Network Break
Packet Pushers
Network 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 Drew Conry-Murray & Johna Till Johnson 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.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Feb 12, 2024 • 53min
NB466: Identifying The Most-Hated ISP; Should AI Write Your Security Policies?
Exploring return-to-office policies and challenges, Cisco and Nvidia partner for AI processing, Verizon's SD-WAN solutions, AI in threat monitoring, debate on toilet lid effectiveness, securing IoT with Zero Trust principles
Feb 5, 2024 • 50min
NB465: Dell Terminates VMware Resale Deal; Return-To-Office Orders Backfire Says Study
This 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 »
Jan 29, 2024 • 1h 1min
NB464: Juniper Begins AI Push Into The Data Center; VMware Customers Confront Higher Prices
This 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 »
Jan 22, 2024 • 55min
NB463: Cisco Buys eBPF Startup For Cloud-Native Networking; Gartner Forecasts $5 Trillion In IT Spending
This 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 »
Jan 15, 2024 • 48min
NB462: HPE Spends $14 Billion For Juniper Networks; Starlink Tests SMS Via Satellite
Take 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 »
Jan 9, 2024 • 1h 15min
NB461: 2024 Trends – AI Beyond LLMs, Cisco Vs. Everybody, Next-Gen IT Workers, And More
Topics discussed in the podcast include the dominance of AI in 2024, global shipping challenges and supply chain implications, SASE and SD-WAN for security and connectivity in the cloud, Meta's failure and Qualcomm's silicon chip, challenges of VR in enterprise IT, transforming IT teams with AI ops, and the value of integrated end-to-end single vendor story for security and troubleshooting.
Dec 18, 2023 • 58min
NB460: VMware Ditches Perpetual Licenses; GenAI Is Coming To Network Ops
Broadcom’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 »
Dec 11, 2023 • 37min
NB459: IBM Aims To Own The Quantum Realm; Amazon Hitches A Ride With SpaceX
IBM 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 »
Dec 4, 2023 • 58min
NB458: Broadcom Debuts On-Chip Neural Net, Lays Off VMware Staff; Okta Breach Gets Worse
Broadcom’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 »
Nov 27, 2023 • 53min
NB457: Broadcom, VMware Tie The Knot; Nvidia SuperNICs Target AI Ethernet Acceleration
Now 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 »
