Jeffreys Ruminations - Network Blog » MVP Summit http://www.networkblog.net The Thoughts and Musings of Jeffrey Randow about Networking Tue, 25 May 2010 01:21:16 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 en hourly 1 Congratulations to MVP Awardees (and re-awardees) http://www.networkblog.net/archives/2006/10/congratulations-to-mvp-awardees-and-re-awardees/ http://www.networkblog.net/archives/2006/10/congratulations-to-mvp-awardees-and-re-awardees/#comments Sun, 01 Oct 2006 21:21:06 +0000 jeffreycentex http://www.networkblog.net/?p=9 First, since this is the first day of October – this is the time for the annual MVP awards (and re-awards).  Congratulations to all.

Sadly, this year does not include me.  I wholeheartedly agree with the decision and have been expecting it.  I am trying to rectify it and hopefully will rejoin the ranks sometime within [...]]]> First, since this is the first day of October – this is the time for the annual MVP awards (and re-awards).  Congratulations to all.

Sadly, this year does not include me.  I wholeheartedly agree with the decision and have been expecting it.  I am trying to rectify it and hopefully will rejoin the ranks sometime within the next year.  However, I have enjoyed the experience for the past 5 years in my many different MVP roles (first as a Windows XP MVP, then as a Smart Display MVP, and finally in my different roles as a Windows Networking MVP).  I have met many people – blue/orange badgers and other fellow MVPs – many of whom I read about widely.  But most importantly, I have learned much.

The good news is that I am about to restore some sanity in my life and will get back here and to the newsgroups and discussion forums.  It has been way too long and way too stressful for too long.  This week, I am taking a break from things for a quick jaunt up to Redmond for four days.  Afterwards, I intend to re-energize myself and get back to what I like doing.  Then watch for the flurry of activity )

I have a few more updates that I will post today, but I must take some time and close up some loose ends before my trip.

Thanks for reading.

Jeffrey…

]]> http://www.networkblog.net/archives/2006/10/congratulations-to-mvp-awardees-and-re-awardees/feed/ 0 Thanks to the Windows Networking Team http://www.networkblog.net/archives/2005/10/thanks-to-the-windows-networking-team/ http://www.networkblog.net/archives/2005/10/thanks-to-the-windows-networking-team/#comments Fri, 07 Oct 2005 09:49:45 +0000 jeffreycentex http://www.networkblog.net/?p=58 I also wanted to insert a general thank you to the members of the Windows Networking team that we (as MVPs) interacted with at the summit sessions on Friday and Saturday, and the Wireless Roundtable/PG Dinner Thursday night. It was an enjoyable and worthwhile experience (and a bit overwhelming).

]]> I also wanted to insert a general thank you to the members of the Windows Networking team that we (as MVPs) interacted with at the summit sessions on Friday and Saturday, and the Wireless Roundtable/PG Dinner Thursday night. It was an enjoyable and worthwhile experience (and a bit overwhelming).

]]> http://www.networkblog.net/archives/2005/10/thanks-to-the-windows-networking-team/feed/ 0 IPV6 and Longhorn/Vista http://www.networkblog.net/archives/2005/10/ipv6-and-longhornvista/ http://www.networkblog.net/archives/2005/10/ipv6-and-longhornvista/#comments Fri, 07 Oct 2005 09:44:41 +0000 jeffreycentex http://www.networkblog.net/?p=59 Continuing on my series posting from the network portion of the MVP Summit (sorry for the delay in posting but I am still in Seattle – this time on vacation – and I have been in non-stop activities), I will post some about the improvements in IPV6 included in Windows Vista.

A lot of the “goodies” [...]]]> Continuing on my series posting from the network portion of the MVP Summit (sorry for the delay in posting but I am still in Seattle – this time on vacation – and I have been in non-stop activities), I will post some about the improvements in IPV6 included in Windows Vista.

A lot of the “goodies” won’t appear until Beta 2 but a few “might” appear in an upcoming interim build. IPV6 is turned on by default – either using native mode or one of the three tunneling methods (ISATAP, 6to4, or Teredo). Each has its strong points:

  • ISATAP – Used for internal networks.
  • 6to4 – Used for machines that are directly connected to the internet without a NAT (network address translation) device
  • Teredo – Used for machines behind NAT devices (i.e., home computers)

All of these technologies are currently available in Windows XP. However, each implementations have limitations that reduce their usefulness. Microsoft is addressing many of these shortcomings in Windows Vista.

I see great potential in Teredo – especially with helping end users with Remote Desktop connectivity. The biggest hurdle in implementing Remote Desktop is the limitation that using a NAT device (i.e., SOHO router, internet connection sharing) causes. Teredo allows tunnelling through the NAT device directly without any overly complicated port forwarding. The two hurdles yet to overcome is the configurability of an IPV6 firewall and the availability of a IPV6 compatible dynamic dns service.

I’ll post more on IPV6 after I get a chance to play with the October interim build (whenever it may arrive) instead of just relying on demos and powerpoint slide decks.

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]]> http://www.networkblog.net/archives/2005/10/ipv6-and-longhornvista/feed/ 0 Today’s Summit Highlight: NAP and IPSEC http://www.networkblog.net/archives/2005/10/todays-summit-highlight-nap-and-ipsec/ http://www.networkblog.net/archives/2005/10/todays-summit-highlight-nap-and-ipsec/#comments Sat, 01 Oct 2005 09:02:53 +0000 jeffreycentex http://www.networkblog.net/?p=60 The highlight of the network drill-down day 1 for me was all of the discussion of how IPSEC can be used with NAP (Network Access Protection) to protect networks, even without using 802.1X and DHCP… There was an article posted by Matt with the EEC (which, BTW, is an awesome place to visit if [...]]]> The highlight of the network drill-down day 1 for me was all of the discussion of how IPSEC can be used with NAP (Network Access Protection) to protect networks, even without using 802.1X and DHCP… There was an article posted by Matt with the EEC (which, BTW, is an awesome place to visit if you ever have a chance) earlier this year that had described the plans for this, but somehow it slipped past my radar.

For smaller companies like the one I work for, implementing NAP via DHCP and 802.1X will probably still be much easier. However, MS is promising to make the IPSEC NAP experience be as painless as possible. The hardest aspect will be to get the certificate infrastructure up and running, but it should be much easier to install, administer, and maintain versus the complexities of the current Certificate Services in Windows 2003 Server.

Alas, we must wait for Longhorn Server to see more of this… And I haven’t even gotten to IPV6 support in Vista/Longhorn. More on that tomorrow (after I collapse from exhaustion and information overload).

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]]> http://www.networkblog.net/archives/2005/10/todays-summit-highlight-nap-and-ipsec/feed/ 0 Live in Bellevue… http://www.networkblog.net/archives/2005/09/live-in-bellevue/ http://www.networkblog.net/archives/2005/09/live-in-bellevue/#comments Wed, 28 Sep 2005 09:08:38 +0000 jeffreycentex http://www.networkblog.net/?p=63 Well, I’m up here in Bellevue (WA) for the 2005 MVP Summit which starts tomorrow (Wednesday) at Microsoft HQ in Redmond…

Today, I took part in the R2 Tech Beta tour with several presentations and quite a few tours. I can’t discuss things that we saw or did, unfortunately, due to the NDA we needed [...]]]> Well, I’m up here in Bellevue (WA) for the 2005 MVP Summit which starts tomorrow (Wednesday) at Microsoft HQ in Redmond…

Today, I took part in the R2 Tech Beta tour with several presentations and quite a few tours. I can’t discuss things that we saw or did, unfortunately, due to the NDA we needed to sign. A few non-descript photos have been posted to my personal photogallery here. I will update and add pictures through out the trip (which will also include a few photos next week from Mt Rainier and other locales where I can track down fall colors).

I also saw Scoble today at lunch and this evening at a few of the events… Now I need to find a place to take Channel 9 guy to visit.. )

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]]> http://www.networkblog.net/archives/2005/09/live-in-bellevue/feed/ 0 MVP Summit Day 1 Summary http://www.networkblog.net/archives/2004/04/mvp-summit-day-1-summary/ http://www.networkblog.net/archives/2004/04/mvp-summit-day-1-summary/#comments Thu, 08 Apr 2004 10:54:39 +0000 jeffreycentex http://www.networkblog.net/?p=135 OK, so much for the day-to-day summary (or blow-by-blow account) of the MVP Summit from my vantage point. We had WAY too much to do and I don’t think I have had less sleep than when I was in college… Now that it is over, I have some time to set aside (+ [...]]]> OK, so much for the day-to-day summary (or blow-by-blow account) of the MVP Summit from my vantage point. We had WAY too much to do and I don’t think I have had less sleep than when I was in college… Now that it is over, I have some time to set aside (+ I don’t have to do real work tonight – woohoo!)

OK, the first full day of the summit was the Business Unit day. For me, that was the Windows Client team (although I would probably have preferred the Windows Server side more as it was a lot more specific). There wasn’t much new shown in the morning – Media Center demos, looking at the new Windows Mobile device (like the Motorola MPx), and discussing the changes that are being incorporated in Windows XP Service Pack 2.

BTW: If you have installed SP 2 and have had any issues, please file a bug report immediately.. ) The Windows team is trying to get feedback before they release the second release candidate in the near future.

The afternoon session was Longhorn, in depth… There wasn’t much talked about here that we can talk about yet, unfortunately. It is looking more and more promising… However, I still needed to get networking questions answered and Monday was somewhat devoid of anything networking specific, so I needed to wait until Wednesday to get some of my questions answered).

Other than Longhorn, there will be some tremendously cool improvements that will soon be released for the wireless community.� Unfortunately, this too is under NDA, so we will have to wait a few weeks to discuss this.

Monday night included a dinner put on by the Windows Business Unit in Building 9. This offered a great chance to network with other MVPs and MS employees. I had an interesting discussion with a member of the Virtual PC team. It seems that there is a coordinated effort on the part of MS to push the use of Virtual PC to IT users and developers. We talked about problems that we have seen with the current version of VPC, as well as discussing possible future improvements. I also talked with a member of the product group responsible for the Windows Firewall included in Windows XP Service Pack 2. We discussed some of the changes included in the new firewall as well as their impact on both home and small business environments. (More on this later).

Finally, I spent some time talking with Robert Scoble (wearing his horns!) about Longhorn (of course) and the climate at Microsoft. Robert seems extremely happy with what he is doing these days… He is very energized and excited about the potential of Longhorn. (to Robert – extremely cool business cards and remind me to bring you some real longhorn
“horns” next time I am up in Redmond).

That was about it on the first night… I got back to the hotel at about 10:00PM and ended up working for a few hours on an “emergency” project at work that apparently could not wait.

Day 2 and 3 tomorrow… I promise…

]]> http://www.networkblog.net/archives/2004/04/mvp-summit-day-1-summary/feed/ 0 MVP Summit Day 0 News http://www.networkblog.net/archives/2004/04/mvp-summit-day-0-news/ http://www.networkblog.net/archives/2004/04/mvp-summit-day-0-news/#comments Mon, 05 Apr 2004 08:34:23 +0000 jeffreycentex http://www.networkblog.net/?p=136 Today was the first official day of the 2004 Global MVP Summit (registration and product fair). In general, not much happened today other than picking up our registration package and general networking (of the social variety) with other MVPs. There have been social gatherings, lunches, and dinners all over downtown Seattle the past [...]]]> Today was the first official day of the 2004 Global MVP Summit (registration and product fair). In general, not much happened today other than picking up our registration package and general networking (of the social variety) with other MVPs. There have been social gatherings, lunches, and dinners all over downtown Seattle the past two days as people were starting to get into town. I attended a lunch put together by Susan Bradley to take the Security MVP Lead out for all of his hard work in keeping us informed about the latest security bulletins, tools, and advisories (Thanks Susan!).

At the MVP Expo this evening, I ran into Scoble (nice horns! – I wish I took a picture of him), Doug Knox, Thomas Lee, Barb Bowman, and many many others. I also met Al Jarvi (aka Sooner Al) who is a fellow MVP who participates in the discussions in the work_remotely newsgroup for the first time tonight. I tried to take a few pictures tonight (more on this later), but unfortunately they didn’t turn out too well – I need a better camera for indoor pictures).

I spent the rest of today taking in more of the sights around downtown Seattle (I’ll have plenty of time for this, though, as I am up here in the PacNW until the 14th). I’m staying at the Seattle Grand Hyatt and have an excellent view of nothing… Well, not quite nothing – I get to look out onto the balconies of an adjacent apartment tower. This morning, I walked down to the shoreline and visited Pike Market Center. I spent most of the morning there before returning back to the hotel for the lunch at the Rock Bottom. After that, I wanted to see what the big deal was about REI. So I decided to walk to their flagship store which is located quite a few blocks from the hotel. REI was awesome – I wish they would have a store closer to home than Houston (although their map showed a location in Austin that I have never seen before). I picked up a few odds and ends there before returning back to the hotel for the MVP Registration and Expo… Finally, I walked down to the Westlake Center and took the monorail to the Seattle Center to partake of the sites there.. Needless to say, my feet are very tired and sore… )

I have photos from today in my photogallery at http://photogallery.jeffreyrandow.com. Please be considerate of my bandwidth as these are hosted (along with this weblog) on my home server over a DSL link.

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