Video: Beyond Two Nodes

In the introductory videos of How Networks Really Work webinar I described the mandatory elements of any networking solution and additional challenges you have to solve when you can’t pull a cable between the adjacent nodes.

It’s time for the next bit of complexity: what if we have more than two nodes connected to the same network segment? Welcome to the world of multi-access networks and data link control.

You need free ipSpace.net subscription to watch the videos in Overview of Networking Challenges section, or a paid ipSpace.net subscriptions to watch the rest of the webinar.

ClearOS Gateway on GNS3

In a previous tutorial we have successfully installed ClearOS on QEMU VM in a gateway mode. At the end of the tutorial we have installed several apps from ClearOS marketplace. These apps enhance gateway functionality, however  we have not tested  them yet. Therefore, this tutorial goes further and we are going to test some services offered by ClearOS apps. In order to do it, we will connect ClearOS QEMU appliance into a GNS3 topology.

Our ClearOS QEMU instance is configured with two guest network cards (Picture 1). The first guest interface ens3 has assigned the LAN role and it is configured with the IP address 192.168.1.254/24. This is the IP address a web server is listening on, the port 81. The entire ClearOS management will be done via web browser using the url https://192.168.1.254:81.

Picture 1 - Network Interfaces Configuration During ClearOS Installation

The second guest interface ens4 has assigned External role and its IP address is assigned from DHCP server. DHCP server is running on SOHO router with the IP address 172.17.100.1/16 (Picture 2).

Picture 2 - Network Topology

GNS3 itself connects the second guest interface ens4 of ClearOS gateway Continue reading

BrandPost: Top 3 Misconceptions About SD-WAN

There’s little question that software-defined wide-area networks (SD-WANs) have taken off, as companies look for increased network resiliency and control. But there’s still significant confusion about SD-WAN, including some benefits that are more myth than reality.In this post, we’ll explore three common misconceptions that surround SD-WAN, starting with what is probably the most important one.Misconception #1: SD-WAN will replace services such as MPLS SD-WAN doesn’t necessary replace any existing network service, be it MPLS, broadband Internet, or anything else. In fact, it requires some kind of network service to work at all.To read this article in full, please click here

IBM Injects Cloud Innovation Into Its z15 Mainframe

IBM z15 mainframe, amps-up cloud, security features

IBM has rolled out a new generation of mainframes – the z15 – that not only bolsters the speed and power of the Big Iron but promises to integrate hybrid cloud, data privacy and security controls for modern workloads.On the hardware side, the z15 mainframe systems ramp up performance and efficiency. For example IBM claims 14 percent more performance per core, 25 percent more system capacity, 25percent more memory, and 20 percent more I/O connectivity than the previous iteration, the z14 system. [ Check out What is hybrid cloud computing and learn what you need to know about multi-cloud. | Get regularly scheduled insights by signing up for Network World newsletters. ] IBM also says the system can save customers 50 percent of costs over operating x86-based servers and use 40 percent less power than a comparable x86 server farm. And the z15 has the capacity to handle scalable environments such as supporting 2.4 million Docker containers on a single system.To read this article in full, please click here

IBM z15 mainframe, amps-up cloud, security features

IBM has rolled out a new generation of mainframes – the z15 – that not only bolsters the speed and power of the Big Iron but promises to integrate hybrid cloud, data privacy and security controls for modern workloads.On the hardware side, the z15 mainframe systems ramp up performance and efficiency. For example IBM claims 14 percent more performance per core, 25 percent more system capacity, 25percent more memory, and 20 percent more I/O connectivity than the previous iteration, the z14 system. [ Check out What is hybrid cloud computing and learn what you need to know about multi-cloud. | Get regularly scheduled insights by signing up for Network World newsletters. ] IBM also says the system can save customers 50 percent of costs over operating x86-based servers and use 40 percent less power than a comparable x86 server farm. And the z15 has the capacity to handle scalable environments such as supporting 2.4 million Docker containers on a single system.To read this article in full, please click here

AT&T, DT, and Telefónica Trumpet Cost-Saving CO Pod

Operators Strike Realistic Edge Computing Balance

NEC Adds Infovista SD-WAN to Its Smart Enterprise Suite

Cisco Live 2019 – Recap

Umm, yeah I know that Cisco Live was like two months ago (ok three now) and I am finally getting …

Continue reading →

The post Cisco Live 2019 – Recap appeared first on Fryguy's Blog.

Cisco Live 2019 – Recap

Umm, yeah I know that Cisco Live was like two months ago (ok three now) and I am finally getting …

Continue reading →

The post Cisco Live 2019 – Recap appeared first on Fryguy's Blog.

Announcing Joseph Hall as SVP for a Strong Internet

I’m excited to announce that Joseph Lorenzo Hall will join us as our Senior Vice President for a Strong Internet. He will start in October and be based in our Reston, VA, office.

Many of you may know Joe from his work at the Center for Democracy and Technology, where he has been Chief Technologist for about six years. He has a unique ability to put together policy and technical issues, particularly but not only with respect to security. He’s the Vice-Chair of the Board of the California Voter Foundation and a Board member of the Verified Voting Foundation. He went to school at UC Berkeley and received his PhD in Information Systems from there in 2008. A former astrophysicist, he has been working on a monograph about sand clocks, which you may know by the term “hourglass”. I am not kidding even a little when I say you should ask about it, because you will be fascinated. He brings additional strength to our already great group of people who work to make the Internet stronger.

The post Announcing Joseph Hall as SVP for a Strong Internet appeared first on Internet Society.

IDG Contributor Network: A Virtual WAN: Moving closer to the enterprise

Microsoft has introduced a new virtual WAN as a competitive differentiator and is getting enough tracking that AWS and Google may follow. At present, Microsoft is the only company to offer a virtual WAN of this kind. This made me curious to discover the highs and lows of this technology. So I sat down with Sorell Slaymaker, Principal Consulting Analyst at TechVision Research to discuss. The following is a summary of our discussion.But before we proceed, let’s gain some understanding of the cloud connectivity.Cloud connectivity has evolved over time. When the cloud was introduced about a decade ago, let’s say, if you were an enterprise, you would connect to what's known as a cloud service provider (CSP). However, over the last 10 years, many providers like Equinix have started to offer carrier-neutral collocations. Now, there is the opportunity to meet a variety of cloud companies in a carrier-neutral colocation. On the other hand, there are certain limitations as well as cloud connectivity.To read this article in full, please click here

Disaster Recovery Test Faking: Another Use Case for Stretched VLANs

The March 2019 Packet Pushers Virtual Design Clinic had to deal with an interesting question:

Our server team is nervous about full-scale DR testing. So they have asked us to stretch L2 between sites. Is this a good idea?

The design clinic participants were a bit more diplomatic (watch the video) than my TL&DR answer which would be: **** NO!

Let’s step back and try to understand what’s really going on:

SD-WAN Named Most Disruptive Network Tech of 2019

AT&T’s Fuetsch Touts Trellis Deployed in Tier-1 Network

BrandPost: 8 Key Considerations When Selecting a Managed SD-WAN Service Provider

Software-defined wide-area network (SD-WAN) technology can bring myriad benefits to companies of nearly any size or stripe, but as discussed in a previous post, it can be complex to deploy. For many IT teams, the solution means opting for a managed SD-WAN service. But this may lead to another issue: how to assess providers.After conversations with CenturyLink executive Michael Lawson, General Manager of SD-WAN Solution Architecture for CenturyLink– I’ve come up with eight considerations when assessing SD-WAN managed service providers.To read this article in full, please click here

Oracle Co-CEO Mark Hurd Takes Medical Leave of Absence

BrandPost: SD-WAN: Does Your IT Team Have What It Takes?

An earlier three-part series of blog posts examined a series of questions to ask to determine whether your company may be a good candidate to implement Software-Defined Wide-area Network (SD-WAN) technology. What the series did not cover was whether you’ve got the personnel in-house that it takes to architect and implement an SD-WAN and manage it for the long-term. That requires assessing a different series of questions. While SD-WAN has been talked about for years, it is still a relatively young technology that has not yet seen widespread implementation, notes Michael Lawson, General Manager of SD-WAN Solution Architecture for CenturyLink. “There’s still a lot of learning going on,” he says.To read this article in full, please click here

Cisco adds speed, smarts to MDS storage networking family

Looking to support ever-increasing workloads, Cisco has pumped up the speed and intelligence of its storage area networking family.The company addressed the need for increased speed by saying it would add support for 64Gbps ready SAN fabric across its 9700 line of MDS storage directors.The MDS family includes the 18-slot 9718, the 10-slot 9710 and the six-slot 9706. More about backup and recovery: Backup vs. archive: Why it’s important to know the difference How to pick an off-site data-backup method Tape vs. disk storage: Why isn’t tape dead yet? The correct levels of backup save time, bandwidth, space The main idea here is that customers can upgrade to the new fabric module and upgrade their software to add speed and capacity for high-speed fabrics without having to rip-and-replace any of the directors, according to Adarsh Viswanathan, Cisco product manager, data center switching. A 64Gbps line card for all three chassis will be available in the future, Cisco said.To read this article in full, please click here