Product category: PC-Compatible Boards and Assemblies
News Release from: Force Computers
Edited by the Electronicstalk Editorial Team on 29 October 2002

Thumbs up for
Service Availability specification

Force Computers is to support the recently published Service Availability platform interface open specification for carrier-grade platforms and middleware

As a long-time leader in open standards bodies, Force helped define the platform interface specification just as the company previously helped define other open standards like the PICMG 2.16 specification for CompactPCI packet-switching backplanes (cPSB). With the publication of the forum's interface specification, Force's own High Availability Architecture (HA2) concept for High Availability (HA) and Ultra Availability (UA) systems has been validated.

As reflected in the currently available EndurX C25K UA system, Force's HA/UA architectures are in line with the forum's future definition of fully integrated hardware-software solutions to give telecom equipment manufacturers (TEMs) carrier-grade building-blocks to reduce development costs and time-to-market for offering on-demand, uninterrupted services.

"As a long-time leader in open standards, modular technologies and more recently as a key technical contributor to the Service Availability Forum, Force shares its philosophy of open specifications for delivering 'five nines' and more highly available services", said Achim Apel, Vice President and General Manager of Force's systems products.

"Also, we're elated the forum's platform interface specification follows the path blazed by Force's openly defined High Availability Architecture, which we've been developing and delivering for five years - like today's EndurX C25K UA fully integrated hardware-software solution".

As part of its overall strategy for bringing Ultra Availability systems to market, Force is also heavily involved with the PICMG 3.x committee defining the Advanced Telecom Computing Architecture (AdvancedTCA) specifications for the next-generation of carrier-grade communications equipment.

Including a reference to the Service Availability platform interface, this series of specifications will incorporate the latest in high-speed interconnects and processors for improved reliability, manageability and serviceability.

Also, as a member of Open Source Development Lab (OSDL), Force works with other high-tech companies on the convergence of datacomms, telecomms and the Internet in order to make true multimedia telecommunications services a reality.

To help guide this effort, OSDL has established the Carrier Grade Linux Working Group to create a Linux platform and Linux-based software as a basis for highly available and robust communications products that fully support carrier-grade, commercial-off-the-shelf development.

Building on these activities, Force prototypes, tests and supplies HA/UA building-blocks so that TEMs can develop products with features required by their applications and reduce time from concept to full functionality.

Backed by Solectron's ISO9001 certified processes and supply-chain management expertise, Force's low-risk, fast-track methodology offers a "total pipeline" approach unequalled in embedded computing - providing a one-stop service for cost-effective solutions and high-level support - design to delivery.

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