The Hub and Spoke!

Cisco blog follows DHS Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) report detailing risks around Office 365 and other cloud services Read the article over at Network World over here . 

  Powerful Content Filtering and Internet usage reporting solution is now available to IT Service Providers as a 100% whitelabel product.  This allows these IT Service Providers to offer a completely self-branded Content Filter and Internet Usage Reporting service to their customers. Find out more about the product over at MyBB over here . 

Researchers show the WPAD protocol can be used to steal user data despite HTTPS or VPN connections Read the article over at PC World over here . 

Here are 122 Incredible Reasons to Make the Switch to Hands-Free Computing with RealWear OK, so you’re super impressed after downloading our  data sheet .  Maybe you’ve downloaded our white paper on using intrinsically safe hands-free wearable computers in restricted hazardous zones, and are wondering if you should make the leap and free your hands for work. We’ve compiled 122 incredible reasons to  buy your first hands-free HMT-1 head-mounted rugged wearable computer today for your work.  (Of course, we built this list off the top of our head.) Read the blog post over at realwear over here .

Easy to deploy Looking Glass made in PHP. Requirements Webserver such as Apache 2, or Lighttpd, etc… PHP (>= 7.0) module for the webserver (libapache2-mod-php for Apache 2 for example) The XML package is required as well (php7.0-xml on Debian for example) Description This web application made in PHP is what we call a Looking Glass . This is a tool used to get some information about networks by giving the opportunity to execute some commands on routers. The output is sent back to the user. For now this looking glass is quite simple. Here you have some features: Interface using Javascript and AJAX calls (needs a decent browser) Support the following router types: Juniper BIRD Cisco (IOS and IOS-XR) Extreme/Brocade NetIron Mikrotik/RouterOS OpenBGPd Quagga Vyatta/VyOS/EdgeOS FRRouting Support of Telnet and SSH connection to routers using password authentication and SSH keys Configurable list of routers Tweakable interface (title, logo, footer, elements ord

In this article we will show how to install and use the network monitoring software called My Looking Glass, or mylg . It is fairly early in mylg development but it already supports lots of great features like for example packet analyzer, web dashboard, port scanning and many more. We will install it on Ubuntu 16.04 LTS. What mylg can diagnose in network 1) Real time trace route (support IPv4 and IPv6 networks) 2) Dig command enhanced 3) TCP/IP packet analyzer 4) Enhanced HTTP Ping and Dump 5) Port scanning commands 6) Peer information 7) Network LAN Discovery 8) Collect ASN, IP/CIDR information 9) DNS lookup information

Here's our rundown of what makes these 10 network-gear vendors the biggest power players within the enterprise. Read the article over at Network World over here . 

Bufferbloat, or the massive sudden ping spikes it causes in online games, is one of the biggest issues that gamers face.

The Pi-hole ® is a DNS sinkhole that protects your devices from unwanted content, without installing any client-side software. Easy-to-install : our versatile installer walks you through the process, and takes less than ten minutes Resolute : content is blocked in non-browser locations, such as ad-laden mobile apps and smart TVs Responsive : seamlessly speeds up the feel of everyday browsing by caching DNS queries Lightweight : runs smoothly with minimal hardware and software requirements Robust : a command line interface that is quality assured for interoperability Insightful : a beautiful responsive Web Interface dashboard to view and control your Pi-hole Versatile : can optionally function as a DHCP server , ensuring all your devices are protected automatically Scalable : capable of handling hundreds of millions of queries when installed on server-grade hardware Modern : blocks ads over both IPv4 and IPv6 Free : open source software which helps

Do you ever feel like something in your home is slowing down your home network? Whether you’re waiting for Netflix to stop buffering, waiting for your Facetime call to unfreeze, or waiting for your online game to stop lagging, we all spend too much time struggling with our connection.  This problem happens when other devices eat up your bandwidth. The technical term for this is ‘Bufferbloat’ and this beginner’s guide will explain how it happens and what you can do to fix it.  Read the article over at Netduma over here .

It all started with an interesting weird MLAG bugs discussion during our last Building Next-Generation Data Center online course. The discussion almost devolved into “when in doubt reload” yammering when Mark Horsfield stepped in saying “while that may be true, make sure to check and collect these things before reloading”.  I loved what he wrote so much that I asked him to turn it into a blog post… and he made it even better by expanding it into generic network troubleshooting guidelines. Enjoy! Read the blog post over at IP Space over here .

I’ve done a couple of application slowness (brownout) troubleshooting sessions recently. This blog is my attempt to condense some observations from both engagements, to share lessons learned. “Condense” might not be the right word, seeing how long this blog got! Troubleshooting with some process awareness can help! I have a troubleshooting process. Sometimes I do all the aspects, sometimes I do the short version. I think it helps! As I was drafting this blog, ipspace.net posted a very comprehensive blog on the same topic. Recommended! Darn, Ivan beat me to print again!  Read the blog post over at Netcraftsman over here .

The story of Shackleton's whisky.

Terry Slattery and Rob Widmer played a significant role in the creation of the Cisco CLI, which has been the industry standard for networking CLIs ever since. In this History of Networking episode we talk to Terry and Rob about the history of how the Cisco CLI came to be and get the story on how the decisions were made that made the CLI what it is today. Listen to the podcast over at Network Collective over here .

A friend of mine is an accountant at a large company. The CEO and other executives don't know what accounting is, and that's OK. Everyone works around it.  OK, that's a lie. No company like that exists.  I do have a friend, however, who is a software engineer at a large company where the CEO and other executives don't understand software. They don't understand what is reasonable to expect software to do, how it is made, how software projects are managed, or how a web-based service is run.  That isn't something that employees can "work around."  Maybe that was OK years ago, but it isn't OK now. In fact, my advice to this friend was to start sending out her resume. Many companies that don't think of themselves as software companies are finding that software is a key component of their operations. If executives and management do not understand how software is made, they will be ineffective compared with those who do. This will either l

The Layer 2 Tunneling Protocol (L2TP) is a standard protocol for tunneling L2 traffic over an IP network. Its ability to carry almost any L2 data format over IP or other L3 networks makes it particularly useful. But L2TP remains little-known outside of certain niches, perhaps because early versions of the specification were limited to carrying PPP -- a limitation that is now removed. It is desirable to tunnel L2 traffic over routed L3 networks because L2 networks are generally more transparent, easier to configure and easier to manage than L3 networks. These are desirable properties for a range of applications . In data centers, a flat network is essential for promoting virtual machine (VM) mobility between physical hosts. In companies with multiple premises, the sharing of infrastructure and resources between remote offices can be simplified by L2 tunneling. The L2TP protocol itself is an open standard defined by the IETF. This article concentrates on the latest Version

Specifications Dimensions: 220mmx190mmx80mm (H x W x D) Features: Cold Start 15A/115V AC, 30A/230V AC Overload Protection 115% ‐ 135% of the rated power, pulsing hiccup shut down, auto recovery Overvoltage protection Short circuit protection, recovery Low power consumption, high reliability 100% full load burn‐in test Audible tone for mains fail Battery protection circuit built in Battery charger is intelligent - switch mode charging processed by a PIC processor Power Rating: Output: 12V 3.5A Battery: 12V 7AH Battery used as standard Standard Cables: The IPU comes standard with 2 x 1.5m cables with industry standard 2.1mm moulded plugs Caution: The unit will dissipate a small amount of heat so please ensure that the unit is installed in a place where there is sufficient ventilation This unit must not be installed outside as it is not protected against water Mounting, maintenance and repair must be carried out by a skilled and authorised person