CR Systems has introduced a communications server for financial institutions that links mainframes to newer clientserver technology and improves the performance of ATMs and teller terminals, company officials said.
The product, called Bank Branch CommServer, is a personal computer running the company's proprietary software in DOS. It permits fast communication over high-speed phone lines between a bank's headquarters and its branches.
With this connection, a network of PC workstations at a bank branch can access central host systems running a variety of applications, including signature verification, security functions, and electronic mail.
Faster Response Claimed
Since the high-speed phone lines can carry data faster than regular phone lines, response times of teller terminals and ATMs are improved, said company officials.
According to Kayc Bond, CR Systems vice president of sales and marketing CommServer enables banks to preserve their mainframe and application investments, even if they are moving to client-server technology, since the product ties the two together.
A bank may have a number of host systems running at a central location that offer limited or no connectivity to branch PC networks, she said. Any connections that are made require separate phone lines to access each of the systems, which use different data communications protocols.
CommServer consolidates traffic from the disparate systems, so that each branch, with its own CommServer, can access information over a single phone line. This cuts costs for the bank, said Ms. Bond, because branches don't need as many phone lines.
CommServer also supports frame relay, a type of transmission that efficiently routes data over wide area networks. According to company officials, frame relay provides better performance and cost savings over traditional point-to-point phone line services. It also has an automatic rerouting capability in case of line outages, which improves network reliability, they said.
CommServer prices range from $2,995 to $9,500. It is being marketed. to banks of any size that need high-speed communications between sites, company officials said.
CR Systems is an Atlantabased developer of data communications systems, with emphasis on the banking, insurance and travel industries. Barclay's Bank is among the company's banking clients.
