News aggregator
Dec 14 - Legacy IPSEC VPN servers will be turned off.
We have replaced this service with a new one.
The new service has a few differences.
It uses certificates for stronger security which must be imported. It uses a mutual group authentication setting. It allows for iPhone compatibility.
Please stop using the legacy IPSEC VPN and upgrade to the new service.
Many of our customers are using the SSL VPN https://vpn.ncsu.eduwhich requires no configuration on many operating systems.
If you have an Iphone or your operating system cannot load the SSL VPN please use the IPSEC VPN client linked below.
http://comtech.ncsu.edu/networking/vpn_instructions.php
Thank you Communications Technologies
Nov 30 - EAZ - Toxicology Building
Connectivity will be affected throughout the building.
Nov 24 - uni21map outage and re-cabling
To see if you are affected by this outage, go to:
https://sysnews.ncsu.edu/user-lookup/
and search for your information. Under the "Email Information" category, look for an "IMAP Server" listing -- if that server is uni21map, then you will be unable to access your email until this maintenance is completed.
For more information, please contact the NC State Help Desk at help@ncsu.edu or 515-HELP(4357).
uni21map outage and re-cabling
To see if you are affected by this outage, go to:
https://sysnews.ncsu.edu/user-lookup/
and search for your information. Under the "Email Information" category, look for an "IMAP Server" listing -- if that server is uni21map, then you will be unable to access your email until this maintenance is completed.
For more information, please contact the NC State Help Desk at help@ncsu.edu or 515-HELP(4357).
Phishing Attach Aimed At NCSU
As a reminder, the password on your account should be known only to you. OIT will never ask you to send your password to us via email, therefore any email like the one you may have received today should be considered suspect and you should not reply to it.
An excerpt of the text of the message is below:
This email is to inform all our staffs and students of North Carolina State University www.ncsu.edu that we are resetting our Bios TUP Data Base in a couple of days from now. You are required to send us your Email account details to enable us know if you are still making use of your email box and to avoid losing all your Data, Email and your Password.
Further be informed that we will be deleting all email account that is not functioning so as to create more space for new user. So you are to send us your email account details which are as follows:
User name:
Password:
Department:
Thanks
Warning Code: XiWWMNP North Carolina Message Center www.ncsu.edu
Winston Hall Switch Upgrade
Rolling outages expected only on devices on the switch being replaced.
Nov 23 - Winston Hall Switch Upgrade
Rolling outages expected only on devices on the switch being replaced.
ICA Proxy for iPhone
Citrix Delivery Center is a dynamic virtualization system that transforms applications and desktops into on-demand services that enable users to securely and productively work and play from anywhere.
Citrix Delivery Center, composed of XenDesktop, XenApp, XenServer and NetScaler, virtualizes servers, desktops and applications, centralizes them in the datacenter and broadcasts them as an on-demand service.
When combined with the Citrix Receiver for iPhone, Citrix Delivery Center enables users to open documents, update reports, approve expenses, join a webinar, and make use of so many applications - from your iPhone. It is safe, simple and high definition using Citrix HDX technology.
This solution was built using the components of Citrix Delivery Center - namely XenServer to host the Windows 2008 Server running XenApp, which then published the applications, such as Microsoft Office. The applications were proxied through a NetScaler AGEE with SSL encryption for the ICA Protocol, to the end user on the iPhone running Citrix Receiver.
Download the Deployment Guide here.
Citrix Receiver is available on the Apple iPhone App Store.
Tap into the power of AppExpert!
uni26map IMAP Mail Server Upgrade
Migration is finished. Defers have been removed from the mail relays for uni44map and mail is being delivered to users on uni44map.
--- FOLLOWUP POST: 2009-11-22 13:06:55 ---
Reconstructs have finished. Quota checks have begun.
--- FOLLOWUP POST: 2009-11-22 12:12:11 ---
All mailboxes have been transferred to uni44map. Data verification and mailbox reconstructs have started.
--- FOLLOWUP POST: 2009-11-22 08:40:49 ---
Approximately %78 of the data has been copied.
--- FOLLOWUP POST: 2009-11-22 00:08:20 ---
The migration of uni26map has begun. uni26map is closing for service at this time.
--- ORIGINAL POST: 2009-11-16 11:28:04 ---
On Sunday, November 22nd, OIT will be migrating users on the Cyrus IMAP server uni26map to new hardware on uni44map. During this migration (which is expected to last 16 hours while the 8,000+ user accounts are moved), users on this server will be unable to see their new or existing email. No mail will be lost, however, as the campus mail relays will retain the mail for delivery after the migration.
To see if you are affected by this outage, go to:
https://sysnews.ncsu.edu/user-lookup/
and search for your information. Under the "Email Information" category, look for an "IMAP Server" listing -- if that server is uni26map or uni44map, then you will be unable to access your email until this maintenance is completed.
Users on uni26map will also receive an individual message notifying them of this migration.
For more information, please contact the NC State Help Desk at help@ncsu.edu or 515-HELP(4357).
xvp - A Web Interface for XenServer
One of the most common requests from XenServer customers is for a web interface, so that they can manage their VMs from a browser. I'm pleased to say that I've found one!
It's called xvp, and has been developed by Colin Dean at Durham University in the UK. There are four components:
- xvpweb: A web front end for XenServer, running on Apache/PHP.
- xvpviewer: A Java applet for accessing XenServer consoles (used by xvpweb, of course).
- xvp: A server-side proxy for XenServer consoles, so that you can use ordinary VNC clients.
- xvpdiscover: A tool that queries a XenServer pool, and writes the appropriate configuration files for xvp and xvpweb.
The whole thing is open source (GPL v2). It uses libxenserver, XML-RPC for PHP, and parts of TightVNC.
It's been in development since May 2009, and is now on version 1.2.4.
Project home page: http://www.xvpsource.org/
xvpweb on Windows
Nov 22 - uni26map IMAP Mail Server Upgrade
Migration is finished. Defers have been removed from the mail relays for uni44map and mail is being delivered to users on uni44map.
--- FOLLOWUP POST: 2009-11-22 13:06:55 ---
Reconstructs have finished. Quota checks have begun.
--- FOLLOWUP POST: 2009-11-22 12:12:11 ---
All mailboxes have been transferred to uni44map. Data verification and mailbox reconstructs have started.
--- FOLLOWUP POST: 2009-11-22 08:40:49 ---
Approximately %78 of the data has been copied.
--- FOLLOWUP POST: 2009-11-22 00:08:20 ---
The migration of uni26map has begun. uni26map is closing for service at this time.
--- ORIGINAL POST: 2009-11-16 11:28:04 ---
On Sunday, November 22nd, OIT will be migrating users on the Cyrus IMAP server uni26map to new hardware on uni44map. During this migration (which is expected to last 16 hours while the 8,000+ user accounts are moved), users on this server will be unable to see their new or existing email. No mail will be lost, however, as the campus mail relays will retain the mail for delivery after the migration.
To see if you are affected by this outage, go to:
https://sysnews.ncsu.edu/user-lookup/
and search for your information. Under the "Email Information" category, look for an "IMAP Server" listing -- if that server is uni26map or uni44map, then you will be unable to access your email until this maintenance is completed.
Users on uni26map will also receive an individual message notifying them of this migration.
For more information, please contact the NC State Help Desk at help@ncsu.edu or 515-HELP(4357).
uni30map IMAP Mail Server Upgrade
Defers for uni50map have been removed from the mail relays. Migration is complete.
--- FOLLOWUP POST: 2009-11-21 11:10:41 ---
Reconstructs have finished. Quota checks have begun.
--- FOLLOWUP POST: 2009-11-21 10:49:50 ---
Data has finished copying from uni30map to uni50map. Data verification and reconstructs are running now.
--- FOLLOWUP POST: 2009-11-21 00:08:59 ---
The migration of uni30map has begun. uni30map is closing for service at this time.
--- ORIGINAL POST: 2009-11-16 11:22:50 ---
On Saturday, November 21th, OIT will be migrating users on the Cyrus IMAP server uni30map to new hardware on uni50map. During this migration (which is expected to last 16 hours while the 8,000+ user accounts are moved), users on this server will be unable to see their new or existing email. No mail will be lost, however, as the campus mail relays will retain the mail for delivery after the migration.
To see if you are affected by this outage, go to:
https://sysnews.ncsu.edu/user-lookup/
and search for your information. Under the "Email Information" category, look for an "IMAP Server" listing -- if that server is uni30map or uni50map, then you will be unable to access your email until this maintenance is completed.
Users on uni30map will also receive an individual message notifying them of this migration.
For more information, please contact the NC State Help Desk at help@ncsu.edu or 515-HELP(4357).
Nov 21 - uni30map IMAP Mail Server Upgrade
Defers for uni50map have been removed from the mail relays. Migration is complete.
--- FOLLOWUP POST: 2009-11-21 11:10:41 ---
Reconstructs have finished. Quota checks have begun.
--- FOLLOWUP POST: 2009-11-21 10:49:50 ---
Data has finished copying from uni30map to uni50map. Data verification and reconstructs are running now.
--- FOLLOWUP POST: 2009-11-21 00:08:59 ---
The migration of uni30map has begun. uni30map is closing for service at this time.
--- ORIGINAL POST: 2009-11-16 11:22:50 ---
On Saturday, November 21th, OIT will be migrating users on the Cyrus IMAP server uni30map to new hardware on uni50map. During this migration (which is expected to last 16 hours while the 8,000+ user accounts are moved), users on this server will be unable to see their new or existing email. No mail will be lost, however, as the campus mail relays will retain the mail for delivery after the migration.
To see if you are affected by this outage, go to:
https://sysnews.ncsu.edu/user-lookup/
and search for your information. Under the "Email Information" category, look for an "IMAP Server" listing -- if that server is uni30map or uni50map, then you will be unable to access your email until this maintenance is completed.
Users on uni30map will also receive an individual message notifying them of this migration.
For more information, please contact the NC State Help Desk at help@ncsu.edu or 515-HELP(4357).
Web Citrix and Citrix database work on 11/20/2009
Citrix Maintenance is now complete.
--- ORIGINAL POST: 2009-11-20 03:00:07 ---
We will be doing all current MS Updates to Web Citrix (acsfuse.ncsu.edu). This will disconnect the enduser until it is completed. We will be doing all current MS Updates to CFS1 and CFS2 nodes that support the CFS share. This can disconnect the enduser. However, if this happens they can reconnect and start a new session to continue their work. The maintenance will require a reboot of all servers involved.
Running with One Shoe
Running with One Shoe
Cloud technology isn't enough; we need to bring cloud economics as well to the enterprise
Last weekend was the first of three weekends on which an H1N1 flu shot day was held in Santa Clara, California. There was such an overwhelming demand for this shot that the net result was a massive shortage and long lines of residents eagerly awaiting shots for themselves and their children. So here I am spending my entire Sunday standing in a line that was literally a half-mile long. I got in around 9:00 a.m. and exited around 4:00 p.m. Some folks even arrived as early as 4:00 a.m. to grab a spot in line. It rivaled any Black Friday or Pearl Jam event.
On the first weekend, the County ran out of vaccine shots pretty quickly and had to turn away folks who had stood in line for quite a long time. On the second weekend, evolution kicked in - they allocated more vaccines, ensured a count of folks during the day, and issued tickets to manage the count. Once the count reached 5000 (the max capacity that day), they turned people away ahead of them actually spending time in line. Although this approach overall was an improvement, it didn't address the root cause of the problem - completely avoiding the six to seven hour wait is what we really needed.
This whole incident reminded me of how enterprise IT (and, in general, business) deals with capacity management, or the lack thereof. Inevitably, there are events, some predictable (the Christmas shopping season in online retail) and some unpredictable (catastrophic events being covered by media outlets), that cause spikes in demand. Traditionally, as we all know, enterprises have adopted the "give-room-to-grow" architecture, which I think could also easily have been called "let me pay for 70% of un-utilized resources." Obviously, the recent economic indigestion (mildly speaking) has changed all that.
Enter various dynamic capacity management techniques including virtualization, on-demand architectures, etc. All are driving towards improved utilization among other things. But the fact remains that one can never really predict demand. In fact, IT decision makers need to build in unpredictable demand into their business and technology model without the cost outlay.
So which business model has truly internalized this?
The cloud computing business model for one. A key component of the cloud model that one needs to realize is that seldom does a cloud provider build in upfront CAPEX. It doesn't matter if their technology can bend it like Beckham, the core underpinning of their balance sheet stems from the fact that when customers pay, they pay their vendors. When their customers scale, they grow and in turn the vendors grow. Period.
So why isn't something like this adopted for the enterprise?
First, DNA
o This is changing - no doubt the recent economic wakeup call has helped, but beyond that I believe CIOs, CFOs and their organizations are beginning to internalize that on-demand pricing is as critical as long-term support in the new decade.
Second, LEGACY
o Again, with the evolution of virtualization, and technology morphing to support an on-demand model, the footprint in enterprise IT is slowly but surely getting there. As an example, the number of deployments of Citrix XenApp that have been virtualized has increased more in 2009 than any prior year. In addition, desktop virtualization is forecasted to be one of the most widely-adopted technologies of 2010.
Third, ECONOMICS
o This is the hard problem, but also the most important to solve. Essentially, the core economic issue is not just how the technology is consumed (e.g., usage-based metering, etc.), but is dependent upon how the technology is procured, paid for and scaled up to align with business growth.
Getting the economics wrong, but the architecture right, is like running with one shoe - it's the worst of the options. So how does enterprise IT ensure it is wearing both shoes?
- First, internalize that enterprise datacenter capacity is now inherently as unpredictable as the online or cloud models.
- Second, drive for pay-for-utilization or, as we call it, "Pay-as-You-Grow" in the core design, choice and licensing of technology. Ensure that IT decision makers keep this in mind from the get-go.
- Finally, close the loop on iterating through the financial "grain" (i.e., whether you pay per month vs. per minute; whether you pay per GB vs. per IO throughput). The key is to retain the flexibility to change the scope of Pay-as-You-Grow pricing based on usage over the year.
So how does one manifest Pay-as-You-Grow in a product?
Take the example of networking. Traditionally, application delivery controllers were purchased using perpetual licensing based on throughput tiers and functional segmentation (e.g., buy an 8 Gbps appliance with caching and an application firewall for $85,000). What if your current scaling need is only 3 Gbps, but you believe that seasonal or unpredictable spikes can drive this to more than 5 Gbps? In the new world of cloud economics and Pay-as-You-Grow pricing, this translates to:
- giving customers the choice of going with a 3 Gbps model today, and the option to scale up to 8 Gbps on demand, as needed
- without forklift upgrades
- without service interruptions
- and, all of this is delivered with a simple license-key based activation procured via a self-service interface with back-end accounting that is automatically processed
That's cloud economics.
That's the other shoe.
Bottom line - based on conversations I have had with various cloud providers and enterprise IT leaders, I am a firm believer in the theory that technology delivered and consumed in the enterprise needs to natively support Pay-as-You-Grow pricing. This is the only way that enterprises will be able to align with the cloud model. It's no longer just about the technology architecture.
Running is a whole lot more fun with two shoes.
uni28map outage and re-cabling
uni28map has been re-cabled and was back in service at 4:16 PM.
Thanks for your patience!
--- ORIGINAL POST: 2009-11-20 03:00:07 ---
On Friday at 4:00 PM the Cyrus IMAP server uni28map will be re-cabled to a new fibre channel switch. The server must be powered off during this work and we expect an outage of no more than 30 minutes.
To see if you are affected by this outage, go to:
https://sysnews.ncsu.edu/user-lookup/
and search for your information. Under the "Email Information" category, look for an "IMAP Server" listing -- if that server is uni28map, then you will be unable to access your email until this maintenance is completed.
For more information, please contact the NC State Help Desk at help@ncsu.edu or 515-HELP(4357).
Engineering VMware host reboot
M+ Extranet
The M+ Extranet service is functional again.
--- ORIGINAL POST: 2009-11-20 15:01:52 ---
The M+ Extranet service is not functioning at this time. OIT staff have been notified, and more information will be posted as it becomes available.
EAZ - Toxicology Building
Connectivity will be affected throughout the building.
Aspen License server being upgraded
All work has been done and the license servers have been returned to normal service. If you have any problems please contact the ITECS helpdesk at eoshelp@ncsu.edu
--- ORIGINAL POST: 2009-11-20 03:00:07 ---
On Friday November 20th ITECS will be upgrading the Aspen license server to accommodate the new version of Aspen version 2006.5. During this time Aspen licenses will be unavailable for checkout.
The same server that host Aspen also host Moe so please expect service interruptions there as well.
