What a lot of simmering frogs we are…

A network operators’ mailing list I am on has just gone through yet another multi-day discussion of how to comply with Microsoft licensing. No-one understands it. I don’t think Microsoft itself understands it. What finally compelled me to write this rant was this quote from some Microsoft document or other: Continue reading

Trojans and ransoms and backups, oh my!

Data loss can be a business killer. There’s a simple test for how badly you need good backups: Imagine all your computers are irrecoverably gone. Just – gone. Did you shrug? Gulp? Or clutch your chest? If the last, you need good backups 🙂 Now let me tell you about ransomware, trojans and backups… Continue reading

Adding a default route to a TP-Link TD-8817 ADSL router/modem

Once upon a time l was trying to talk to my TP-Link TD-8817 ADSL router/modem. I couldn’t, but I worked out that the reason I couldn’t was because the poor thing lacked a default route. The full story is here, but this blog entry is about how I added the necessary default route. You wouldn’t think that would be a big deaI, but it turns out that adding specifically a default route to one of these units is surprisingly tricky. Continue reading

Mikrotik plus phone dongle = instant hotspot

I attended the Sapphire Coast StartUp Camp this weekend. At one point in the leadup to it, it seemed the venue would have no Internet access, so I suggested setting up a MikroTik router with a GSM phone dongle to provide wifii/LAN and Internet connectivity. In the end an alternative was found, but just for the exercise, our team at the camp used my new hotspot, and it worked really well.

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