Onyx Software Is First CRM Applications Vendor to Achieve Microsoft Windows 2000 Datacenter Server Certification

REDMOND, Wash., Aug. 27, 2001 — Onyx Software Corp. and Microsoft Corp. today announced that Onyx is the first customer relationship management applications vendor to pass the certification program for Microsoft® Windows® 2000 Datacenter Server, Microsofts most powerful server operating system. The certification validates that Onyx®
applications deliver high levels of reliability and manageability, reducing cost of ownership for large-scale enterprise customers of Onyx and Microsoft. Onyx passed the rigorous testing process for Datacenter Server conducted by VeriTest, the independent IT product testing division of Lionbridge Technologies Inc.

Onyx received certification for Onyx Enterprise Application Server (OEAS), its new XML-based customer management platform with the Onyx Employee Portal (OEP), its enterprisewide thin-client CRM portal. OEAS is designed to give large, complex enterprises a single, flexible platform for effectively managing mission-critical customer and partner relationships in a highly personalized and targeted way. The object-based OEAS platform enables customers to integrate directly to other enterprise-class systems and middleware products through industry-standard technologies, including Extensible Markup Language (XML), Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) or Component Object Model (COM).

“Being the first CRM vendor to pass the Windows 2000 Datacenter Server certification reaffirms Onyxs long-standing commitment to the Microsoft platform and demonstrates the power and flexibility of its Internet-native architecture for enterprise-class CRM initiatives,”
said Brian Valentine, senior vice president of Windows at Microsoft.
“Onyx has set a benchmark for CRM solutions by meeting and exceeding exacting standards for reliability, availability and supportability. This achievement shows customers they can count on Onyx solutions to deliver the performance they demand from mission-critical enterprise applications.”

According to a Gartner Datapro product report,
“Windows 2000 Datacenter offers its customers its first enterprise solution. It is geared toward IS managers who use large, scalable systems. It is also targeted to those who need to run large-scale applications particularly suited to large, single servers and who require cost-effective, high-end scalability.”
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“This certification is independent verification that our 100 percent Internet-native architecture offers large enterprises a CRM solution well-known in the industry for its scalability, reliability and security,”
said Brent Frei, chief executive officer, Onyx Software.
“Its further proof of our commitment to going the extra mile for our customers and doing what it takes to deliver real business value in a complex and highly competitive environment. We are in an excellent position to help our customers exploit the Microsoft .NET architecture now and in the future.”

The certification process for Windows 2000 Datacenter Server is substantially more stringent in the areas of capacity and reliability than what is required for Windows 2000 Advanced Server, for which Onyx has also been certified. For Datacenter Server, Onyx passed tests verifying that it meets the following criteria:

  • Demonstrated high reliability and stability under 48 hours of continuous stress testing

  • Demonstrated high availability through 24 hours of four-node cluster failover testing

  • Committed to providing Datacenter Server-caliber support with 24×7 access to live technical support

  • Ran in high physical address extension (PAE) memory

  • Operated correctly while under control of Job Objects

  • Installed and ran on a 32-processor system

  • Provided debug symbols or the equivalent

Airborne Express, a globally recognized name in transportation and logistics, is a current Onyx customer.
“Our business continues to grow, and we believe Onyx is well-positioned to seamlessly scale with this growth,”
said Mike Heilman, vice president and general manager of Airborne Logistics Services.
“Onyxs Microsoft Datacenter certification illustrates that it is already prepared to handle our CRM needs as we meet and exceed our own growth projections.”

<<P>Enterprise-Class Scalability

The Onyx solution has the proven ability to provide the largest, most complex organizations with the scalability they need to support growth on a global level and to enable business agility. In benchmark analysis performed under real-world laboratory conditions in the Microsoft Premier Support for Developers (PSfD) lab, Onyx achieved record-setting results for CRM applications, posting subsecond user response times for more than 30,000 concurrent users on a single four-processor server.

Onyx Enterprise Application Server

The Onyx Enterprise Application Server provides a set of business and data services to the Onyx Enterprise 2001 thin-client browser applications — Onyx Employee Portal, Onyx Customer Portal and the Onyx Partner Portal — and custom or third-party applications that require access to CRM data and processes. It provides the following universal services:

  • Performance and scalability services such as load balancing, application hosting, performance monitoring and in-memory caching services

  • Security services such as authentication, session management, role-based access control and secure, encrypted data transfer

  • Customization and integration services such as a graphical design environment, personalization, version control, XML-based data exchange, distributed transaction management and globalization and localization services

Onyx Employee Portal

Onyx Employee Portal is designed to automate both traditional and Web-based interactions with a companys customers and partners, and is a widely deployed thin-client CRM portal for sales, marketing and service professionals. Built entirely with XML and other Internet-standard technologies, it combines robust CRM functionality with complementary third-party applications and relevant Internet content in a single, personalized interface. Now in its third generation, OEP is the flagship product of the Onyx Enterprise 2001 Suite of three audience-specific, thin-client CRM portals.

Windows 2000 Datacenter Server

Windows 2000 Datacenter Server includes the full feature set of Windows 2000 Server and adds the high availability, reliability and scalability required for enterprise and larger departmental solutions. Designed for demanding enterprise applications, Datacenter Server includes main memory support of up to 64 gigabytes (GB) on PAE-capable systems and supports new systems by using up to 32-way symmetric multiprocessing (SMP). Datacenter Server is designed and tested for use with specific highly reliable hardware configurations, and provides server clustering and network load balancing for high system and application availability.

Microsoft .NET and Onyx Software

Microsoft .NET is Microsofts XML-based Web services platform. XML-based Web services link applications, services and devices into connected solutions that enable users to act on information any time, any place and from any smart device. Onyx has built its data-driven
n-tier Internet-native architecture on XML to ensure that its customers can fully capitalize on Microsoft .NET initiatives now and in the future.

About Onyx Software

Onyx Software Corp. (Nasdaq
“ONXS”
) is a global supplier of customer relationship management (CRM) enterprise applications that power a companys entire business world, connecting sales, marketing and service organizations with customers, prospects and partners. Through an innovative mix of Internet technology, strategic services and customer commitment, Onyx helps companies create the seamless, branded customer experiences they need to forge competitive advantage and build real business value. Its reliable, scalable, flexible, holistic solutions enable companies to attract, acquire and retain customers and partners across all channels and touch points. Onyx customers include American Express, Broadwing, Commerce One, Credit Suisse, Dreyfus, FirstWorld Communications, Portland Trail Blazers, Prudential Investments and The Regence Group. More information can be obtained by calling
(888) ASK-ONYX, by sending e-mail to [email protected] or by visiting http://www.onyx.com/ .

About Microsoft

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq
“MSFT”
) is the worldwide leader in software, services and Internet technologies for personal and business computing. The company offers a wide range of products and services designed to empower people through great software — any time, any place and on any device.

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“Microsoft Corp. Windows 2000 Datacenter Server,”
M. Hubley and A. Fairchild, November 2000

This press release contains forward-looking statements that are based on the opinions and estimates of management at the time the statements are made and are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking statements. The words
“believe,” “expect,” “intend,” “anticipate,”
variations of such words, and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements, but their absence does not mean that the statement is not forward-looking. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Factors that could affect Onyxs actual results include, but are not limited to, the
“Important Factors That May Affect Our Business, Our Results of Operations and Our Stock Price”
described in our quarterly report on form 10-Q for the period ending June 30, 2001. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance upon these forward-looking statements that speak only as to the date of this release. Onyx undertakes no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements to reflect new information, events or circumstances after the date of this release or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

Microsoft and Windows are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.

Onyx is a registered trademark of Onyx Software Corp. in the United States and other countries.

The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

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