FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Sonic Announces Sub-$1,000 All-In-One VPN, Firewall and Content Filtering
Box SonicWALL VPN ideal for branch offices requiring an easy-to-use and
affordable Internet security solution

NETWORLD+INTEROP, ATLANTA, October 19, 1998 -- Sonic Systems, Inc. (Booth
#2348), provider of network technology for small to mid-sized companies,
today announced SonicWALL VPN, an Internet security appliance. SonicWALL
VPN enables companies to establish transparent links across the public
Internet to business partners, and remote and branch offices. A "black-box
solution" requiring no additional hardware or software to operate,
SonicWALL VPN provides a comprehensive VPN security solution with
firewalling, content filtering, IP address management, logging/reporting
and IP Security (IPSec) VPN for less than $1,000.

SonicWALL VPN provides an easy, affordable, and secure means for businesses
to connect all offices and partners together using data encryption and the
public Internet to provide secure communications between sites without
incurring the burdensome expense of leased site-to-site lines. Whenever
data is intended for the remote site, SonicWALL VPN automatically encrypts
the data and sends it to the remote site over the Internet, where it is
automatically decrypted and forwarded to the intended destination.
Additionally, SonicWALL VPN protects Internet-connected businesses from
hackers and intruders, preventing theft, destruction, and manipulation of
critical business data with its built-in stateful packet inspection-based
firewall. SonicWALL VPN also prevents employees from accessing
objectionable Web sites and newsgroups through content filtering. Other
features include logging and reporting as well as IP address management.

"The security threats to Internet networks are a very real problem. The
combination of a VPN and Firewall solves this," said Milton Beral, CIO at
DSLnetworks. "SonicWALL VPN enables us to leverage the cost savings of
public networks with the security of a private network. It also provides an
easy, all-in-one solution to deploy secure VPN without requiring you to be
a security or network expert. Sonic's network appliances have proven to be
reliable, easy-to-use, feature-packed solutions that make my job easier,
and have provided our customers with a richer Internet experience."

"VPNs are widely recognized by enterprise network managers as a way to save
money on remote dial-up costs and leased lines to branch offices. But in
reality, the benefits of VPN have not been readily available to smaller
companies because of the cost and complexity of setting-up and managing
multiple sites and servers, synchronizing software updates, and the like, "
said Sonic president and CEO, Sreekanth Ravi. "SonicWALL VPN addresses
these issues with a simple management framework that is easy-to-install and
use and affordable, ensuring data security through the use of industry
standards."

About SonicWALL VPN
Based on the IPSec standard, SonicWALL VPN can be used with other VPN
products with the same IPSec implementation, such as Check Points FW-1.
Encryption methods include 56 bit Data Encryption Standard (DES) and 56 bit
ARCFour (ARC4). SonicWALL VPN also features a special "Simple Tunnel Mode,"
whereby an unencrypted tunnel can be set-up between remote sites to support
applications not usually supported by firewalls, such as Microsoft
NetMeeting or H.320 video conferencing. A single-user license remote access
VPN client for Windows is included with SonicWALL VPN, free of charge, to
allow secure remote management. SonicWALL VPN starts at $990 and can be
ordered now from Sonic at (800) 535-0725. Current owners of SonicWALL/10
and SonicWALL/50 may add VPN functionality for $495; SonicWALL Plus and
SonicWALL Plus DMZ users for $695.

About Sonic Systems
Founded in 1991, Sonic Systems is a provider of network technology for
small to mid-sized companies. Sonic Systems designs, manufactures and
markets easy-to-use and affordable Internet appliances. Sonic Internet
appliances provide security and Internet access for Local Area Networks
(LANs) and remote users. All Sonic Internet appliances are managed via an
intuitive Web browser interface. A privately held corporation, Sonic is
headquartered in Sunnyvale, Calif. For more information, contact Sonic
Systems at (408) 736-1900 or visit the Sonic Systems Web site at
(http://www.sonicsys.com/).