Ubuntu’s Cosmic Cuttlefish brings performance improvements and more

Canonical has just recently announced that Ubuntu 18.10, code named 'Cosmic Cuttlefish', is ready for downloading at the Ubuntu release site. Some of the features of this new release include: the latest version of kubernetes with improved security and scalability access to 4,100 snaps better support for gaming graphics and hardware including support for the extremely fast Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 fingerprint unlocking for compatible systems (e.g., Ubuntu phones) The new theme The Yaru Community theme -- the theme for Ubuntu 10.18 -- is included with Ubuntu 18.10 along with a new desktop wallpaper that displays an artistic rendition of a cuttlefish (a marine animal related to squid, octopuses, and nautiluses).To read this article in full, please click here

Systemd is bad parsing and should feel bad

Systemd has a remotely exploitable bug in it's DHCPv6 client. That means anybody on the local network can send you a packet and take control of your computer. The flaw is a typical buffer-overflow. Several news stories have pointed out that this client was written from scratch, as if that were the moral failing, instead of reusing existing code. That's not the problem.

The problem is that it was written from scratch without taking advantage of the lessons of the past. It makes the same mistakes all over again.
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, we learned that parsing input is a problem. The traditional ad hoc approach you were taught in school is wrong. It's wrong from an abstract theoretical point of view. It's wrong from the practical point of view, error prone and leading to spaghetti code.

The first thing you need to unlearn is byte-swapping. I know that this was some sort epiphany you had when you learned network programming but byte-swapping is wrong. If you find yourself using a macro to swap bytes, like the be16toh() macro used in this code, then you are doing it wrong.

But, you say, the network byte-order is big-endian, Continue reading

Kernel of Truth episode 9: Layer 3 Networking

Subscribe to Kernel of Truth on iTunes, Google Play, Spotify, Cast Box and Sticher!

Click  here for our previous episode.

For this week’s Kernel of Truth podcast we dive into Layer 3 networking and why we believe it’s the future of network design. In this episode we cover everything about why you should transition to Layer 3, how to make that transition, and why L3 is different than Layer 2. We bring in Jason Heller, a Principle Consulting Architect here at Cumulus, as well as Donald Sharp, a Principle Engineer to gain insight into the future of Layer 3 and the possibilities it can hold for you.

Tune in to to hear the pros and cons of L3 and the best way to begin transitioning and the options that come with Layer 3 networking. If you like what you hear on this week’s episode make sure to follow and subscribe!

Guest Bios

Brian O’Sullivan: Brian O’Sullivan is a generalist who happened to end up in a highly specialized field through no fault of his own. For 15 or so years he’s held software Product Management positions at Juniper Networks as well as other smaller companies. Once he Continue reading

Weekly Show 413: How Disaggregation Accelerates Innovation And Operations With Juniper Networks (Sponsored)

On today's Weekly Show, sponsor Juniper Networks joins us to look at how disaggregation works across the network stack, and how it can drive innovation, operational efficiency, and cost savings.

The post Weekly Show 413: How Disaggregation Accelerates Innovation And Operations With Juniper Networks (Sponsored) appeared first on Packet Pushers.

Weekend Reads ‭190DA‬

By now pretty much all of online advertising is adtech, which doesn’t sponsor publishers. Instead it uses publishers to mark and track eyeballs wherever they might go. It does that by planting tracking beacons (mixed like poison blueberries into those cookies sites now require “consent” to) on readers’ browsers or phones, and then shoots the readers’ eyeballs with ads when they show up elsewhere on the Web, preferably on the cheapest possible site, so those eyeballs can be hit as often as possible within the budget the advertiser has paid adtech intermediaries. @Doc Serls Weblog

Consider, then, that most useful work relies on TCP/IP, which itself relies on the Domain Name System (DNS). We should know as much as possible about our use of the DNS, but most IT administrators are much too busy learning their specialized craft to also become experts on every enabling technology. —Paul Vixie @Dark Reading

The technology products that drive today’s businesses are increasingly produced through a highly diversified and complex international supply chain. Whether it is standard networking gear or a more specialized device like a human-machine interface or remote terminal unit, equipment is often developed through an elaborate web of OEMs, chip makers, Continue reading

Stuff The Internet Says On Scalability For October 26th, 2018

Wake up! It's HighScalability time:

 

Sometimes old school is best.

 

Do you like this sort of Stuff? Please support me on Patreon. I'd really appreciate it. Know anyone looking for a simple book explaining the cloud? Then please recommend my well reviewed book: Explain the Cloud Like I'm 10 (30 reviews!). They'll love it and you'll be their hero forever.

 

  • 23%: fraudulent ad impressions; 10: years jQuery File Upload Plugin has been vulnerable; 240%: numpywren’s compute efficiency (total CPU-hours) improvement on serverless; 2 weeks: time it takes to create a billion MySQL tables; 1,000: parts in 3D printed rocket; 70%: decrease in face-to-face interactions in open offices; $100+ million: commercial open source software company revenue index; 200 million: ebikes in China; 

  • Quotable Quotes:
    • Tim Cook: We at Apple are in full support of a comprehensive federal privacy law in the United States. There, and everywhere, it should be rooted in four essential rights: First, the right to have personal data minimized. Companies should challenge themselves to de-identify customer data—or not to collect it in the first place. Second, the right to knowledge. Users should always know what data is Continue reading

The 2018 Africa Summit on Women and Girls in Technology: My Story

October 9-11, 2018 will remain etched in the memories of the more than 250 girls and women in technology who converged in Accra, Ghana to participate in the second Africa Summit on Girls and Women in Technology. I was privileged to participate in this summit as well – together with seven other women in technology from my community in Ghana.

Highlights

The delegates were invited to provide their input into discussions on ongoing key policy processes in the continent and across the globe on broadband Internet access, sustainable development, and women’s empowerment.

The Deputy Minister of Communication from Ghana, Vincent Sowah Odotei, made the opening address, where he detailed Ghana’s achievements and plans to digitize Ghana and to support women to participate as users and producers of technology.

The program was planned such that the morning to lunchtime sessions were interactive keynote panels and “fireside chats,” touching on the following themes: Leadership in Technology Policy; Policy Engagement: The What, Why, and How; Women Advancing Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Mathematics and Design (STEAMD); Institutional Support for Women in Tech; and other topics.

The workshops were: Community Networks, Wikipedia Edit-a-thon, Enhancing Digital Security and Advocacy, and Mobilizing for Impact Continue reading

[Sponsored] Short Take – Viavi Solutions

In this Network Collective Short Take, Bill Proctor from Viavi Solutions joins us to talk about how Viavi is optimizing network and application monitoring with the end result of reducing the amount of time it takes to resolve issues. Adding more metrics isn’t the answer. Analyzing and correlating these indicators and turning them into actionable information is the real challenge and Viavi is doing just that. Listen in to see how Viavi is using their innovative technology to empower engineers in resolving even the most challenging of issues.

Thank you to Viavi Solutions for sponsoring today’s episode and supporting the content we’re creating here at Network Collective. If you would like to learn more about Viavi’s platform, you can head to http://www.viavisolutions.com/networkcollective for lots of great information and to try the solution out for yourself. Viavi is also giving away four Network Collective community memberships for our listeners. If you’ve wanted to join our community but haven’t made the jump yet, head on over to the link above to register for this fantastic giveaway.

 

Bill Proctor
Viavi Solutions - Product Line Manager
Jordan Martin
Network Collective Host

The post [Sponsored] Short Take – Viavi Solutions appeared first Continue reading

More Ansible Modules for Extreme

We published Ansible modules for Extreme SLX devices earlier this year. Now we have modules covering all the main Extreme Switching & Routing product families - SLX, VDX, MLX, EXOS, VSP.

Available Modules

  • SLX - slxos_command, slxos_config, slxos_facts, slxos_interface, slxos_l2_interface, slxos_l3_interface, slxos_linkagg, slxos_lldp, slxos_vlan
  • VDX - nos_command, nos_config, nos_facts
  • EXOS - exos_command, exos_config, exos_facts
  • VOSS - voss_command, voss_config, voss_facts
  • MLX - ironware_command, ironware_config, ironware_facts

All modules are available in the current GA version of Ansible (2.7), except for voss_config. That one proved a bit trickier for me to write, and I didn’t get it done in time for the 2.7 cutoff. That one is an open Pull Request against the Ansible devel branch. That should get reviewed and merged soon. It will then make its way into the next GA release. You can of course use the code direct from my branch in the meantime.

All modules use the network_cli plugin. See Platform Options for general information about how to use this connection type.

Thanks to Continue reading

More Ansible Modules for Extreme

We published Ansible modules for Extreme SLX devices earlier this year. Now we have modules covering all the main Extreme Switching & Routing product families - SLX, VDX, MLX, EXOS, VSP.

Available Modules

  • SLX - slxos_command, slxos_config, slxos_facts, slxos_interface, slxos_l2_interface, slxos_l3_interface, slxos_linkagg, slxos_lldp, slxos_vlan
  • VDX - nos_command, nos_config, nos_facts
  • EXOS - exos_command, exos_config, exos_facts
  • VOSS - voss_command, voss_config, voss_facts
  • MLX - ironware_command, ironware_config, ironware_facts

All modules are available in the current GA version of Ansible (2.7), except for voss_config. That one proved a bit trickier for me to write, and I didn’t get it done in time for the 2.7 cutoff. That one is an open Pull Request against the Ansible devel branch. That should get reviewed and merged soon. It will then make its way into the next GA release. You can of course use the code direct from my branch in the meantime.

All modules use the network_cli plugin. See Platform Options for general information about how to use this connection type.

Thanks to Continue reading

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