<P>The Catalyst 5500 is the 13-slot member of the Catalyst 5500 Series, serving as a high-end, modular switching platform able to meet the requirements of today s demanding and fast-growing enterprise intranets. At the same time, the Catalyst 5500 protects customers investments in current Cisco products by seamlessly integrating existing Catalyst 5000, LightStream 1010 interface modules, or Catalyst 8500 interface modules and features into the Catalyst 5500 chassis. Depending on which modules are installed, the Catalyst 5500 can be used in backbone applications as a feature-rich, scalable 10/100/1000 Ethernet, FDDI, or ATM switch, or in wiring closet applications that support a wide array of switched Ethernet, Token Ring, and ATM modules. The ability to deliver densities starting with 12 ports to more than 500 ports on a single platform makes the Catalyst 5500 the most scalable platform in the industry today.</P>