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Fortinet upgrades for better cloud, SD-WAN protection

Fortinet has rolled out a new version of its FortiOS operating system that gives customers the ability to manage security capabilities across their cloud assets and software-defined wide area networking (SD-WAN) environments.With FortiOS 5.6, the company’s Fortinet Security Fabric gives a view of customers’ public and private clouds – including Amazon Web Services and Azure – as well as assets on and their software-defined WANs, says John Maddison, Fortinet’s senior vice president of products.+More on Network World: DARPA to eliminate “patch & pray” by baking chips with cybersecurity fortification+To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Fortinet upgrades for better cloud, SD-WAN protection

Fortinet has rolled out a new version of its FortiOS operating system that gives customers the ability to manage security capabilities across their cloud assets and software-defined wide area networking (SD-WAN) environments.With FortiOS 5.6, the company’s Fortinet Security Fabric gives a view of customers’ public and private clouds – including Amazon Web Services and Azure – as well as assets on and their software-defined WANs, says John Maddison, Fortinet’s senior vice president of products.+More on Network World: DARPA to eliminate “patch & pray” by baking chips with cybersecurity fortification+To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

How to decide between cloud, on-premise and As-a-Service

Although vendor-written, this contributed piece does not advocate a position that is particular to the author’s employer and has been edited and approved by Network World editors.Deciding whether and how to use cloud computing is a complex, and made all the more complicated by the overwhelming number of vendors and products. What’s more, hybrid and multicloud approaches blur the lines between the cloud and on-premise deployment options.With an operations team that counsels organizations on which type of architecture is best for them – on premise, cloud, hybrid or multicloud – and then evaluates what went well and didn’t in all four kinds of deployments, here’s our view of what situations tip the scale toward one approach or another.  While the context is data storage, this analysis applies to most enterprise IT scenarios.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

How to decide between cloud, on-premise and As-a-Service

Although vendor-written, this contributed piece does not advocate a position that is particular to the author’s employer and has been edited and approved by Network World editors.

Deciding whether and how to use cloud computing is a complex, and made all the more complicated by the overwhelming number of vendors and products. What’s more, hybrid and multicloud approaches blur the lines between the cloud and on-premise deployment options.

With an operations team that counsels organizations on which type of architecture is best for them – on premise, cloud, hybrid or multicloud – and then evaluates what went well and didn’t in all four kinds of deployments, here’s our view of what situations tip the scale toward one approach or another.  While the context is data storage, this analysis applies to most enterprise IT scenarios.

To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

21% off Seagate Backup Plus Hub for Mac, 4TB External Desktop Hard Drive – Deal Alert

Back up your files, precious photos and videos while connecting to and recharging any USB device, such as your tablet, smartphone or camera -- even if your system is off or in standby mode. The Backup Plus Hub for Mac is fully compatible with Time Machine, and will work with Windows based computers as well. This model has integrated USB ports, and packs a generous 4TB of space for just $109.99, a 21% discount over its typical list price of $139.99. See this deal now on Amazon.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

21% off Seagate Backup Plus Hub for Mac, 4TB External Desktop Hard Drive – Deal Alert

Back up your files, precious photos and videos while connecting to and recharging any USB device, such as your tablet, smartphone or camera -- even if your system is off or in standby mode. The Backup Plus Hub for Mac is fully compatible with Time Machine, and will work with Windows based computers as well. This model has integrated USB ports, and packs a generous 4TB of space for just $109.99, a 21% discount over its typical list price of $139.99. See this deal now on Amazon.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

HP rises again to be the world’s top PC maker as Lenovo slips

It was another tough quarter for PC shipments, but there was good news for HP, which edged Lenovo to regain the title of world top's PC maker, according to IDC.Worldwide PC shipments totaled 60.3 million units in the first quarter of 2017, growing by just 0.6 percent compared to the same quarter the previous year.IDC previously forecast a decline of 1.8 percent in PC shipments, so the positive growth was a sign the PC market is recovering. Quarterly PC shipments reported positive growth for the first time since the first quarter of 2012. Lenovo previously beat HP for the title of the world's top maker in 2013 and has mostly held the position since then. HP regained the top spot this quarter boosted by strong laptop shipments worldwide. Now the question remains if HP can hold the spot.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Microsoft kicks security bulletins to the curb in favor of security update guide

Forget about security bulletins; Microsoft is so done with them. Now, it’s all about the Security Update Guide – something Microsoft claimed customers wanted back in November 2016. Bulletins were supposed to bite the dust starting in January 2017, but it appears as if they did starting in April 2017. This new era for patching Microsoft is great, if you really like clicking again and again. If not, I suppose that is too bad, so sad.The release notes are slightly more informative than the Microsoft Security Response Center post about the April patches. The latter simply stated, “Today we released security updates to provide additional protections against malicious attackers.” Microsoft recommends turning on automatic updates, but probably not to stop the upcoming migraine for the click-fest you will have to endure to find out about the security updates.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Microsoft kicks security bulletins to the curb in favor of security update guide

Forget about security bulletins; Microsoft is so done with them. Now, it’s all about the Security Update Guide – something Microsoft claimed customers wanted back in November 2016. Bulletins were supposed to bite the dust starting in January 2017, but it appears as if they did starting in April 2017. This new era for patching Microsoft is great, if you really like clicking again and again. If not, I suppose that is too bad, so sad.The release notes are slightly more informative than the Microsoft Security Response Center post about the April patches. The latter simply stated, “Today we released security updates to provide additional protections against malicious attackers.” Microsoft recommends turning on automatic updates, but probably not to stop the upcoming migraine for the click-fest you will have to endure to find out about the security updates.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Orange Pi takes on Raspberry Pi with new computer boards

Raspberry Pi may be the most well-known board computer, but rival Orange Pi is rolling out a much larger range of boards at a furious pace and at cheaper prices.The number of board computer users is growing, with Raspberry Pi's shipments passing 10 million units last year. Orange Pi hasn't shipped as many devices but is trying to customize its boards to meet a wider set of computing needs. The latest board computer is the US$30 Orange Pi Prime, which is almost identical to Raspberry Pi 3 in terms of features. The Orange Pi Prime has better graphics by using a Mali-450 GPU, which can process 2K video.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

42% off TurboTax Deluxe 2016 Tax Software Federal & State – Deal Alert

TurboTax coaches you every step of the way and double checks your return as you go to handle even the toughest tax situations, so you can be confident you’re getting every dollar you deserve. Its typical list price of $59.99 has been reduced a generous 42% to $34.89, a deal that is exclusive to Amazon. Learn more, or take advantage of the deal now, on Amazon.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Today, Get 43% off SanDisk Connect Wireless Stick 200GB – Deal Alert

Note: This deal is only active until 2am ET, 4/12The SanDisk Connect wireless stick is a flash drive with a unique twist -- you can access it wirelessly. Whether it's in your pants pocket, in your bag, or on the picnic table at your campsite, the Connect wireless stick lets you stream media or move files wirelessly with up to three computers, phones or tablets simultaneously. Connections are made via built-in wifi (think "hotspot"), so no external wireless or internet services are needed. A USB connection is also available, if desired. Storage on this model is a generous 200GB. Reviewers on Amazon report at least 8-10 hours of battery life on one charge. This model is currently discounted 43%, from $119.99 down to $67.99. See it now on Amazon.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Today, Get 43% off SanDisk Connect Wireless Stick 200GB – Deal Alert

Note: This deal is only active until 2am ET, 4/12The SanDisk Connect wireless stick is a flash drive with a unique twist -- you can access it wirelessly. Whether it's in your pants pocket, in your bag, or on the picnic table at your campsite, the Connect wireless stick lets you stream media or move files wirelessly with up to three computers, phones or tablets simultaneously. Connections are made via built-in wifi (think "hotspot"), so no external wireless or internet services are needed. A USB connection is also available, if desired. Storage on this model is a generous 200GB. Reviewers on Amazon report at least 8-10 hours of battery life on one charge. This model is currently discounted 43%, from $119.99 down to $67.99. See it now on Amazon.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Notes on the FCC and Privacy in the US

I’ve been reading a lot about the repeal of the rules putting the FCC in charge of privacy for access providers in the US recently—a lot of it rising to the level of hysteria and “the end is near” level. As you have probably been reading these stories, as well, I thought it worthwhile to take a moment and point out two pieces that seem to be the most balanced and thought through out there.

Essentially—yes, privacy is still a concern, and no, the sky is not falling. The first is by Nick Feamster, who I’ve worked with in the past, and has always seemed to have a reasonable take on things. The second is by Shelly Palmer, who I don’t always agree with, but in this case I think his analysis is correct.

Last week, the House and Senate both passed a joint resolution that prevent’s the new privacy rules from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) from taking effect; the rules were released by the FCC last November, and would have bound Internet Service Providers (ISPs) in the United States to a set of practices concerning the collection and sharing of data about consumers. The rules were widely heralded Continue reading

Notes on the FCC and Privacy in the US

I’ve been reading a lot about the repeal of the rules putting the FCC in charge of privacy for access providers in the US recently—a lot of it rising to the level of hysteria and “the end is near” level. As you have probably been reading these stories, as well, I thought it worthwhile to take a moment and point out two pieces that seem to be the most balanced and thought through out there.

Essentially—yes, privacy is still a concern, and no, the sky is not falling. The first is by Nick Feamster, who I’ve worked with in the past, and has always seemed to have a reasonable take on things. The second is by Shelly Palmer, who I don’t always agree with, but in this case I think his analysis is correct.

Last week, the House and Senate both passed a joint resolution that prevent’s the new privacy rules from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) from taking effect; the rules were released by the FCC last November, and would have bound Internet Service Providers (ISPs) in the United States to a set of practices concerning the collection and sharing of data about consumers. The rules were widely heralded Continue reading