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Category Archives for "Networking"

Red Hat nicely positioned for the turn to cloud

Red Hat CEO James Whitehurst kicked off the company’s Summit meeting in Boston this week, which attracted more than 6,000 people, up 20% from last year. Network World Editor in Chief John Dix caught up with Whitehurst at the show for an update on the company’s position and prospects. One of your keynote speakers said 84% of Red Hat customers have cloud deployment strategies. Is the shift to cloud accelerating your business?I do think the shift to cloud is helping. We have data that shows our customers who use cloud actually grow faster in total with us than ones who don’t. The promise of cloud accelerates the Unix-to-Linux migration as people modernize applications to be able to move to cloud -- whether they move immediately or not -- because clouds primarily run Linux. In general, anything that makes people move to a new architecture is good for us because we have a high share of new architecture relative to old. I think that’s a big, big driver.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Are next-generation firewalls legacy technology?

A few years ago, next-generation firewalls (NGFWs) came out of nowhere to become a network security staple. These devices combined traditional L3/L4 packet filtering with deep packet inspection, IPS, and other network security services along with knowledge about users and applications. This broad functionality packaging changed the network security paradigm—everyone needed, or at least wanted a NGFW at the perimeter or within the internal network.Fast forward to 2017, and the bloom is coming off the NGFW rose for several reasons: Requirements have changed. NGFWs followed in the footsteps of earlier firewalls—physical appliances installed inline to protect private networks from the public Internet. Back then, mobile and remote office workers VPNed into the corporate network and traffic was backhauled for Internet ingress/egress. This model is changing rapidly, however. As cloud computing, SaaS, mobility and broadband networks evolved, mobile and remote worker connection are often dual homed, offering direct connections to the public internet. Once this happens, NGFWs lose their usefulness, offering no visibility or control of network traffic. Software is eating the world. Remember Marc Andreessen’s famous essay about the rise of software? Ironically, his publication doesn’t dedicate a single word to cybersecurity, but make no mistake, software is eating Continue reading

Are next-generation firewalls legacy technology?

A few years ago, next-generation firewalls (NGFWs) came out of nowhere to become a network security staple. These devices combined traditional L3/L4 packet filtering with deep packet inspection, IPS, and other network security services along with knowledge about users and applications. This broad functionality packaging changed the network security paradigm—everyone needed, or at least wanted a NGFW at the perimeter or within the internal network.Fast forward to 2017, and the bloom is coming off the NGFW rose for several reasons: Requirements have changed. NGFWs followed in the footsteps of earlier firewalls—physical appliances installed inline to protect private networks from the public Internet. Back then, mobile and remote office workers VPNed into the corporate network and traffic was backhauled for Internet ingress/egress. This model is changing rapidly, however. As cloud computing, SaaS, mobility and broadband networks evolved, mobile and remote worker connection are often dual homed, offering direct connections to the public internet. Once this happens, NGFWs lose their usefulness, offering no visibility or control of network traffic. Software is eating the world. Remember Marc Andreessen’s famous essay about the rise of software? Ironically, his publication doesn’t dedicate a single word to cybersecurity, but make no mistake, software is eating Continue reading

40% off Dell Computer Ultrasharp U2415 24.0-Inch Screen LED Monitor – Deal Alert

The Dell Ultrasharp monitor has virtual borderless viewing ideal for a multi-monitor set-up; with more vertical resolution available on the U2415 16:10 monitor . Fully adjustable features like tilt, swivel, height adjust including pivoting both 90 Degree clockwise or counter-clockwise, allowing the thinnest possible edges to be placed side by side . Connect seamlessly to other peripherals simultaneously without compromising on picture quality via digital connectivity. A high current USB 3.0 charging port supplies twice the power for charging and powering BC1.2 compatible devices, and DP1.2 supports multi-stream transport.  This monitor averages 4.5 out of 5 stars from over 1,00 people on Amazon (read reviews). The typical list price has been reduced 40% to just $239.85. See it now on Amazon.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

39% off Dell Computer Ultrasharp U2415 24.0-Inch Screen LED Monitor – Deal Alert

The Dell Ultrasharp monitor has virtual borderless viewing ideal for a multi-monitor set-up; with more vertical resolution available on the U2415 16:10 monitor . Fully adjustable features like tilt, swivel, height adjust including pivoting both 90 Degree clockwise or counter-clockwise, allowing the thinnest possible edges to be placed side by side . Connect seamlessly to other peripherals simultaneously without compromising on picture quality via digital connectivity. A high current USB 3.0 charging port supplies twice the power for charging and powering BC1.2 compatible devices, and DP1.2 supports multi-stream transport.  This monitor averages 4.5 out of 5 stars from over 1,00 people on Amazon (read reviews). The typical list price has been reduced 39% to just $244.99. See it now on Amazon.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Chromebook shipments surge by 38 percent, cutting into Windows 10 PCs

In a slowing PC market, Chromebooks siphoned market share away from Windows PCs in 2016 as their popularity grew outside the education market.Chromebook shipments grew by a stunning 38 percent in 2016 compared to 2015. Gartner estimated 9.4 million Chromebooks shipped, compared to 6.8 million units in 2015.The number is just a fraction of overall PC shipments, but growth came in an otherwise down PC market. Overall PC shipments in 2016 were about 270 million units, a decline of about 6.2 percent, according to Gartner.Looking forward, 2016 may go down as the best year ever for Chromebook shipment growth. Gartner is estimating shipments to continue growing in the coming years but at a slower pace.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Fatboy ransomware adjusts demands based on local price of a Big Mac

A new ransomware-for-hire scheme called Fatboy adjusts the ransom it charges based on international exchange rates so it’s more likely the victims get hit for the largest amount they can reasonably pay.Posted on Exploit, a Russian-language online forum, Fatboy automatically adjusts ransom demands according to where the victim is located, according to the Recorded Future blog.That adjustment is based on the Big Mac Index, which was created by The Economist as a way to show whether official international monetary exchange rates line up with the price charged for a certain product – the Big Mac burger sold by McDonald’s – from country to country. The index tells whether currencies are overvalued or undervalued based on what McDonald’s charges in each country.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Fatboy ransomware adjusts demands based on local price of a Big Mac

A new ransomware-for-hire scheme called Fatboy adjusts the ransom it charges based on international exchange rates so it’s more likely the victims get hit for the largest amount they can reasonably pay.Posted on Exploit, a Russian-language online forum, Fatboy automatically adjusts ransom demands according to where the victim is located, according to the Recorded Future blog.That adjustment is based on the Big Mac Index, which was created by The Economist as a way to show whether official international monetary exchange rates line up with the price charged for a certain product – the Big Mac burger sold by McDonald’s – from country to country. The index tells whether currencies are overvalued or undervalued based on what McDonald’s charges in each country.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

‘Found a leaky ethernet port’

As a regular reader of Reddit’s section devoted to system administration, I have come to understand that subject lines such as “Found a leaky ethernet port” do no always mean what one might assume they mean. Today’s example: “This is going to be a fun couple of days,” bemoans the Redditor who discovered this leak. “It's been raining for two days straight and it's expected to continue for another two.”To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

‘Found a leaky ethernet port’

As a regular reader of Reddit’s section devoted to system administration, I have come to understand that subject lines such as “Found a leaky ethernet port” do no always mean what one might assume they mean. Today’s example: “This is going to be a fun couple of days,” bemoans the Redditor who discovered this leak. “It's been raining for two days straight and it's expected to continue for another two.”To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

‘Found a leaky ethernet port’

As a regular reader of Reddit’s section devoted to system administration, I have come to understand that subject lines such as “Found a leaky ethernet port” do no always mean what one might assume they mean. Today’s example: “This is going to be a fun couple of days,” bemoans the Redditor who discovered this leak. “It's been raining for two days straight and it's expected to continue for another two.”To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Burnout isn’t budging in the U.S. workforce

Feeling exhausted, uninspired, cranky, unmotivated and burned out? You're not alone.According to a new study from professional service automation company Kimble Applications, which focused on professionals that track billable hours, the majority underreport the number of hours they work. This has broad implications for professions like IT consultants and contract software engineers, as well as attorneys and accountants, says Rob Bruce, vice president of strategy at Kimble Applications.[ Related story: Shattering remote worker stereotypes ] To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Net neutrality defenders gear up for new fight

Advocates for strong net neutrality rules enforced by a powerful federal regulator may be on the ropes, but they are striking a defiant tone as they look to whip up grassroots opposition ahead of the effort to dismantle the FCC's open internet order.Later this month, the FCC is planning to hold a vote at its May 18 meeting that would begin consideration of an order reclassifying broadband service under communications law such that the commission would significantly limit its authority to police ISPs.The distinction in service classification is arcane, but in a practical sense the FCC under Chairman Ajit Pai is proposing to undo the legal underpinning of his predecessor's 2015 open internet order, which expanded the commission's oversight authority over the broadband sector, and established net neutrality rules that have been upheld in federal court.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Net neutrality defenders gear up for new fight

Advocates for strong net neutrality rules enforced by a powerful federal regulator may be on the ropes, but they are striking a defiant tone as they look to whip up grassroots opposition ahead of the effort to dismantle the FCC's open internet order.Later this month, the FCC is planning to hold a vote at its May 18 meeting that would begin consideration of an order reclassifying broadband service under communications law such that the commission would significantly limit its authority to police ISPs.The distinction in service classification is arcane, but in a practical sense the FCC under Chairman Ajit Pai is proposing to undo the legal underpinning of his predecessor's 2015 open internet order, which expanded the commission's oversight authority over the broadband sector, and established net neutrality rules that have been upheld in federal court.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

UK seeks end to end-to-end encryption

It could put an end to end-to-end encryption in services such as WhatsApp: The U.K. government wants telecommunications providers to help it tap their customers' communications, removing any encryption the provider applied.The government's desires are set out in a draft of the regulations obtained by Open Rights Group (ORG), which campaigns for digital civil rights."These powers could be directed at companies like WhatsApp to limit their encryption. The regulations would make the demands that [Home Secretary] Amber Rudd made to attack end-to-end encryption a reality. But if the powers are exercised, this will be done in secret," said ORG executive director Jim Killock.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here