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Category Archives for "Networking"

BrandPost: An SD-WAN Can Cure Your Security Blues

Cyber security remains a hot topic with nearly every IT and business leader that I speak with. In particular, there seems to be an intensified focus on network security. Security is typically deployed in layers (network, compute and application), and I expect that model to continue in the short-term, but given the fact that many of the building blocks of digitization, such as IoT and the cloud, are network-centric, there should be a stronger focus on leveraging the network and network-based security to protect the organization.Nowhere in the network has there been more change than in the wide area network (WAN), so it stands to reason that as legacy WANs evolve into software-defined WANs, it must play an increasingly critical role in securing the enterprise.  Below are my top five recommendations to better secure your organization with an SD-WAN.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

How to kill your network with Ansible

Aside from being a user, I write about Ansible and try to help others to understand how it works. A few days ago I was answering questions from other Ansible users. Someone was having trouble figuring out why the ios_config module didn’t apply his template correctly. I explained what was wrong with the template, afterwards I thought about the issue some more and realized that the error could potentially be really dangerous. As in a game-over-level-event for your employment dangerous. Continue reading

North Korea Gets New Internet Link via Russia

This past weekend, North Korea expert Martyn Williams and I spotted the activation of a new internet path out of North Korea.  At 09:07:51 UTC on 1 October 2017, the country’s single internet provider, Star JV (AS131269), gained a new connection to the global internet through Russian fixed-provider Transtelecom (AS20485), often referred to as TTK.  Martyn published his analysis on the US-Korea Institute‘s 38 North blog, named after the dividing line between North and South Korea.

The internet of North Korea is very small (four BGP routes) and reportedly only accessible by a few elites in the country.  Since the appearance of AS131279 in the global routing table almost 7 years ago, Star JV has almost exclusively relied on China Unicom for its connectivity to the global internet — the only exception was its partial usage of satellite service from Intelsat between 2012 and 2013.  In light of this history, a new internet connection out of North Korea is certainly a notable development.

Unsteady Connection

At 09:07:51 UTC, TTK (AS20485) appeared as a transit provider for three of the four BGP routes announced by AS131279, namely, 175.45.176.0/24, 175.45.178.0/24, and Continue reading

Nuage Networks Q&A: Automated Analytics and Remediation for Cloud-based Security Services

Thanks to all who joined us for the Nuage Networks 2017 SDx Infrastructure Security Report Webinar, Automated Analytics and Remediation for Cloud-based Security Services. During the webinar Nuage Networks discussed how their VSP delivers an SDN solution with built-in security capabilities that combines scale, performance and flexibility in a single, boundary-less platform without compromising security or... Read more →

Will machine learning save the enterprise server business?

Nvidia and server makers Dell EMC, HPE, IBM and Supermicro announced enterprise servers featuring Nvidia’s Tesla V100 GPU. The question is, can servers designed for machine learning stem the erosion of enterprise server purchases as companies shift to PaaS, IaaS, and cloud services? The recent introduction of hardened industrial servers for IoT may indicate that server makers are looking for growth in vertical markets.There are very compelling reasons for moving enterprise workloads to Amazon, Google, IBM and other hosted infrastructures. The scalability of on-demand resources, operating efficiency at cloud-scale and security are just three of many reasons. For instance, Google has 90 engineers working on just security where most enterprises are understaffed.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Will machine learning save the enterprise server business?

Nvidia and server makers Dell EMC, HPE, IBM and Supermicro announced enterprise servers featuring Nvidia’s Tesla V100 GPU. The question is, can servers designed for machine learning stem the erosion of enterprise server purchases as companies shift to PaaS, IaaS, and cloud services? The recent introduction of hardened industrial servers for IoT may indicate that server makers are looking for growth in vertical markets.There are very compelling reasons for moving enterprise workloads to Amazon, Google, IBM and other hosted infrastructures. The scalability of on-demand resources, operating efficiency at cloud-scale and security are just three of many reasons. For instance, Google has 90 engineers working on just security where most enterprises are understaffed.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Google, Scale Computing partner for easier hybrid cloud deployment

Google has partnered with Scale Computing, developer of infrastructure software for hyper-converged systems, to make it easier to deploy Google Cloud Platform as a backup for your own data center. The two companies have created a platform called Cloud Unity, which integrates Scale’s HC3 software environment with Google Compute Engine. HC3 is a cluster software product that merges server, storage and virtualization into a single appliance for easier converged infrastructure. Also on Network World: Google develops high-capacity cloud data transfer device With HC3, you can build a cluster using Google's infrastructure instead of buying your own, thus creating a backup of your own data center in Google’s data centers. Cloud Unity creates a SD-WAN connection to your existing Scale environment, so the Google-hosted cloud version of your data center appears as just another cluster on the same LAN. It uses a VXLAN encryption between your site and Google’s data center. To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Google, Scale Computing partner for easier hybrid cloud deployment

Google has partnered with Scale Computing, developer of infrastructure software for hyper-converged systems, to make it easier to deploy Google Cloud Platform as a backup for your own data center. The two companies have created a platform called Cloud Unity, which integrates Scale’s HC3 software environment with Google Compute Engine. HC3 is a cluster software product that merges server, storage and virtualization into a single appliance for easier converged infrastructure. Also on Network World: Google develops high-capacity cloud data transfer device With HC3, you can build a cluster using Google's infrastructure instead of buying your own, thus creating a backup of your own data center in Google’s data centers. Cloud Unity creates a SD-WAN connection to your existing Scale environment, so the Google-hosted cloud version of your data center appears as just another cluster on the same LAN. It uses a VXLAN encryption between your site and Google’s data center. To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Arrow Electronics gives IoT a voice, connects devices to communications tools

Companies get into IoT for multiple reasons. In the case of Arrow, the Internet of Things (IoT) was thrust upon it. Now, however, Arrow Electronics is trailblazing into IoT platform services.Last year, Arrow did nearly $24 billion in revenue that was largely split between two businesses: electronic components and enterprise computing solutions. Historically, these two divisions had little overlap, but IoT has bridged the two units.+ Also on Network World: Forrester: 3 ways IoT can drive business value + A similar story is occurring at organizations everywhere as IoT converts disconnected things into computing peripherals. For example, hospital refrigerators that store blood and medicine are increasingly integrated into intelligent building management and communications systems.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Small Actions, Big Impact: Making the Internet More Secure

October is Cybersecurity Awareness Month in the United States (or Cyber Security Month in Europe) and we’ve never been so aware of the need for cybersecurity. Since the start of last October, we’ve seen massive DDoS attacks, including one that took parts of the Internet offline by targeting Internet infrastructure; countless data breaches, with nearly 2 billion records lost or stolen in just the first half of 2017; and a virulent case of ransomware which crippled the systems of major companies, healthcare providers, and average users. The seriousness of the cyber threats facing us is clear, but what isn’t clear to most are the solutions.

We all play a role in making the Internet more secure. And each of us have to take action if we want to be safer, our privacy to be better protected, and the opportunities enabled by the Internet to grow. This month, take a few small steps to make the Internet more secure. Even small actions, if done by many, can have a big impact.

To start, take the time to update your devices and software. Running updates is one of the easiest actions you can take. Updates can patch vulnerabilities, making it Continue reading

The King is dead?! Heck, no!

It’s been about a year and a half since I asked the question in this blog, “Is the Cisco 6500 Series invincible?” I believe enough time has passed and that I should revisit that question — especially since people in the industry have been talking, tweeting and writing about the demise of the venerable Catalyst 6500 chassis family for years. But don’t worry, the King is not dead because Cisco is having none of that! + Also on Network World: 4 resources to find free Cisco skills and certification labs + Aside from being a major revenue stream for Cisco, the 6500 chassis family remains a solid platform that the company has made extensible by creating the Catalyst 6800 family. To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

The King is dead?! Heck, no!

It’s been about a year and a half since I asked the question in this blog, “Is the Cisco 6500 Series invincible?” I believe enough time has passed and that I should revisit that question — especially since people in the industry have been talking, tweeting and writing about the demise of the venerable Catalyst 6500 chassis family for years. But don’t worry, the King is not dead because Cisco is having none of that! + Also on Network World: 4 resources to find free Cisco skills and certification labs + Aside from being a major revenue stream for Cisco, the 6500 chassis family remains a solid platform that the company has made extensible by creating the Catalyst 6800 family. To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

CYA! Cover Your Assets (By Securing Them) (Thwack)

Still using local accounts for device access? Don’t know what a Term Process is? You need to CYA!

On the Solarwinds Thwack Geek Speak blog I looked at a variety of security (and related) features which should be configured on all devices. Please do take a trip to Thwack and check out my post, “CYA! Cover Your Assets (By Securing Them)“.

CYA! Cover Your Assets (By Securing Them)

 

Please see my Disclosures page for more information about my role as a Solarwinds Ambassador.

If you liked this post, please do click through to the source at CYA! Cover Your Assets (By Securing Them) (Thwack) and give me a share/like. Thank you!

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