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Securely Collecting rsyslog Data onto Synology over TCP with SSL Encryption (from a CentOS Server)
If you are managing other servers, and are not exporting those server logs somewhere else, then you really should consider doing so. I won't try to make the case for why in this blog post. You can do your own research (this might be a good place to start). Synology's...
Should you use a VPN? And other resources
A good friend of mine recently emailed me with the following question: I've been working out of coffee shops a good bit and I think it would be a good idea to use a VPN for a more secure connection. Can you point me to a good resource on how I can do that? As I was...
Why Your Internet Isn’t as Fast as You Think it Should be
In 2015, the FCC updated its definition for Broadband internet, increasing the minimum threshold to 25Mbps (megabits per second) for download speeds. Modern consumer-grade routers can handle even faster speeds, usually of up to 1Gbps (gigabit per second). But what do...
Why Your Website Needs TLS (SSL)
In a blog post from 2013, I wrote about some ways to secure your website. A lot has changed since then and today, having a secure website with a TLS connection should be standard. In this blog post, I briefly explain what TLS / SSL is, and why every website owner...
Fighting Spam: Block entire (T)TLD with Postfix
A Top-Level Domain (TLD) is at the highest level of the Domain Name System (DNS) structure. The domain .com is a TLD. So is .org, .net, and .biz. I've presented on DNS (and BIND) - you can click the link to view my PDF slides (and you can view a listing of all of my...
Computer Network Acronyms
There are lots of phrases and acronyms in the IT industry having to do with computer networks. What do they all mean? In this blog post, I write about a number of these terms, acronyms and phrases. LAN: “Local Area Network” Just like it sounds, the Local Area Network...
Troubleshooting Your Internet Connectivity
Anyone who uses internet on a regular basis has probably experienced an internet outage. Internet was working perfectly fine, and then an hour later when you come back into your office, it just simply does not work. The following are suggestions for troubleshooting...
Improving Your Website’s TTFB (Time To First Byte)
Last September, I blogged about some ways that you can make your website faster. Let's face it: The time it takes your website to load is critically important. If its too slow, you will lose visitors. In this blog post, I'm going to write about one aspect of page...
What to Look For in a Web Hosting Provider
There are thousands of web hosting companies. So how do you pick the right company to host your website, keep it online, and keep it secure? In this blog post, I'm going to talk about just 2 of the questions you should ask yourself. Does the provider offer an uptime...
Ransomware: What you Need to Know
Ransomware is a new breed of computer virus that is wrecking havoc on individuals and businesses alike. Once infected, ransomware will encrypt all of a user's documents and files and then demand a ransom from the victim using bitcoin or in other hard-to-trace digital...
Domain Name Registration Scams
We recently helped a client by moving her domain name registration and DNS onto Barred Owl Web infrastructure. Over the course of one of our phone conversations, she mentioned that she had paid a company - for two years in a row - that had sent her letters in the mail...
Monitoring Linux Systems with Nagios
17 February 2016 Nagios is extremely versatile, and can monitor just about anything. I first tasted Nagios when I worked as an Operations Intern for a Drupal services. In today's post, I'm going to share some of my accumulated knowledge in using Nagios to monitor the...