Setting Go variables from the outside

CloudFlare's DNS server, RRDNS, is written in Go and the DNS team used to generate a file called version.go in our Makefile. version.go looked something like this:

// THIS FILE IS AUTOGENERATED BY THE MAKEFILE. DO NOT EDIT.

// +build    make

package version

var (  
    Version   = "2015.6.2-6-gfd7e2d1-dev"
    BuildTime = "2015-06-16-0431 UTC"
)

and was used to embed version information in RRDNS. It was built inside the Makefile using sed and git describe from a template file. It worked, but was pretty ugly.

Today we noticed that another Go team at CloudFlare, the Data team, had a much smarter way to bake version numbers into binaries using the -X linker option.

The -X Go linker option, which you can set with -ldflags, sets the value of a string variable in the Go program being linked. You use it like this: -X main.version 1.0.0.

A simple example: let's say you have this source file saved as hello.go.

package main

import "fmt"

var who = "World"

func main() {  
    fmt.Printf("Hello, %s.n", who)
}

Then you can use go run (or other build commands like go build or go install Continue reading

One third of enterprise iOS devices vulnerable to app, data hijacking attacks

Apple released patches for several exploits that could allow maliciously crafted applications to destroy apps that already exist on devices, access their data or hijack their traffic, but a large number of iOS devices are still vulnerable.The vulnerabilities allow for so-called Masque attacks because they involve the impersonation of existing apps or their components. Three of them were patched in iOS version 8.1.3 that was released in January and two newer ones were patched in iOS 8.4, released Tuesday.In order to attack iOS devices with these flaws, hackers would have to trick their owners into installing rogue apps through the enterprise provisioning system. Companies use this mechanism to deploy in-house developed apps that are not published on the official App Store.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Rule 11 Redux

One way to cut through the morass of slow stovepipes of siloed infrastructure is to consolidate or unify disparate pools of server compute, storage and networking resources into a single system. Called converged and hyperconverged infrastructure, these platforms provide a tightly integrated stack of virtualized resources that can be rapidly provisioned on-demand.

Is it just me, or did we used to call this a mainframe?

The post Rule 11 Redux appeared first on 'net work.

Austrian court dismisses class action suit against Facebook

An Austrian court has dismissed a class action suit concerning Facebook’s privacy policy, saying it has no jurisdiction over the case.The decision is a blow to Europe-v-Facebook, the privacy campaign group whose front-man, Max Schrems, filed the suit, and to the 25,000 Facebook users who had assigned their claims against the company to the case.Schrems, an Austrian national, filed suit against Facebook in the Vienna Commercial Court, which referred the case to the Vienna Regional Court.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

The Tinker and the Geek: Information Technology

Imagine you’ve just woken up and found yourself in a small kingdom someplace in Europe around 1200 AD. You wander outside, interested in your surroundings, and find yourself in the middle of a fair. Taking stock, you see a man standing in a tent across the way who appears to be tapping on something with a small hammer. Working your way to the tent, you find he is actually tapping out intricate patterns on a small silver disc. While you’re not certain what the disc is for, you take a moment to ask — as any geek would — “are you in the information technology business?”

The tinker, living in 1200 AD, probably doesn’t even understand the question. “What’s information technology?,” he might ask. But let’s consider the tinker’s business. What does a tinker really do?

He takes some material, combines it with technical knowhow, including the development and use of tools, to create a product he knows customers will want. He can’t just use any old tool, or any old technique — he must know something about the correct technology to apply to the problem at hand. And he can’t just hammer anything out on the little Continue reading

AnsibleFest NYC Networking Automation Panel

Untitled_design-1A few weeks ago at AnsibleFest in NYC, we did something a little bit different: we assembled a panel of networking experts and had a very interesting discussion about some of the challenges and opportunities around networking automation. With representatives from Cisco, Cumulus, World Wide Technologies, and Network to Code, we dug into some of the reasons to automate your network, the technical and organizational challenges, and we reviewed some of the new Ansible modules being written for various networking components. Network automation is an exciting and early area for us, and we are looking forward to what the future holds.

 

Skype for Business preview adds support for massive meetings, cloud-based phone administration

Businesses that use Microsoft’s Skype for Business communication product have some new beta features to play with that make the enterprise messaging and calling product more useful.The features, which were first announced earlier this year when Microsoft officially rebranded its Lync service as Skype for Business, allow businesses to create large-scale meetings and better integrate Skype for Business with traditional phone lines. It’s all designed to make the service more appealing for enterprises when those features enter general availability later this year.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

How to deploy tablets to your mobile workforce

When Wakefield Canada, the exclusive distributor for Castrol in Canada, set out to replace the tablets used by their sales team, it went right to the source to figure out what to buy: The people who would be using them in the field. "A big part of this was really involving our end users in the tool selection," says Kent Mills, Wakefield Canada CTO. MORE: 10 mobile startups to watch The company landed on the Microsoft Surface Pro 3. Here's why – and how they made an easy transition. To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

The Upload: Your tech news briefing for Wednesday, July 1

Court says NSA can keep collecting phone records even after Congress told it to stopThe National Security Agency just doesn’t want to stop collecting records of U.S. telephone calls. Congress told it to stop—but left a loophole in the USA Freedom Act so the courts could let it carry on. Now a U.S. surveillance court has approved a request from the FBI to extend the telephone records dragnet until Nov. 29. As the judge noted in his order: “The more things change, the more they stay the same.”Vandal cuts cable after opening manhole: FBI looks into itTo read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

China tightens grip over the Internet with new security law

China has adopted a new security law that gives the government control over its Internet infrastructure, along with any critical data.On Wednesday, China’s legislature passed the national security law, which covers a wide range of areas including military defense, food safety, and the technology sector.A full text of the law’s final draft has yet to be released, but it calls for better cybersecurity, according to a report from China’s state-controlled Xinhua News Agency. The country’s key information systems and data will also be made “secure and controllable” under the law.Previous drafts of the legislation don’t state in detail what that control might mean, exactly. But U.S. trade groups have expressed ongoing concern that China’s security policies are going too far, and could push foreign businesses out of the country.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Xiaomi break outs of Asia, introduces phones to Brazil

Chinese smartphone vendor Xiaomi will finally begin selling product in Brazil, marking the first time it has sold handsets outside of Asia.On Tuesday, Xiaomi unveiled its Redmi 2 phone for Brazil, which will cost BRL499 (US$160) when it goes on sale later this month.The company hopes to repeat the success it has had in China selling feature-packed Android handsets at low prices. In just a matter of a few years, Xiaomi has become the country’s largest smartphone vendor. Some in the media have called it “the Apple of China” due to its rising popularity.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

The battle for the wireless networking crown is heating up

The IT world has been buzzing recently with partnerships and acquisitions on the wireless networking front. HP announced its decision to acquire Aruba Networks and will reportedly focus its efforts on new software that allows customers to manage entire networks with a single app. We also learned about the newly formed partnership between Juniper Networks and Ruckus Wireless, demonstrating Juniper's continued effort to become a real player in the wireless space. All interesting revelations, but will these changes pose a real threat to Cisco, the reigning networking champ?To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

CyberUL is a dumb idea

Peiter “mudge” Zatko is leaving Google, asked by the White House to create a sort of a cyber “Underwriter Laboratories” (UL) for the government. UL is the organization that certifies electrical devices, so that they don’t short out and zap you to death. But here’s the thing: a CyberUL is a dumb idea. It’s the Vogon approach to the problem. It imagines that security comes from a moral weakness that could be solved by getting “serious” about the problem.

It’s not the hacking problem

According to data-breach reports, 95% of all attacks are simple things, like phishing, SQL injection, and bad passwords – nothing related to software quality. The other 5% is because victims are using old, unpatched software. When exploits are used, it’s overwhelmingly for software that has remained unpatched for a year.

In other words, CyberUL addresses less than 0.1% of real-world attacks.

It’s not the same quality problem

UL is about accidental failures in electronics. CyberUL would be about intentional attacks against software. These are unrelated issues. Stopping accidental failures is a solved problem in many fields. Stopping attacks is something nobody has solved in any field.

In other words, the UL model of accidents is Continue reading

Preparing for the CCIE Wireless v3 Diagnostic Section

I had the pleasure of attending the CCIE Wireless tectorial at Cisco Live in San Diego this year. One of the topics discussed was the new diagnostic section of the lab. Jerome Henry gave us insights into what the section would look like as well as some examples of the types of things that we can expect in the section. I wanted to pass on some of that information along with a few insights about how you should prepare for this section since it’s quite different than what we’ve seen before in the lab.

What is the Diagnostic section?

Starting in v3 of the wireless lab, each lab will begin with a 1-hour diagnostic section. This section has no configuration task associated with it. Instead, you will be playing the role of TAC, or a senior level engineer. Your job is to look at information gathered from a client by a first-level engineer and analyze it so that you can answer questions related to troubleshooting an issue.

It sounds like you can expect maybe 3-4 separate troubleshooting scenarios with approximately 10 questions to answer across those 3-4 scenarios. So that means there will probably be 2-4 questions per scenario. All Continue reading

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