The ABC’s of Cyber Security

Did you know that October was the Nation Cyber Security Awareness Month, as declared by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)? In fact, this was the 6th year annual Cyber Security Awareness Month.

Cisco has put together some great articles and videos covering Cyber Security on the Cisco Security Blog. You can also checkout the DHS National Cyber Security Awareness Month homepage with articles and videos.

Here is a great Cyber Security video from Cisco’s blog:

Cisco Integrated 890 Series Router delivers completely

All I can say is “Wow”. This integrated router offers endless options including secure broadband with Metro Enternet capabilities for the small business world, eToken credentials and two 2.0 USB ports for security, 1000 Based T Gig and 10/100 Based T Fast Internet for WAN. The 890 Series router is incrediability versatile. It has Wan/Lan access with a built in Cisco web-based management tool for ease in set up. Additionally, it has enhanced firewall security options for control of email. I have not even scratched the surface on this router’s capabilities.

Looking fo a new Cisco router? Take a look at the Cisco 890

5Nine P2V Planner, Migrator, and Optimizer

The P2V Planner automatically collects all your hardware information and its utilization so you can make more sysync decisions regarding your business.

5Nine is unique because they are the only product out there to provide the financial calculations necessary to decide between Microsoft Hyper-V and VMware vSphere, including TCO and ROI numbers. Once you decide on your virtualization platform and have a plan, 5Nine’s migrator can actually migrate your physical servers to virtual servers for you. Then, once the P2V migration is done, 5Nine’s Optimizer can monitor your virtual infrastructure and advise you about statistics you need to be aware of. There are so many features and benefits to this product and oh yes, it’s simplicity of use is an extra bonus. View my Train Signal Video and white paper on these facinating new products.

Petri IT Knowledgebase is the place to go for Windows 7

Daniel Petri has done a great job over at the Petri IT Knowledgebase covering Windows 7. Here are just some of the great new articles on this exciting new OS:

• Installing Remote Server Administration Tools (RSAT) for Windows 7
• How to Remove Old Device Drivers from Vista & Windows 7
• Working with Virtual Windows XP Disks in Windows 7
• Quick Guide to the New Aero Features in Windows 7
• How To Install Windows XP Mode (XPM) on Windows 7

For all Petri Windows 7 articles, checkout the Windows 7 category at Petri’s Window 7

MCSE: Is it still worth the certification?

I will say a resounding, YES. Even though Microsoft has done away with this certification, in favor of its MCITP path, there are still many senior level jobs on Microsoft’s own job search engine for MCSE’s and it is touted as a “badge of honor” in most of the business world.

For those of us who have MCSE Server 2003, Microsoft has provided a one certification upgrade exam that will equivocate to three Microsoft MCTS certifications. They are: Active Directory, Network Infrastructure, and Application Infrastructure Configuration. Read more on Brian Nelson’s articles, Why getting your MCSE is still a good idea and What’s The Next Step for MCSEs.

Speed up IE 8 with Accelerators and Private Browsing

Jason Zandri, over at the Petri IT Knowledgebase, has recently posted some great articles on Windows 7 and IE8. They are:

• Speeding Up Internet Explorer 8 with Accelerators
• Private Browsing with Internet Explorer 8 and Windows 7

In these articles, you will learn how to speed up IE8 with accelerators and how to use Private Browsing with Windows 7 and IE8.

Enjoy!

Windows Server 2008 R2 Videos now available

As you know, Microsoft has released Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2. So how are you going to get training on these new operating systems? Good News! Train Signal has just released their Windows 2008 R2 Training Video! 

There are over 6 hours of training jam packed with new features to assist you with upgrading to Windows Server 2008 R2. What’s cool is that the videos can be downloaded via different media such as iPod, Mp3, among others.

Check out this link for the latest info- Windows 2008 R2 Training Video

How to verify if your processor is virtualization compatible

Before you install VMware Workstation, vSphere, or even Microsoft Hyper-V, you first need to verify if your processor can utilize virtualization. Over at Train Signal’s Windows Server Blog, they have a great article by “Coach” covering how to tell if your CPU is virtualization compatible. To read the full article, checkout-

How to verify if your processor is virtualization compatible

Installing ESXi / vSphere version 4 and more

Tom Finnis, Technical Operations Manager for Help4IT, has recently written some excellent articles on VMware vSphere and ESX over at the Petri IT Knowledgebase. 

Here are some of the VMware-related articles that he wrote:

• How to Set Up Your Own VMware ESXi4 Server
• An Intro to Virtualization with VMware vSphere 4
• Using the vSphere 4.0 Client to Manage ESXi 4.0
• ESXi 4.0 – Installing In “Embedded” Mode

Also, check out the VMware vSphere Training from Train Signal! This new course covers VMware ESX Server and the replacement for the VMware Virtual Infrastructure Suite – vSphere.

Also, did you know that VMware ESXi is FREE? You can register at VMware.com to obtain a FREE ESXi 4.0 download and license key for as many hosts as you would like.

How to connect Windows 7 to an iSCSI SAN

I just posted a new article covering how to configure Windows 7 to connect to an iSCSI SAN. I take you from running the ISCSI Initiator to start the process, to sharing what to key in at each stop in the process, to sharing how to allocate volume space. I display the screens that you would see as you follow along in a virtually seamless process.

To get all the details, read the full article, Connecting Windows 7 to an iSCSI SAN