Networks Announces Secure Harbour" dated October 16, 2000).

"Network-based authentication, when standardized via IEEE 802.1X, will be a significant enhancement for securing LANs. The most obvious benefits are the authentication capabilities it brings to 802.11-based wireless access points, but Gartner also expects that enterprises will deploy the technology on their Ethernet switches. 802.1X authentication will be much simpler to administer than traditional MAC-based authentication, and will therefore be more widely implemented. Since the standard allows users to be authenticated regardless of which LAN port they are accessing, it has important implications in universities and other environments where there are a large number of mobile users," said Lawrence Orans, senior analyst at Gartner.

802.1X is a collaborative effort by vendors in the software, server and networking industries to provide a standards-based authentication methodology. Authentication, combined with network-based services that are focused on the people who use the services and meeting their business objectives, will enable organizations to maximize the value of their IT infrastructure. Support for this standard complements Enterasys’ recently announced User Personalized Network (see related press release, "Enterasys Unveils Industry’s First User Personalized Network, dated February 12, 2001).

Within 90-120 days, Enterasys will deliver a firmware upgrade that provides support for 802.1x in the following product lines:

Mr. Roese, who has been working on 802.1X since 1998, is the author of "Switched LANs - Design, Installation and Implementation" and is the member of several industry standards bodies.

For more information on 802.1X, visit the IEEE web site at www.ieee.org.

About Enterasys Networks

Enterasys Networks is a new kind of company, singularly focused on providing global business communication solutions to enterprise customers. Enterasys Networks' vision is to bring customers solutions that enhance their ability to communicate. With over 650 communications-linked patents, Enterasys Networks is the leading business-communications innovator. Enterasys has partnerships with many of the world's leading IT solutions providers, allowing it to build powerful and intelligent infrastructure solutions for today's Global 2000 enterprise customers. Scalability and manageability are at the core of Enterasys Networks' award-winning holistic networking infrastructure solutions. By optimizing customer solutions to support converged voice, video and data, Enterasys Networks creates solid foundations for the seamless deployment of emerging business-critical applications.

Through its high touch sales model, and a global network of certified and highly trained resellers, Enterasys Networks delivers unrivalled sales and support services across the business world. For more information on Enterasys Networks products, services and partners visit our web site at http://www.enterasys.com . Enterasys Networks financial backers include Silver Lake Partners and Cabletron Systems (NYSE: CS).

There is nothing more important than our customers