Scott Robohn sits down with Andy Smith, a distinguished engineer with Arrcus Networks, where he and his team work to advance networking with modern software and new architectures. He’s also a lecturer at the School of Engineering and Applied Science at the University of Pennsylvania. Andy shares his networking journey, talks about how networks and ... Read more »...
On today’s sponsored Heavy Networking, we get off the AI hype train to talk about how different artificial intelligence techniques usefully impact network operations—and where they aren’t a fit. The various forms of AI represent a set of tools that, like any tool, have use cases, capabilities, and limitations. Our guest is Avi Freedman, CEO ... Read more »...
Ray Cline has been in the tech trenches since he was twelve years old, helping his Dad run a bulletin board service. Today he runs an MSP called Libertas Consulting and leads a nonprofit called TEKnowledge Worldwide (TKW) that has donated over a million dollars in network infrastructure to communities in need. Join us for ... Read more »
Eric Chou is joined by Ashwin Joshi, a Senior Solutions Engineer at Keysight Technologies, to discuss the rapidly increasing demands that AI places on modern networks. They break down the differences between networking for AI and AI for networking. They also talk about how network engineers can adopt AI to help them do their jobs, ... Read more »
For decades, network and security professionals have adapted to technology change in a piecemeal fashion: a new rule here, an upgrade there, a new product deployment over yonder. On today’s Packet Protector, co-host Jennifer ‘JJ’ Jabbusch makes the case for why several emerging technologies require IT pros to think about security at an architectural level. ... Read more »
Take a Network Break! Our Red Alert covers a trio of vulnerabilities in Cisco ISE. On the news front, Cloudflare announces a private network offering for AI agents and a partnership with CNAPP specialist Wiz for AI visibility. AWS rolls out Interconnect to streamline provisioning of WAN and last-mile connectivity, and Linux 7.0 includes network ... Read more »...
On today’s episode Ethan is joined by Mark Prosser, a self-described Network Operator Advocate and Network Automation Dreamer, to embark on a thought exercise about network services. Together they grapple with questions such as: What is a network service, exactly? How is it defined? Is it even possible to define it when considered in the ... Read more »
We asked for follow ups and you did not disappoint! On today’s show we respond to listener comments and corrections on multicast, routing protocols, security, and more. We also have a technical correction for the RFC 1918 Class B private address range. A big thank you to everyone who sent in responses. If you’d like ... Read more »
Malware has shifted from phishing expeditions to open source packages, domains, and repositories. Ned and Kyler welcome Jenn Gile, co-founder of Open Source Malware, to discuss how malware is making its way into open source software. Together they break down NPM compromises, AI-driven infiltration, malicious agent skills, and more. Episode Links: Open Source Malware – ... Read more »
Threat actors are behaving more like professional organizations in an effort to launch more effective and profitable attacks. We explore this and other themes from the latest Threat Labs report from HPE, our sponsor for today’s Packet Protector episode. We also look at how older vulnerabilities are still contributing to today’s exploits, why security organizations ... Read more »...
Take a Network Break! We commence with a red alert on FastMCP, and then debate whether Anthropic’s Project Glasswing is a marketing stunt or a reasonable response to the growing ability of AI models to find and exploit software vulnerabilities. Iran targets US OT networks, startup Aria Networks unveils Ethernet switches purpose-built for AI factories, ... Read more »...
Today we welcome Damien Garros, Co-Founder and CEO of OpsMill, to discuss how network automation is creating the need to redefine roles beyond traditional engineers, including network automation architects, software developers, and operations specialists. We hone in on the concept of mechanics, who focus on implementation, and architects who see the bigger picture. We also ... Read more »
On today’s sponsored episode we talk with David Gee, CEO at Curvium, a systems integrator and VAR. David holds thoughtful opinions about network automation and orchestration, how such platforms are to be built, and the impact AI is having on network automation. We dig into how AI fundamentally changes how we interact with systems, and ... Read more »...
Kevin and Alexis are back with a behind-the-scenes look at the podcast with guest Melina Bertholf, who joined the team a while back to help manage content. (And yes, sharp-eyed readers will notice a family name shared by Alexis and Melina). After interviewing many guests about their tech journeys, our hosts share their own personal ... Read more »
Eric Chou is joined by Matt Campbell, a seasoned network engineer whose career has taken him into some of the most demanding and high-stakes environments around. Together they’ll explore how Matt’s automation philosophy, lessons learned, and best practices adapt when the margin of error is razor thin. Whether you’re automating basic configs or tackling brownfield ... Read more »...
In the cybercrime industry, initial access brokers specialize in break-ins. They pick digital locks and slide open electronic windows, and then sell that access to other threat actors who specialize in ransomware, exfiltration, and other crimes. SocGholish is a widely used tool in the access broker toolkit. Typically disguised as a legitimate software update, SocGholish ... Read more »...
Take a Network Break! We start with a critical vulnerability in Cisco’s Integrated Management Controller. In the news, Verizon settles patent litigation over IoT antenna technology, Cato Networks lets customers purchase individual services within its SASE offering, and Azure adds private application gateways that don’t require a public IP address. Thousands of F5 Big-IP instances ... Read more »...
Ethan Banks sits down with Ryan Hamel at the 96th North American Network Operators’ Group (NANOG96). Ryan, a network automation developer for the Zayo Group, talks about why boring network design is actually a good thing. He and Ethan explore why simplicity and standardization are key to long-term success. They also emphasize the importance of ... Read more »
Lenny Giuliano, Sr. Distinguished Systems Engineer at HPE Juniper Networks, joins Holly and Ethan for another round of multicast. Part two helps fill in details not covered in episode 50. They cover how multicast traffic also affects Ethernet frame addressing, and the key differences between IPv4 and IPv6 multicast. They also explain new hybrid multicast ... Read more »
Ned and Kyler discuss the state of platform engineering, DevEx, and how AI is affecting choices in those domains with guest Annem Shah. They discuss how AI can help bridge the gap between initial setup and continuous operations by providing feedback and interpreting complex error messages. They also break down how AI can assist in ... Read more »
When applying AI to network operations and automation, a strong data foundation is essential. In this sponsored episode, Eric Chou and Scott Robohn are joined by Surya Nimmagadda, Chief Data Scientist; and Joby Rudolph, Senior Distinguished Engineer, both from Selector. They discuss the importance of transparency in their data and how it can instill confidence ... Read more »...
Firewall policies are the heart of network security, but over time they can become a tangled mess. Rules might be outdated, or conflicting, or fail to address new applications, services, and risks. Add in remote locations and public cloud deployments, and you’ve got a serious headache for security and network teams. On today’s sponsored show ... Read more »
Take a Network Break! Mozilla is our Red Alert topic, with critical vulnerabilities in Firefox and Thunderbird. On the news front, we cover a string of security announcements from Palo Alto Networks, including a new certificate management service to help organizations keep up with shrinking cert lifetimes. Cisco announces new protections for AI agents and ... Read more »...
Scott Robohn and networking expert Russ White dive into the concept of design for operations. That is, they look at how to connect the design of a protocol or solution to how people are actually going to use it. They examine how protocol designers often overlook the teams that must operate them, creating some “inoperable” ... Read more »
Palo Alto Networks released a slew of product news at the 2026 RSA conference around AI security, SASE, and a new certificate lifecycle management offering. On today’s Heavy Networking, sponsored by Palo Alto Networks, Ethan and Drew dig into these announcements to get details about how they work. They also talk about the risks of ... Read more »...
Alexis Bertholf and Kevin Nanns sit down for a conversation with Andrei Istrate, Senior Mobile Developer at Toptal. Andrei has taken the “mobile” part of his job literally: he’s built a life around travel and experiences rather than settling in one location. Andrei talks about the travel opportunities that remote work has presented, how he ... Read more »
Eric Chou is joined by returning guest, Danny Wade a.k.a. Devnet Dan, to unpack everything you missed from AutoCon 4. AutoCon 4 had a heavy focus on AI’s role in network automation and Danny was there in person, has already blogged about his insights, and is here to break down the trends, takeaways, and key ... Read more »
On today’s sponsored episode, Ned Bellavance and Kyler Middleton welcome guest Marcin Wyszynski, Head of R&D at Spacelift to guide them through the potential future of IaC and how AI is changing the landscape of developer productivity, especially around infrastructure. They discuss two of Spacelift’s products, Spacelift Intent and Spacelift Intelligence. Spacelift Intent is an ... Read more »...
Spending on SASE, which combines SD-WAN and cloud-delivered security, is forecast to nearly triple over the next few years, according to Dell’Oro Group. Today on Packet Protector we talk with that forecast’s author about what’s driving that spending. We also explore how SASE vendors are differentiating, architectural considerations for SASE deployments, pros and cons of ... Read more »
Take a Network Break! We sound a red alert about a swarm of critical D-Link vulnerabilities. In this week’s news, CISA warns organizations to harden endpoint management systems in the wake of a cyberattack that used the target’s own Microsoft Intune system to wipe thousands of devices, Cisco rolls an NVIDIA ASIC into an N9100 ... Read more »
