Resource Library

Last blog we looked at how we can use Trunk groups to ease the configuration of dial-peers and digit manipulation using analog FXO ports for an E911 solution. Now let’s take a look on how it can be used for T-1 CAS configurations and ISDN channel selection. The firs...

One aspect of Unified Communications is this concept of trunk groups.  I will discuss what they are, what benefit they can provide and how to configure them for Cisco gateways. First of all the official definition of a trunk group is “A group of trunks serving the s...

Dcdiag is an often overlooked tool that can discover problems in a domain controller’s configuration. If client computers can't locate a domain controller or if domain controllers can't replicate Active Directory, you can run tests with Dcdiag to look for a solution.

The triple constraints model has been one of the main staples for teaching project management for as long as I can remember. The model is generally represented by a triangle with Scope on the horizontal leg, Time on the left leg, Cost or Resources on the right leg an...

Explore how IT decision-makers’ training views have changed since we first released our annual IT Skills and Salary Report 12 years ago. Once viewed as an expense, IT leadership now sees professional development as an investment. Even with shrinking budgets and a recent rise in skills gaps, the value of training is currently at an all-time high.

It’s been about 10 years since public cloud offerings like AWS opened up the world of big data analytics. This post examines the top five most useful architectures used for big data stacks to learn the sweet spots of each.

VMware announced Horizon 7 in February and subsequently released the software updates. Horizon 7 provides a more streamlined, high-performance virtual desktop and application experience. New updates include features such as Instant Clones, Smart Policies, Blast Extreme and greater scalability with Cloud Pod Architecture. Let’s dig into the seven key features that Horizon 7 brings!

Dynamic Access Control (DAC) in Windows Server 2012 lets you manage access to documents in ways that go beyond classic NTFS (New Technology File System) permissions. For example, if you want to allow a set of users in an office across the country or across the globe read-only access to files relating to the Wind Turbine Project, DAC can do the job.

The Internet is not a safe place. We see that more than ever with the security breaches of businesses and individuals in the news on a daily basis. As Internet citizens, we need to take our protection into our own hands, as obviously most online services are not doing their best to protect us.

Many employees are not as well-versed in their company’s security policy as they should be. This may result in workers performing tasks that might seem innocent or benign on the surface, but which actually put the organization at risk of a security breach. Understanding what you are doing (as an employee) or what your users are doing (as a boss or manager), can help you work toward a viable resolution to these situations. In most cases, user behavior changes as well as implementation of new technological solutions can curb exposure to risk and increase security policy compliance.

Dell SonicWALL's CSSA (Certified SonicWALL Security Administrator) exam is an open book, online certification exam that certifies a student’s understanding of the SonicOS Unified Threat Management (UTM) operating system. The exam tests a student’s network security knowledge, and their ability to use the GUI menu structure for configuration of standard network security scenarios.

In many of today’s enterprise data warehouses and decision support teams, data scientists and data visualization specialists have reached near rock star status. This is in large part due to their ability to produce unique, clever and insightful perspectives with company information. These analytical gems often bypass obstacles to explain complex business data. This line of work is both an art and a science, and is generally most effective when the right blend of business intelligence tools are in place.

Global Knowledge subject matter experts predict the top trends for 2020 in IT training, Microsoft, Cisco, AWS, cybersecurity and more.

Managers are in dire need of cybersecurity professionals with specific skills. If you’re looking to advance your career, or transfer into the cyber field, now is the time to get certified.

If you’re looking to fortify your cloud expertise, there are a number of certifications to consider. We have compiled 10 cloud certifications that are sure to positively affect your career. 

As organizations look to do more with fewer resources and better leverage scarce knowledge across their entire organization, they have found that the traditional hierarchical management structure no longer meets the needs of the business. Enterprises have turned to the matrix organizational structure for increased flow of information across departments and greater flexibility and responsiveness.

Learn about the most important and surprising findings from the Global Knowledge 2017 IT Skills and Salary Report. Topics discussed include top salaries, skills gaps, workloads and certifications.

Technology trends such as these show no signs of abating, and IT administrators need to be prepared. Having a well-rounded and versatile team of IT practitioners is becoming increasingly necessary. In the following article, we examine five key skills that every IT department should have covered, regardless of the size of the company.

Discover the top 5 highest-paying and popular Cisco certifications from the IT Skills and Salary Report. Learn how to get certified and unlock IT career opportunities.

IT professionals benefit from gaining skills in data analysis, cybersecurity, cloud computing, virtualization and hyperconvergence, and mobile app development.

There are two basic types of addresses used in Local Area Networking (LAN): logical addresses and physical addresses. Understanding the differences between the two addresses begins with developing an understanding of the following terms.

General character attributes every IT pro should have and on the things that every IT pro should know or do.

You might already know what cloud computing is, and you might already be implementing it into your business, but are you able to have a conversation about it? The lingo surrounding this newer technology can be a bit, well, cloudy. Here are just some of the terms we keep hearing as cloud computing spreads from organization to organization.

These technology job roles are proven to be essential during a crisis as enterprises scramble to change strategies and meet goals. The skills demonstrated by IT professionals in these 10 positions can make the difference between business success and failure, especially during a recession.

System Administrators, or SysAdmins, are the “installation specialists,” “configuration specialists” and “fixers” in IT. If you’ve ever seen Pulp Fiction, SysAdmins are like Winston Wolfe — their job is to solve problems.

IT is a very fast changing industry – what is hot today may be a tiny niche market in only a few years and lesser known things may turn out to be huge trends. That having been said, there are many certifications that will be around for a long time. However, this does not imply that recertification and/or continuing education credits are not required to maintain certification. Predicting the future is always challenging, including in IT, but these certifications are good bets.

It doesn't take pure imagination to realize that when it comes to your career, inspiration may come from the least likely of places. It also doesn't seem possible that four decades ago "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory" hit the silver screen. Growing up, it was one of the few movies I always made sure to watch whenever it was on TV. I'm sure I wasn't alone.

Whether you are just getting started in business analysis or want to gain a better understanding of certain aspects of business analysis, we have compiled a list of frequently used terms to help you get started.

Ask yourself these four questions and you'll pick the best course for your needs.

I recently came across an opportunity to use a relatively new feature in Cisco Unified Communications Manager (CUCM). Suppose you are the telecom administrator at a community hospital. During business hours, the Facilities Department is staffed and team members simpl...

Digital transformation means different things to different people. One fact they all agree on is that the capability needed to manage this new paradigm will lead to new ways of working, new skills, new technology and embracing more collaborative ways of co-creating value. That challenge has been the driving force for the latest iteration of ITIL®.

Each year as the data from the Global Knowledge IT Skills and Salary Survey is put through the analysis process, certain trends become clearer. One of those is the prevalence of IT professionals who pursue certifications across multiple categories.

National Cybersecurity Awareness Month has grown into a global effort, with both individuals and organizations taking part — and for good reason.

One command that had a fairly long history first with the PIX Firewall and now the ASA is the shun command. In this post we’ll examine this command’s history, why it’s useful, and its new-found resurgence in threat detection implementation.

If you’re in IT, you’ve likely heard the saying, “In technology, the only thing constant is change itself,” and boy is that right! For technical companies, if you are not moving forward, then you’re falling behind. There is no such thing as standing still! A perfect example of this mindset is in Cisco’s evolution of video conferencing and telepresence.

Do you remember that teacher that made the most difficult concepts easy to understand? The one who amazed you with their complete understanding of the subject matter. We remember those teachers too and the concepts they imparted on us. We know that a good teacher can have a lifelong impact on their students. That’s why we employ only the best and brightest instructors at Global Knowledge.

Event management, although theoretically different, is fundamentally what most IT organizations refer to as “monitoring.” Monitoring an organization’s environment to determine whether important assets are in the state they should be, and knowing when that state changes, is a very important activity that many organizations spend significant portions of their budget doing.

In light of the recent tragic events in Haiti, it might be a good time to review some of the requirements for a well designed Uninterruptible Power Source (UPS) to be included in all of our critical network installations. As a CCNA, we are called upon to help maintai...

Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (IGRP) was a Cisco-proprietary Distance-Vector (D-V) classful routing protocol - basically an improved version of RIPv1. Like other D-V protocols, each IGRP router periodically flooded its routing table, but it differed from RIP in two ways. First, RIP’s advertisement interval was thirty seconds but IGRP’s was ninety seconds, which allowed IGRP to scale to larger networks than RIP. Second, RIP used a simple hop count metric, but IGRP’s more sophisticated metric was based on minimum path bandwidth and total path delay, with options to include link reliability and interface loading.

As with all technologies transforming the way organizations operate, it’s expected that roles will also evolve. Cloud computing already has and will continue to change traditional IT roles and functions for years to come. We'll begin our overview of the transformation of cloud job roles with a look at some of the top cloud computing roles and responsibilities for architects, engineers and developers.

During a recent ITIL foundation class, a student asked an interesting question. She wanted to know: “What is the difference between a project and a service?” To be honest, I haven’t spent much time thinking about this distinction. However, I think that those of us who practice ITIL consulting and training should have good answers to questions such as this. Here’s how I answered this question.

Enterprises, whether they are commercial, non-profit, or government entities, are operational organizations that operate through the execution of hundreds of processes. The quality of these processes affects every aspect of the enterprise and these processes are rarely static. Business Process Analysis (BPA) is the discipline of examining processes so that they may be changed to align with enterprise objectives.

In 2013, Cisco released their Software Defined Networking (SDN) solution for the data center known as Cisco Application Centric Infrastructure (ACI). For many years, the networking industry has been asking for an approach to configuring networking devices more efficiently than having to individually configure each and every router and switch.

Enterprise thinking, simply put, is the practice of considering the entire enterprise in decision-making, not just a given group or department. This style of thinking makes the organization both leaner and more agile—lean by reducing the waste and inefficiencies that come from blinkered and siloed thinking and agile by increasing everyone’s understanding of enterprise goals, vision, and functions.

Attackers use a method called scanning before they attack a network. Often attackers use automated tools such as network/host scanners and war dialers to locate systems and attempt to discover vulnerabilities.

Once an attacker gains access to the target system, the attacker can choose to use both the system and its resources and further use the system as a launch pad to scan and exploit other systems, or he can keep a low profile and continue exploiting the system.

An attacker needs to destroy evidence of his presence and activities for several reasons like being able to maintain access and evade detection (and the resulting punishment). Erasing evidence of a compromise is a requirement for any attacker who wants to remain obscure and evade trace back. This usually starts with erasing the contaminated logins and any possible error messages that may have been generated from the attack process.

Multi-factor authentication is a method of logon verification where at least two different factors of proof are required. There are generally three recognized types of authentication factors:

We spoke with Doug Cutting about his role with Cloudera and learned more about Big Data, training options for IT professionals interested in Big Data, and how Cloudera compares to Red Hat.

Mobile payment applications or systems have become commonplace with the expansive growth and popularity of smartphones and other mobile devices.

There’s a lot of pressure on IT decision-makers to fill the cybersecurity holes in their organization. The cyber skills shortage is palpable and growing. Cybersecurity is the most challenging IT hiring area in the world. Those of you expecting to hire your way out of your cyber skills gaps, we have some bad news for you—it’s not viable.

Many Enterprise companies use Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) as their Interior Gateway Protocol (IGP). OSPF relies on Link State Advertisements (LSAs) in order to advertise and learn subnets so whether it’s for CCNA or CCNP Enterprise or simply for a basic understanding of OSPF, it is important to understand the purpose of the various LSA types and how far the LSAs flood.

Explore the highest-paying Microsoft certifications and unlock lucrative IT career prospects. Discover how to get certified and boost your earning potential.

Yes, there’s big money in AWS Certification, which tends to outpace other cloud certification salaries, but there’s more to the cloud than dollars and cents.

Here are the top 12 major IT skills. In each case, you will read why they made the list and what those surveyed looked at to hire in that skill set.

With a constant demand for support, specialized skills and technology, IT professionals are under a good deal of pressure at work. And if they’re not compensated for it, they might just leave — causing disruption at the company, but also their own lives.

As IT departments struggle with skills gaps and businesses attempt to recovery economically from the COVID-19 pandemic, these 10 IT skills are essential to drive success. Job roles in these areas pay well, but decision-makers are struggling to find qualified candidates. If you’re looking to make an IT skills investment or start a new career path this year, these are the areas to consider.

Many experts agree that memory is the most important resource with regard to SQL Server performance. There are hundreds of performance counters, and therefore, it can be complex to figure out just what to monitor. Here are some suggestions in understanding whether memory pressure might be the performance problem with your SQL Server.

To help you stay ahead of the game, here are ten IT skills that are on the brink of extinction.

Telepresence is a set of technologies that allow video conferencing in such a way that the user feels as if they are actually at the remote site. Cisco sells a variety of platforms in the telepresence space supporting up to three 65” high definition video displays,...

We asked Global Knowledge’s tech enthusiasts for their ideal wish list items this year. Check out our list of the top 12 tech gifts of 2019.

If any of the following reminiscences ring true to you, have you moved beyond them? If not, it might be time to make some new discoveries.

Convenience remains an alluring course feature today, as students migrate from traditional classroom environments to digital learning.

This short example illustrates basic VLAN operation. Examining VLANs in a large-scale installation can show the full benefits of VLANs. Consider that this is a small portion of a large corporate headquarters with 5,000 devices connected in a 20 building campus.

Young adults unable to find work, employers unable to fill jobs, a recent GAO study that reported substantial declines in telecommunication expertise — there has been a lot of news about the pervasiveness of skills gaps, their causes, the actual impacts and what to do about them. It’s rather confusing, because the term “skills gaps” has been hijacked to politicize an extremely wide range of issues.

You may have noticed that it’s the dynamic routing protocols that get all the glory. Since I like rooting (routing?) for the underdog, let’s talk about static routes! As you may recall, a router has three methods for learning a route. A route can appear in the routi...

The 2023 VMware Partner Awards honor a select group of partners in the EMEA region who have demonstrated outstanding results and innovation with the use of VMware products and solutions.

Skillsoft Global Knowledge is excited to announce our recent triumph – we've been awarded the 2023 AWS Training Partner Award (AMER) for the second consecutive year. Additionally, we’re proud to have been finalists for the 2023 Global AWS Training Partner Award.

We are proud to announce that Skillsoft Global Knowledge is now a global Elite+ ISACA partner. We now have the ability to deliver a universal ISACA offering, no matter where you’re located, supported by of the most widely known Body of Knowledge organizations in information systems knowledge and practices.

Skillsoft is recognized as Cisco’s distinguished 2023 Global Learning Partner of the Year.

As many of you work on integrating Avaya Aura System and Session Manager into your networks, the case for troubleshooting will indeed occur. There are built in tests in the System Manager that allow you to run tests on 14 different areas, including Session Manager. But what do you do with the results when you get them? I am going to outline six of the most common problems and solutions when installing and implementing System and Session Manager and what steps you can take to troubleshoot and correct the problem.

Prepping for a Microsoft certification exam? Global Knowledge's own Tracy Wallace has you covered with these six tips for passing any Microsoft exam.

Certifications are the most common way in IT to prove you have the skills to solve various technical and business challenges. In this article, I'll address a range of skill sets. For each certification listed, I've included what the certification measures, the requirements to obtain it.

So you've decided to take one of the latest certification exams. Passing this one may just add to the alphabet soup of certifications that are already attached to your signature or maybe it's the first certification that you've ever acquired. In either case, you'll want to use every advantage available and you'll want to avoid any pitfalls. Although each exam is content specific, there are some overall guidelines that will help you pass any certification exam. I'll list six mistakes commonly made when approaching a new exam and how to avoid them. My hope is that some of these tips may give you the slight edge you need to convert a potential failure into a success.

Take charge of your Cisco network devices with Python programming As a network engineer, you might wonder why there’s any need for you to learn Python. After all, network automation is clearly where the industry is headed. And there are many tools that allow yo...

In a recent post, I gave an overall description of a service portfolio and the key components of a portfolio. Here, I will describe how a cloud services provider might implement an ITIL service portfolio. A cloud services provider will regularly have a set of services under development, a set of service in live operation, and a set of services that are retired.

As mentioned in last week’s post, interviews that require ITIL Intermediate level knowledge will most likely be targeted to specific process areas and activities. If I interviewed someone for a job that required ITIL Intermediate level knowledge, in addition to other questions about the specific technical responsibilities of the job, I might ask the following questions:

The demand for skilled business analysis (BA) professionals is on the rise, and a great way to declare your expertise is with a BA certification. But which BA certification is right for you: PMI-PBA, CBAP or CCBA? Here is a look at the eligibility requirements and steps for obtaining each.

Internet Protocol (IP) routing protocols have one primary goal: to fill the IP routing table with the current best routes it can find. The goal is simple, but the process and options can be complicated. Routing protocols define various ways that routers chat among th...