Classification Chips Address Multi-Gigabit Network Processing

The PAX.port 250x family of classification processors is designed to perform wire-speed, full content inspection and regular expression matching at OC-48 and multi-Gigabit Ethernet speeds. The family consists of three processors. The flagship is the PAX.port 2500, a streaming OC-48 classification processor with industry-standard interfaces. It is optimized for Layer 7 content inspection and classification in OC-48 line cards of web switches/load balancers, multi-service switches, IP services gateways, cable modem termination systems, edge routers, protocol analyzers, and fixed broadband wireless access stations. The PAX.port 2502 is designed for use in multi-Gigabit Ethernet line cards of the same chassis-based networking equipment as the 2500, as well as content switching and IP services LAN appliances. The company claims the 2502 lowers the total cost of classification through a higher level of component integration while preserving the benefits of a streaming architecture. It is said to be ideal for lower cost, higher volume applications, such as enterprise and ISP edge networking equipment. The PAX.port 2503 is designed for very complex, multi-pass, content inspection. Its data interfaces allows it to be used with 10-Gbps network processors featuring a look-aside interface in applications that require up to 40% of the traffic to be subject to content inspection. The PAX.port 2500 will be available for integration into next generation designs in Q2 2002. The PAX.port 2502 and PAX.port 2503 will be available Q1 2003. SOLIDUM SYSTEMS CORP., Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. (613) 724-6004.