NEWS
The Lone Sysadmin
- Out-of-Office Messages are a Security Risk February 3, 2019Every once in a while I get asked why I don’t have an out-of-office message for my email or voice mail. Truth is, I’ll often monitor my email even when I’m out, though I often practice good operations discipline by not responding. Just as intermittent problems with computer systems are hard to deal with, a […]Bob Plankers
- Free, Like a Puppy January 25, 2019I’ve found that things that are free of charge are often not a good deal. TANSTAAFL, or “There ain’t no such thing as a free lunch.” You’re always paying in some way. Maybe the piece of hardware is marked up more to cover the development cost of the “free” software that comes with it. Perhaps […]Bob Plankers
- Retrieve an SSL Certificate from a Server With OpenSSL November 26, 2018I was setting up VMware vRealize Automation’s Active Directory connections the other day and I needed the public SSL certificate for the AD DCs to authenticate correctly. You can use OpenSSL to get that information. I used a Linux shell but this should be do-able from a Mac or with OpenSSL installed on Windows, too. […]Bob Plankers
- What You Need to Know About Upgrading to an iPhone Xs or Xr November 21, 2018I just got a new iPhone Xs Max. I had an iPhone 6s which I liked a lot, but it’s been a few years and with more travel I thought I’d enjoy having a better device with me. There are a few things that bit me in the duff. Some two-factor authentication (2FA) apps like […]Bob Plankers
SysAdmin
- Simplifying Linux System Administration with Webmin July 25, 2024by George Whittaker Introduction Linux system administration encompasses managing the software and hardware of Linux systems, which can be complex, especially for those new to Linux or managing multiple systems. Fortunately, Webmin, a web-based interface, simplifies many of the routine tasks involved in maintaining a healthy Linux system. This article explores how Webmin can be […]George Whittaker
- Experts Attempt to Explain DevOps--and Almost Succeed August 7, 2019by Bryan Lunduke What is DevOps? How does it relate to other ideas and methodologies within software development? Linux Journal Deputy Editor and longtime software developer, Bryan Lunduke isn't entirely sure, so he asks some experts to help him better understand the DevOps phenomenon. The word DevOps confuses me. I'm not even sure confuses me […]Bryan Lunduke
- My Favorite Infrastructure August 7, 2019by Kyle Rankin Take a tour through the best infrastructure I ever built with stops in architecture, disaster recovery, configuration management, orchestration and security. Working at a startup has many pros and cons, but one of the main benefits over a traditional established company is that a startup often gives you an opportunity to build […]Kyle Rankin
- Bare-Bones Monitoring with Monit and RRDtool March 21, 2019by Andy Carlson How to provide robust monitoring to low-end systems. When running a critical system, it's necessary to know what resources the system is consuming, to be alerted when resource utilization reaches a specific level and to trend long-term performance. Zabbix and Nagios are two large-scale solutions that monitor, alert and trend system performance, […]Andy Carlson
4sysops
- Windows Admin Center version 2511: high availability deployments, VM conversion tool, NetApp Shift Toolkit, security improvments December 12, 2025Microsoft released Windows Admin Center version 2511 on December 11, 2025, restoring support for high availability deployments and delivering broad updates across deployment, virtualization, and security. The release enhances core management workflows, introduces a new VM conversion tool alongside the NetApp Shift Toolkit for cross-hypervisor migrations, and brings notable security improvements together with expanded international […]IT Experts
- Microsoft Intune December updates: Workflow automation, macOS, iOS, Android enhancements December 12, 2025Microsoft released significant updates to Intune in December 2025, focusing on workflow automation, cross-platform enhancements, and improved security controls. The updates introduce a centralized admin task view, enhanced Android privacy controls, and customizable iOS enrollment experiences. SourceIT Experts
- Microsoft Entra PowerShell v1.1.0 removes Graph version pinning, adds device and service principal filtering December 11, 2025Microsoft Entra PowerShell is a module that lets administrators manage and automate Microsoft Entra ID resources—such as users, groups, applications, and policies—via PowerShell, built on and interoperable with the Microsoft Graph PowerShell SDK. Microsoft released version 1.1.0 of the Entra PowerShell module, introducing compatibility improvements and new filtering parameters for device and service principal management. […]IT Experts
- New Intune features for Microsoft 365 E3/E5 subscribers December 11, 2025Microsoft announced that advanced Intune Suite capabilities will be included in Microsoft 365 E3 and E5 subscriptions at no additional cost, expanding endpoint management and security features to more organizations. The changes take effect in 2026 and aim to help IT teams manage devices at scale while strengthening Zero Trust security. SourceIT Experts