Modern IT Architecture - Trends & Challenges

 

Network architects are moving into hybrid environments, scalable technologies, and cloud networks. But when an organization needs to upgrade its networks, add new security or monitoring tools, or move to the cloud, they face a number of security and performance challenges.

As covered in earlier blogs, a strong foundation of visibility is needed for your network in order for it to expand with your company without increasing threats and performance issues. When migrating to the cloud or preparing your network architecture for future growth, visibility fabrics and deep observability pipelines should be taken into account early on. They are essential for maintaining consistent and complete visibility throughout a hybrid environment.

Alastair Hartrup, CEO at Network Critical says, “applying visibility at the network packet level can help keep your budget in line without compromising the protection provided by security appliances. They can also provide the scale necessary to grow without going off-budget. In both budgeting and design, diligent planning and disciplined execution can save, not cost.”

Network Critical’s SmartNA™ range of hybrid TAPs & Packet Brokers can provide features like aggregation, filtering, and load-balancing of all data in real time. Simplifying network management by getting the right data into to correct tool, improving performance, and reducing costs.

The SmarNA™ range (1/10/40/100G & 400G) not only covers the fundamental packet capture and filtering but also meets the growing demand for hybrid environments. Many packet manipulation functionalities, including stripping, slicing, and masking the data, are supported by Network Critical's products in order to comply with privacy regulations such as HIPPA, SOX, and GDPR in the EU. Additionally, SmartNA-XL™ features GRE encapsulation to monitor your multi-site networks from a centralized location.

To learn more about IT architecture trends and how to stay ahead of this ever-changing technology, contact the team of experts at networkcritical.com/contact-us.

NMAP Subnet Scan

 I had to perform a subnet scan for a client and unfortunately, they did not have any tools, so I suggested using NMAP (www.nmap.org).

For those of you who are unfamiliar with NMAP, you can perform a subnet scan using any of the 3 following options, subnet/mask, IP address range, IP address and * wildcard. For example, on my network it would look like something like this; 10.44.10.0/24 or 10.44.10.1-254 or 10.44.10.*

As I was performing the scan, I was explaining that you should always ‘know your tool’ by simply performing a packet capture. I went on to say that all you have to do is start, stop and save your capture with a descriptive name. So even if you did not have time to go through it now, or go through it thoroughly, its there for future reference.

In this video I should you some of the NMAP behavior we spotted. First thing we noticed was that NMAP performed a discovery using an ARP scan, then it used DNS reverse name lookup to determine the host names. This is where we go down a bit of a rabbit hole. I noticed that my computer was communicating with the correct DNS servers, but then went off and communicated with 2 other IP addresses.

In the video I show you how I figured it out and then how NMAP used the same TCP return port number for its port scans.

How Ease of Use Impacts Network Visibility

 

A fundamental question for network visibility solutions almost always involves the following, “How can you improve the short term and long-term operating costs for your monitoring solution?” Fortunately for all of us, Tim The OldCommGuy™ O’Neil, has shared the answer in one of his whitepapers – The Technical and Financial Impact of Ease of Use on Network Visibility Solutions.

The answer to the question above involves two fundamental steps:

· Update your monitoring processes to the best technology

· Optimize your solutions to take full advantage of ease-of-use functionality

When it comes to taking advantage of the best technology, some examples include taps and network packet brokers (NPBs). For instance, taps are a better choice for data collection than SPAN ports. Tim covers the reasons in detail in his white paper, but the basic gist is that taps make a complete copy of all the data (good and bad). When using SPAN ports, it is literally hard to tell exactly what you have. Data packets could be missing for a multitude of reasons, and you won’t realize that the SPAN port didn’t provide important data.

In addition, you’ll want to add a network packet broker to optimize your filtering methodology and related filter programming costs. Your security and monitoring tools don’t need, and don’t want, to see EVERY packet. They just want the relevant packets as quickly as possible. Well-designed NPBs allow you to aggregate, deduplicate, filter, and regenerate the data you need (at line rates of 40, 100 and up to 400 Gbps) to send the right data to the right tool at the right time.

The second step is to optimize the ease-of-use benefit. Ease of use includes installation, training, and day to day programming complexity. According to Tim, using a graphical user interface (GUI), can cut your long-term operating costs by 75% or more. This is because a GUI creates higher productivity than a command line interface (CLI) or a menu driven interface.

Another important question is whether the device be operated effectively by most personnel without training and retraining? “Usability” is the key factor that allows organizations to use network equipment with ease; and still be assured that they are getting a true, reliable, and repeatable view of their traffic and network operations.

The combination of both steps above will allow you to effectively reduce your TCO and reuse the extra money to solve additional needs that you have. Better data is critical to capturing security threats and reducing troubleshooting / forensic analysis costs.

Check out Tim’s white paper for more information on these

NMAP Baseline

 I constantly say that you can baseline anything, anytime. it is a great to practice with your tools, keep your skills sharp and learn something new.

In this video I go over a simple NMAP command and what it does under the hood. Along the way I share some Wireshark tips and tricks as well as protocol review.

Nothing more to say, lets get at it.

Happiness According to the Experts

 

If you had a serious medical question, chances are you would not ask your brother-in-law the politician. If you are like most of us, you would not only seek out a doctor who specialized in your ailment, but you would probably go a step further to find the smartest one. In an age where this type of research is only a few keystrokes away, there’s no excuse not to seek an expert.

This same approach makes sense when dealing with the most pressing life questions that each of us face – What is the meaning of life, and what is my purpose? In 1982, The Washington Post printed the oft-quoted “Life’s a bitch, and then you die”, attributed to a 15-year-old named Tony Daniels. According to Quote Investigator, this is the earliest recorded use of the phrase, although there are literary references to a similar notion dating back to 1922. History does not tell us if young Tony grew up to be a politician, and we can certainly hope he didn’t qualify as an expert.

Much of what is written about these critical questions comes from the great philosophers, who often control the conversation until equations are written and measurements are taken. Thirteenth Century Persian poet Rumi wrote “You are not a drop in the ocean. You are the entire ocean in a drop.” While this is a great prompt for a Philosophy 101 paper, it is not the answer most of us are looking for. Contemporary philosopher John Lennon had a more accessible view.

“When I was 5 years old, my mother always told me that happiness was the key to life. When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wrote down ‘happy’. They told me I didn’t understand the assignment, and I told them they didn’t understand life.”

While John’s cheeky answer feels a bit more grounded, there are credible ideas that lie somewhere between a 13th century poet and a 20th century rock star. Among the Top Ten Smartest People of All Time are four very recognizable names each of whom had something to say about happiness.

Like John Lennon, Albert Einstein was a 20th century musician/thinker. Although Albert played the violin, he is more closely identified with esoterica like the photoelectric effect or special relativity. He also found time to ponder happiness and is remembered for this 1922 note on the subject.

“A calm and modest life brings more happiness than the pursuit of success combined with constant restlessness.”

This idea caught on, and in 2017 Albert’s handwritten note sold to a happy buyer for $1.8 million.

Nikola Tesla, the unsung 19th century genius who is better known as the namesake of a popular EV, is considered by some to be the inventor of our modern world, with over 700 patents to his name. While Einstein was a brilliant thinker, Tesla was a prolific achiever. Nikola found his own personal happiness in bringing his ideas to life.

“I do not think there is any thrill that can go through the human heart like that felt by the inventor as he sees some creation of the brain unfolding to success...such emotions make a man forget food, sleep, friends, love, everything.”

Tesla appears to have accepted the constant restlessness Einstein warned about in order to experience the occasional bursts of happiness - the “thrill that goes through the human heart” – that come with success. Based on his staggering number of successes, he must have led a happy, albeit solitary, life.

Sixteenth century Renaissance polymath Leonardo da Vinci had much to say about happiness, some of which was later echoed by Tesla and Einstein. Leonardo stressed curiosity and independent thinking as the foundation, and his own insatiable quest for knowledge is legendary. Da Vinci once said, “The noblest pleasure is the joy of understanding”, and he is remembered for questioning everything. Independent thinking is much more difficult in this modern world of information overload, but finding your own personal truth is worth the effort. American poet Henry David Thoreau echoed this thought.

” What lies behind us and lies before us are small matters compared to what lies within us. And when we bring what is within out into the world, miracles happen.”

The experts have spoken. A wide-ranging sample of the greatest minds over the past many centuries encompasses fundamental beliefs about life. Creating is more fulfilling than just consuming, and sharing those creations brings joy. Meaning is found by rejecting the noise and looking inward. Curiosity leads to understanding and satisfaction. Serenity and modesty are more desirable than traditional success. Happiness is personal and begins within.

My personal takeaway is that the meaning of life is simply to be happy, and our purpose is to spread happiness in the world.

But then I’m no expert.

Author Profile - Paul W. Smith - leader, educator, technologist, writer - has a lifelong interest in the countless ways that technology changes the course of our journey through life. In addition to being a regular contributor to NetworkDataPedia, he maintains the website Technology for the Journey and occasionally writes for Blogcritics. Paul has over 40 years of experience in research and advanced development for companies ranging from small startups to industry leaders. His other passion is teaching - he is a former Adjunct Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the Colorado School of Mines. Paul holds a doctorate in Applied Mechanics from the California Institute of Technology, as well as Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California, Santa Barbara.