Networking - Infoworld

Much of Western U.S. lacks 3G access, says FCC

admin — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 22:17:16 +0000

Anyone making a road trip across America should expect their mobile data service to basically not exist throughout much of the Western United States.

IT guy wanted; must have own tools

Paul Venezia — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 11:00:00 +0000

As I rummaged around in a few backpacks searching for a USB-to-serial converter, I suddenly recalled that I had "donated" my stash of them. I had left them in various places running serial consoles for cutover tasks and back-end access during data center migrations. I could look all I wanted, but I wouldn't find them. They had been absorbed into the IT infrastructure.

The year's best hardware, software, and cloud services

Doug Dineley — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 11:00:00 +0000

Was it the philosopher George Santayana who said, "Those who don't remember the past are condemned to repeat it?" Did he offer any hints for those of us who want to repeat the past, especially the successes? We're beyond the teary elegies of 2011 and deep into making resolutions for 2012. If we're going to stand half a chance of creating something great this year, it only makes sense to pause and celebrate what went right in 2011.

6 things every IT person should know

Matt Prigge — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 11:00:00 +0000

Anyone who's been in IT for more than 10 minutes knows that troubleshooting is a huge part of the job. Some item -- it doesn't matter what -- breaks in a new and entirely unexpected way, and by default, it's up to you to get it fixed. It doesn't matter how many books you've read, how well you know the user guide, or what you ate for breakfast. What matters is how quickly you can connect the dots and wiggle your way out of the problem.

Top 10 small-business tech predictions for 2012

admin — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 11:00:00 +0000

For small and midsize businesses, 2011 was an eventful year for the owners and managers tasked with technology decisions. The year's highlights range from the arrival of new technologies such as the introduction of Intel's Thunderbolt peripheral interface to the release of Android 4.0 "Ice Cream Sandwich."

FCC approves first white spaces database, device

admin — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 21:40:44 +0000

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission has approved the first database of unlicensed wireless spectrum that can be used by new so-called white spaces devices.

Secondhand networks and back-alley firmware

Paul Venezia — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 11:00:00 +0000

When it's time to update firmware on, say, a router or a switch, the vast majority of folks head to the vendor site and grab whatever version they need, easy-peasy. But a large and growing number of admins don't have that luxury because the vendor requires paid support contracts to access those files -- and, in many cases, will only allow access to firmware for hardware covered under those contracts.

Architectural rule No. 1: Segregate everything

Matt Prigge — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 11:00:00 +0000

Enterprise IT infrastructures now face such an explosion of applications, devices, and data that just running in place is hard enough. Nobody seems to have the time or resources to design new systems that actually improve operations. Nonetheless, there's one step you can take to make life easier and your infrastructure stronger as you deal with rampant growth: introduce logical separation wherever you can.

8 free Wi-Fi security tools

admin — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 08:00:00 +0000

These apps for Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux will help you see and get info on all your Wi-Fi access points

Dek:

These apps for Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux will help you see and get info on all your Wi-Fi access points

External Source:

networkworld.com

Redirect Unpublished Slideshow to:

http://www.infoworld.com/slideshow/22542

VDI shoot-out: VMware View 5

Doug Dineley — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 11:00:00 +0000

An excellent platform for building an enterprise VDI solution, VMware View 5 takes advantage of all the features, services, and fault tolerance built into VMware's flagship vSphere hypervisor. View allows IT to manage pools of virtual desktops, assign them to users, and define policies for VDI behavior, all from a single browser-based UI.

VDI shoot-out: Citrix XenDesktop vs. VMware View

Doug Dineley — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 11:00:00 +0000

More than 20 years ago, the desktop revolution swept across the land, ushering in a new paradigm of computing, taking processing away from a centralized host, and moving it to personal computers at the edge of the network. With VDI (virtual desktop infrastructure), as the saying goes, what's old is new again. Using virtualization, IT now has the ability to bring those distinct computing platforms back under one roof, while also providing for greater control and flexibility of user access.

VDI shoot-out: Citrix XenDesktop 5.5

Doug Dineley — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 11:00:00 +0000

Certainly the most flexible VDI solution I've worked with, Citrix XenDesktop is the model of compatibility coupled with excellent capabilities. XenDesktop not only works with Citrix XenServer, but also runs on top of other vendors' hypervisors. It supports all four virtual desktop delivery models (dedicated, pooled, streamed, offline) and remote connectivity from a wide range of client operating systems, including Linux, Mac OS X, iOS, and Android.

VDI shoot-out: HDX vs. PCoIP

Lab Notes — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 11:00:00 +0000

Citrix XenDesktop's HDX and VMware View's PCoIP offer the same basic functionality -- providing video, sound, and peripheral support to remote desktop users -- but they each use a different transport protocol, HDX riding TCP and PCoIP riding UDP. Most end-users won't be interested in the TCP-versus-UDP debate, but network admins will always have an opinion, especially if their responsibilities include network monitoring, WAN optimization, or VPN support.

How to deny DDoS attacks

Roger A. Grimes — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 11:00:00 +0000

Over the past couple of years, DDoS attacks haven't just become more sophisticated -- they've gone mainstream to the point that attackers aren't shy about using them brazenly in the name of social and political activism.

How to slash your WAN costs

Doug Dineley — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 11:00:00 +0000

For more than two decades, I've been involved in designing wide area networks to allow the various office locations within large companies to communicate with one another. I thought I'd seen everything. Then one day my company's CFO came to me with a troubling request. He asked me to reduce our voice and data networking costs by 40 percent.

Migrating from T1 to fiber WAN

Doug Dineley — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 11:00:00 +0000

Back in the old days, the only realistic way to connect multiple remote sites was by T1 or T3 delivered either point-to-point or via Frame Relay. These were either slow and expensive or fast and unbelievably expensive. Then came MPLS, which dispensed with the need for point-to-point circuits from site to site, but was still bound by high expense. You got what you paid for. These circuits were not only reliable, but if a T1 or T3 circuit dropped, you could generally count on the carrier to jump on the problem quickly and resolve it with some expediency.

Stop being your own worst enemy

Matt Prigge — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 11:00:00 +0000

I've spent a great deal of the past 15 years doing two things: building new server, storage, and network infrastructures -- and fixing them when they fall flat on their face for one reason or another. Over that time, I've seen one common theme emerge: There are very easy, seemingly unimportant things you can do when you build and maintain infrastructure that will save your bacon later when things go pear shaped.

Most of them involve writing stuff down -- you know, documentation.

Sprint, Clearwire lay out deals on LTE, WiMax, funding

admin — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 21:16:27 +0000

Sprint Nextel may help finance Clearwire's LTE network and keep offering WiMax service through 2015 under a set of agreements worth as much as $1.6 billion that the companies laid out on Thursday.

Cisco: Global cloud traffic will swell twelvefold by 2015

InfoWorld Tech Watch — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 23:33:17 +0000

Thanks to corporate and end-user hunger for always-on access to rich media, complex apps, and troves of big data, global data

Update: FCC finds AT&T's purchase of T-Mobile not in the public interest

Pete Babb — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 21:33:00 +0000

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission's staff has found AT&T's proposed $39 billion acquisition of rival T-Mobile USA to be contrary to the public interest, with officials there saying the deal would result in the largest single concentration in the U.S. mobile market in history.