Today’s Infrastructure and Operations (I&O) leaders have a challenging path ahead of them. Service Level Agreements (SLAs) which have been committed to the user community must be not only met, but measured, validated and communicated across the enterprise. Geographic expansion, M&A, and other key business initiatives must be factored into I&O decisions. Vendor and product [...]
Former Major League pitcher Vernon Law is quoted as saying “Experience is a hard teacher because she gives the test first …[and] the lesson afterwards”. Everybody reading this blog post right now probably has his or her own real life example. For me, I was four years old and my family was having some renovations [...]
The operational success of any large-scale enterprise IT environment begins and ends with the Network Operations Center. In spite of this fact the NOC is often littered with inefficiencies and chaos.A NOC is, by its nature, a chaotic place. It’s an interwoven and interdependent orchestra of people, processes, and tools: Flat-screen monitors (sometimes 15 or [...]
Part VI – 7 Habits of Highly Effective Network and Systems AdministratorsI mentioned I get peculiar inspiration for these blog topics, right? Before I sat down to continue our “7 Habits” series I was tucking my daughter in for bed. Predictably, two things happened. First, I stepped on something small, sharp, and plastic, which elicited [...]
Part V – 7 Habits of Highly Effective Network and Systems Administrators"First thing on the job, you know what I learned? How to spot a murderer. Let’s say you arrest three guys for the same killing. You put them all in jail overnight. The next morning, whoever’s sleeping is your man. You see, if you’re [...]
Part IV – 7 Habits of Highly Effective Network and Systems AdministratorsContinuing with our series, 7 Habits of Highly Effective Network and Systems Administrators, the next "habit" we'll cover is “Template Usage”. When I think of the word “template,” I’m taken back to 1978 and watching Star Wars for the first time. All those Stormtroopers lined [...]
Inspiration for writing these blogs comes from the most unlikely situations. A few days ago I was backing the car out of my garage and my daughter, in her typical fashion, says, “Daddy, can you put my music on please?” I complied and “Dem Bones” broadcasted from the speakers. You may not recognize the name [...]
Part III - 7 Habits of Highly Effective Network and Systems AdministratorsI can usually tell how a day will go before I even get out of bed in the morning. How? Pick up my smartphone and peruse my inbox. My rule of thumb is that the quantity of emails time-stamped before 8am is indirectly proportional [...]
On a recent trip to Southern California, I made plans to meet a friend for Happy Hour. I knew the venue would be crowded, but I had no fear. Why? I have a smartphone. He has a smartphone. There are no less than 28,756 ways for us to connect and ultimately enjoy a beer (or [...]
7 Habits of Highly Effective Network and System Administrators - Part IIIt's no secret that Network and System Administrators are being asked to manage more resources than ever before, including networks, servers, apps, virtual and cloud resources, and more. But what does management mean?Looking at server workload as an example, as a Network or System [...]
