Braindump » blog http://www.curtis-lamasters.com Another TechBlog Thu, 10 Feb 2011 05:41:53 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 Google Chrome Pilot Program http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2011/02/09/google-chrome-pilot-program/ http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2011/02/09/google-chrome-pilot-program/#comments Thu, 10 Feb 2011 05:41:53 +0000 clamasters http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/?p=400 A few days ago I received a pretty new Google Chrome Notebook model CR-48.  I was, completely caught off guard by a very nicely packaged device sitting the table when I got home.  I still had no idea what I was because I forgot that I signed up for this program.  Ecstatic doesn’t quite cut how happy I was when I discovered what it was.  I was actually selected as a Google Chrome Notebook pilot user.  I doubt this is a rare thing, however I almost never get selected to test stuff that I think is cool.

So far the experience has been pretty good.  When I first booted the system, I had a bit of a hard time connecting to my wireless.  I have a WRT-160N running DD-WRT with WPA2 AES/TKIP enabled.  I reconfigured it to just TKIP and it seemed to work after that and then I was able to login and get the notebook updated.  Pretty neat that EVERYTHING is handled under Chrome.

My wife said it’s the perfect computer for her.  It’s small and light enough to take around the house and we pretty much use Google Docs exclusively for document creation and sharing. We both use Hulu for video’s, Picasa for photos and I use WordPress for blogging.  I have not found a telnet/ssh client for the browser yet so I may take a stab at creating one or finding someone who can.  Since I’m a network engineer, this is an essential function for me.  I’m happy to see the Cisco ASA Clientless SSL VPN now supports Chrome as a browser since that will be my primary view into my work network.

I’ll put up some more posts as time goes on about the use of the Google Chrome Notebook CR-48.

]]> http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2011/02/09/google-chrome-pilot-program/feed/ 1 New Chapter – all systems go. http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2011/02/09/new-chapter-all-systems-go/ http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2011/02/09/new-chapter-all-systems-go/#comments Thu, 10 Feb 2011 05:27:03 +0000 clamasters http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/?p=395 Well, it has been over a year since I have last posted something worthwhile and I feel a little bad about that.  Even if nobody is reading this, I use it to help me remember things that I know I’ll need later.  So if I haven’t posted in a while then I’ll probably forget everything I’ve learned over the last year :) .  Hopefully not.

OK, so a few new things have happened.   My daughter, Kacy was born 8/24/2009 and is now the fire in my life…literally she makes me burn inside with love, anger, cheer, fear, and laughs.  She’s pretty awesome.  My wife who stays at home with her has been very patient and we are now making good progress towards potty training.

I am now employed at KeyOn Communications, Inc as the Sr. Network Engineer.  I updated my about me section so you can check some details there, but in short, I’ll be posting some things up here about what I’m doing at work.  This change is bigger than it sounds.  I used to work in SMB/SME systems where I was the “go to” person for everything under the sun.  Servers, Exchange, Outlook, Quickbooks, etc…you name it, I had to support it.  Now, I get to focus on something and move away from the “Jack of All Trades, Master of None” mentality to finally becoming an expert on something…and I feel GREAT…  Working for a smaller ISP that is growing pretty rapidly, I think, is the perfect place for me.

I now have my CCNA.  This took me 6 years too long to get.  I should have taken it while I was in the Marine Corps but didn’t, then I feel into two jobs that didn’t care one way or another…therefor I took the path of least resistance…not anymore.  Now I am working towards my CCNP and then off to CCIP and CCIE in time.

</update> :)  Until next time…

]]> http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2011/02/09/new-chapter-all-systems-go/feed/ 0 Cisco – tcp-small-servers and udp-small-servers http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2009/02/19/cisco-tcp-small-servers-and-udp-small-servers/ http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2009/02/19/cisco-tcp-small-servers-and-udp-small-servers/#comments Fri, 20 Feb 2009 05:57:25 +0000 clamasters http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/?p=221 For some truly unknown reason, Cisco’s devices still have support for “small servers” or “simple services”. Examples of these include echo, chargen, daytime and discard.  An attacker could possibly start a denial of service attack (DoS) against one or more network devices with those configured.  In this case; echo and chargen are to blame by allowing an attacker to cause  the chargen service to hit the echo services causing an endless loop of character generation and echo between the two hosts.  To disable this, simply enter the following commands:

configure terminal
no service tcp-small-servers
no service udp-small-servers

These commands can be run on nearly all IOS based Cisco equipment.

]]> http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2009/02/19/cisco-tcp-small-servers-and-udp-small-servers/feed/ 0 Cisco Switching – switchport nonegotiate http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2009/02/19/cisco-switching-switchport-nonegotiate/ http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2009/02/19/cisco-switching-switchport-nonegotiate/#comments Thu, 19 Feb 2009 07:07:47 +0000 clamasters http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/?p=218 Dynamic Trunking Protocol (DTP) is a standard feature of Cisco switches and allows two switches to dynamically configure interfaces interconnecting each other to be trunked ports.  DTP has 5 modes; Auto (default), On, Off, desirable and nonegotiate.  These 5 modes all have a purpose.  I have layed out the groundwork below:

  • auto – The default setting allows the port to willingly convert to trunking, however, the port will not trunk unless the neighbor is set to on or desirable.  When two switches are connected together and set for auto, they will NOT trunk.
  • on – This setting forces the port to be a trunk regardless of the neighbor’s settings.
  • off – This setting forces the port to not trunk, even if the neighbor is set to on.
  • desirable – This causes the port to attempt to become a trunk, however, the neighbor would have to be set to on, desirable or auto.
  • nonegotiate – This setting, forces the port to be a trunk but disables DTP frames between the two switches.  This is useful when you are working with non-Cisco equipment and just want to ensure that the ports won’t do anything you do not want them to….this is my preference.

To configure this on your switches, issue the following:


configure terminal
interface g1/0/49
switchport trunk encapsulation dot1q
switchport mode trunk
switchport nonegotiate

Hopefully this was somewhat worthwhile.  It is very basic so I apologize but this is the easiest way to give you the needed information without boring you to death :)

]]> http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2009/02/19/cisco-switching-switchport-nonegotiate/feed/ 0 Cisco Command Reference http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2009/02/19/cisco-command-reference/ http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2009/02/19/cisco-command-reference/#comments Thu, 19 Feb 2009 06:47:12 +0000 clamasters http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/?p=216 I was working on a client’s network tonight and thought of about 10k topics to blog about.  All the commands on Cisco routers and switches.  The purpose of this would be to help remind me that the basics are not good enought and also expand your mind on what a command does, how to use it and possibly when to implement it.  If at any point I’m completely off my rocker, you know what to do :)

]]> http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2009/02/19/cisco-command-reference/feed/ 0 Blogging FAIL!! http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2009/02/17/blogging-fail/ http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2009/02/17/blogging-fail/#comments Tue, 17 Feb 2009 06:14:00 +0000 clamasters http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/?p=213 Ok, I have sucked  pretty bad over the last few months with only personal updates.  I apologize.  I do have some good idea’s in store for technical articles and such but overall, I’ve just been really really lazy.  I haven’t been putting in more than maybe 50 hours a week at work, I wouldn’t say I’m avoiding work but I’m surely not a “go getter” right now.  Hopefully I’ll have a few articles done this week and next for you all to chew on.  Let me know if anything in particular trips your trigger… :)

]]> http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2009/02/17/blogging-fail/feed/ 0 Great News!! Another Addition http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2008/12/24/great-news-another-adition/ http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2008/12/24/great-news-another-adition/#comments Wed, 24 Dec 2008 06:28:18 +0000 clamasters http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2008/12/24/great-news-another-adition/ Yesterday, my wife and I had a great surprise from our doctor. We have been trying for about a year now and finally are pregnant. The doctor says she is 5 weeks along and we just feel very very blessed.

Earlier this year she was diagnosed with poly-cystic ovarian syndrome. I’m not sure if I spelled that correctly :) So with that getting in our way and me being around high powered radio waves for a while when I was in the Marines, we are definitely relieved.

Wish us luck. :)

]]> http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2008/12/24/great-news-another-adition/feed/ 3 New Asus eee PC http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2008/12/21/new-asus-eee-pc/ http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2008/12/21/new-asus-eee-pc/#comments Mon, 22 Dec 2008 03:40:41 +0000 clamasters http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/?p=205 Well, last Friday my wife and I added a new edition to the family; an Asus eee PC (XP Home, 1Gb Memory, 120 Gb Hard Drive).  We bid the highest on the computer at my companies yearly Christmas Party.  I really didn’t want it at first but now that I’ve had a little bit of time on it, the computer is actually pretty fully functional.  There are a few minor issues that I see so far but overall, the computer is very very usable.

So far this weekend I’ve really only had time to do some light surfing and software installs to get my core app’s installed but I do have to say that it is very functional.  The size and weight are great, it’s “fast enough” which I have mentioned before is a relative term.  I won’t be playing WoW or Unreal Tournament any time soon on it but it allows me to surf from one page to  another without delay, watch online video via YouTube, Fox on demand or ABC online and it has different power settings depending on how I want to use it (Super Performance, High Performance and Battery Saving Modes).

I will complain that the keyboard takes a little getting used to especially if your normally on a desktop or large laptop, the touch pad buttons are a bit stiff but I can always use a mouse if needed, and I absolutely hate the way they partitioned the hard drive.  They did 2 60Gb partitions for C: and D:.  Why, that’s all I can ask?

We ended up keeping the black model that was the Christmas party prize but I tell you, I had to defend my manly stance pretty hard against the wife so that she wouldn’t want me to trade it for the pink model.  :)

In some respects it feels faster than my desktop at work (AMD something? 2Ghz, 1Gb Ram).

]]> http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2008/12/21/new-asus-eee-pc/feed/ 0 New Computer – 5.9 Vista Experience for under $400 http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2008/12/18/new-computer-59-vista-experience-for-under-400/ http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2008/12/18/new-computer-59-vista-experience-for-under-400/#comments Fri, 19 Dec 2008 05:48:54 +0000 clamasters http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/?p=198 A few weeks ago I go the go ahead from my wife to build myself a new computer.  I have been rocking a P4 at home for quite some time…so long in fact that I just started using my work laptop as my home computer.  It wasn’t horrible but definitely time to upgrade.  I knew I wanted to keep the cost down even though I think I could have gotten my wife to agree to nearly any reasonable price and I knew I wanted it to be FAST!! :)   That is a relative term but the items I did purchase SEEM very very fast to me.  It would blow my mind if I were to get all the high end stuff :) .

Case:     Ultra X-Blaster ATX Black Mid-Tower Case
Power Supply:     Ultra LSP550 550-Watt Power Supply
Memory:     Corsair Dual Channel TWINX 4096MB PC6400
Processor:     AMD Phenom 9500 Processor
Motherboard:     Asus M2N-SLI Motherboard
Hard Drive:     Seagate 500GB Serial ATA
Video Card:     XFX GeForce 7600 GT (already owned)
Operating System:     Windows Vista Ultimate 32Bit (already owned)

Total:  $374.98 + Tax/Shipping

I thought that price was pretty darn good.  By the way, I don’t have all 5.9′s on Vista’s experience rating, I only have 5.9′s on everything except graphics.  I have 5.5 there but will hopefully be able to get a 9800GT Video Card here soon which will put me up to 5.9′s :)   The operating system was free because I let Microsoft spy on my Windows XP machine for a few months. In return, they gave me a copy of Vista Ultimate 32/64 Bit.

]]> http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2008/12/18/new-computer-59-vista-experience-for-under-400/feed/ 3 NSA Security Configuration Guides http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2008/10/12/nsa-security-configuration-guides/ http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/2008/10/12/nsa-security-configuration-guides/#comments Mon, 13 Oct 2008 03:06:53 +0000 clamasters http://www.curtis-lamasters.com/?p=188 While I was in the Marine Corps doing one of my tour’s in the middle east (Iraq), I was often reminded that we needed to take great measures to secure our network systems.  We took several approaches to this task.  During my second tour I was in a way mentored by a contractor, Andy Garcia.  He worked, If I remember correctly, for Northrop Grumman and was part of the Information Security team for the Marines.  He sort of took me under his wing and showed me the ropes on basic information security.  I sort of became obsessed with it.  Just knowing how easy it was to exploit little things like unpatched Microsoft OS’ and buggy IOS or even wireless network with so called wired equivalent protection (WEP).  It just flabbergasted me watching him gain administrative access on systems that I once thought were “secure”.

I then found a blessing from the National Security Agency (NSA).  They had published baseline security lockdown guides for the majority of technologies that we were deploying.  I started using them to secure our systems along with a large number of recomendations from Andy and the information security team.  It was and still is my favorite part about the job.

Just as an overview, the guides go through getting rid of some bad default settings, teach you to run services with a less priviliged user, and best of all…common sense.  Securing systems is a lot of the latter.  Don’t use default passwords, don’t run as root, etc.  They go into great depth on certain subjects, an just glaze over a few others but the documents are well written and if uses appropriately WILL help you protect your systems.

This have been around for a while now so you may have already know about them but even if you have seen them before, please take a look again just as a refresh.

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