Packet Pushers - Full Podcast Feed

Let’s hear from the next generation of network engineers. Eric Chou sits down with Sem Eyob and Damon Hoody, two early-career network engineers, to talk about how they got into the profession and where they hope to go. They share their views on AI and its effect on their generation, their struggles finding entry level... Read more »

As AI tools and agentic AI become part of how applications are developed, delivered, and managed, application performance monitoring and observability have to adapt. Ned Bellavance sits down with Drew Flowers and Jacob Yackenovich from IBM Instana about where these fields sit today, and the potential impacts of AI. They detail the challenges of application... Read more »

Cloud-based workspaces such as Google Workspace are often the backbone of an organization. But they also face threats from spam and phishing, account takeovers, and illicit access to sensitive documents and files. On today’s Packet Protector we talk with sponsor Material Security about how it brings additional layers of protection to Google Workspace, including email... Read more »

As you wind down 2025, what should you be planning to do for 2026? The Heavy Strategy team breaks it down for you with eight resolutions for the new year. From setting an AI strategy to cloud optimization, Johna and John can help you enter the new year prepared for what’s next. Other resolutions include... Read more »

Take a Network Break! Our Red Alert calls out a dangerous vulnerability in the popular open-source React library. On the news front, HPE decides on a “both and” strategy for its two wireless portfolios and rolls out an option to let customers pick and choose among cross-platform features in Mist and Aruba Networking Central through... Read more »

RG Nets builds gateways and centralized-authentication appliances to help manage and automate revenue-generating networks. On today’s Tech Bytes, we talk with RG Nets founder Simon Lok. But instead of talking about RG Nets, we delve into DPUs. This specialized hardware, which provides additional compute for network devices, has the potential to move from a niche... Read more »

Andy Lapteff once considered himself a ‘CLI lifer.’ As a network engineer he wasn’t interested in Python. He didn’t want to learn to code. He had no desire to embrace any of the developer-like processes and tools creeping into the profession, particularly around network automation. That’s changed. On today’s Heavy Networking, Andy shares the professional,... Read more »

Will it be possible to have fully autonomous networks in the near future? Anil Varanasi, CEO and Co-Founder of Meter, joins Scott Robohn in this sponsored episode to discuss the ongoing evolution from automated to autonomous networks. Anil breaks down how Meter differentiates from other networking vendors, discusses how Meter’s network products are vertically integrated... Read more »

In Part 1 of Redundancy vs. High Availability, we said that sometimes high availability and redundancy are considered to be the same thing, but we disagree. Holly and Ethan do agree that high availability can be considered a network design goal, and that redundancy is just one technique that can be used to help make... Read more »

The newly published RFC 9898 is the discussion of today’s podcast. The IPv6 Buzz crew explore the complexities of neighbor discovery and review solutions for both operators and architects. They share how this RFC serves as a single, detailed resource to improve your understanding of neighbor discovery and to reduce the potential attack surface in... Read more »

Ned and Kyler sit down with Deana Solis, a freelance FinOps engineer and mentor. They discuss the undervalued skills of communication, look at the inherent biases and misplaced confidence of AI models, and offer guidance for those starting their careers. Deana also talks about her journey to discover the intersection of technology, career, and finding... Read more »

In this sponsored episode recorded live at AutoCon 4 in Austin, we sit down with Peter Sprygada, Chief Architect at Itential, to discuss Itential’s on-stage announcement of FlowAI. Peter shares his journey from network engineering skeptic to AI advocate, explaining how Itential securely connects AI agents to infrastructure with enterprise-grade governance and traceability. We dive... Read more »

Ben Toner once again joins Keith Parsons to explain the new WLAN-Pi App. Originally built to control the WLAN-Pi Go, the app now works with all WLAN-Pi models and consolidates controls previously spread across the web UI and APIs. They then dive deeper into the method of connectivity for the app and the functionalities it... Read more »

There may be misconfigurations and other problems lurking in your wireless network. From a lack of peer isolation to poor segmentation to RADIUS problems and vendor fails, these issues can make your WLAN less secure. Jennifer “JJ” Minella goes from Packet Protector co-host to guest as she discusses these issues with Drew Conry-Murray. This episode... Read more »

Anand Oswal, Executive Vice President at Palo Alto Networks, joins Johna Johnson and John Burke for a wide-ranging exploration of two emerging focal points of enterprise risk: cryptographically relevant quantum computing, and browser-mediated agentic AI. The looming arrival of quantum computers that can break legacy encryption has already created the threat of “harvest now, decrypt... Read more »

Take a Network Break! We start with listener follow-up on Fortinet’s vulnerability numbering, and sound a red alert about an authentication bypass vulnerability in ASUS’s AiCloud service. AWS and Google announce a joint cross-cloud interconnect offering (other cloud providers are invited to play), Microsoft and Ciena pitch a new design to boost optical network resiliency,... Read more »

Itential has announced FlowAI, a new offering that brings agentic AI to Itential’s network automation platform. On today’s Tech Bytes podcast Ethan Banks talks with Peter Sprygada, Chief Architect at Itential, about how FlowAI works, its components, and how Itential uses the Model Context Protocol (MCP). They also dig into how FlowAI supports AI-driven orchestration... Read more »

The world of networking is changing at lightning speed thanks to AI. Today Eric sits down with Chris Kane to explore this new reality for network engineers.  Together, they dive deeper into some of the changes that will be coming next, breaking down the technical demands and mindset shifts of intellectual curiosity and humility necessary... Read more »

Recorded live at AutoCon4, William Collins and Eyvonne Sharp join forces with John Capobianco for some in the moment thoughts and reflections on the AutoCon experience – from the in-person connections to the workshops to the stage presentations.  John gives us the inside story on his very own workshop and the latest version releases in... Read more »

Web applications have always been tricky to protect. They’re meant to be accessible over the Internet, which exposes them to malicious actors, they’re designed to take end-user inputs, which can be manipulated for malicious purposes, and they often handle sensitive data. Then the rise of public cloud and microservices architectures added new layers of complexity... Read more »