Tips

Tips

• A brief breakdown of declarative vs. imperative programming

  While imperative programming is both an established and approachable method of coding, the declarative model is gaining appeal as demands for complex, flexible features increase.  Continue Reading

• Paid and free Office 365 administration tools to consider

  Newcomers to Microsoft's cloud services can use the admin portal for most tasks, but you should investigate these options to reduce the work involved with tenant management.  Continue Reading

• How to create a runbook template for uniform documentation

  To avoid inconsistencies and disaster, implement a runbook template to strengthen your existing runbooks -- this includes detailed and clear steps for structure and organization.  Continue Reading

• 6 strategies for better software project portfolio management

  When implemented correctly, software portfolio management can help enhance communication across multiple IT teams for better product delivery. Here are six ways to do it right.  Continue Reading

• CI/CD tutorial: How to set up a pipeline

  A CI/CD pipeline saves time and ensures software quality during development. Follow this tutorial to level up your project and reduce developer workload with automation.  Continue Reading

• How to approach and instate automated IT documentation

  Automation can improve workflows, even when it comes to documentation. However, the process isn't foolproof. Here's what you need to know to get started.  Continue Reading

• What to know about data center fire protection

  Protect your data center from potential fire hazards through proper mitigation, detection and suppression. Then, create a plan for recovery in the event of a fire.  Continue Reading

• Compare Google Cloud Run vs. App Engine for enterprise software

  Google's Cloud Run and App Engine both aim to accelerate app development and simplify deployment. Developers will want to choose between the services on a case-by-case basis.  Continue Reading

• Network security gets a boost in Windows Server 2022

  Secured-core server is a major new security feature in Windows Server 2022, but Microsoft also introduced multiple ways to keep network connections protected in its new server OS.  Continue Reading

• Dig into Oracle Cloud's Always Free offerings

  Oracle's Always Free services let developers build and experiment with cloud-native apps without incurring costs. There are, however, important limitations to note.  Continue Reading

• Manage your IT service contracts to save money

  IT contracts amount to paperwork, which IT staff members tend to hate. But it's critical to manage service contracts to prevent runaway bills -- and unused features carrying a price tag.  Continue Reading

• Compare the features in the Windows Server 2022 editions

  Microsoft unveiled a Datacenter Azure edition to go with the traditional Standard and Datacenter editions. See what else is new with this server OS release in this breakdown.  Continue Reading

• An intro to using vRA Custom Resources

  VRealize Automation offers Custom Resources to enable a vRA user to create a variety of user objects to simplify management of those users.  Continue Reading

• Create data center electrical safety guidelines

  Compose a comprehensive electrical safety strategy and keep your data center staff safe from electrical hazards. Learn what best practices and standards you should consider.  Continue Reading

• Get started with ESXi Fling on Arm architecture

  Arm architecture brings benefits of energy efficiency as well as edge use cases. Read up on how to get the right ISO files and hardware to properly run ESXi Fling.  Continue Reading

• How to choose the right DCIM tool for better configuration

  DCIM tools can ensure your data center runs efficiently by keeping track of hardware, software and the physical environment. Here's what you should consider before choosing one.  Continue Reading

• Integrating zero-trust practices into private 5G networks

  One of the first steps in deploying a technology is protecting it from potential security threats. Learn how to secure a private 5G network with zero-trust security practices.  Continue Reading

• Intro to encapsulation and decapsulation in networking

  Encapsulation adds information to a packet as it travels to its destination. Decapsulation reverses the process by removing the info, so a destination device can read the original data.  Continue Reading

• Protect your data center from ransomware attacks

  Consider how best to protect your data center from ransomware attackers: Keep safe, air-gapped backups; consolidate your infrastructure and prioritize critical assets.  Continue Reading

• Evaluate GPU vs. CPU for data analytics tasks

  As data analytics becomes more commonplace, you might wonder what processor best suits such complex tasks. The CPU and GPU specialize in different tasks but excel together.  Continue Reading

• The ups and downs of low-code microservices development

  Low-code may not be the most sophisticated of development techniques, but it can often fit the bill for software teams looking to build microservices applications.  Continue Reading

• Apply policy-as-code best practices to reap benefits

  A spinoff of infrastructure as code, policy as code applies its core principles to policy management and implementation. Here's why -- and the best way -- to adopt it.  Continue Reading

• Key differences in monolithic vs. microkernel architecture

  VMware's monolithic architecture keeps drivers in the hypervisor. Hyper-V's microkernel approach separates drivers from the hypervisor. Learn more about these two approaches.  Continue Reading

• Discover the benefits of virtualization for ROBO

  Virtualization brings cost benefits and saves time for IT teams that oversee ROBOs. Effective implementation requires cloud-based management tools and enough network bandwidth.  Continue Reading

• WebStorm vs. Visual Studio, and how to choose the right IDE

  WebStorm and Visual Studio represent two ends of a wide spectrum when it comes to the IDE platform market. However, their true differences go well beyond their pricing structures.  Continue Reading

• Will 5G replace Wi-Fi? No, but maybe in some use cases

  Geographically remote locations, large public venues and manufacturing sites are a few of the key areas in which business 5G technology could provide real benefits.  Continue Reading

• Choose the best Docker image for the job at hand

  There are a lot of varied options for container images. And although that freedom of choice breeds flexibility, it can also make it easy to choose the wrong one.  Continue Reading

• Hidden colocation cost drivers to look out for in 2022

  These unexpected charges and fees can balloon colocation costs for enterprise IT organizations.  Continue Reading

• An introduction to DevOps on AWS

  Here's a breakdown of the AWS tools an organization can use to run DevOps practices, along with a quick tutorial that demonstrates how to use them to build a CI/CD pipeline.  Continue Reading

• How to implement network segmentation for better security

  For a network segmentation strategy to be effective and improve security, network teams need to create detailed security policies, identify each resource and use allowlists.  Continue Reading

• What's happening with standalone 5G?

  Standalone 5G is the next major update for 5G technology. Learn about the benefits SA 5G will bring and find out when operators will begin deploying it worldwide.  Continue Reading

• Implement these 4 Amazon CloudWatch Logs best practices

  To improve the reliability of their applications, AWS users might want to consider exporting log data to the cloud for analysis and pattern detection.  Continue Reading

• Why and how to hold a sprint retrospective meeting

  Software development teams can learn from past mistakes to streamline and improve processes. Retrospectives help them do just that.  Continue Reading

• How to reduce the cost of Kubernetes

  Is your Kubernetes bill getting out of hand? Luckily, there are ways to reduce costs. Take these five steps to lower costs without losing functionality.  Continue Reading

• The Red Hat ecosystem: Then vs. now

  Red Hat remains one of the most influential open source companies. Linux no longer stands at the center of the Red Hat ecosystem -- but it hasn't disappeared from it either.  Continue Reading

• 3 best practices to manage SaaS subscriptions

  Seemingly simple tools -- such as spreadsheets and work calendars -- can go a long way in helping IT teams keep track of SaaS billing and contract renewals.  Continue Reading

• Using the BFF pattern to keep UIs flexible and reliable

  BFF is a simple design pattern that can help developers address UI-related challenges, such as problematic coupling, overfetching of data and inconsistent error handling.  Continue Reading

• Reduce data storage waste with planning, retention policies

  Delete unneeded data to ensure no data storage is wasted and to save both time and money. Use retention policies, data repositories and compliance as guides to get started.  Continue Reading

• What regression testing types make sense for your applications

  Craft an in-depth regression testing plan that uses multiple types to test all facets of an application's functionality and ultimately lead to cleaner development.  Continue Reading

• Testing automated Kubernetes deployments, a GitOps benefit

  GitOps and GitOps tooling may be your answer to the tricky, taxing problem that is testing Kubernetes environments. Explore why, how and what's necessary to perform GitOps testing.  Continue Reading

• How IT can provide home Wi-Fi help for remote workers

  When assisting home-based workers with their Wi-Fi woes, be sure to assess their internet connectivity and even consider deploying access points to their homes.  Continue Reading

• Windows Server 2022 storage features address security, speed

  Microsoft's release of Windows Server 2022 brings several notable updates to its storage and file services functionality to give new life to on-premises server systems.  Continue Reading

• Open vs. closed APIs: 4 crucial factors you should examine

  Open and closed APIs both have their respective upsides and downsides. To choose the right approach, developers must examine four critical technical and business-level factors.  Continue Reading

• Foster health and safety in the post-pandemic data center

  Data centers adapted to a new set of circumstances during the COVID-19 pandemic. As work and the pandemic continue to change, here's how data centers can continue to evolve.  Continue Reading

• The pros, cons and challenges of containerized microservices

  Containerized microservices are certainly a popular deployment approach, but are they the best? They can be, provided you overcome the unique challenges they present.  Continue Reading

• Explore 9 essential elements of network security

  Network security isn't a one-size-fits-all strategy. Dive into the various segments of network security, and learn how they overlap and interact with each other.  Continue Reading

• Threat modeling and DevOps: A partnership in the making

  Proactive threat modeling is a perfect fit for DevOps' iterative nature. Follow DevOps principles of collaboration, automation and feedback for a successful pairing.  Continue Reading

• How to manage and reduce technical debt in Agile

  Don't let technical debt snowball. Here's how to monitor, maintain and reduce this problematic element of Agile and continue application development projects.  Continue Reading

• How to use Windows Server 2022 secured-core server features

  Microsoft's latest server operating system attempts to prevent attacks in the data center by locking down access to traditionally vulnerable areas, such as the system firmware.  Continue Reading

• How do you debug a Kubernetes service deployment?

  To debug a Kubernetes deployment, IT teams must start by following the basic rules of troubleshooting and then move to the smaller details to find the root cause of the problem.  Continue Reading

• Increase cloud visibility with these 4 best practices

  Cloud environments are complex and have many moving parts. Implement a cloud visibility strategy to track those moving parts and prevent cost, performance and security issues.  Continue Reading

• Establish an effective ransomware playbook

  In an attack, an effective playbook offers IT teams a set of processes to identify compromised systems and alert the right individuals to recover the systems.  Continue Reading

• Best options for video data storage include cloud, tape

  Video data storage presents some challenges, such as dealing with large file sizes and compliance. Here's what to consider when assessing storage options for video data.  Continue Reading

• 5 trends in enterprise networking that defined 2021

  In 2020, enterprises shifted to remote work due to the pandemic. The trend continued in 2021, along with four other networking trends that defined the year and will extend into 2022.  Continue Reading

• Get to know the Microsoft Teams retention policies

  Microsoft Teams retention policies can ensure that critical data is not accidentally deleted too early, and unnecessary data doesn't take up space longer than it needs to.  Continue Reading

• 5 tips for primary storage ransomware protection

  Explore the steps storage administrators can take to safeguard against ransomware. Dive deep into tips on access control, vulnerabilities and storage monitoring.  Continue Reading

• What unit test coverage percentage should teams aim for?

  Unit testing is frequently needed, but what amount? Learn how to determine the amount of unit test coverage you need, what code to focus on, how to measure coverage and more.  Continue Reading

• Learn how to install MicroK8s for Kubernetes

  MicroK8s enables admins to deploy and destroy Kubernetes in a flash. Follow this tutorial to learn how to install MicroK8s and combine with Multipass.  Continue Reading

• Will .NET 6 features bridge the gap between .NET frameworks?

  Microsoft's original .NET Framework has come a long way, but will the new iterations of this framework be enough to convince developers to leave it behind?  Continue Reading

• How to tackle container orchestration challenges

  Container orchestration brings many benefits, like improved productivity and security, but before those advantages can be realized, IT teams must overcome several hurdles.  Continue Reading

• Popular security best practices for hybrid cloud

  Combining a public cloud and an on-premises environment creates unfamiliar security challenges. Learn the main security issues in hybrid cloud and the ways to combat them.  Continue Reading

• Find the right service mesh tool for Kubernetes environments

  Kubernetes is an industry must-have, but still lacks in certain areas -- that's where service mesh comes in. Discover four service mesh tools to use with your Kubernetes platform.  Continue Reading

• 5 centralized logging best practices for cloud admins

  Centralized logging -- particularly within hybrid and multi-cloud environments -- can boost an IT team's monitoring strategy and accelerate troubleshooting.  Continue Reading

• An introduction to migrating apps with AWS SaaS Boost

  Explore the benefits and drawbacks of migrating applications using AWS SaaS Boost. Learn how the Boost framework aids migration and how to get started.  Continue Reading

• Monitor edge latency for IoT devices

  Latency in edge devices can have several sources, stemming from software, network issues or old hardware. Here's how you can monitor and troubleshoot latency at the edge.  Continue Reading

• 10 DevSecOps metrics that actually measure success

  Knowing which metrics to monitor is a good place to start when measuring success. Here are the ones to collect, and what to do once you have them.  Continue Reading

• Why you should plan to upgrade to Azure AD Connect v2 soon

  Administrators who rely on an Azure AD Connect v1 version for hybrid identity with Office 365 should prepare for the impending retirement of several technologies in the utility.  Continue Reading

• Understand the role of an SRE vs. cloud engineer

  While SREs can play a distinct role in cloud computing, they don't replace the need for cloud engineers. Learn how the two roles can work together toward reliability goals.  Continue Reading

• Continuous integration principles and standards to implement

  Development and DevOps teams, abide by these best practices and standards to make your IT organization's continuous integration processes as effective as they can possibly be.  Continue Reading

• DHCP client configuration for Linux, Windows and macOS

  Network and system admins can use command-line and GUI tools to configure DHCP clients in Linux, Windows and macOS. Here's a breakdown of which commands to use for each OS.  Continue Reading

• Break down the Google Cloud resource hierarchy

  Admins can use Organizations, Folders, Projects and Resources to manage employee access within Google Cloud. But first, they must understand the distinctions between each level.  Continue Reading

• Low-cost virtualization courses to build your VMware skills

  Online courses are a great option for professional development, but they can be costly. Options from Udemy, LinkedIn and Global Knowledge let you increase skills at minimal cost.  Continue Reading

• Automation, cloud lead as influential data center trends

  Recent data center trends, such as AIOps and automation, have been geared toward simplifying network management. Here are the trends and challenges teams faced over the past year.  Continue Reading

• 5 open source continuous delivery tools to trial

  To achieve continuous delivery, development teams must release code in short cycles. These five open source tools can help get the job done.  Continue Reading

• Learn to use Kubernetes CRDs in this tutorial example

  Custom resource definitions enable IT organizations to create objects Kubernetes doesn't offer by default. Learn how to use them here.  Continue Reading

• How viable is open source service mesh?

  The open source vs. proprietary service mesh debate has a lot of gray area, and the best fit for an org might fall into that spectrum. Here's what to consider before you decide.  Continue Reading

• Quality engineering vs. quality assurance: Know the differences

  Any dev team serious about improving software quality should study the quality engineering vs. quality assurance debate. Let's review the two practices' differences and overlap.  Continue Reading

• VMware disaster recovery best practices for enhanced security

  VMware DR ensures your workloads remain secure and online in the event of a disaster. You can use best practices, such as periodic testing, to bolster your DR strategy.  Continue Reading

• Start managing with these Microsoft Graph API features

  Microsoft Graph offers several administrative advantages when handling jobs on Microsoft 365 and Azure AD, but be aware of some potential trouble spots when employing this technology.  Continue Reading

• Medicate your cloud hangover if costs soared too high

  The headache from a cloud hangover can be just as bad as a regular one. Thankfully, there is an IT equivalent to ibuprofen and water to help manage the costs.  Continue Reading

• Best practices for data center risk assessment

  Data centers contain risks such as height, environmental and electrical hazards. Keep your staff safe by assessing the level of risk and creating a comprehensive safety plan.  Continue Reading

• How a microservices chassis regulates cross-cutting concerns

  Those who've implemented a microservices architecture know that it presents a formidable collection of cross-cutting concerns to manage. Luckily, a microservices chassis might help.  Continue Reading

• Don't fall victim to these 5 Scrum anti-patterns

  Scrum is meant to adapt and change to different scenarios. Here are five common anti-patterns that can arise in Scrum when teams get complacent or comfortable with their old ways.  Continue Reading

• Ensure VM security with VMware CDP integration

  CDP protects data in the case of a disaster -- an essential part of any security procedure. But CDP can introduce high throughputs, which can affect network performance.  Continue Reading

• How to use Google's workload identity federation with AWS

  Cloud admins struggle to share data between cloud providers. Here are the steps to create a federated identity in Google Cloud, connecting it to AWS in a secure way.  Continue Reading

• NSX virtual switch types enhance networking capabilities

  NSX-T supports both the N-VDS and VDS switches. But N-VDS requires its own network adapters, while VDS uses all network adapters from a single switch for all network types.  Continue Reading

• Why you should use a service mesh with microservices

  Still on the fence about service mesh? See how it supports a microservices architecture and application deployments, along with the other benefits it brings to an organization.  Continue Reading

• Learn vSphere vApps creation, deployment and configuration

  VApps in vSphere can combine VMs into a single location for resource management and have configurations for start and stop processes that improve application performance.  Continue Reading

• 4 key items to add to a SaaS agreement checklist

  SaaS apps can save enterprises time and money, but a bad SLA could reverse those benefits. Focus on these four items to optimize performance and uptime.  Continue Reading

• 6 use cases for Docker containers -- and when to pass

  From app testing to reducing infrastructure costs and beyond, Docker has many great use cases. But developers should remember that, like any technology, Docker has limitations.  Continue Reading

• What are the main features of Azure Storage Explorer?

  With Azure Storage Explorer, cloud admins can centrally manage storage accounts and resources. Here are some key features to tap into.  Continue Reading

• How to effectively plan cloud storage scalability

  There are many benefits but also many considerations in including cloud storage as part of a scalability strategy, from analysis of needs to testing your providers.  Continue Reading

• How zero-trust SDP can work with a VPN for remote work

  Implementing software-defined perimeter and zero-trust security models with a corporate VPN adds significant layers of user and device verification and authentication.  Continue Reading

• Programming in Ruby: A critical look at the pros and cons

  While Ruby showcases an impressive spread of beneficial features, there are still specific shortcomings that may explain why its adoption numbers have been conspicuously erratic.  Continue Reading

• 6 common IT problems in business and how to navigate them

  Remote work has created an array of new problems to address for business operation and support. Tackling them might be a little tricky.  Continue Reading

• Update incident response runbooks to meet new requirements

  Incident response runbooks provide IT teams with the information needed to resolve common and serious incidents. Break a runbook down into flows to construct documentation.  Continue Reading

• Why you should consider an upgrade from PowerShell 5.1 to 7

  A switch to PowerShell 7 will bring performance benefits along with expanded functionality to help administrators keep pace with changing needs in the enterprise.  Continue Reading

• PaaS showdown: AWS Elastic Beanstalk vs. Google App Engine

  AWS and Google Cloud offer their own flavor of PaaS. While they share some similarities, take a closer look at their core features and use cases before you choose an offering.  Continue Reading

• The distributed monolith: What it is and how to escape it

  Do you suspect that your attempt at microservices left you with distributed monolith application design? There are some telltale signs -- and, thankfully, a few ways to escape it.  Continue Reading

• Midband 5G spectrum auctions come to the fore

  Midband has become the premier spectrum for 5G use. The FCC's 3.45 GHz auction began in October, following the massive C-band sell-off that ended in January 2021.  Continue Reading