Computone: and Microcom - New Partnership PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE FEBRUARY 27, 1997 Computone and Microcom Announce Strategic Partnership, Companies Collaborate to Provide Complete Remote Access Solutions _____________________________________________________________________ ROSWELL, GA./NORWOOD, MA--Computone Corporation (NASDAQ: CMPT), and Microcom, Inc. (NASDAQ: MNPI), two leading providers of remote access solutions, today announced an OEM agreement to package Computone's PowerRack, a remote access communications server, with the Microcom ISPorte modem rack. The agreement will allow Computone customers to purchase the bundled remote access solution at a special price. "We are now able to provide corporate customers and ISPs with a remote access server/modem solution that has the lowest cost per port, highest performance, greatest reliability, and the world's fastest speed at 921.6 Kbps per port," said Thomas J. Anderson, Computone's President and Chief Executive Officer. "And, now that we can offer both the PowerRack and the ISPorte from Computone at a bundled price, we are able to provide our customers with a superior buying advantage. We look forward to a growing and prosperous partnership with Microcom." "Our agreement with Computone brings together two superior technologies, the PowerRack and the ISPorte, providing customers with the most robust and cost-effective remote access solution," said Greg Tompkins, Director of Marketing for Microcom's Modulation Business Unit. "We are pleased that Computone has selected the ISPorte for the bundle and look forward to future technology arrangements." "We recently purchased a Microcom ISPorte to connect to our PowerRack server. The two products were perfectly compatible and very easy to configure and use. The product is also very space efficient, supporting 64 server and modem ports in about a foot of rack space," said Paul Guzyk of InfoHouse in New York City (pguzyk@infohouse.com). "I have found the ISPorte/PowerRack combination to be extremely reliable, ensuring that our customers are able to get connected fast and stay connected better than with other modem racks we've tried." The PowerRack supplies unmatched performance with serial port bit rates up to 921.6 Kbps on all serial channels, which meets and actually exceeds the most demanding throughput requirements of analog modems and/or ISDN links. The PowerRack is expandable up to 64 serial ports and can support 64 simultaneous PPP sessions, which is optimum for ISPs and high-end corporate and Governmental Intranet applications. IntelliServer PowerRack can be connected to a TCP/IP Ethernet LAN, or can be booted independently and operated as a standalone remote unit. The PowerRack is menu-driven and requires no special operating system device drivers. To maintain high throughput for up to 64 physical devices, the PowerRack integrates surface mount technology with ASIC circuitry, a high- performance RISC CPU, 4MB RAM, and 512KB FLASH for non-volatile storage of firmware and configuration parameters. Other features include: BNC and AUI connectors, PPP, SLIP, CSLIP, RADIUS, RIP, SNMP MIB, proxyarp, class string, and Galacticomm BBS compatible. The ISPorte supports up to 64 hot swappable, analog V.34 modems with MODEMWARE, the robust, carrier-certified, modem and management software which optimizes remote connectivity. Other features include: a TI/EI/PRI Interface Option, intuitive management software, universal power supply, scaleable architecture, digital upgrade path, LED indicators, modem management, direct connect sessions, realtime feedback, flash memory, mass firmware, and modem/dial access security. Computone Corporation designs and manufactures an extensive line of 200 - 921.6 Kbps communications servers (modular and rack mount) for Ethernet TCP/IP LANs, remote access, and INTERNET connectivity; 921.6 Kbps serial interface ISDN solutions, 200 - 921.6 Kbps asynchronous multi-port solutions for PCI, ISA, and EISA (modular and rack mount); and synchronous communications adapters for ISA and PS/2. Computone was awarded Arthur Andersen's prestigious "Fast Tech 50" award for the fourth consecutive year. Computone is located at 1100 Northmeadow Parkwy, Roswell, GA 30076. To reach Computone Sales: call (800) 241-3946 or (770) 475-2725, email: sales@computone.com, or visit our web site at www.computone.com. Microcom is a worldwide leader in providing central site and remote access solutions to OEMs, Internet service providers, regional bell operating companies, corporations, universities and individual mobile PC users. The Company's products enable users to access and communicate with corporate LANs, the Internet, intranets, and online services from remote locations. Products and technologies offered by Microcom include modems, central site systems, OEM solutions, and network security, network management, remote access and remote control software. Microcom can be reached on the World Wide Web at http://www.microcom.com or via our toll free number at 800-822-8224. # # # Media Contacts: Daphne Smith, Computone,(770) 475-2725 Ext. 280 or email:daphnes@computone.com Traci Massaro, Microcom Inc.,(617) 551-4823 or email:tmassaro@smtp.microcom.com Ends.