SSIS is a pretty useful tool for designing ETL processes. One of the transformations I was disappointed with in 2005 was the lookup. I found it a little better than the lookup functionality in DTS, but not too much better. Well, Microsoft must have read my mind because SQL Server 2008 has a new shiny Lookup transformation that is, in my opinion, much improved. In 2005, the lookup had cache options, but they were really heavy handed. And you could deal with a lookup not finding a match by using the error output, but then how would you know the difference between a non-match and a real error? Let's start with the cache. There are now three cache options and two choices for your cache source. 
- Full Cache - This will load the entire reference dataset into memory before the first lookup is performed. This can be very efficient for small tables, but think what would happen if your lookup table was a few GB in size….that's a lot to load into cache.
- Partial Cache - This is probably what most people think of when they conceptualize lookup cache in their head. At first, the cache is empty and each time a row matches or doesn't match for that matter, the row, or the fact that the lookup didn't find a row, is cached. Subsequent rows with the same lookup fields will find their data, or lack thereof, in cache.
- No Cache - The lookup will generate the reference dataset each time the transformation runs.
As for data sources for your cache, you can still go to the database, but now you can also set up your own custom cache connection. This gives you the ability to build your cache in a separate step and then reference it with your lookup. This is a little involved so I won't go into more detail here, but keep your eyes open for another blog entry... ;) Furthermore, if you use the partial cache, you can manage your cache size on the Advanced page of the Lookup's properties. So I like the changes to caching, but I like the output options even more. You can now specify that rows with no match be redirected to their own output, or be ignored all together. This now gives you three outputs to work with; one for a match, one for no match, and another for errors. I put together a small sample package and added a screen shot below, you can see that I am using all three outputs. In this case, when an e-mail address is not found in the lookup, I use a derived column to put "NA" into the email address column before I load. I then union this data with the rows that found a match and do an insert into my destination table. In the end, this new lookup is much cleaner and easier to use than its 2005 predecessor. Plus the addition of the Cache Connection Manager is a big win…..more on that coming soon. 
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We are back with another episode of the podcast for IT pros at CStechcast.com. This week the topic is open source infrastructure and how it applies in the enterprise with Frank Wiles of Revolution Systems. Find more information on Frank and his company at revsys.com. In the news, Microsoft announces pricing for Windows 7, Intel puts out updated compilers, bad hiring is losing money, and Bing still can't compete with Google. MySpace takes the social out of their business with their treatment of layed-off employees making "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at how you can bridge into the cloud from traditional applications, and get guidance on which Windows Perfmon counters to use when troubleshooting memory problems with "The Weekly Tech Tip". This week's episode is sponsored by: Consortio Services, a quality partner that can help you manage your IT. Links to stories and sites discussed in the show: Microsoft Windows 7 Push Includes Price Cuts, Additional Vista Upgrades (eWeek)
Intel Ships New Compilers (eWeek)
Businesses Losing Money on Bad Hiring Practices, Survey Finds (eWeek)
Microsoft Bing Beats Google But Users Stay Loyal to Google (eWeek) Adding Insult To Injury: MySpace Botches Layoffs (TechCrunch)
Keep coming back every week as we bring on leaders in IT and people in the trenches who know how to get things done. Contact us by using the feedback for at cstechcast.com, track us down on Twitter at twitter.com/cstechcast, friend us on Friendfeed at friendfeed.com/cstechcast, or hit the CS Techcast fan page on Facebook. If you like the show, please subscribe and help keep us going. Thanks. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=80
- Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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I had the pleasure of writing the latest in The Essential Series for Realtime Publishing, a free set of publications for IT professionals and executives. This allowed me to speak to the system administrator that is facing the challenge of new technologies putting strain on old backup solutions. How can you adapt and address the needs of virtualized servers putting backup jobs into overtime? What about the new requirements for encryption on sensitive data? How can data deduplication help conserve backup resources and even green your data center? Read the paper to find out. Link to The Essential Series, New Techniques for Creating Better Backups: http://nexus.realtimepublishers.com/esntcbb.php# 
Synopsis The world of backups is an essential piece of an IT infrastructure. With new technologies coming online and new issues around data security, the question becomes whether your backups are keeping up. Virtualization presents new challenges to the old agent based network backup, data breaches force you to take a second look at security, and the sheer volume of data puts backup solutions at their breaking points. The Essentials Series: New Techniques for Creating Better Backups takes a fresh look at backup technologies that address these challenges of virtualized servers, options and management of backup encryption, and the benefits of data deduplication for efficient use of backup resources. Article 1: How Virtualization Changes the Standard Approach to Backups Virtualization is the technology that brings consolidation, but that is exactly why existing backup techniques can run into trouble. Learn the various methods for successful backup of a virtualized server environment and understand why one size does not fit all. Article 2: Avoid Making Headlines by Securing Your Backups Very public announcements of lost backups that cause breaches of personal data have put IT departments into panic mode. Don't be the next company on the news for lost data. Find out what options for encryption are available and how to implement the technology successfully. Article 3: Reducing Backups with Data Deduplication Data storage keeps growing at an exponential rate. With that comes longer backup times and the expense of running expensive tape libraries. Reign in cost and need for resources by utilizing data deduplication to find the redundancy in the vast amount of data being stored. Get familiar with the options and the way it makes you change the way you think about the backup window. Link to the paper: http://nexus.realtimepublishers.com/esntcbb.php# - Eric Beehler (http://consortioservices.com/blog)
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Welcome to the podcast for IT pros at CStechcast.com. This week we are with Robert Scoble, Rob La Gesse, and Rocky Barbanica of Rackspace at the launch of Building43 to discover why business needs to pay attention to The 2010 Web and how IT professionals need to approach the cloud. Find more information at http://building43.com. In the news; Microsoft gets set to launch a free anti-virus program, Symbian unveils it's developer site to the public for it's open source phone OS, Juniper Networks shows off a 100GB Ethernet adapter, and many admit in a new survey to abusing privileged accounts to gain access to private information. AT&T's lack of support for the new iPhone 3Gs features and the charges for upgrades to loyal Apple fans gets "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we riff on the interview and talk about getting started with the cloud for small and medium business in "A Closer Look", and "The Weekly Tech Tip" covers multi-server queries and the Object Explorer in SQL Server 2008. This episode is sponsored by: Consortio Services (http://consortioservices.com) Links to stories and sites discussed in the show:
Microsoft's Free Anti-virus Software 'Morro' Coming Soon (eWeek)
Symbian Foundation Launches Developer Site Beta (eWeek)
Juniper Unveils 100G Ethernet Adapter (eWeek)
IT Staff Increasingly Spying on Colleagues, Report Says (eWeek)
AT&T Tight-Lipped on iPhone 3GS's Lack of MMS and Tethering (PC World)
Apple iPhone Users Cry Foul Over AT&T Upgrade Policy (InformationWeek)
Building43 (Rackspace) IT was great to have such leaders in the cloud and social media space on our show. Keep coming back every week as we bring on leaders in IT and people in the trenches who know how to get things done. Contact us by using the feedback for at cstechcast.com, track us down on Twitter at twitter.com/cstechcast, friend us on Friendfeed at friendfeed.com/cstechcast, or hit the CS Techcast fan page on Facebook. If you like the show, please subscribe and help keep us going. Thanks. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=79
- Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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Just found a little something new in SSIS 2008, The Integration Services Connections Project Wizard. This thing starts up when you first begin a new SSIS project. The whole point is to walk you though your initial connection configurations. Once the connections are set up, it even asks you if each is a source, destination, or both and then it creates your first Data Flow task complete with the correct sources and destinations. This probably isn't all that useful to someone that has spent any measurable amount of time with SSIS, but for new comers I think its great. I remember the first time I opened SSIS, it took me a minute to figure out how to get a connection , a source, and a destination all set up. Granted I tend not to read documentation, so I am probably a special case. In any event, if this pops up in your face the next time you start a project. Have a look, it’s a neat little addition. 
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CSTechcast.com has the podcast for IT pros. This week we talk with about the future of the Windows Server platform on VMWare and how to get a virtualized infrastructure right with Darren Duke, founder of Simplified Technology Solutions. Find more on Darren and his company at http://simplified-tech.com/ and the blog http://blog.darrenduke.net/. In the news; Bing sees some success overtaking the number 2 search spot, IBM challenges Microsoft over a website claiming love of Windows from Websphere, HP goes after those loyal to their mainframes, Verizon brings its own computing as a service offering, and Windows 7 gets a release date. Hulu's thought that they can play for pay gets "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at why small and medium business should consider monitoring and automation, and slow IE8 tabs may not be the fault of the browser; find out how to investigate with "The Weekly Tech Tip". Links to stories and sites discussed in the show: Microsoft's Bing Overtakes Yahoo for Now, Report Says (eWeek) IBM Declines Challenge, Asks Microsoft to Kill Anti-IBM Website (eWeek) websphereloveswindows.com (Microsoft.com) HP Makes Pitch to IBM Mainframe Users (eWeek)
Verizon Business Unveils 'Computing As A Service' (InformationWeek) Windows 7 To Ship Oct. 22, Microsoft Confirms (InformationWeek)
Soon, you'll have to pay for Hulu (DailyFinance) Give us feedback from the main site at http://cstechcast.com. You can also find us at Twitter.com/cstechcast, Friendfeed.com/cstechcast, and on Facebook. Spread the word, you are all we have. Thanks for supporting the show and keep coming back for more. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=78
- Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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The place for the IT professional's podcast, CSTechcast.com. This week, the effect of the economy on open source and how you could help your IT organization by going open. We get the answers and the approach from Ned Lilly, president and CEO of xTuples and an open source ERP guru. Find information on Ned at nedscape.com and his company at xtuple.com. In the news; the US Department of Interior admits a major security breach reporting 18% of computers missing, IBM announces new incentives to stay on old mainframes, Dell takes a big hit in revenues for the quarter, EMC buys up Configursoft, and Microsoft gets a new look and a new name: Bing! Newspapers planning to charge for online content race to the grave in "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", the hard to explain Google Wave gets "A Closer Look", and Terminal Server gets a quick security sweep in "The Weekly Tech Tip". Links to stories and sites discussed in the show:
Department of Interior Computers Missing, Report Finds (eWeek)
IBM Entices Sun, HP Customers onto Linux Mainframes (eWeek)
Dell Reports Drop in First-Quarter Revenue (eWeek)
EMC to acquire software maker Configuresoft (ComputerWorld)
http://www.bing.com/
Shhhh. Newspaper Publishers Are Quietly Holding a Very, Very Important Conclave Today. Will You Soon Be Paying for Online Content? (The Atlantic)
Google Wave Preview (Wave.google.com) Give us feedback from the main site at http://cstechcast.com. You can also find us at Twitter.com/cstechcast, Friendfeed.com/cstechcast, and on Facebook. Spread the word, you are all we have. Thanks for supporting the show and keep coming back for more. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=77
- Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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The podcast for IT professionals, and CIOs, is new every week at CSTechcast.com. This week we cover information technology in health care with Ron Lindsay of Emtec about what the future holds as health care enters an era of change. Find more information at http://emtecinc.com. In the news, all those still running Office 2000 have hit the end of the line for support, HP announces anther drop in revenue as well as more job cuts, Microsoft begins support of SQL Server clusters on virtual machines, Intel delays the release of it’s newest Itanium process until next year, and Microsoft is set to debut their updated "Kumo" search engine this week. Apple's refusal to admit it has a security problem gets "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at how business laptops are different, and we tell you how to access virtual hard drive files directly from Windows 7 without starting the virtual machine in "The Weekly Tech Tip". Links to stories and sites discussed in the show:
Office 2000 and Office Update Site to Retire (TechNet)
HP To Cut More Than 6,000 Jobs (InformationWeek)
Microsoft Changes Stance on Virtualized SQL Server Failover Clusters (eWeek)
Intel Again Delays 'Tukwila' Itanium Release (eWeek)
Microsoft to Unveil 'Kumo,' a New Search Engine (eWeek)
Apple Leaves Major Java Security Hole Open for Mac Users (eWeek) As usual, we are needy and want your attention, so give us feedback from the main site at http://cstechcast.com. You can also find us at Twitter.com/cstechcast, Friendfeed.com/cstechcast, and on Facebook. Please subscribe, get your friends to subscribe, and talk us up to your friends at dinner parties. Good karma will come your way. Thanks for listening. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=76
- Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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Welcome to the podcast for IT pros, available at CStechcast.com. This week, we talk about the realities of managing an IT organization from the top in this battered economy with Christopher Reichert, Executive Chair of the 6th Annual MIT Sloan CIO Symposium. Find additional information at mitcio.com. In the news; HP issues a major battery recall, a group of Sun shareholders try to block its sale to Oracle, a Google outage of some services raises questions about the cloud, new research reveals major malware on many web sites, and Microsoft announces support and tools for PHP on the Windows Azure cloud services platform. A best of "Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at new software coming from the Microsoft TechEd conference, and a little help to get a lock down on security for your Sharepoint servers in "The Weekly Tech Tip". Links to stories and sites discussed in the show:
HP Recalling 70,000 Laptop Batteries Due to Fire Concerns (eWeek)
HP Notebook PC Battery Pack Replacement Program (HP)
Sun Shareholders File Suit to Block Sale to Oracle (PC World)
Gmail, Google News 3.5-Hour Outage Blamed on System Error (eWeek)
New script outstrips all other drive-by download risks (The Register)
…And We Have A Winner! (Sophos Labs)
Microsoft Launches PHP Tools for Windows Azure (eWeek)
The 10 Biggest Tech Failures of the Past Decade (Time Magazine) Thanks for downloading and listening to CS Techcast. We say congratulations to Eric Johnson on his family's new arrival. Please send us your thoughts with the feedback form at cstechcast.com and on the social networks: Facebook fan page, at twitter.com/cstechcast, and at friendfeed.com/cstechcast. Tell your friends about CS Techcast and give us a review on iTunes if you're feeling generous. Remember to make sure you are subscribed to the podcast for IT pros! Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=75
- Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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Welcome to CStechcast.com, the podcast for IT professionals. ITIL is the standard for IT governance, but challenges of implementation and understanding still remain. We talk to Matthew Schvimmer, the head of products for IT Service Management and Project Portfolio Management at HP, to discuss what ITIL version 3 brings to the table, how it's not a magic bullet, and the work it takes to realize the benefits. For more information, go to hp.com. In the news, Polycom adds to the small business VoIP mix with a new PBX and wireless phones, Sun's StorageTek reports big sales of the high end 17 petabyte capable system, Oracle's Larry Ellison states that they will retail Sun's storage division, and Microsoft offers up Azure cloud computing solutions to government. Microsoft's rename of the very annoying Windows Genuine Advantage to Windows Activation Technologies is just lipstick on the pig of "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at the good and the bad of the Windows 7 release candidate, and "The Weekly Tech Tip" is for SQL Server admin with advice on getting that data fitting into your query results inside SQL Server Management Studio. Links to stories and sites discussed in the show:
Polycom Debuts Wireless Office in a Box (eWeek)
Sun Drives 'Amber Road' to Record Sales (eWeek)
Oracle Won't Divest Sun's Hardware Business (InformationWeek)
Microsoft Offers Cloud-Based Public Data Hosting With Azure (InformationWeek)
Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor Scans Your System for Win7 Compatibility (LifeHacker)
Competitors Grouse Over IE8 Default Setting in Windows 7 (PC World)
Windows 7 To Boost SSD Performance (TechNet Blogs)
Microsoft, Intel goof up Windows 7's "XP Mode" (ArsTechnica)
Microsoft outlines Windows 7 anti-piracy measures (PC Authority) Thanks for downloading and listening to CS Techcast. Please send us your thoughts with the feedback form at cstechcast.com and on the social networks: Facebook fan page, at twitter.com/cstechcast, and at friendfeed.com/cstechcast. Tell your friends about CS Techcast and give us a review on iTunes if you're feeling generous. Remember to make sure you are subscribed to the podcast for IT pros! Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=74
- Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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The Slowly Changing Dimension (SCD) transformations are pretty handy in SSIS packages. They let you compare a new set of data to an existing table and insert or update as needed. Alternatively, you can have them insert new rows and mark old rows as "Expired" instead of updating rows when a change occurs. This is great if you want to maintain history. Now these are meant for dimensions in a data warehouse, but you can use them against any table in your database. The reason for this post is to look at an issue that can occur with SCDs when you have duplicate data in your incoming data set. When an SCD analyzes a set of data it looks at each row and compares it to the destination. It decides whether the row will be inserted or updated (or inserted with the old row being marked inactive). Notice I said this comparison is with the incoming data and the destination. The SCD does check for duplicates that may exist in the incoming data. So if you have duplicates, that also happen to be new rows when compared to the destination, all the duplicate rows get "flagged" for insertion. You can probably guess what happens next. The first row gets inserted but the second and subsequent duplicates cause a Primary Key violation when they attempt to insert the now duplicate record. Now this might seem like a glitch to some, but this functionality is "by design ". The button line is that the data being inserted should be de-duplicated prior to being inserted into the destination. In a perfect world, the data would come from a source where it lived in a normalized, and therefore de-duplicated, state. If you don't have the luxury of living in a perfect world, you can build a manual data de-dup process or use a Sort transformation. One of the options of the Sort transformation is to "Remove Rows with Duplicate Sort Values". Just drop one of these in, check the box, and you have magically de-dup your values.
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CSTechcast.com, the source of the podcast for IT pros. This week we discuss the utter lack of visibility into virtualized infrastructure with Charles Thompson, product manager for Network Instruments, who discusses a new survey that shows 75% of organizations lack tools to monitor their virtual environments. Find The State of the Network Global Study at http://www.networkinstruments.com. In the news, Twitter gets hacked again giving us pause when envisioning private business use in a professional model, Seagate announces Replica to easily backup computers, Sun releases the latest update to Solaris the week after the Oracle takeover of Sun was announced, Windows 7 gets it’s Release Candidate released, and Office 2007 Service Pack 2 adds ODF edit and PDF save support. Minnesota's hops into the slippery slope with its requirement of ISP’s to filter gambling web sites to earn "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at the Kindle as a replacement for your tech library, and a quick way to get a desktop moved with all of user’s documents and settings is "The Weekly Tech Tip". Links to stories and sites discussed in the show:
Twitter Confirms Hacker Gained Access (eWeek)
New Seagate Desktop Drive Plugs in, Backs Up (eWeek)
Sun Updates Solaris 10 with Focus on Virtualization, Security (eWeek)
Microsoft Windows 7 Release Candidate Arrives for Some – Most Must Wait (eWeek)
Microsoft Releases Office 2007 SP2 (InformationWeek)
Minnesota asks ISPs to block gambling sites (USA Today) Send in any comments you have on the show through our feedback form at CStechcast.com or visit us on the social networks at the Facebook fan page, at twitter.com/cstechcast, and at friendfeed.com/cstechcast. Do us a favor a post a review on iTunes. Tell your friends to check it out. As always, thanks for subscribing to our podcast. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=73
- Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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Welcome to CStechcast.com, the podcast for IT pros. This week Erica Toelle, Sharepoint project implementation expert, gives us the scoop on Sharepoint project success. Find her insight at ericatoelle.com. In the news; the Sun-Oracle merger brings complications and an uncertain future for several Sun side solutions, uneven financial results mark the quarter for tech companies, Linux distro Ubuntu sees a major new release, and the RSA conference gets word of a major new botnet in force. IBM's attitude towards the Sun deal turns into a loss earning "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at sys admin tools for your iPhone, and Sharepoint admins get some help in "The Weekly Tech Tip". This show is sponsored by: Consortio Services, managed IT services and expert SQL assistance. Visit ConsortioServices.com. Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
Oracle to buy Sun in $7.4 billion deal (CNet)
Ubuntu 9.04, the Jaunty Jackalope, Sports Modest Software Improvements But Big Plans (eWeek)
EMC: 'We expect IT spending to improve' (CNet)
VMware's quarter: Services up, licenses down (CNet)
AMD reports loss, cautious on PC sales (CNet)
Security Vulnerabilities on Tap at RSA (eWeek)
IBM Talks Teeter as Sun Board Splits (Wall Street Journal)
Sun-Oracle FAQ: Did IBM make a big mistake? (ZDNet)
Send in any comments you have on the show through our feedback form at CStechcast.com or visit us on the social networks at the Facebook fan page, at twitter.com/cstechcast, and at friendfeed.com/cstechcast. Do us a favor a post a review on iTunes. Tell your friends to check it out. As always, thanks for subscribing to our podcast. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=72
- Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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CSTechcast.com, the home of the podcast for IT professionals released every week. This week we talk to Stephen Wynkoop, founder and editor of SSWUG.org, about virtualized conferences and how it can get your tech skills sharp. Find more info at www.vconferenceonline.com/upcoming.asp. In the news, more mess for Microsoft from the DOJ, Sun gets Nehalemized with new Intel Xeon processors and a network switch addition much like Cisco's new server solution, IBM aims to have 28-nanometer chip manufacturing next year, Intel dips its profits but sees a bottom, and Verizon Business Security reports security breaches of 285 million records last year and the problem is still most common from servers and applications. Twitter's spotlight on Entertainment Tonight gets "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at the new Exchange 2010 beta, and we give you some tools for your malware tool belt in "The Weekly Tech Tip".
Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
Feds Want Eyes On Microsoft For Another 18 Months (InformationWeek)
Sun Strikes Back At Cisco (InformationWeek)
IBM Alliance Looks To Top Intel With 28-Nm Chips (InformationWeek)
Intel Faces Roadblocks Despite Hope In PC Sales (InformationWeek)
More Data Breached In 2008 Than In Previous Four Years Combined (InformationWeek)
Oprah's on Twitter, Twitter's on Oprah, and Everyone's So Excited! (Gawker)
Send in any comments you have on the show through our feedback form at CStechcast.com or visit us on the social networks at the Facebook fan page, at twitter.com/cstechcast, and at friendfeed.com/cstechcast. Do us a favor a post a review on iTunes. Tell your friends to check it out. As always, thanks for subscribing to our podcast.
Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=71
- Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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CSTechcast.com is your source to get the podcast for IT professionals. This week we talk to Toby J. Velte, author of Green IT: Reduce Your Information System's Environmental Impact While Adding to the Bottom Line , about the hard facts you can use to get buy-in to green your data centers. Find more info at Velte.com. In the news, the Confiker worm continues it's appetite for destruction by charging you for fake anti-virus software, Microsoft says Happy Easter with a basket-full of new patches, Google gives up some detail on data center efficiencies they have developed, spies are apparently successfully hacking US infrastructure interests, and Sun wins a big contract from the US Health and Human Services to build open source apps for health care. The media's reporting of recent technology trends gets "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at our experience implementing open source solutions, and we give you some group policy goodness with Windows 7's AppLocker which you can use to control programs in "The Weekly Tech Tip". Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
Updated Conficker Ropes Victims into Rogue Anti-virus Scam (eWeek)
Microsoft warns of monster patch day next week (ComputerWorld)
Google Data Center Secrets Now Showing On YouTube (InformationWeek)
Google container data center tour (YouTube)
Electricity Grid in U.S. Penetrated By Spies (The Wall Street Journal)
Before Grid Hack Reports, NERC Advises Industry on Cyber Assets (eWeek)
Feds Tap Sun For Healthcare IT Despite Uncertain Future (InformationWeek) We send congratulations to Dana and her family on her new baby. Send in your good wishes or any comments you have on the show through our feedback form at CStechcast.com or visit us on the social networks at the Facebook fan page, at twitter.com/cstechcast, and at friendfeed.com/cstechcast. As always, thanks for subscribing to our podcast. Tell your friends to check it out. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=70
- Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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Welcome to the podcast for IT pros, available at CStechcast.com. This week we talk to Avinoam Nowogrodski, co-founder and CEO of Clarizen, about collaboration using SaaS applications and what benefit the SaaS platform serves a business over traditional internal applications. Find more information at clarizen.com. In the news, the Conficker worm comes in with a whimper on April 1st but is still considered a threat, all major server manufacturers get online with the latest Intel Nehalem-based Xeon processors, Intel keeps taking share away from AMD, IBM is getting closer to swallowing Sun, and Microsoft debuts Windows Server 2008 Foundation for small business. Mac fans who can't leave that Microsoft price commercial alone make "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at spear phishing, and a little application called PRTG Network Monitor helps you monitor and report on network devices, workstations, and servers in "The Weekly Tech Tip". Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
Is Conficker Finally History? (PC World)
Fresh Crop Of Intel Nehalem Servers On Way (InformationWeek)
Intel's Share Of Chip Market Rises, AMD's Falls (InformationWeek)
IBM-Sun Deal 'In Final Stages' (InformationWeek)
Microsoft Offers Server For Tiny Businesses (InformationWeek)
Microsoft's "I'm just not cool enough to be a Mac person" ad tries to kick Apple where it hurts (ZDNet)
Give me a break. Microsoft isn’t cheaper than Apple. Dell might be, but Microsoft isn’t! (Macgasm.net)
PRTG Network Monitor (Paessler.com) After we finished the recording of this week's episode, our lovely co-host Dana gave birth to her brand new baby boy Jaden. We send congratulations to her and her family and I hope you do too. Send in your good wishes or any comments on our feedback for at CStechcast.com or visit us on the social networks at the Facebook fan page, at twitter.com/cstechcast, and at friendfeed.com/cstechcast. As always, thanks for subscribing to our podcast. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=69
- Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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CStechcast.com brings you another podcast for IT pros. This week we talk about innovations in the server space and what to consider for the modern data center and cash strapped businesses with HP Vice-President of Industry Standard Servers, Paul Gottsegan. Find more info at hp.com. In the news, Conficker is ticking down to April 1st, HP releases an analysis tool for Adobe Flash code to look for security holes, Sun releases it's latest Virtual Desktop Infrastructure Software 3, and Red Hat beats Wall Street expectation giving good news to the tech economy and open source. Complexity on network equipment updates to protect against security holes gets "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at the need for standards in the cloud, and we show you some tricks to get Linux setup in Hyper-V in "The Weekly Tech Tip". Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
Conficker Worm Worries Exaggerated (InformationWeek)
Questions and Answers: Conficker and April 1st (F-Secure)
Malware probes find a China angle (CNet)
Sun Brings Storage Management To Desktop Virtualization (InformationWeek)
Red Hat Profit Beats Forecasts, Shares Rise (InformationWeek)
Linux on Hyper-V (TechNet) As always, thanks for subscribing to our podcast. Keep us going by spreading the word about CS Techcast and writing a review at your favorite podcast service, like in iTunes or at Podcastalley.com. As always, find us all week on the social networks at the Facebook fan page, at twitter.com/cstechcast, and at friendfeed.com/cstechcast. Please also send us feedback; link at CSTechcast.com. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=68
- Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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Once again, CSTechcast.com brings you another podcast for IT pros. This week we talk to Marc Borbas, Vice President at INETCO, about how the approach to measuring and monitoring real-time applications that often leave your sphere of control. Find more information at INETCO.com. In the news, Internet Explorer 8 is officially release and gets a cool reception, IBM is looking to swoop in on Sun with a takeover bid, the FTC looking into privacy concerns around Google cloud applications like Apps and GMail, EMC pushing bigger and faster solid state drive technology into the data center, and Microsoft aims to make it easier to find bugs in your code with Crash Analyzer. Quick hacks at a contest of the top 3 browser's security gets "The Worst tech Move of the Week", small and mid-size business security options gets "A Closer Look", and new features of DHCP server in Windows Server 2008 R2 and a new tool are covered in "The Weekly Tech Tip". Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
Explorer 8: Bugs, Crashes, Glitches, Oh My! (InformationWeek)
IBM-Sun Rivalry May Finally Reach An Accord (InformationWeek)
Feds To Shut Down Google Apps? (InformationWeek)
EMC Offers Larger-Capacity Flash Drives For Symmetrix Systems (InformationWeek)
Microsoft to Unveil Open-Source Security Analyzer for Application Developers (eWeek)
DHCP Server Events Tool (TechNet Blogs)
A grim day for browser security at hacker contest (The Register) As always, thanks for subscribing to our podcast. Keep us going by spreading the word about CS Techcast and writing a review at your favorite podcast service, like in iTunes or at Podcastalley.com. As always, find us all week on the social networks at the Facebook fan page, at twitter.com/cstechcast, and at friendfeed.com/cstechcast. Please also send us feedback; link at CSTechcast.com. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=67
- Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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Welcome to another podcast for IT pros always available at cstechcast.com. This week we talk about Platform as a Service and get the scoop on cloud computing trends for business with the CEO of LongJump, Pankaj Malviya. Find more information at longjump.com. In the news, Amazon launches their Reserved Instances service for EC2, open source is steadily gaining in IT shops, Linux gets a boast in use in server rooms and may be the future on the desktops of businesses, AT&T boosts capital spending and hiring, and the Confiker worm continues it's attack with a new variant and threat of massive DDoS attacks. Twitter's strange approach to it's own influence gets "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at new features and fixed bugs coming for the Windows 7 release candidate, and a story to keep you on the a logical troubleshooting path is "The Weekly Tech Tip". Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
Amazon Offers You Your Own Little Place In The Clouds (InformationWeek)
Linux Gaining Strength In Downturn (InformationWeek)
AT&T sets '09 budget cuts, to add some jobs (Reuters)
Latest Conficker worm gets nastier (CNet)
Microsoft Details New Changes to Windows 7 (PCMag)
Calacanis Offers $250K For Twitter Paid Inclusion (MediaPost)
Calacanis Discussion on Friendfeed (Friendfeed) Catch us on the Facebook fan page, at twitter.com/cstechcast, and at friendfeed.com/cstechcast being social. We also have a feedback form off the main page if you have anything you'd like to say. Plus, catch us when we're recording live at our UStream page CS Techcast – Behind The Scenes. Thanks for listening and make sure you're subscribed so you can catch us every week. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=66
- Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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Announcing another podcast for IT pros, straight from CSTechcast.com. This week we talk about what approach you should take to application testing and the tools to help you get there with HP Senior Director of Products Mark Sarbiewski. Find complete information at hp.com. In the news, IE8 will get a sort of on-off switch in Windows 7, new critical updates for Microsoft Patch Tuesday, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer is forced to defend Windows Mobile at the CIO Summit, virtualization and cloud service continue to gain acceptance in business, and the general economy continues to dive but IT consulting jobs are trending up. Tech companies sitting on cash instead of investing for the future get "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at alternative tech training, and understand network teaming in Hyper-V with "The Weekly Tech Tip". Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
Windows 7 Will Have IE 8 On-Off Switch (InformationWeek)
Microsoft Patch Day Won't Fix Excel Vulnerability (InformationWeek)
Microsoft CEO Gets Earful About iPhones In IT (InformationWeek)
Survey: Virtualization Takes Off, Cloud Computing on the Rise (eWeek)
Employment Situation Summary (Bureau of Labor Statistics)
Technology firms sitting on mountains of cash (MarketWatch) Catch us on the Facebook fan page, at twitter.com/cstechcast, and at friendfeed.com/cstechcast being social. We also have a feedback form off the main page if you have anything you'd like to say. Plus, catch us when we're recording live at our UStream page CS Techcast – Behind The Scenes. Thanks for listening and make sure you're subscribed so you can catch us every week. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=65 - Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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CSTechcast.com brings you the podcast for IT Pros; a "Top 10" according to CIO Insight. This week we talk hacking and vulnerabilities with Joel Scambray, CISSP, co-founder and CEO of Consciere, and co-author of Hacking Exposed . Find more info from Joel at http://webhackingexposed.com. This week, Microsoft stays steady on custom support pricing, HP earnings result in job cuts, Sun likes its encryption open source, IBM wants in on the broadband stimulus money, and Microsoft gets cozy with Red Hat with an interoperability pact. Facebook's ToS meltdown gets "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at some utility cloud options, and DHCP migration to Server 2008 is "The Weekly Tech Tip. Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
Microsoft Holds the Line on Custom Support Pricing (Redmond Channel Partner Online)
HP earnings dip nearly 10%, will cut salaries (CNet)
Sun Releases First Protocol for Encryption Key Interoperability (eWeek)
IBM Eyes Stimulus Funds for Broadband Project (eWeek)
Red Hat, Microsoft Sign Virtualization Interoperability Pact (eWeek) Catch us on the Facebook fan page, at twitter.com/cstechcast, and at friendfeed.com/cstechcast being social. We also have a feedback form off the main page if you have anything you'd like to say. Plus, catch us when we're recording live at our UStream page CS Techcast – Behind The Scenes. Thanks for listening and make sure you're subscribed so you can catch us every week. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=64 - Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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CSTechcast.com brings you the podcast for IT Pros; a "Top 10" according to CIO Insight. This week we talk with Jim Thor, network engineer for Wild Packets, about VoIP in the enterprise and how to identify the pitfalls and get a successful system in place. Find more on their solutions at WildPackets.com. In the news, IT sees a slight uptick in jobs, Ruby is becoming the programming language of choice for techies in emerging markets, not all is well at the Sun acquired MySQL with David Axmark and Michael Widenius resigning, IBM will be providing core IBM software such as DB2 and WebSphere from Amazon's Web Services cloud platform, and Microsoft puts a $250,000 bounty on the head of the Conficker Worm's author. A Canadian court's ruling that ISP logs are fair game for authorities gets "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at hiring a consultant versus hiring an employee, and we help you protect against the Conficker Worm in "The Weekly Tech Tip". Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
Some IT Jobs Defy Employment Downturn (InformationWeek)
Ruby Shines in Emerging Markets (eWeek)
MySQL Exits May Open Sun Customers To Other Databases (InformationWeek)
IBM To Deliver Software Via Amazon's Cloud (InformationWeek)
Microsoft Offers $250,000 Bounty For Worm Authors (InformationWeek)
Canadian judge: No warrant needed to see ISP logs (Ars Technica)
Virus alert about the Win32/Conficker.B worm (Microsoft.com) Catch us on the Facebook fan page, at twitter.com/cstechcast, and at friendfeed.com/cstechcast being social. We also have a feedback form off the main page if you have anything you'd like to say. Plus, catch us when we're recording live at our UStream page CS Techcast – Behind The Scenes. Thanks for listening and make sure you come back again. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=62 - Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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CSTechcast.com, where you can find the podcast for IT professionals. This week we have Chris Poelker, VP of Enterprise Solutions at FalconStor and author of “Storage Area Networks for Dummies ", to talk about data de-duplication as a solution for greening your data center. Find more on the topic at his blog http://blog.falconstor.com/ChrisPoelker/. In the news, the downturn in the global economy has NEC possibly pulling out of PC market in Europe, Africa, and the Middle East, Lenovo replaces their CEO after a bad quarter, Oracle is still making acquisitions with it's purchase of mValent, VMWare adds a free open-source virtualization client, and MS Patch Tuesday comes to us with 2 critical and 2 important updates. Human error in IT by those who don't really care gets "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", worst practices in insecure code get the wrath of "The IT Pet Peeve", and find out how to get your Windows 2008 Servers network load balancing working outside of a domain in "The Weekly Tech Tip". Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
NEC Says May Withdraw From PC Business In Europe (InformationWeek)
Lenovo CEO Resignation Tied to Company Performance (eWeek)
Oracle Acquires Leader in Application Configuration Management (eWeek)
VMware Announces First Open Source Virtual Desktop Client, Enabling Partners to Optimize Devices for VMware View and Provide Low-Cost Desktop Solutions (VMWare)
Microsoft Security Bulletin Advance Notification for February 2009 (Microsoft TechNet) Make sure your subscribed to the podcast so you don't miss an episode. Find out how at cstechcast.com. You can also catch us on the Facebook fan page, at twitter.com/cstechcast, and at friendfeed.com/cstechcast being social. We also have a feedback form off the main page if you have anything you'd like to say. Plus, catch us when we're recording live at our UStream page CS Techcast – Behind The Scenes. Thanks for listening. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=62 - Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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The podcast for IT pros at CSTechcast.com. This week we discuss the benefits of moving your desktops off the desk and into the data center with Mike Fodor, VP at Pano Logic. Find more information on their desktop virtualization solutions at panologic.com. In the news, Toshiba and NEC are merging chip operations, high-speed broadband goes to Washington, government employment program E-Verify gets postponed, and a fired employee is indicted for planting a logic bomb in Fannie Mae computers. School officials pouty about criticism from students on the Internet gets "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at the top 5 areas to consider when introducing new technology, and we try to help out when Windows 2008 DNS can't resolve some top level domains in "The Weekly Tech Tip". Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
Top Japanese Chip Makers Studying Merger (InformationWeek)
Congress Wants Neutrality On Publicly Funded Broadband (InformationWeek)
Feds Delay E-Verify Deadline to May 21 (eWeek)
Fannie Mae Contractor Indicted For Logic Bomb (InformationWeek)
Court: No right to shout "douchebag" in a crowded blog (ArsTechnica)
Cannot resolve names in certain top level domains like .co.uk. (TechNet Blogs) You can subscribe to the podcast through various means at cstechcast.com. You can also catch us on the Facebook fan page, at twitter.com/cstechcast, and friendfeed.com/cstechcast where we are easy to contact. We also have a feedback form off the main page if you have anything you'd like to say. Plus, catch us when we're recording live at our UStream page CS Techcast – Behind The Scenes. Thanks for listening. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=61 - Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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I wanted to let all our CS Techcast listeners know that our podcast made the list of the 10 Must Listen Podcasts for CIOs at cioinsight.com! We are on a list with the likes of HP's CTO Phil McKinney Killer Innovations podcast, the Deloitte Insight podcast, and the CERT podcast. We are very excited about making this list and hope to continue bringing you a great podcast for IT professionals every week. - Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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CSTechcast.com brings you the podcast for IT pros. This week we talk with Adam Swidler of Google's Enterprise Division about their new report on the state of spam. Find the report at http://googleenterprise.blogspot.com and more information on the products at www.google.com/a/security. In the news, Intel drops chip prices up to 40%, Qualcomm buys AMD's mobile chip division, top web site spread malware, Seagate post a fix for a hard drive problem that just causes more problems, and despite the economy tech paychecks take a tick up. The White House's state of tech shines a light on out of date government systems in "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we discuss the need for high-ranking official to carries devices like a Blackberry in "Point/CounterPoint", and we give you an old school tip on email troubleshooting in "The Weekly Tech Tip". Links to stories and sites discussed during the show: Intel Drops Desktop, Server Chip Prices As Much As 40% (InformationWeek)
Qualcomm buys AMD’s handset division, technology for $65 million (ZDNet)
70 Of Top 100 Web Sites Spread Malware (InformationWeek)
Seagate Posts Hard Drive Fix (InformationWeek)
Tech Paychecks Grew Last Year Despite Economic Gloom (InformationWeek) We'd like to thank the Google folks for talking to our audience about this new report. If you'd like to be in the loop every week, subscribe at cstechcast.com. You can also catch us on the Facebook fan page, at twitter.com/cstechcast, and friendfeed.com/cstechcast where we are sharing all week. We also have a feedback form off the main page if you have anything you'd like to say. Thanks for listening. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=60 - Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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CSTechcast has yet another information filled podcast for IT pros. This week we consult Alex Scoble, a CISSP certified security consultant and risk analyst, about the common security threats to your network and what you can do about it. Find Alex's blog at itmanager.blogs.com. In the news Steve Jobs is taking a leave of absence from Apple CEO duties, 1TB Seagate drives are seeing an abnormal level of failures, The “Downadup” virus infected about 6.5 million PCs in 4 days, the inauguration may prove challenging to Internet bandwidth, and United Airlines offers up Wi-Fi on some planes with some limitations, of course. The lack of hard nose reporting from the traditional media on Steve Jobs over the past few weeks has garnered "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at the common problem of weak passwords, and multi-monitor support comes to Remote Desktop Connections in Windows 7 and we show you how to get at it in "The Weekly Tech Tip". Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
Letter from Apple CEO Steve Jobs (Apple.com)
On eve of Macworld, Jobs talks health (CNet)
Seagate customers swamped by Barracuda drive failures (The Register)
'Amazing' worm attack infects 9 million PCs (ComputerWorld)
Unprecedented live streaming video during inaugural will tax Internet (ComputerWorld)
United Airlines To Offer In-Flight Wi-Fi (InformationWeek) If you want more you can find us on the socials. Be a fan at the CS Techcast Facebook Fan Page and leave something on our wall or find the UStream channel where we stream video live during our recording every week. Also, seek us our on the other socials at twitter.com/cstechcast and friendfeed.com/cstechcast or join the Friendfeed room. Send us feedback and keep coming back. In fact, encourage your friend to subscribe and join in the fun. Thanks for joining us. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=59 - Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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