NSTL Test Results Demonstrate First 5,000 Concurrent VPN Connections At Less Than Half the Price of Other Server-Based Solutions

REDMOND, Wash., March 1 -- Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT) today announced that NSTL Inc. tests have illustrated the first real-world performance validation of both 5,000 simultaneous point-to-point tunneling protocol (PPTP) and 5,000 simultaneous layer two tunneling protocol (L2TP/IPSec) virtual private networking (VPN) connections, as much as two to five times the number of tunnels than other server-based VPNs at this level of performance. The tests prove that the server-based scalability of Microsoft(R) Windows(R) 2000 VPN meets the needs of even the largest organizations for as low as $5 per connection while proving the scalability ranges of PPTP and L2TP/IPSec on a server-based VPN gateway. Results also show site-to-site performance as high as 70 Mbps using L2TP/IPSec protocol, exceeding the connection speed of most server-based VPNs. With everything needed for integrated VPN, Windows 2000 is an ideal solution for businesses of all sizes, and it now offers large customers secure remote access with enterprise performance and scale at less than half the price of other server-based VPN solutions.

Organizations are moving to remote access through Internet links using VPN technology to reduce long-distance and 800 telephone-number charges for traditional direct-dial connections. In the past, companies were constrained by performance and scalability in server-based solutions, and add-on software made installation and configuration complex. Today, two approaches to VPN solutions are available: open server platform or hardware appliances. Windows 2000 Advanced Server is an exceptional choice for customers that want the flexibility of a multipurpose server solution without having to compromise performance. Windows 2000 Professional is a powerful, complementary and interoperable client solution for customers planning to use enterprise VPN solutions from vendors such as Cisco Systems Inc., Lucent Technologies Inc., Nortel Networks Corp. and 3Com Corp. that have committed to support its native standards-based capabilities.