I recently completed my Ekahau Design training and certification. During the first day of class the instructor went over wireless fundamentals. Now as an experienced wireless engineer most of the topics were ideas that I had already known, however there were a few idea's that changed the way I understand wireless for the better. Lets … Continue reading Idea’s that will change how you see Wifi
In my seemingly endless quest for the CCIE I have learned about two decently powerful tools that together make an incredibly powerful and custom solution for modern DevOps/DevNet network; Embedded Event Manager (EEM) scripting, and Guestshell in IOS-XE devices. EEM scripting is far from new in the world of Cisco networks, it is a custom … Continue reading Understanding the power of Guestshell with EEM scripting
In my ongoing effort to randomly write about what I am actively working on, I am currently deploying an SD-Access fabric using Cisco's DNA Center, now rebranded as Catalyst Center. As part of this project we used the LAN automation process to build the network to all of the access switches. We had about 15 different switches … Continue reading Using DNA Center (Catalyst Center) LAN Automation to make your life easier.
Starting with Firepower 7.2 Cisco announced the ability to manage these firewalls using a Cisco hosted Cloud-Delivered Firewall Management Center (cdFMC). I recently had a project setting up cdFMC for the first time so I figure I would go over what I learned and show how to access cdFMC, how to import policies, and join … Continue reading Cisco Cloud-Delivered Firewall Management Center
Network documentation is arguably both the most important and most over looked tasked a network administrator does. A good network diagram is invaluable for understanding how a network is working, for troubleshooting when its not working, and a great source of information when onboarding new employees to the network team or, more important to me, … Continue reading Documenting your Network
Cisco SD-WAN (formally Viptela) is quickly becoming the go to WAN solution for Cisco customers. As companies are looking to replace their aging DMVPN solution, Cisco SD-WAN has become the logical choice. Companies can stick with the same ISR platform running IOS-XE that they already know, and in some cases can upgrade their existing routers … Continue reading Cisco SD-WAN PnP Onboarding
You read that right! At Cisco Live this year they introduced the ability to add Catalyst switches to the Meraki dashboard. Finally a use for the unused DNA licenses! The switches are monitored in read-only mode, so you still need to manage the switches the old fashioned way, however Meraki's traffic analysis and troubleshooting tools … Continue reading Catalyst Monitoring on the Meraki Dashboard
Story Time! Last week I learned the hard way why you should not trust NAT conversion tools when dealing with No-NAT's on an ASA. To fully understand this story lets back up a bit and Ill give you the high level details. I have been working on a project for the last month or so … Continue reading No-NAT’s on HA ASA firewalls: How to break HA (Split Brain Active/Active)
With the explosion of wireless technology we have experienced in the last few years, wireless networks are being asked to handled more and more demanding traffic. Between laptops, cell phones, and wireless IoT devices, the importance of having your wireless infrastructure optimized has never been greater. In this post hopefully I will be able to … Continue reading WiFi Optimization: How to Tune your Wireless Network
Wireless technology to many seems like magic; the ability to connect to the network and get all of the same functionality as a wired connection with the added bonus of being able to walk around without worrying about some cord keeping me tethered down sounds like something out of a JK Rowling book. To many, … Continue reading Wireless Fundamentals
The InterNetwork 