Network Break
271 episodes - English - Latest episode: 5 days ago - ★★★★★ - 86 ratingsNetwork Break keeps you informed with fast, focused analysis of IT news, products, tech trends, and business outcomes. Blending sharp commentary with a touch of humor, hosts Greg Ferro and Drew Conry-Murray sift through the weekly landslide of press announcements, product launches, financial reports, and marketing decks to find the stories worth talking about. You come away with the information and context to make smart decisions in your organization and career … all in the span of a (longish) coffee break.
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Episodes
NB474: Intel Strikes Back In GPU Wars; The Fork Is Strong With Valkey
April 15, 2024 15:34 - 1 hour - 87.6 MBTake a Network Break! This week we start with some FU on Intel drivers, and how FISA affects people outside (and inside) the US. In the news we cover Intel’s rollout of new XPU silicon and associated software as it tries to make up ground against Nvidia’s AI dominance, Zscaler’s acquisition of a microsegmentation startup... Read more »
NB473: Duty To Report (Your Breaches); Intel Foundry Biz Loses $7 Billion
April 08, 2024 19:11 - 36 minutes - 50.3 MBTake a Network Break! This week we start with some FU on Juniper’s Mist AI, the ConnectWise vulnerability, and the 25th anniversary of the Cisco Cat6. The US Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has proposed new rules that require organizations to report security incidents within 72 hours and ransomware payments within 24 hours. Intel... Read more »
NB472: HPE Adds GenAI to Aruba Central; Intel Eager to Slurp Billions in Subsidies
April 01, 2024 19:52 - 1 hour - 91.5 MBTake a Network Break! This week we try to peel back the layers on HPE’s announcement about new GenAI capabilties in Aruba Networking Central, parse Broadcom’s touting of its AI credentials, and feel conflicted about Intel sucking up billions in taxpayer dollars. South Korean chipmaker SK Hynix dangles a $4 billion investment promise to the... Read more »
NB471: Nvidia Unveils 800G Ethernet, InfiniBand Switches For AI Fabrics; ‘Ghost Jobs’ Haunt Job Boards
March 25, 2024 15:47 - 1 hour - 99.2 MBTake a Network Break! Nvidia announces new 800G switches, one for Ethernet and one for InfiniBand, for building AI fabrics. Nvidia also announces an “AI supercomputer,” a rack-scale pre-built bundle of Nvidia GPUs and CPUs connected via InfiniBand switches. The NaaS startup Meter announces new campus switches and what it calls a “digital twin” capability,... Read more »
NB470: NetBox Labs Adds On-Prem Support; ASML Vs. The Netherlands
March 18, 2024 18:22 - 52 minutes - 74.5 MBThis week on Network Break we discuss a new on-prem version of NetBox Labs’ source-of-truth software with enterprise support, why Selector AI is adding an LLM to its operations and observability product, and whether a new Web application firewall from Cloudflare can protect LLMs against malicious prompts. Viavi Solutions consolidates the network testing space with... Read more »
NB 469: Arista Debuts Network Observability Service; Startups Aim To Break Nvidia’s AI Chip Grip
March 11, 2024 16:02 - 1 hour - 89.9 MBThis week we discuss a new network observability offering from Arista that integrates network telemetry with application data, why startups such as Groq and Taalas think they can break Nvidia’s grip on the AI chip market, and how Microsoft is hedging its LLM bets. Amazon goes nuclear with the purchase of a reactor-powered data center... Read more »
NB 468: Broadcom Checks SASE Box; Spirent Announces AI Traffic Emulator For Ethernet Networks
March 04, 2024 20:18 - 19 minutes - 29.2 MBTake a Network Break! Johna Till Johnson joins as guest host while Greg Ferro enjoys some time off. We start with follow-up regarding damage to subsea cables in the Red Sea, and then dive into news. AT&T deals with the fallout of a major US outage, Vodafone also suffers outages in the UK, and Elisa... Read more »
NB467: More AI Assistants Emerge; Nvidia’s AI Goldmine Spurs New Competitors
February 26, 2024 21:02 - 45 minutes - 64.3 MBTake a Network Break! This week we cover financial results from Palo Alto Networks (good, but next quarter’s softer forecast resulted in a drubbing), Cisco (not good), and Nvidia (so good that Wall Street is nervous about how long the party’s gonna last). Prosimo and Nokia have announced generative AI assistants that claim to help... Read more »
NB466: Identifying The Most-Hated ISP; Should AI Write Your Security Policies?
February 12, 2024 18:08 - 52 minutes - 74.9 MBTake a Network Break! We start with an FU on return-to-office policies, and then dive into some announcements from Cisco Live in Amsterdam. Cisco is rolling out rack and blade servers with Nvidia Tensor chips, and Cisco is adding new features to its Digital Experience Monitoring capabilities. Verizon hopes to utilize its MPLS network as... Read more »
NB465: Dell Terminates VMware Resale Deal; Return-To-Office Orders Backfire Says Study
February 05, 2024 20:01 - 50 minutes - 70.9 MBThis week on Network Break we discuss Dell terminating its resale agreement of VMware as Broadcom looks to streamline OEM agreements, a new Wi-Fi AP and cloud-managed switches from Extreme, and the fits and starts in US chip manufacturing. A new study finds Return-To-Office (RTO) mandates don’t improve productivity or company performance, but do drive... Read more »
NB464: Juniper Begins AI Push Into The Data Center; VMware Customers Confront Higher Prices
January 29, 2024 16:53 - 1 hour - 84.7 MBThis week we discuss new products from Juniper including synthetic testing software for its Mist wireless networks and its first step toward integrating its Apstra data center software with AI. VMware clarifies its product strategy as customers face rising prices, and undersea cables in the Red Sea face potential threats. Nokia and Chinese mobile device... Read more »
NB463: Cisco Buys eBPF Startup For Cloud-Native Networking; Gartner Forecasts $5 Trillion In IT Spending
January 22, 2024 19:18 - 54 minutes - 76.7 MBThis week’s Network Break examines why Cisco bought eBPF startup Isovalent (hint: it’s about cloud-native networking), why Broadcom is cranking up pressure on VMware resellers and customers (hint: it’s about money), and why Google Cloud is sort of dropping fees for customers who want to exit the cloud (hint: it’s about getting out ahead of... Read more »
NB462: HPE Spends $14 Billion For Juniper Networks; Starlink Tests SMS Via Satellite
January 15, 2024 19:42 - 47 minutes - 66.7 MBTake a Network Break! On today’s show we spend most of the episode talking about HPE’s $14 billion bid for Juniper Networks. We discuss reasons for the deal, product overlap, potential upsides, challenges to integrating these two companies and their product lines, and more. We also talk about a successful test by Starlink to send... Read more »
NB461: 2024 Trends – AI Beyond LLMs, Cisco Vs. Everybody, Next-Gen IT Workers, And More
January 09, 2024 14:58 - 1 hour - 104 MBTake a Network Break! We start the new year by examining major themes and trends that we think will affect IT and networking in 2024. Topics include: AI beyond LLMs Whether open source can remain a viable model in a predatory tech environment Cisco vs. everybody Why IT can’t ignore geopolitics for strategic planning What... Read more »
NB460: VMware Ditches Perpetual Licenses; GenAI Is Coming To Network Ops
December 18, 2023 15:59 - 57 minutes - 80.4 MBBroadcom’s VMware has announced an end to perpetual licensing, network automation provider Anuta Networks is adding generative AI capabilities to its Atom platform, and high-end firewall revenues dip but campus switch sales soared in Q3 2023. The Open Networking Foundation, which oversaw open projects around software-defined networking, is closing its doors and folding its projects... Read more »
NB459: IBM Aims To Own The Quantum Realm; Amazon Hitches A Ride With SpaceX
December 11, 2023 16:04 - 36 minutes - 51.4 MBIBM has announced a new quantum processor and modular quantum computer in an effort to own the next generation of computing, Cisco unveils an AI assistant to help you untangle firewall rules, and Marvell debuts new DPUs for switches, firewalls, and other networking devices. The MEF looks for ways to stay relevant in the broadband... Read more »
NB458: Broadcom Debuts On-Chip Neural Net, Lays Off VMware Staff; Okta Breach Gets Worse
December 04, 2023 16:10 - 58 minutes - 81.4 MBBroadcom’s latest Trident ASIC will include a neural net inference engine on the chip that can analyze traffic and take action in the packet pipeline, but it’s up to customers to build rules and signatures based on their own training data. Broadcom has also announced it will lay off approximately 1,300 VMware employees. Identity provider... Read more »
NB457: Broadcom, VMware Tie The Knot; Nvidia SuperNICs Target AI Ethernet Acceleration
November 27, 2023 20:14 - 52 minutes - 73.4 MBNow that Broadcom’s $69 billion VMware acquisition is complete, will Broadcom invest more in VMware to compete in multi-cloud or settle for profitable revenue collection from existing customers? Nvidia debuts a SuperNIC designed to accelerate Ethernet to support AI workloads and announces partnerships with server makers to bundle its NIC in an AI Ethernet stack.... Read more »
NB456: China Flexes Tech Muscles With 1.2Tb Backbone; Will CISOs Mitigate Risk Or Liability?
November 20, 2023 15:59 - 38 minutes - 54.6 MBChina demonstrates the strength of its home-grown technology industry by announcing a 1.2Tbit Internet backbone that stretches 3,000 kilometers, Fortinet warns of a 9.8 severity bug in its SIEM product, and Nvidia and Dell roll out ready-made models and infrastructure for enterprises to build their own generative AI apps. HPE Aruba Networking releases a new... Read more »
NB455: Extreme Announces ZTNA Offering; Palo Alto Networks Spends Big On A Browser Startup
November 13, 2023 23:57 - 49 minutes - 68.8 MBExtreme Networks is jumping into Zero Trust Network Access, Palo Alto Networks is reportedly spending more than half a billion dollars to acquire a corporate browser startup, and Forrester predicts as much as 20% of VMware’s customers may jump ship after the Broadcom acquisition completes. Arista touts a strong third quarter, while F5 forecasts a... Read more »
NB454: Is Bad InfoSec Now Securities Fraud?
November 06, 2023 16:25 - 50 minutes - 70.4 MBWe discuss potential repercussions for security executives after the SEC charges Solar Winds’ CISCO with fraud, examine a new SD-LAN offering from Versa Networks that aims to integrate security controls into a campus fabric, and discuss a new open-source tool from Cloudflare for scrubbing sensitive authentication tokens from HAR files. Extreme Networks posts strong revenues... Read more »
NB453: Cisco Invests In Quantum Networking; SmartNIC Sales Surge; Intel Unplugs Another Business
October 30, 2023 15:01 - 54 minutes - 77.3 MBToday's episode includes Cisco patching a critical vulnerability affecting IOS-XE gear, startup Prosimo releasing a cost calculator to help network engineers track their public cloud networking costs, and Juniper integrating its SD-WAN to the AWS cloud WAN. We also cover Cisco's investment in a quantum networking startup, growing DPU sales, and Intel divesting from pluggable optical modules.
NB452: Cisco Makes You Feel Vulnerable; Broadcom 25.6Tbps Routing ASIC Targets Custom Silicon; China Mandates IPv6
October 23, 2023 15:11 - 47 minutes - 67 MBThis week's IT news podcast covers a serious Cisco exploit against IOS XE, new firewalls from Juniper, Broadcom's hopes to capture the routing market with merchant silicon, more movement on restoring net neutrality in the US, and more.
Network Break 451: Making A Ruckus About Wi-Fi 7; Arista Announces 25G Layer 1 Switches; AWS To Require MFA
October 16, 2023 15:27 - 44 minutes - 62.9 MBThis week's Network Break covers a new set of Layer 1 switches from Arista for high-frequency trading, Ruckus announcing a (pre-ratified) Wi-Fi 7 AP, and AWS planning to require multi-factor authentication starting in mid-2024. MGM Resorts says it will take a $100 million hit due to a security breach, the UK finally fines Equifax for a 2017 breach, and Broadcom may have cleared a China hurdle to its VMware acquisition.
Network Break 450: Cisco, Nutanix Announce HCI Gear; HPE Aruba Releases Wi-Fi 6e Sensor; Amazon Ships Test Satellites Into Orbit
October 10, 2023 15:55 - 55 minutes - 78.2 MBThis week's Network Break covers new HCI gear from the Cisco/Nutanix partnership, a sensor to detect Wi-Fi 6e performance, Intel financial engineering, Amazon shipping test satellites for a space broadband service, and more IT news.
Network Break 449: Amazon Invests $4 Billion In AI Startup; Will Small Modular Reactors Power Public Clouds?
October 02, 2023 15:19 - 46 minutes - 66.4 MBToday's Network Break, with guest host Johna Till Johnson, discusses why Amazon is pouring $4 billion into a generative AI startup, Marvell's response to accusations of an NSA-friendly backdoor in older Cavium products, why Microsoft is investigating small modular nuclear reactors, Meta using public posts to train AI, and more tech news
Network Break 448: Cisco Splashes Out $28 Billion For Splunk; OpenTofu Is Vegetarian Alternative To Terraform
September 25, 2023 15:07 - 31 minutes - 22.4 MBOn today’s Network Break, Greg Ferro is joined by guest co-host Brad Casemore. You can follow Brad on his blog Crepuscular Circus. Greg and Brad discuss new capabilities in Juniper’s Apstra data center automation software, Versa partnering with Intel to put security software on a NIC, and Cisco buying Splunk for $28 billion. The Linux... Read more »
Network Break 447: Cisco Chases AI Ethernet Fabrics With New Silicon One ASICs; Nokia Announces Routers With Custom Silicon
September 18, 2023 14:44 - 41 minutes - 29.9 MBToday on Network Break we get a plethora of networking news, including Cisco rolling out new custom Ethernet switch ASICs to compete for AI fabrics. Nokia announces new routers also boasting custom silicon, Intel makes noise about the Thunderbolt 5 connector, Marvell touts ASICs for automotive Ethernet, the AfriNIC registry goes into receivership, and more tech news.
Network Break 446: Microsoft’s Series Of Unfortunate Events; Huawei’s 7nm Chip Gives US The Middle Finger
September 11, 2023 16:06 - 33 minutes - 24.2 MBThis week on Network Break we dig into Microsoft's post-mortem of an attack that led to the theft of emails from multiple US government agencies, discuss Huawei rolling out a new 7nm chip despite US trade restrictions meant to thwart advanced chipmaking, examine a Cisco and Nutanix team-up, and more tech news.
Network Break 445: Juniper Pairs With ChatGPT, Microsoft To Unpair Teams In The EU
September 05, 2023 14:09 - 49 minutes - 68.7 MBToday on Network Break we discuss Juniper integrating ChatGPT with its AI digital assistant, Microsoft's plan to unbundle Teams in the EU to fend off regulators, financial results from soon-to-be-paired Broadcom and VMware, a 5G follow-up, and more.
Network Break 444: NVIDIA Mines GPU Gold; VMware Wants To Sell You Private AI; SUSE Prepares To Go Private
August 28, 2023 19:15 - 54 minutes - 75.7 MBTake a Network Break! On today's episode we discuss two announcements from VMware Explore 2023: a private AI offering, and a revamped NSX for public and private cloud networking. We also discuss recent rule changes at the SEC that require public companies to disclose material security incidents in a timely manner, NVIDIA's huge revenue results, SUSE going private, and more tech news.
Network Break 443: Nuclear DCs, Mobile Cars, Fibrechannel, Open Source And Cheese
August 21, 2023 11:05 - 43 minutes - 60.3 MBWe’ve got more durm and strang in open source license debate, cars that don't work wihtout a network, something mumble something Fibrechannel, a security acquisition by Check Point, cheesy microchips and more.
Network Break 442: HashiCorp Swaps Open Source For BSL; Open Enterprise Linux Goes After RHEL
August 14, 2023 15:32 - 37 minutes - 52.6 MBToday on Network Break we discuss big moves in open source, including HashiCorp switching from an open source license to "business source" and Red Hat competitors banding together to offer an alternative to Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). We also discuss Google's odd attempt to get employees back to the office by charging them to stay at an on-campus hotel.
Network Break 441: AWS Makes You Pay For IPv4; Superconductor Claims Meet Resistance; An Ultra Ethernet Q&A
August 07, 2023 15:37 - 57 minutes - 81 MBTake a Network Break! This week we discuss new charges for IPv4 addresses being levied by AWS, Cisco's acquisition of a BGP monitoring service, and financial results for a host of tech companies. We also speak with J Metz, the Steering Committee Chair of the Ultra Ethernet Consortium to learn more about the organization's goals; and examine the efforts to investigate claims of a breakthrough in superconducting research.
Network Break 440: Broadcom Releases SONiC-Friendly Trident; Senator Requests Investigations Into Microsoft’s Shoddy Security
July 31, 2023 15:18 - 51 minutes - 71.9 MBOn this week's Network Break we discuss a new Broadcom ASIC, a request from US Senator Ron Wyden to three US agencies to investigate Microsoft for sloppy security practices, an Intel pledge to add AI to all its platforms, Juniper financial results, and more IT news.
Network Break 439: Ethernet Gets Ultra Injection For AI; Huawei Climbs The Patent Charts
July 24, 2023 17:59 - 55 minutes - 77.6 MBThis week on Network Break we discuss the launch of the Ultra Ethernet Consortium and its intention to revamp Ethernet to support AI and HPC workloads. We also cover NOS startup Arrcus pulling in a $65 million series D round, Fortinet launching big-iron firewalls, Huawei flexing its patent muscles in 5G and wireless, and more tech news.
Network Break 438: Intel Abandons NUC; EU Blesses Broadcom/VMware Union; Microsoft Joins SSE Race
July 17, 2023 15:45 - 51 minutes - 72.3 MBTake a Network Break! This week we discuss Intel walking away from the NUC PC, Microsoft rebranding Azure AD and launching an SSE offering, and Microsoft Exchange Online getting hacked. We also cover the EU's conditional approval of Broadcom's VMware acquisition, why Wireshark needs your help, and more IT news.
Network Break 437: Ethernet Turns 50; TSMC Imports Workers For Arizona Fab; BT, HPE Partner On Managed LAN
July 10, 2023 20:05 - 36 minutes - 33.4 MBOn today's Network Break, Greg Ferro wishes Ethernet an unhappy birthday, HPE and BT want to manage your LAN, TSMC brings in Taiwanese workers to build new fabs in Arizona, Nokia touts new Fixed Wireless Access milestones, and more IT news.
Network Break CCCCXXXVII: Summer Holiday Special!
July 03, 2023 10:00 - 20 minutes - 19.7 MBThis bonus episode of Network Break discusses a new free tier of Prosimo's multi-cloud networking offering, the latest ThousandEyes acquisition, new SEC problems for SolarWinds, and a million-dollar refrigerator.
NB436: Cisco AI Silicon, DEM. HPE Greenlake AI LLM. FCC Talks Bandwidth Caps.
June 26, 2023 10:22 - 42 minutes - 58.7 MBCisco announces AI Networking versions of SIlicon One ASICs and buys another DEM business. HPE Greenlake adds AI LLM. FTC talks bandwidth caps. Google accusing Microsoft of monopolistic behaviour. We laughed.
NB435: Your FUs, VMware takeover, DPU News and Cooling is Toxic
June 19, 2023 09:09 - 46 minutes - 63.8 MBFU, vendors co-operating ? Google ditches something, Quantum computing, the state of AMD DPUs. Finally liquid cooling is toxic due to PFAS are 'forever chemicals'.
Network Break 434: Cisco Licensing To Get Simpler, Bluecat Buys Again, Hashicorp Money Problems, and Itential Pops A Release
June 12, 2023 11:10 - 1 hour - 83 MBTake a Network Break: Drew is on holiday (again) and Ethan shows up. Who knew he was still around ? We start with FU, Cisco Live was underwhelming announcing a new focus simplicity and that customers hate their licensing, Bluecat spends again, Hashicorp gets a financial slapping, Itential ships a new version and Quantum Space Networking.
Network Break 433: NVIDIA Melds Switches, DPUs For AI Networking Fabric; FTC Says Amazon Ring Employee Spied On Female Customers
June 05, 2023 19:30 - 58 minutes - 80.8 MBThis week's Network Break discusses a new Google offering to interconnect public clouds, NVIDIA's platform for AI networking fabrics using Ethernet switches and DPUs, and Cisco's latest security acquisition. We also cover Riverbed getting a new private equity owner, Amazon paying a pittance to the FTC to settle allegations of customer privacy violations, and more tech news.
Network Break 432: DriveNets Aims To Make Ethernet AI-Friendly; China Goes Eye-For-An-Eye With US Over Tech Bans
May 30, 2023 21:32 - 56 minutes - 53.3 MBThis week we discuss a new offering from DriveNets that aims to make Ethernet more suitable as a network fabric for AI workloads, why the EU slapped Meta with a $1.3 billion fine, and a new offering from Extreme Networks that lets you manage Extreme gear in the cloud or from on-prem, China banning Micron, and more IT news.
Network Break 431: Juniper NAC Emerges From The Mist; New Google TLDs Are A Bad Idea
May 22, 2023 15:27 - 57 minutes - 79.3 MBThis week's Network Break looks at a new Network Access Control (NAC) offering from Juniper, plus a ChatGPT integration with Juniper's Marvis. Google debuts new Top-Level Domains that have security experts worried, Cisco reports a robust Q3, Broadcom tries to assuage EU regulators about its VMware acquisition, and more tech news.
Network Break 430: Cisco Viptela Customers Have A Certifiably Bad Day; IT Crimes And Punishments
May 15, 2023 15:29 - 37 minutes - 52 MBTake a Network Break! This week we cover some follow-up on Lumen. Then we dive into a massive Cisco blunder that let a digital certificate expire on some models of the Viptela SD-WAN appliance, causing device failures. Extreme Networks release a new Wi-Fi 6e AP and core and aggregation switches, a Ubiquiti employee who stole... Read more »
Network Break 429: Palo Alto Previews Azure Firewall; White House Chases AI Horse After It Escapes Barn
May 08, 2023 15:04 - 50 minutes - 47.6 MBTake a Network Break! This week we discuss a new Azure-native cloud firewall from Palo Alto Networks, why pharma giant Merck might be owed a big settlement from its cyber-insurers, and why HPE wants to simplify its branding. Lumen offers 400G IP transit ports, the US White House announces actions to promote safe, responsible AI; Versa Networks rolls out zero trust for remote and campus users, and Rogers teams up with SpaceX to allow SMS messaging via satellite.
Network Break 428: Arista Announces Cloud-Based NAC; Is Google Cloud Finally Making Money?
May 01, 2023 19:21 - 57 minutes - 79 MBTake a Network Break! This week we discuss a new NAC solution from Arista Networks, a new version of Central from HPE Aruba, and the latest version of NetBrain. We also cover a new XDR offering from Cisco, Google Cloud's quarterly financial results, Microsoft entanglements with EU and UK regulators, and more tech news.
Network Break 427: Prosimo Launches Cloud-Native Networking Suite; Broadcom Stitches New Jericho ASIC For AI-Friendly Network Fabrics
April 24, 2023 15:33 - 39 minutes - 56.3 MBTake a Network Break! This week we cover new cloud networking capabilities from Prosimo, discuss Broadcom's latest version of the Jericho ASIC which is being positioned for network fabrics for AI workloads, and explore the latest version of the open-source Dent network OS. We also cover financial results from F5, Starlink price cuts, and more tech news.
Network Break 426: NetBox Labs Raises $20 Million; Intel Foundry, Arm Team Up To Make SoCs
April 17, 2023 14:48 - 38 minutes - 54.1 MBThis week's Network Break discusses NetBox Labs's $20 million funding round and why it spun itself out of NS1's IBM acquisition, Intel Foundry and Arm teaming up on SoC manufacturing, why Amazon sees headwinds for public cloud spending (and why the opportunity is still huge), how the juice-jacking threat got hyped, and more tech news.