Packet Pushers
Author Archives: Packet Pushers
- Home → Author's archive:
Packet Pushers
PP071: SSE Vendor Test Results; Can HPE and Juniper Get Along?
CyberRatings, a non-profit that performs independent testing of security products and services, has released the results of comparative tests it conducted on Secure Service Edge, or SSE, services. Tested vendors include Cisco, Cloudflare, Fortinet, Palo Alto Networks, Skyhigh Security, Versa Networks, and Zscaler. We look at what was tested and how, highlight results, and discuss... Read more »HS108: Keeping the (IT) House Clean to Avoid the Plague
Whether it’s CNAME records pointing to dead endpoints or abandoned cloud storage buckets still mentioned in the makefile or Chef recipe, seemingly innocuous bits of infrastructure that don’t get cleaned up can turn into serious security threats. (Both of these examples are taken from real-life attacks, BTW). When and how and who within IT should... Read more »
TNO035: Network Engineer and Content Creator – A Career Journey with Kevin Nanns
Kevin Nanns is today’s guest on Total Network Operations. Kevin describes his “Wizard of Oz” moment when he discovered the world of networking. He talks about how he came up through the ranks working a help desk and then in a NOC, and his climb up the certification ladder. We also discuss how AI is... Read more »N4N033: OSPF Neighbor Formation and Timers
Our OSPF series continues with a look at OSPF neighbor formation and related timers. We talk about the five major packet types that carry information among OSPF routers, how OSPF routers become neighbors, how they negotiate link-state database exchanges, keep-alive messages, and how they negotiate designated and backup routers when multiple devices are on the... Read more »HW056: From Emergency Response to Instant Branch: HiveRadar’s Portable Edge
There’s lots of use cases for a portable edge devices that can provide compute and wireless connectivity: emergency response, a remote industrial site, an instant retail location, and so on. Heavy Wireless dives into HiveRadar’s instant edge in a box, which provides Intel NUCs, integrated switching, a wireless gateway, a PDU, support for G5 and... Read more »PP070: News Roundup – Scattered Spider Bites MSPs, Microsoft Rethinks Kernel Access, North Koreans Seem Good at Their Illicit Jobs
There’s lots of juicy stories in our monthly security news roundup. The Scattered Spider hacking group makes effective use of social engineering to target MSPs, Microsoft pushes for better Windows resiliency by rethinking kernel access policies for third-party endpoint security software, and the US Justice Department files indictments against alleged operators of laptop farms that... Read more »NAN095: Certification Deep Dive – The New Cisco Automation Track
Cisco recently announced a major evolution to its certification roadmap: starting February 2026, the popular DevNet certifications will transition to a brand-new Automation track. Joining us today is Francois Caen, Product Manager at Cisco, also an expert in network automation and a recognized voice in the Cisco Learning and Certification Community. We talk with Francois... Read more »PP069: A Quantum Primer: It’s More Than Cracking Crypto
Quantum computing is here, and it’s being used for more than cracking encryption. On today’s Packet Protector we get a primer on quantum, how it differs from classical computing, its applications for difficult computing problems, why quantum will be the death of blockchain, and how to think about quantum risks. Our guest, Johna Johnson, is... Read more »HS107: Your (Late) New Years Resolution: Follow Your (Amended) Strategy
Here we are, a bit more than halfway through the year. How’s your execution against your strategy going? Roiled by the economy? Disrupted by tariffs? Thrown off by staff retirements? If you built a proper technology strategy in the first place, driven by the business strategy, then no matter what is happening don’t ignore it,... Read more »
TCG000: The Cloud Gambit Podcast Joins the Packet Pushers Network!
The Cloud Gambit is joining the Packet Pushers network! Launched in 2023 as an independent podcast, The Cloud Gambit cuts through the hype to deliver what actually matters in cloud and AI. Hosts William Collins and Eyvonne Sharp decode the strategies, technologies, and market forces reshaping enterprise infrastructure. Built for engineers who lead, leaders who... Read more »TNO034: Doing the Work of Workflows With Greg Freeman
On today’s show we talk about NetDevOps and AI Ops with Greg Freeman, VP of Network and Customer Transformation at Lumen. Greg spearheads network automation, orchestration ,and AI strategy, guiding the highest technical tier in operations and championing NetDevOps methodologies. We talk about the people and work culture that’s influenced the development of automation and... Read more »N4N032: OSPF Basics
By popular request (and now that we have some other background topics covered) we start our series on the Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) routing protocol. We kick off the series with OSPF basics including Link State Advertisements, Link State Database, and other related essentials. We’ll explore additional OSPF topics over subsequent episodes. This week’s... Read more »PP068: Common Kubernetes Risks and What to Do About Them
Today’s Packet Protector digs into risks and threats you might encounter in a Kubernetes environment, what to do about them, and why sometimes a paved path (or boring technology) is the smartest option. My guest is Natalie Somersall, Principal Solutions Engineer for the Public Sector at Chainguard. We talk about risks including identity and access... Read more »HW055: Improving Wireless Design With AI
AI is already widely used for wireless network operations. On today’s show, we look at how AI and machine learning are also being applied to wireless design and site surveys. My guest is Jussi Kiviniemi, Founder and CEO of Hamina Wireless. We talk about how Hamina is developing and implementing AI tools to help designers... Read more »TNO033: Maximum Impact: Leverage Your Network to Advance Your Career (Sponsored)
At AutoCon 3 in Prague, Scott Robohn sat down with Ernest Lefner from sponsor Gluware to talk about lessons learned throughout his career: from his early days of pulling cable to becoming Chief Product Officer at Gluware and helping to found ONUG. Ernest talks about being a continuous technology learner, and also about the need... Read more »TL016: When It Comes To Product Design, Don’t Trust Your Gut
People consistently overestimate their ability to predict whether a new product or feature will be a success. Instead of blithely going forward with a project that takes up lots of resources and yields minimal results, today’s guest says we should get our ideas into contact with external reality as quickly as possible, and maybe do... Read more »N4N031: When Is It Time For a Routing Protocol?
If you need to route in your network, you can program static routes into all your routing-capable devices. And this can work. But at some point, you’re probably going to want to switch to a dynamic routing protocol. On today’s N Is For Networking, Ethan and Holly discuss the differences between static and dynamic routes,... Read more »NAN094: Automate and Iterate With the NetBox Labs Community
On today’s show, we’re joined NetBox Labs co-founders Mark Coleman and Kris Beevers. They recount how they founded NetBox Labs and discuss its growth and how it’s being used. We also delve into the NetBox Labs community and its importance for users. And of course, there’s the ever-present AI discussion. Mark and Kris also talk... Read more »PP067: Protecting Secrets With Vault and TruffleHog
Secrets trickle out through misconfigurations, poor tooling, and rushed Git commits. Today’s guest, John Howard, joins us on Packet Protector to walk through practical secrets management with Vault and TruffleHog to help make sure you don’t expose your privates. John discusses work he’s done to build an automated process in his organization for developers and... Read more »HS106: Planning for the Epochalypse
IT teams deal with technology lifecycle issues all the time–including Y2K, which enterprises across the world grappled with for years. The Epochalypse, or Year 2038 Problem, is similar. Specifically, some Linux systems’ date-time counters will go from positive to negative at a specific date in 2038, potentially wreaking havoc on embedded systems and any other... Read more »