Network-CI Part 3 – OSPF to BGP Migration in Active/Standby DC

The final post in a series demonstrates how to use the network-ci tools to safely replace a core routing protocol inside a small Active/Standby Data Centre.

This bag of tricks may help stop a Locky ransomware infection

A malware researcher has found a few tricks to stop one of the latest types of ransomware, called Locky, from infecting a computer without using any security programs.Ransomware is malware that encrypts a computer's files. Users are shown instructions for how to pay a fee to get the decryption key. The costs can range from a few hundreds dollars to thousands, payable to cybercriminals in bitcoin.Locky is a relative newcomer to the ransomware scene, which computer security researchers first saw over the last few months. It is primarily distributed through spam messages that try to trick people into opening attachments, such as fake invoices.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

The Syrian Electronic Army was careless with Gmail, Facebook

If you're a hacker, it's a good idea to stay away from Facebook and Gmail to communicate with your colleagues.Three men, who allegedly were part of a multi-year hacking campaign executed by the Syrian Electronic Army (SEA), left a long digital trail that didn't make them hard to identify, according to court documents.The U.S. Department of Justice unsealed charges on Tuesday against the men, who are accused of hacking companies and defacing websites.The SEA, which emerged around July 2011, claimed credit for prominent hacks that sought to support Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The group targeted the White House, Harvard University, Reuters, the Associated Press, NASA and Microsoft, among others.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Juniper Targets Tier 2s With IP & Optical Integration

It will integrate optical technology in its routers.

The Next Level: Mindfulness And IT

On this episode of the Next Level we talk about mindfulness and what it means to IT performance, and whether mindfulness benefits such as relaxation and focus can be separated from its spiritual context.

The post The Next Level: Mindfulness And IT appeared first on Packet Pushers.

The Next Level: Mindfulness And IT

On this episode of the Next Level we talk about mindfulness and what it means to IT performance, and whether mindfulness benefits such as relaxation and focus can be separated from its spiritual context.

The post The Next Level: Mindfulness And IT appeared first on Packet Pushers.

Include the why

I recently stumbled upon an interesting speech from 1984 by Charlie Munger of Bershire Hathaway fame. Charlie is Warren Buffet’s right-hand-man, and a straight talking genius in his own right. It’s a fairly long speech and Charlie has a few very interesting things to say, but one particular section on ‘explaining the why’ really struck home.
Here’s a brief quote:

….if you always tell people why, they’ll understand it better, they’ll consider it more important, and they’ll be more likely to comply. Even if they don’t understand your reason, they’ll be more likely to comply.
So there’s an iron rule that just as you want to start getting worldly wisdom by asking why, why, why, in communicating with other people about everything, you want to include why, why, why. Even if it’s obvious, it’s wise to stick in the why.

The ‘why’ is notably absent from most conversations in our high-tech sphere. I’ve wasted countless hours interpreting solutions to ill-defined or undefined problems. I’m guilty of writing many ‘why-less’ documents and emails also. Upon reflection, I can recognise the folly of not explaining the problem at hand before launching into the solution.
When I drop the reasoning and background and Continue reading

Include the why

I recently stumbled upon an interesting commencement speech by Charlie Munger of Bershire Hathaway fame. Charlie is Warren Buffet’s right-hand-man, and a straight talking genius in his own right. It’s a fairly long speech and Charlie has a few very … Continue reading →

The post Include the why appeared first on The Network Sherpa.

Startup Sigfox wins over a carrier as new radios battle for the future of IoT

Altice, a network operator active in the U.S. and across Europe, is betting on French company Sigfox to expand its machine-to-machine business even as it tests LTE-M, a narrowband version of the 4G standard slimmed down for the Internet of Things. One technology it won't touch, though, is LoRa, the fledgling standard backed by a number of mobile operators, including Orange and Bouygues Telecom, the main rivals of Altice's French subsidiary, SFR. Machine-to-machine communications already constitute a significant market for Altice, which connects 5 million machines or objects via its cellular networks and has 2,600 enterprise clients in this field, company executives said Tuesday.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Starting a Blog on Open Software/Hardware + Networking

Today I’m jumping into water to start writing about some area where I have some half-decent background: the intersection of Open Software/Hardware and Networking.

Why?

You see, I’m a software guy. The pragmatical Linux/OpenSource fanboy kind. What that means? I have a formal degree on Computer Science, and wrote Linux drivers and software for embedded systems for 8 years. But I’m also a pragmatical guy: I know how to write kernel drivers, but I use a Mac laptop every day because I like things to work. For the last 4 years I have been learning a big from networking at Hewlett Packard Enterprise, where I have worked on networking (SDN, ASICs), and more recently on the OpenSwitch project.

Worth Reading: The FCC’s subtractive privacy rules

Less is not more. That’s real “common sense.” When one’s actions demonstrably create a worse rather than better outcome net-net, like the FCC’s new Title II ISP privacy policy does, others would justifiably consider it a mistake. While the FCC obviously complied with President Obama’s call for regulating broadband as a Title II utility, the FCC obviously ignored President Obama’s 2011 call for a 21st century regulatory system, where he said we are “making it our mission to root out regulations that conflict, that are not worth the cost, or are just plain dumb.” -via Somewhat Reasonable

The post Worth Reading: The FCC’s subtractive privacy rules appeared first on 'net work.

What People Get Wrong About Microsoft SONiC

Howdy. In my previous post, I mentioned doing a deep dive of SONiC, the recent software release from Microsoft. So without further delay, Software for Open Networking in the Cloud, or SONiC. What It Ain’t I’m sure y’all might have read this FAQ, but just in case, I’ll hit the main points: SONiC is not […]

The post What People Get Wrong About Microsoft SONiC appeared first on Packet Pushers.

What People Get Wrong About Microsoft SONiC

Howdy. In my previous post, I mentioned doing a deep dive of SONiC, the recent software release from Microsoft. So without further delay, Software for Open Networking in the Cloud, or SONiC. What It Ain’t I’m sure y’all might have read this FAQ, but just in case, I’ll hit the main points: SONiC is not […]

The post What People Get Wrong About Microsoft SONiC appeared first on Packet Pushers.

FBI grows “Cyber Most Wanted” list with Syrian Electronic Army members

The FBI today added two members of a Syrian hacker group to its Cyber Most Wanted list offering a reward of up to $100,000 each for information that leads to their arrest.+More on Network World: The FBI this week warned carmakers and owners that they need to pay much closer attention to automotive cybersecurity+According to the FBI, the new cybercriminals Amad Umar Agha22, known online as “The Pro,” and Firas Dardar,27, known online as “The Shadow,” engaged in a multi-year conspiracy that began in 2011 to collect usernames and passwords that gave them the ability to deface websites, redirect domains to sites controlled by the conspirators, steal e-mail, and hijack social media accounts. To obtain the login information they spear-phishing, where they tricked people who had privileged access to their organizations’ websites and social media channels into volunteering sensitive information by posing as a legitimate entity.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Kelly Ahuja Will Be the Latest to Leave the Cisco Management Team

Yvette Kanouff takes the service provider group amid a reportedly huge Cisco reorg.

How To Get The Most Out Of Interop

Interop is one of the few remaining independent tech conferences, which makes it a unique opportunity for IT professionals to get training, education, and insights that aren’t driven by a vendor’s agenda. The conference stretches over five days, you’ll want to plan ahead because there’s so much to choose from, including multi-day workshops, individual sessions, […]

The post How To Get The Most Out Of Interop appeared first on Packet Pushers.

How To Get The Most Out Of Interop

Interop is one of the few remaining independent tech conferences, which makes it a unique opportunity for IT professionals to get training, education, and insights that aren’t driven by a vendor’s agenda. The conference stretches over five days, you’ll want to plan ahead because there’s so much to choose from, including multi-day workshops, individual sessions, […]

The post How To Get The Most Out Of Interop appeared first on Packet Pushers.

Apple patches 56 vulnerabilities in OS X El Capitan, improves Live Photo sharing

Apple yesterday updated OS X El Capitan, patching a slew of security vulnerabilities, fixing other non-security bugs, and adding capabilities to some first-party apps.The Cupertino, Calif. company also issued less sweeping updates -- composed only of vulnerability fixes -- to OS X Yosemite and OS X Mavericks, the 2014 and 2013 editions, respectively.OS X 10.11.4, the fourth update to El Capitan since its September debut, addressed 56 vulnerabilities. Twenty-three applied to OS X Yosemite and 22 to Mavericks.+ MORE APPLE: Apple's latest announcements +To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Facebook engages Safety Check after Brussels attacks

Facebook activated its Safety Check service Tuesday for users living near Brussels after a series of terrorist attacks killed at least 34 people and wounded 200.Two explosions – one reportedly set off by a suicide bomber -- rocked the Belgian capital’s international airport, and a third detonated at a subway station.+ MORE: Paris terrorists resorted to using burner phones, not encryption, to avoid detection +To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

IDG Contributor Network: Want faster systems? Grow a laser on the chip

One of the things that has always been a bottleneck in electronics has been getting the data in and out of the chip. The silicon semiconductor, within itself, communicates faster than it does with the surrounding system.That may be about to change, though. A laser incorporated onto the semiconductor could be the answer to solving the slowdown, think scientists. And they now believe they know how to do it: Simply grow the laser straight onto the silicon.Faster-than-ever-before communications could be possible with the technique, think the scientists.In the same way that light, delivered by fiber optic, sends data faster than electrons do along a copper wire, the light via laser system would get the ones and zeroes out of the chip quicker and into the surrounding electronics faster. Wires could become obsolete.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here