Remote Connectivity in the Palm of Your Hand

Susan Colwell

If you need remote connectivity for your small business or workgroup but can't afford the high-end hardware solutions available, you should look at RouteMan from SBE's netXpand series. At $599, RouteMan is an inexpensive router, hub, and remote-access solution.

RouteMan is ideal if you need to expand your remote capabilities beyond the single-client-to-LAN connections you find using the even less expensive (around $100 to $150) remote-control or remote-node software solutions, such as Funk Software's ((617) 497-6339) Proxy and Wan derLink, Stac Electronics' ((619) 794-4300) ReachOut 5.0, Symantec's ((408) 253-9600) pcAnywhere, and Traveling Software's ((206) 483-808 8) LapLink.

Weighing in at only about 1 pound and consuming 10 W of power, RouteMan provides client-to-LAN and LAN-to-LAN connections through a PC Card slot. The slot supports either a high-speed modem card or an ISDN card (up to 128 Kbps per channel). RouteMan also includes an integrated four-port 10Base-T Ethernet hub, which lets you set up an entry-level network so you can share resources and connect an intranet server.

RouteMan supports multilink PPP, IP traffic-sensitive dialing, and installation and configuration utilities for Windows 95 and NT PCs, as well as Windows 3.1x. It can asynchronously transfer data at a rate of 115.2 Kbps. If security is a concern, RouteMan provides Password Authentication Protocol (PAP), Challenge Handshake Authentication Protocol (CHAP), and restricted callback. With RouteMan, SBE includes a software package called Workshop, which lets you easily configure the device and track network log-ons to monitor and record who has accessed your network .

If you think you're going to branch out onto the network even more, SBE also offers RouteMan XL ($749 until September 1). It includes all the standard features found in the basic model, as well as SBE's Prime software package, which offers modem pooling, high-speed data compression for ISDN, IPX traffic-sensitive dialing, IPX session emulation to minimize line charges, and chat scripting for remote dial-up services.

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Product Information

RouteMan...............$599

SBE, Inc.
San Ramon, CA
Phone:    (510) 355-2000
Fax:      (510) 355-2020
Internet: 
http://www.sbei.com

Circle 1063 on Inquiry Card.

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SBE RouteMan

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