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Category Archives for "Networking"

Is Networking a Commodity?

Is networking becoming a commodity? Do we all need to worry about losing our jobs as network engineers because no-one cares about how a commodity is created or provided? Maybe it is time to take a second look at the commodity craze.

IDG Contributor Network: Will China start blocking SD-WAN traffic…today?

More than a decade ago, I launched the forerunner to SD-WAN Experts, MPLS Experts, on a project to China. Back then finding out telecom services in another country, let alone another continent, seemed like a mission impossible. China was among the most difficult.Much has changed in our industry. MPLS has given way to SD-WAN, but some things remain the same. We still need global connectivity and China continues to remain a mystery. My story about China blocking VPN traffic – and potentially SD-WAN traffic – caused quite a stir in the industry, in large part because, like so many things when dealing with China, concrete information remains scarce (particularly for non-native speakers).To read this article in full, please click here

IDG Contributor Network: Will China start blocking SD-WAN traffic…today?

More than a decade ago, I launched the forerunner to SD-WAN Experts, MPLS Experts, on a project to China. Back then finding out telecom services in another country, let alone another continent, seemed like a mission impossible. China was among the most difficult.Much has changed in our industry. MPLS has given way to SD-WAN, but some things remain the same. We still need global connectivity and China continues to remain a mystery. My story about China blocking VPN traffic – and potentially SD-WAN traffic – caused quite a stir in the industry, in large part because, like so many things when dealing with China, concrete information remains scarce (particularly for non-native speakers).To read this article in full, please click here

SSH tunnelling from OSX

In certain situations, I need to connect to a remote network via a bastion host but only have SSH available to me.   To get around installing some kind of VPN gateway, the easiest thing to do is to create an SSH tunnel.

In this situation, what happens is that you set up local port-forwarding.   Local port numbers are forwarded to the remote host via an SSH tunnel to the intermediate host.

The command format to do this on OSX is:

ssh -C -L <LOCAL-PORT>:<REMOTE-IP>:<REMOTE-PORT> <USERNAME>@<BASTION-HOST>

So for example, I can forward local port 1000 on my Mac to the remote device’s port 23 using this command (sudo has to be used for local ports lower than 1024):

sudo ssh -C -L 1000:10.200.0.1:23 [email protected]

Once authenticated, I can open another terminal window and type:

telnet localhost 1000

and hey-presto, I get connected to a remote router via telnet through an encrypted SSH tunnel!   The -C parameter is for compression and isn’t actually necessary.

If you need to create a number of local port-forwards, this can be done in a config file instead.   By default SSH reads /etc/ssh/sshd_config for system-wide parameters, and also Continue reading

We’ve Added a New AWS Certified Solutions Architect Course to Our Video Library!

Last week, we added an Amazon Web Services (AWS) Certified Solutions Architect – Associate Level course to our video library. The course is available for streaming via your All Access Pass members account and also available for purchase at ine.com.

 

Why Study AWS?
An AWS certification will put you in an elite group of cloud engineers, and could lead to better employment opportunities. Amazon Web Services are used by thousands of companies around the world, therefore, AWS certified engineers are highly valued by many employers. AWS certifications show the potential employer that you have the skills to design, deploy and manage scalable and secure systems on AWS platform.

About the Course:
This course is designed to help you prepare for the AWS Solutions Architect – Associate exam. Even if you do not have a lot of IT experience, and have never used any Amazon Web Services, this course is the best starting point for AWS certifications.

This class is taught by Miles Karabas, and includes 5 hours and 43 minutes of in-depth lectures, plus numerous practice questions similar to those on the exam.

Areas Focused On:

  • Compute
  • Storage
  • Databases
  • Security, Identity & Compliance
  • Management Tools
  • Networking & Content Continue reading

Get 25% Off H&R Block’s Federal & State Tax Software, Plus a 5% Amazon Bonus

If you're a tax time do-it-yourselfer, this is a deal that will save you money, and potentially make you some money as well.H&R Block's popular tax software is fully updated for 2018 and designed to make your 2017 tax prep easier and more convenient. Step-by-step interviews guide you through a customized experience relevant to your tax situation, so you know everything is accounted for. This version contains everything you need to prepare your federal and state taxes in one complete program, and everything can be handled electronically (including the PC or Mac software download). Right now the tax software's price is reduced 25% on Amazon to $33.74.To read this article in full, please click here

Get 33% Off H&R Block’s Federal & State Tax Software, Plus a 5% Amazon Bonus

If you're a tax time do-it-yourselfer, this is a deal that will save you money, and potentially make you some money as well.H&R Block's popular tax software is fully updated for 2018 and designed to make your 2017 tax prep easier and more convenient. Step-by-step interviews guide you through a customized experience relevant to your tax situation, so you know everything is accounted for. This version contains everything you need to prepare your federal and state taxes in one complete program, and everything can be handled electronically (including the PC or Mac software download).To read this article in full, please click here

Dell EMC patches vulnerabilities in its data protection products

Researchers have discovered several vulnerabilities in Dell EMC's data protection products that would allow an attacker to gain full control of the system. Fortunately, a fix is available now for download.The vulnerabilities, three in all, were disclosed on Jan. 4 by the security technology and services firm Digital Defense. They effect Dell EMC's Avamar Server, NetWorker Virtual Edition, and Integrated Data Protection Appliance, which use a common component called Avamar Installation Manager. This is the problematic app.In addition to this, a related problem in the VMware vSphere Data Protection backup product has also been uncovered, but it has already been patched.To read this article in full, please click here

Dell EMC patches vulnerabilities in its data protection products

Researchers have discovered several vulnerabilities in Dell EMC's data protection products that would allow an attacker to gain full control of the system. Fortunately, a fix is available now for download.The vulnerabilities, three in all, were disclosed on Jan. 4 by the security technology and services firm Digital Defense. They effect Dell EMC's Avamar Server, NetWorker Virtual Edition, and Integrated Data Protection Appliance, which use a common component called Avamar Installation Manager. This is the problematic app.In addition to this, a related problem in the VMware vSphere Data Protection backup product has also been uncovered, but it has already been patched.To read this article in full, please click here

Dell EMC patches vulnerabilities in its data protection products

Researchers have discovered several vulnerabilities in Dell EMC's data protection products that would allow an attacker to gain full control of the system. Fortunately, a fix is available now for download.The vulnerabilities, three in all, were disclosed on Jan. 4 by the security technology and services firm Digital Defense. They effect Dell EMC's Avamar Server, NetWorker Virtual Edition, and Integrated Data Protection Appliance, which use a common component called Avamar Installation Manager. This is the problematic app.In addition to this, a related problem in the VMware vSphere Data Protection backup product has also been uncovered, but it has already been patched.To read this article in full, please click here

Getting started with Linux: the basics – part 1

Perhaps you’re a Windows admin who is interested in making the jump to Linux, or perhaps you are a Mac OS user who may soon be administering a Linux-based network. Either way, you need to know some of the basics of Linux, just to get started gaining some hands-on experience. In this post, that’s exactly what you’ll get!

Where do I get Linux?

To get started with Linux, you need to download a Linux distribution, such as RedHat Enterprise Linux, Ubuntu, Debian, Fedora, openSUSE, CentOS or Cumulus Linux. You want to make sure that you obtain a Linux distribution that is compatible with your hardware. For example, you might select a 32-bit i386 image or a 64-bit amd64 image.

For example, if you want to start with the Debian distribution, you can download an ISO-formatted image that you would use to install Debian Linux.

While some people will want to run Linux directly on a physical server, desktop or laptop, many people start learning Linux for the first time by running it inside of a virtual machine. With a VM option, you can run Linux inside your existing Microsoft Windows or Apple macOS operating system using virtualization tools such as Continue reading

Vexata all-flash systems aim to reduce storage latency

Startup Vexata is tackling a vexing problem: how to eliminate input-output bottlenecks in storage fabrics without requiring customers to rearchitect their IT infrastructures.“If you look at the world today, all these IoT environments with [machine learning] and AI ecosystems, where the desire is mass volumes of data that need to be accessed with very high throughputs, at super low latencies and massive scale – how do you do this economically? How do you do it simplistically so that operationally those applications become a reality?” says Ashish Gupta, Vexata’s chief marketing officer. Vexata’s storage software platform “is designed to address this emerging application ecosystem problem.”To read this article in full, please click here