Rorke Approves Two Gigabit Per Second Brocade SilkWorm Fabric Switches as Intelligent SAN Infrastructure for Rorke Digital Video SAN Solutions

Las Vegas, NV, NAB 2002, LVCC, South Hall #L15112, April 7 - 11, 2002 - Rorke Data, Inc., a subsidiary of San Jose-based Bell Microproducts, Inc. (NASDAQ: BELM), has announced that the 16-port Brocade SilkWorm® 3800 Enterprise Fabric Switch and the 8-port SilkWorm 3200 Entry Fabric Switch have been tested and approved for use with Rorke's unique digital video SAN solutions.

Products verified as interoperable with Brocade SAN infrastructure include StudioNet-FC™ and ImageSAN™, each developed for various post-production and broadcast industry needs where high bandwidth is critical. The testing was completed at the Bell Micro Solutions Center, located at facilities shared by Rorke Data and Bell Microproducts in Eden Prairie, MN.

"Brocade 2 Gbit/sec fabric switches provide an ideal foundation for such bandwidth intensive applications as broadcast and post-production, helping SAN customers further optimize their IT resources and reduce the total cost of ownership of their storage environments," said Jay Kidd, Brocade Vice President of Product Marketing. "We are pleased to work with Rorke Data to make the Brocade intelligent platform for networking storage available to our mutual customers."

Joe Rorke, VP/Marketing, Rorke Data, made the announcement. "Our Brocade testing went very well," said Rorke. "SilkWorm fabric switches deliver the sustained high-bandwidth speed required to accommodate the real-world post and broadcast workflows that are based around multiple streams of uncompressed HD video. The 2 Gbit/sec SilkWorm products include features and options that set a new standard for entry-to-enterprise intelligent fabric switch technology.

"The web-based GUI tools and zoning are easy to manage and set up, and these are the only switches available with true "trunking," to enable very fast multiple port cascading, which accommodates the larger post and broadcast facilities. Combined with Rorke's Galaxy RAID and our SAN products, the Brocade SilkWorm product family allows us to deliver very high-performance, cost-effective SAN solutions."

StudioNet-FC is a low-cost SAN solution that was developed for professional-level, Macintosh-based content creation and editing applications, from Digital Video to High Definition. ImageSAN is a file-level SAN solution for NT and UNIX-based post-production and broadcast applications and workflow.

About Rorke Data
Rorke Data is a full digital storage solutions provider with expertise in rich media and digital content applications and workflow. Product expertise includes Fibre-Channel RAID, SAN, DVD, tape and optical libraries, for Unix, NT and Mac environments. Professional services include pre-sales consultation, installation, custom engineering, and maintenance services. Founded in 1985, Rorke Data, is composed of four divisions: Medical Diagnostic Imaging, Digital Audio/Video& Streaming, Publishing & Prepress, & Technical Services. More information about Rorke Data can be found at www.rorke.com. Rorke Data is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Bell Microproducts, Inc. (Nasdaq: BELM).

About Bell Microproducts
Bell Microproducts is an international value added provider of a wide range of high technology products, solutions, and services to the industrial and commercial marketplace. The company's offering includes semiconductors, computer platforms, peripherals, and storage products of various types including desktop, high-end computer and storage subsystems, Fibre-Channel connectivity products, RAID, NAS and SAN storage systems and back-up products. Bell Microproducts is an industry-recognized specialist in storage products and is one of the world's largest storage-centric value-added distributors.

The company's products are available at any level of integration from components, to subsystem assemblies, to fully integrated, tested and certified system solutions. The company adds value with a broad range of services including testing, software loading, kitting, mass storage system integration, and computer system integration. Trained and certified technical personnel complete each of these processes at Bell Microproducts' ISO 9002 facilities. Bell Microproducts markets and distributes more than 150 brand name product lines, as well as its own BellStor storage and TradeMark computer brands, to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), contract electronic manufacturing services (EMS) customers, value-added resellers (VARs) and system integrators in the Americas and Europe. More information can be found in SEC filings, or by visiting the Bell Microproducts website at www.bellmicro.com.

Safe Harbor Statement
This release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements, which reflect the Company's current views of future events and financial performance, involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results or facts to differ materially from such statements for a variety of reasons including, but not limited to: the ability to successfully integrate the operations of recent acquisitions, industry conditions, changes in product supply, pricing, and customer demand, competition, other vagaries in the computer and electronic components markets, changes in relationships with key suppliers, foreign currency fluctuations and the other risks described from time to time in the Company's reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission (including the company's Annual Report on Form 10-K). Investors should take such risks into account when making investment decisions. Shareholders and other readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date on which they are made. The company undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statements.

For more information, contact: Rorke Data, Inc., 7626 Golden Triangle Drive, Eden Prairie, MN 55344; 800/328-8147 or 952/829-0300; fax: 952/829-0988; website: www.rorke.com.