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Amazon’s “Sidewalk” Mesh Network Goes Live; All Devices Are Opted-In Automatically By Default
Amazon’s neighborhood mesh network dubbed “Sidewalk” has gone live. Via the New York Times: On June 8, Amazon is set to flip the switch on its new free service called Sidewalk, which will automatically be enabled on many of Amazon’s Echo smart speakers and smart displays, as well as some Ring devices (for more details, see the complete list of compatible devices). Once Sidewalk goes live, compatible devices such as speakers, light bulbs, locks, and sensors will be able to connect anonymously to other Sidewalk devices to borrow a little slice of internet connectivity. That should enable some interesting features down the line as more compatible devices appear. It’s also creating a fair amount of…
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Network Monitoring–Advanced IP Networking–NETWORKING, SECURITY, & MORE ESSENTIALS—CompTIA Network+ (N10-007) NETWORK-PLUS Certification Prep Course Notes
Network Monitoring SNMP (Simple Network Management Protocol) SNMP uses (listens on) UDP port 161 or port 10161 when using TLS. SNMP–managed devices run an agent that talks with a N.M.S. (Network Management Station) (Note: A NMS can run on a virtual machine.) N.M.S. (Network Management Station) SNMPv1 is unencrypted, SNMPv2 added basic encryption, SNMPv3 added TLS encryption. (It’s ok if there are different versions on the same setup.) SNMP allows us to administer & manage network devices from a single source. SNMP Manager is the device that “talks with” SNMP devices. The SNMP Manager (usually a computer) runs the NMS (the interface that talks with the managed devices). The NMS…
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Managing The Network–Advanced IP Networking–NETWORKING, SECURITY, & MORE ESSENTIALS—CompTIA Network+ (N10-007) NETWORK-PLUS Certification Prep Course Notes
Managing The Network Managing Risk What is Risk Management? Security policies are documents with broad overview statements. Security controls provide more details. Procedures discuss specific implementation of policies. Security Policies Security Policies document to users how to access system resources and what is allowable and acceptable. Safety policies apply to the IT department, too! NDA’s, software licensing, & data restrictions need to be considered to protect an organization. A.U.P. (Acceptable Use Policy) What can people do with company equipment?? defines ownership; web-site access; access times; R.A.P. (Remote Access Policy) VPN usage; Authentication rules; Password Policy Complexity; Lockout IT Safety Policy Lifting equipment; Equipment handling; Spills; Procedures; License Restrictions Usage; Transfer;…
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Building a Real-World Network–Advanced IP Networking–NETWORKING, SECURITY, & MORE ESSENTIALS—CompTIA Network+ (N10-007) NETWORK-PLUS Certification Prep Course Notes
Building a Real-World Network Network Types Know the differences between all the “area network” acronyms. Geographical: LAN, WAN, CAN, MAN, Internet; Wireless: WLAN, PAN; Network Design Network design starts with assessing customer needs. Design considerations include documentation, compatibility with existing hardware & software. Bring in security early & make sure to assess external connectivity. Assess current networking infrastructure. Analyze existing network documentation. Assess wireless needs. Power Management UPS–Uninterruptible Power Supply A UPS is a battery back-up & should be used for short-term power loss. Power generators can be diesel or gas, and are used to maintain power for when electric power is not available. Dual power supplies and redundant circuitry…
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Mobile Networking–Advanced IP Networking–NETWORKING, SECURITY, & MORE ESSENTIALS—CompTIA Network+ (N10-007) NETWORK-PLUS Certification Prep Course Notes
Mobile Networking Cellular Technologies Mobile communication can use cellular towers which have a range of over 17 miles. Cellular WAN has developed several standards to handle data traffic. Mobile protocols include: HSPA–3G, HSPA+–4G, and LTE. WiMax–extension of Wi-Fi networks; uses the 802.16 standard for more range than the 802.11 standard. HSPA (High Speed Packet Access)–single Mbps range 3G technology. HSPA+–multiple Mbps range; considered a 4g technology. LTE–ten’s of Mbps range; 4G technology. Tethering–using the cell phones signal to get other devices online. Can be wired or wireless (hotspot). Mobile Connectivity ANT/ANT+ are used for health applicances (e.g.-monitoring; workout equipment; heart-rate monitors; watches), run in 2.4GHz band, range is 20-30 meters,…
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Virtualization & Cloud Computing–Advanced IP Networking–NETWORKING, SECURITY, & MORE ESSENTIALS—CompTIA Network+ (N10-007) NETWORK-PLUS Certification Prep Course Notes
Virtualization & Cloud Computing Virtualization Basics Don’t confuse virtualization with emulation! Emulation uses software to imitate hardware. Virtualization uses a system’s actual hardware! Recognize the benefits of virtualization. There are two types of hypervisors: Type 1 (bare metal) Type 2 (hosted) Virtualization doesn’t pretend to be anything that it’s not! (Remember, virtualization uses a system’s actual hardware!) Virtualization saves power; & it consolidates hardware; & it makes system recovery easy, & it’s handy for IT research! Hypervisor–V.M.M. (Virtual Machine Monitory) the thing that manages & runs the Virtual Machine for us! Type 2 Hypervisor–runs on top of the host OS. Type 1 Hypervisor–runs directly on top of hardware, independent of…
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Wireless, Virtual, Cloud, & Mobile Networking–Advanced IP Networking–NETWORKING, SECURITY, & MORE ESSENTIALS—CompTIA Network+ (N10-007) NETWORK-PLUS Certification Prep Course Notes
Wireless, Virtual, Cloud, & Mobile Networking Wireless Networking (Note:Ad-hoc networks are Wi-Fi networks comprised only of peer computers.) Intro To 802.11–uses radio waves to transmit info between nodes. A WAP (Wireless Access Point) is a bridging device that connects into an Ethernet network & communicates via radio waves to wireless clients. A WAP has a SSID (Service Set Identifier), a word or phrase used to connect wireless devices to the WAP device. CSMA/CA (Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Avoidance) is the method used to prevent wireless collisions. Almost all devices & gadgets today have wireless NICs built-in to them! 802.11 Standards Early wireless standards were 802.11b (2.4-GHz) and 802.11a…
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IPv6–Advanced IP Networking–NETWORKING, SECURITY, & MORE ESSENTIALS—CompTIA Network+ (N10-007) NETWORK-PLUS Certification Prep Course Notes
IPv6 Intro To IPv6 IPv6 are 128-bits, have a MUCH larger address space than IPv4. IPv6 addresses have 8 segments separated by 7 colons. IPv6 allows data to move much faster through the internet. NDP (Neighbor Discovery Protocol) IPv6 Addressing IPv6 addresses can be shortened by removing leading zeros, but be familiar with the rules. IPv6 addresses have 2 IP addresses: a link-local address & an Internet address. The 2nd part of the IPv6 address using EUI-64 is generated from the MAC address. Link-local address is automatically generated; Internet address is provided by local router. Link-local address starts fe80:0000:0000:0000 (1st four sets) Smallest IPv6 address you can have will be…
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The Essentials of Networking–NETWORKING, SECURITY, & MORE ESSENTIALS—CompTIA A+ (220-1001) A-PLUS Certification Prep Course Notes
The Essentials of Networking Network Card Troubleshooting Use Device Manager –> NIC properties for information/configuration. Change duplex and wake-on LAN settings there Link lights show connectivity, activity, and (sometimes) speed. Full-Duplex–the NIC is talking & listening at the same time. Half-Duplex– Wake-on LAN–wakes up a computer from sleeping if certain information comes in (a so-called ‘magic packet’). Working With Connections–NETSTAT The ‘netstat’ command shows important information about connections. Use netstat switches ‘-n’ and ‘-a’ as needed. Consider a 3rd-party tool, such as TCPView as an alternative to netstat. TCPView is from SysInternals website. Netstat–shows statistics for different connections (usually TCP/UDP) ex: Windows folder sharing–(Port 445) TCPView is a ‘3rd-party’ tool…
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Wireless Networking—NETWORKING ESSENTIALS—CompTIA A+ (220-1001) A-PLUS Certification Prep Course Notes
Wireless Networking Wireless Network Hardware A wireless access point (WAP) bridges 802.11 and Ethernet networks Wireless clients connect to WAPs 802.11 works in one of two modes: infrastructure mode, or ad hoc mode Use correct antenna for the job In many of today’s laptops the antenna is built into the laptops monitor itself. (SSID)-Service Set Identifier (SSID) Wi-Fi Standards 802.11 uses the 2.4- and 5-GHz ISM band 802.11 uses remade channels Memorize the band usage and relative speeds of the 802.11 extensions. (ISM) Industrial, Scientific, and Medical Radios Bands 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz Band Band is a range of radio frequencies 2.4 GHz Band: 2.412-2.4884 GHz Uses different “channels”…