As long as packets flow from point A to point B, does it matter how they got to their destination? RIP, EIGRP, OSPF, BGP: they all “work.” In a recent episode of The Art of Network Engineering, Andy Lapteff 🛠️💬 sat down with Russ White, Ph.D. and Michael Bushong to talk about IS-IS, a routingContinue reading “Why Routing Protocol Choice Still Matters”
Author Archives: LMG dba AONE
Building the Right Network
Andy Lapteff 🛠️💬 and Kevin Myers were lucky enough to record an in-person AONE podcast episode recently while attending Tech Field Day NFD39. What started as a discussion about navigating relationships with networking vendors morphed into a masterclass on how to build the right network for the right reason, and why too many engineers stillContinue reading “Building the Right Network”
Cloudy Keynotes, Clear Context
Resiliency myths, public speaking wins, and why MCP matters for NetOps Public cloud is amazing. It’s also not magic. When US-East-1 hiccups, the internet feels it. And if you’ve ever spent a night on a data center floor or shipped a change at 2 a.m., you know outages are brutal; on-prem or in the cloud.Continue reading “Cloudy Keynotes, Clear Context”
Learn The Business
If you’ve worked in networking long enough, you’ve probably had this thought during a company all-hands: “This isn’t for me. Bunch of Kool Aid. Just let me get back to doing my job.” But that attitude WILL hurt your career. Not because leadership needs your applause, but because those meetings tell you what the businessContinue reading “Learn The Business”
Learning Out Loud
This week on The Art of Network Engineering podcast, Andy Lapteff 🛠️💬 sat down with friend and frequent instigator of “weird lab stuff,” Lexie Cooper. We covered space stuff, learning in public, why messy home labs are a feature (not a bug), and the pressure engineers feel to look perfect when the value is oftenContinue reading “Learning Out Loud”
Python Party II : Struggling, Labbing, and Learning
Learning Python as a network engineer isn’t easy. It’s frustrating. It’s humbling. And sometimes… It’s downright boring. But it’s also necessary. In this episode of The Art of Network Engineering, Jeff Clark and Andy Lapteff 🛠️💬 continued our “Python Party” experiment; a live, unfiltered journey through the basics of Python, as seen through the eyesContinue reading “Python Party II : Struggling, Labbing, and Learning”
Python Party Launch
If you’ve skimmed network engineer job postings lately, you’ve noticed the pattern: automation experience required. Not “nice to have.” Required. Employers expect fluency with APIs, version control, repeatable workflows, and the ability to turn tribal CLI knowledge into code that anyone on the team can run safely. That’s why we’re launching a new Python StudyContinue reading “Python Party Launch”
What is BGP?
TL;DR BGP wins in modern networks because it scales policy, not topology. Use communities to encode intent once and enforce it at the right boundaries; use iBGP with route reflection to distribute reachability cleanly; and reserve local-pref as your go-to knob for deterministic traffic engineering. For overlapping IPs (hello, mergers), communities plus a staged renumber/NATContinue reading “What is BGP?”
From COBOL to Cloud: Ethan Banks on the Evolution of Network Engineering
The evolution of network engineering has been a fascinating journey to witness, and few people have had a better vantage point than Ethan Banks, co-founder of Packet Pushers. In a recent episode of The Art of Network Engineering podcast, Ethan shared stories from his career that reveal just how much our industry has transformed, andContinue reading “From COBOL to Cloud: Ethan Banks on the Evolution of Network Engineering”
Behind the Scenes: How The Art of Network Engineering Podcast is Made
Ever listen to a podcast and think, “They probably just hit record and start talking”? Not quite. Creating a successful tech podcast, especially one that’s run for over 170 episodes, requires way more planning, collaboration, and creative problem-solving than most people realize. In this behind-the-scenes look at The Art of Network Engineering, we’re sharing howContinue reading “Behind the Scenes: How The Art of Network Engineering Podcast is Made”
Productivity Tools for Network Engineers: What’s in Your Toolbox?
In the world of network engineering, staying organized isn’t just helpful, it’s essential. Between managing complex projects, documenting troubleshooting steps, and constantly learning new technologies, engineers juggle more digital clutter than ever. That’s why, in our latest episode of The Art of Network Engineering, Andy Lapteff 🛠️💬 and Jeff Clark crack open their personal toolkitsContinue reading “Productivity Tools for Network Engineers: What’s in Your Toolbox?”
Floating Networks: The Engineering Behind Cruise Ship Communications
When most people picture a cruise ship, they imagine endless buffets, sun-soaked decks, and bustling entertainment venues, not a high-tech nerve center humming below deck. But behind the scenes, modern cruise ships are marvels of both hospitality and IT engineering. The technology infrastructure running a cruise ship is every bit as sophisticated as many land-basedContinue reading “Floating Networks: The Engineering Behind Cruise Ship Communications”
Network Engineering Isn’t Dead—It’s Evolving
The convergence of traditional network engineering and software development is reshaping the networking industry. This transformation was front and center in our latest The Art of Network Engineering podcast episode, where we spoke with Munachimso (Munachi/Muna) Nwaiwu, a Network Automation Engineer at Google, whose journey from Nigeria to one of the world’s biggest tech companiesContinue reading “Network Engineering Isn’t Dead—It’s Evolving”
Inside the Consulting Engineer Role
In the latest episode of The Art of Network Engineering, we pulled back the curtain on a role that many in the industry admire—but few truly understand: the Consulting Engineer (CE). Joined by Nokia’s Principal Consulting Engineer Colin Doyle and CE Jared Cordova, we explored the nuances of this unique position that blends deep technicalContinue reading “Inside the Consulting Engineer Role”
Bridging the Divide Between Developers and Network Engineers
In a recent episode of The Art of Network Engineering podcast, hosts Andy Lapteff and Jeff Clark welcomed Erika Dietrick—known online as “Erika the Dev”—to tackle a long-standing cultural and technical divide in IT: the disconnect between network engineers and software developers. Erika, a former Developer Advocate at Cisco with roots in both software developmentContinue reading “Bridging the Divide Between Developers and Network Engineers”
Fork Yeah! Git in Network Engineering
Git has revolutionized software development over the past two decades, but many network engineers still view it as a tool exclusively for developers. This mindset creates an artificial barrier between networking professionals and powerful tools that could dramatically improve their workflows and productivity. As we explored in our recent episode of The Art of NetworkContinue reading “Fork Yeah! Git in Network Engineering”
Firewall Fluency: What Networking Pros Need to Know
For much of our careers, many of us in network engineering have lived comfortably in the lower layers of the OSI model. Layer 2? We speak it fluently. Layer 3? That’s our bread and butter. But what about Layer 7—or even just understanding what’s happening at Layer 4 and beyond in today’s security landscape? TheContinue reading “Firewall Fluency: What Networking Pros Need to Know”
The Resistance to Network Automation: Understanding the Psychological and Practical Barriers
Network automation has long been heralded as the game-changer that would revolutionize networking. It promises easier management, fewer errors, and more time for strategic, high-value work. Yet, despite these clear advantages, adoption rates remain surprisingly low, with estimates hovering around just 20-30%. Why is this shift, which seems so inevitable, still met with such resistance?Continue reading “The Resistance to Network Automation: Understanding the Psychological and Practical Barriers”
Network Engineering 2.0: Adapting to Automation, AI, and Cloud
In our latest podcast episode, we listen in on the (PA)NUG podcast panel of William Collins, Andy Lapteff, Ned Bellavance, and Drew Conry-Murray, as they dive deep into the evolving world of network engineering, a field that has undergone transformative changes in recent years. With rapid advancements in technology, especially in cloud computing and automation,Continue reading “Network Engineering 2.0: Adapting to Automation, AI, and Cloud”
Meter: fast, reliable, and secure networks (Sponsored)
When setting out to build Meter, one thing was abundantly clear: the industry didn’t need another point solution. Instead, we wanted to build an incredibly performant, reliable, and secure networking solution, with zero upfront costs or licensing fees. This structure ensures our incentives are tightly aligned with our customers’ — because we’re taking on theContinue reading “Meter: fast, reliable, and secure networks (Sponsored)”
EVPN VXLAN, with author Aninda Chatterjee
The latest episode of the Art of Network Engineering podcast dives deep into the intricacies of using VXLAN and EVPN in modern networking. We’re joined by Aninda Chatterjee, a seasoned expert in the data center space who brings invaluable insights from his extensive experience at companies like Nokia, Cisco, and Juniper. The episode begins withContinue reading “EVPN VXLAN, with author Aninda Chatterjee”
