If your new to StaticNAT or if you have been checking out our content for awhile, I would like to introduce you to a new section of the site: A Few Easy Steps.
Our goal for each session will be for you to be able to complete a task with the information provided.
The Layout for each of these will be: Read more
So I was talking to one of my guys at work tonight and he indicated that my shots have Cisco have been a recent thing in my career. I told him he was wrong and went back to a post that I had taken private. It ends up being this post. I want to start by saying I took this private when I went to a Cisco Gold VAR. I did so because after this post I had seen some good indications of change and I felt like it was a bit to hard of a slap in the face for people who were in large part paying my salary. That said after re-reading it I think I had lots of things right. So without further adieu here is my original post Published on: May 11, 2007 @ 13:52 taken right from my WP Dashboard. Enjoy! Read more
A Few Easy Steps is a part of StaticNAT that I have wanted to do since I started it in 2007. What you will find here is quick guided session to accomplish a goal with a piece of equipment or with some technology. What you wont find here is deep dives into why you would do such a thing or a breakdown of every single bit of syntax. At the end of each Post you will be able to complete a task, they may be simple they may be complex but you will know how to do it.
I have been very lucky in my career. There is pretty much no network vendor whose gear has not come across my desk and I have had the opportunity to install and play with on some level. Last year we engaged Meraki to consider then for both their Cloud Controller based Access Points but also for their new Access Switch product line. I did lots and lots of research and honestly found a mixed bag of info. On one hand people were saying this is really amazing stuff and if you can handle a bit less than full enterprise class gear you should really look at it. On the other hand I read a few articles like this one out of Canada that paints a picture of pretty shady practices from Meraki.
So I sat through their online demos, had local partners come in to tell me how amazing it was then I got my AP (Modle MR12) from them to play with and see what I thought. In all honestly their AP and overall wireless product underwhelmed me. My Cisco 1200 B only radio covered better and and my Cisco 1252 even in 2.4 only mode way out gunned this poor little guy. But what they do very very well is the management of it all. Even after I had decided that my company would not be moving to their access points nor the new switch line I decided to stick with System Manager because how good it was at managing remote devices and it was free! So right off the bat I do not hate these guys or their products I actually think they are pretty cool but over just not the right fit for what we needed.
Then tonight it happened. @MrFogg97 hit me up and said “Saw this on #meraki’s site when reading the announcement. http://twitter.com/MrFogg97/status/270346667495145472/photo/1 and yes I did say that and to this second I still believe its a great product. But then I asked myself what announcement. A quick trip to Meraki’s website told the tale. Cisco announces intent to acquire Meraki And that is why I am really writing this post. Read more
So one of my guys came to me today and indicated that since all of our Video Call Center systems were OEM lic from Microsoft we had a big problem with Imaging. In my old out of date head this made little sense because we used to do this to systems by the hundreds back in the Windows XP days. Well as we talked and I started being a geek and not a manager again it clicked that in Vista they implemented the whole limited activation thing to eliminate piracy. Fair enough.
But here I am with quite a few legal systems and the prospect of having to spend about $10,000 to get them all added to my select agreement. That just stupid. Now let me be clear after working through a BSA suit and then building a large portion of our new back-end platform on Microsoft Products I am very used to stupid licensing issues generated by lawyers and other asshats inside Microsoft to make sure they can screw their clients out of every possible penny. Luckily there is a legal and pretty fair solution to the issue. It lies in the term “Reimaging Rights”. What this allows is any holder of a MS Volume Agreement to purchase a single copy of a Volume Lic of the any OEM product you have legal rights to. you then create the image for that system using the Volume Lic CD/DVD. DO NOT TRUST ME ON THIS! See THIS LINK. Furthermore I plan on having this validated with a MS rep not my LAR who as usual has not a clue about MS lic that they sell me.
Hope this helps someone out.