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Press Release

Editorial Contact:
David Szabados
Adaptec, Inc.
(408) 957-2051
[email protected]

Investor Contact:
Sandra O'Halloran
Adaptec, Inc.
(408) 957-2505
[email protected]

ADAPTEC'S 160MB/SECOND SCSI TECHNOLOGY SELECTED BY COMPAQ FOR WORKSTATIONS AND DESKTOPS

MILPITAS, Calif., - July 8, 1999 - Adaptec, Inc. (NASDAQ: ADPT) today announced that Compaq has selected Adaptec's latest SCSI technology as an option for their next-generation of workstations and commercial desktop PCs. Adaptec's AHA-3960D is an Ultra160 SCSI host adapter that implements a subset of Ultra3 SCSI features (see following section) that doubles the throughput of Ultra2 SCSI. Compaq is the first company to offer this technology in their workstations and commercial desktop PCs and will lead the way to new levels of computing performance.

"Adaptec's SCSI technology in Compaq's Professional Workstations and Deskpro PCs will provide I/O performance that serves the needs of our customers past the millennium," said Jeff Wood, Workstation Graphics and Options Product Marketing Manager at Compaq. "Ultra160 provides backward compatibility with previous generations of SCSI technology. Using the new Ultra160 host adapter, Compaq customers can leverage their existing investment in current and older SCSI peripherals."

"Compaq and Adaptec have worked to bring this technology to the market quickly and we're pleased to have Compaq on board as an industry partner", said Lee Caswell, director of Adaptec's OEM Solutions Group. "Ultra160 technology is the clear I/O performance choice because it offers the fastest data transfer rates available, even when compared with other interfaces such as UDMA, Fibre Channel, and 1394."

Compaq Professional Workstation and Deskpro PC products will support the Ultra160 host adapter during the third quarter of 1999. Adaptec's AHA-3960D Ultra160 host adapter, as well as the Trident II Ultra160 ASIC are currently available to OEM customers.

Ultra160 SCSI is Ultra3 SCSI
Ultra160 SCSI doubles the data transfer speeds of Ultra2 SCSI. In addition, Ultra160 SCSI contains three core features defined in the Ultra3 SCSI specification: double-edge clocking, cyclical redundancy checking (CRC), and domain validation. Double-edge clocking is represented by the "160" in Ultra160 SCSI, and the other two features make up the "m" portion of the name - manageability.

Double-edge clocking doubles data transfer speeds without additional clocking which ultimately reduces any implementation risks. CRC offers higher levels of data reliability by ensuring complete integrity of transferred data. Domain validation intelligently tests the SCSI network before completing data transfer rate negotiations.

Ultra160 SCSI is easy to implement due to complete backward compatibility. Ultra160 SCSI also uses standard Ultra2 LVD cabling and termination, making it a natural SCSI transition choice. For more information about Ultra160 SCSI technology visit www.adaptec.com.

About Adaptec
Adaptec moves the world's information with host bus adapter, RAID, and software products that speed data to and from computers, peripherals, and networks. Founded in 1981 and with headquarters in Milpitas, Calif., Adaptec is a global design, manufacturing, sales, service and distribution company. More information on Adaptec and its products is available at https://www.adaptec.com.