Computer Assets Sold

In an ongoing effort to return to its core business of making hard disk drives for computers, Western Digital Corp. said Tuesday that it has sold some of its assets and operations that don’t fit into its back-to-basics plans.

Western Digital officials said the company has signed an agreement to sell its Connectivity Solutions Group--which makes devices that allow computers to send and retrieve information from hard drives--to Adaptec Inc. for about $45 million in cash. The agreement also calls for Adaptec to provide Western Digital certain storage-control products and technology.

Also, Western Digital has signed a letter of intent to sell its fiber channel products operation to Vixel Corp. Details of the agreement weren’t disclosed, but Western Digital officials said the considerations the company will receive include an ownership stake in Vixel. The fiber channel operation makes hubs used to connect computers with fiber optic cables.

Chuck Haggerty, chief executive of Western Digital, said the agreements “intensify the focus of Western Digital’s resources” on its core products.