Author Archives: Ethan Banks
Author Archives: Ethan Banks
Over the weekend, I investigated the possibility of Apple replacing the tired battery in my four year old rMBP13. Yes, they can do it. It’s $199 for that particular model. But they also require an admin-level username and password for the device. Here’s an excerpt from the chat session.
Apple support rep:
What is the Admin Name and password for your Mac?
Me:
Will not share. Definitely should not be required for a battery replacement.
Apple support rep:
It is required. When the Mac goes to the repair depot that is required. You can remove that information so there is just an automatic log in. And you can set it up again when you get it back. We do not ask for any information that is not required.
Me:
Okay, then we’re done here. Thanks very much for your help!
An automatic log in, while an improvement from a certain point of view, isn’t a fix. No, you don’t have to know the user/pass now to access the system now, but you’re still on the system with admin-level credentials. Anyone with admin equivalent credentials to the system can, with a minimum of effort, get into whatever part of the file system Continue reading
The scripting language Python can retrieve information from or publish information into the messaging app Slack. This means you can write a program that puts info into Slack for you, or accepts your queries using Slack as the interface. This is useful if you spend a lot of time in Slack, as I do.
The hard work of integrating Slack and Python has been done already. Slack offers an API, and there are at least two open source Python libraries that make leveraging these APIs in your Python code a simple task. I chose slacker after a bit of googling, but it’s not a preference borne of experience. The community seems to be behind slacker as opposed to Slack’s own python-slackclient, so I went that direction.
TECHunplugged is a one-day event where end users, influencers and vendors come together to talk shop. At the Chicago event on October 27, 2016, I’ll be speaking on the following big idea.
Here’s the abstract I proposed to the TECHunplugged team.
Automation in the virtualization world is a long-established feature. A plethora of excellent tools exist to help stand up server infrastructure, operating systems, and applications. This has helped bring much of the IT stack together in a way that makes system deployment a repeatable, predictable task. By contrast, network automation is a struggling, emergent technology. Why is it that the automation of network provisioning has proven so challenging?
Ethan Banks, 20 year IT veteran and co-host of the Packet Pushers podcasts, will explain the network automation challenge from a practitioner’s point of view. He’ll also discuss recent advances in network automation tooling from both the open source and commercial software worlds. Network automation might feel rather behind other IT silos, but there’s significant progress that will change network operations sooner rather than later.
To set context, I’ll explain why automating the network is so hard.
In this show, we get into what expiration dates on packaged food and drugs really mean. How should you react when the date expires? If you assume, “Throw it out to be safe,” you’d be wrong.
We also chat about dealing with password expiration policies. They must be super complex and changed frequently, right? Maybe not. Super complex and frequently changed means hard to remember, which studies show can lead to less security, not more.
IBM has manufactured an artificial neuron, which isn’t so interesting by itself. We’ve been here before. The interesting bit is the material used to behave like a neuronal membrane. A genuine advance.
Microsoft has announced a smaller XBoxOne S, now with 4K capabilities. Just not gaming 4K capabilities.
Blackberry is on permanent deathwatch now, as they have begun the, “All else has failed, so let’s litigate,” phase of operations.
All that, plus our regular “Content I Like” and “Today I Learned” features.
Still think you can ignore IPv6? In this episode of Network Matters with Ethan Banks, learn why putting off a migration to IPv6 can adversely affect your business. Ethan explains the performance issues that can arise and the limitations of address translation.
A security breach is a serious matter, but most IT leaders aren't even aware when it has happened. In this episode of Network Matters with Ethan Banks, learn about the likelihood of something malicious lurking in your infrastructure, and how you can find it. Ethan explains the dangers and recommends several security tools that can help IT pros ferret out the bad stuff.
The traditional wide area network is complicated and costly, buy it doesn't have to be that way. In this episode of Network Matters with Ethan Banks, learn about new software-defined technologies, called SD-WAN, that allow you to leverage Internet-based connectivity with the same benefits as a private WAN.
In this episode of Network Matters with Ethan Banks, learn why the topic of DevOps has become so pervasive in IT media. Ethan explains what DevOps really means for most IT organizations, and how Infrastructure professionals can use concepts from DevOps to improve their own efficiency.
In this episode of Network Matters with Ethan Banks, learn about the pros and cons of specialized network hardware. Ethan explains when and where custom hardware makes sense, when commoditized hardware fills the bill, and the role software plays.
In this episode of Network Matters with Ethan Banks, learn about the basics of OpenStack and why the open-source cloud platform has become so popular. Ethan explains exactly what OpenStack is, then dispels some of the myths around IT's expectations for OpenStack adoption.
Ethan is the co-host of the Future of Networking Summit at Interop Las Vegas. Learn more about the conference program or register for Interop, May 2-6 in Las Vegas.
In this episode of Network Matters with Ethan Banks, learn why Ethan's advice to most enterprises is to stop thinking about SDN. Rather than viewing SDN as a shrink-wrapped magic solution, Ethan explains why enterprises need to focus on their specific business problems and the networking products that can solve them – SDN or not.
Ethan is the co-host of the Future of Networking Summit at Interop Las Vegas. Learn more about the conference program or register for Interop, May 2-6 in Las Vegas.