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Thoma Bravo and Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan Acquire SonicWALL

The investor group led by Thoma Bravo LLC includes the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan through its private investor department, Teachers' Private Capital.

"Thoma Bravo is excited to bring the firm's extensive experience in the software and IT industries to SonicWALL," said Seth Boro, a Principal at Thoma Bravo. "We look forward to working with SonicWALL's management team and employees to strengthen the company's position in the IT security industry."

"Thoma Bravo believes there is tremendous opportunity for SonicWALL in the network security market," said Robert Sayle, a Vice President at Thoma Bravo. "We intend to help accelerate SonicWALL's growth both organically and through a consolidation strategy."

"We are very pleased that the shareholders chose in favor of the merger," said Matthew Medeiros, SonicWALL's president and chief executive officer. "We believe the partnership with Thoma Bravo and Teachers' Private Capital will significantly strengthen SonicWALL's ability to provide the most advanced network security solutions and world-class customer support."

Kirkland & Ellis LLP provided legal counsel to Thoma Bravo. Credit Suisse arranged the debt financing in support of the transaction.

Despite volatile market conditions during the past three years, Thoma Bravo continues to complete software-related transactions, including five software platform investments and 15 add-on acquisitions, totaling more than $1 billion, since the beginning of 2008.

About Thoma Bravo, LLC

Thoma Bravo is a leading private equity investment firm that has been providing equity and strategic support to experienced management teams building growing companies for more than 29 years. The firm originated the concept of industry consolidation investing, which seeks to create value through the strategic use of acquisitions to accelerate business growth. Thoma Bravo applies its investment strategy across multiple industries with a particular focus on the software and services sectors. In the software industry, Thoma Bravo has completed more than 50 acquisitions across 15 platform companies with total annual earnings in excess of $700 million. For more information on Thoma Bravo, visit www.thomabravo.com.

About Teachers' Private Capital

Teachers' Private Capital, the private investment department of the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan, is one of the world's largest private equity investors, having participated as a long-term investor in numerous transactions in Canada, the United States and Europe. Current investments of Teachers' Private Capital include: Acorn Care & Education, Alliance Laundry Systems, Aquilex Corporation, General Nutrition Centers, Inc., Easton-Bell Sports, Exal Group, GCAN Insurance, Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, Munchkin, National Bedding Company (Serta) and Simmons Bedding Company, among others. Teachers' Private Capital provides long-term, flexible capital and support to high-quality management teams seeking to grow and add value to their businesses over time.

With net assets of C$96.4 billion at December 31, 2009, the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan is an independent organization responsible for investing the pension fund and administering the pensions of Ontario's 289,000 active and retired teachers. For more information visit www.otpp.com or www.teachersprivatecapital.com.

About SonicWALL, Inc.

Guided by its vision of Dynamic Security for the Global Network, SonicWALL develops advanced intelligent network security and data protection solutions that adapt as organizations evolve and as threats evolve. Trusted by small and large enterprises worldwide, SonicWALL solutions are designed to detect and control applications and protect networks from intrusions and malware attacks through award-winning hardware, software and virtual appliance-based solutions. For more information, visit http://www.sonicwall.com/.

Thoma Bravo
Amber Roberts, 646-673-8547
amber@lanepr.com