Two contracted ISPs stopped providing Web hosting firm McColo with Internet access, which immediately quieted several major botnets responsible for almost half of all delivered spam. Learning how and why this was done is worth your time.

Read the full entry »

Being able to quantify latency in terms other than millisecond response time is important when determining the quality of a network. One tool that can help administrators do just that is iperf.

Read the full entry »

They may not be appropriate for your home, office, or even your enterprise, but some of the most powerful routers in the world make it possible for you to surf the Web and send e-mail around the globe. David Davis introduces you to Cisco's lineup of service-provider routers.

Read the full entry »

Getting rooted by a drive-by dropper is fast becoming the predominate method of involuntarily joining a botnet. The simplest way to avoid this is to keep your computers up to date. Easier said than done? Well, it doesn't have to be.

Read the full entry »

Every network administrator may at some point create or support a mobile collection of equipment for use between sites or at other destinations. Rick Vanover shares some strategies that can be used to manage this type of network.

Read the full entry »

If you are a beginner looking for information on routing and switching devices, these short papers will introduce you to the basic concepts.

Read the full entry »

On routers with large running configurations, the parser cache is used to speed up the "parsing" of that IOS configuration when the configuration is accessed and processed by the router. David Davis explains what the parser cache does and how it can help you.

Read the full entry »

In discussions about botnets, how and why a computer becomes part of a botnet are two questions that get asked quite often. Like most things in life, the answers aren’t simple. Michael Kassner sets out to provide some answers about the origins of botnets.

Read the full entry »

Managing a SOHO's network can be a daunting challenge. The good news is that with limited resources of staff and equipment, a network can be protected and given network management for free.

Read the full entry »

With the BlackBerry Bold finally launching in the United States on Election Day just next week, here is a review of my month's experience of the Bold from the perspective of a heavy user.

Read the full entry »