NEWS & EVENTS

NDG is pleased to announce the following lab library has been added to our supported curriculum content options for NETLAB+ VE. 

Introduction to perfSONAR – New Labs Now Available

perfSONAR, performance Service-Oriented Network monitoring ARchitecture, is used by science networks and facilities worldwide to monitor and ensure network performance. As described on the perfSONAR website, “perfSONAR is a software product to monitor networks for performance discrepancies, on an end-to-end basis, ensuring friction-free use for scientific applications.” You can learn more about perfSONAR by visiting: https://www.perfsonar.net/gtk_why.html

The Introduction to perfSONAR labs demonstrate the use of perfSONAR to monitor and measure network performance.

The development of this lab series was supported with funding from the National Science Foundation Award 1829698 “CyberTraining CIP: Cyberinfrastructure Expertise on High-throughput Networks for Big Science Data Transfers” at the University of South Carolina (UofSC). 

We want to make you aware of the current status of VMware virtualization products used with NETLAB+. NETLAB+ integrates with VMware vSphere to provide powerful and cost-effective remote PC support. 

VMware vSphere 7.0:  NOT COMPATIBLE WITH NETLAB+ VE

At this time, we ask that you do not update your virtual infrastructure to VMware vSphere 7.0.  vSphere 7.0 is currently not compatible with NETLAB+ VE since it cannot be used to connect to virtual machines and support the virtual infrastructure. The ESXi built-in VNC server has been removed from vSphere 7.0; therefore, it no longer supports connections to a virtual machine using NETLAB+’s built-in VNC web client.  

Our current recommendation is that you continue to use VMware vSphere ESXi 6.0 (documented) or 6.7 (undocumented, but supported). Please refer to the NETLAB+ VE Designated Operating Environment Guide for more information. Our development team is evaluating alternatives to the VNC client and will be implementing changes to NETLAB+ VE in a future release in order to continue to support compatibility with VMware’s virtualization products. When available, we will provide guidance as to how we recommend updating your virtual infrastructure.

We encourage any customers still running NETLAB AE/PE to update their system to NETLAB+ VE. Request a price quote. 

We were made aware of a potential security issue with vCenter Server v6.7.  Please note, this only affects vCenter Server installations that were upgraded from 6.0 to 6.7, or from 6.5 to 6.7. This does NOT affect ESXi host servers.

Our normal recommendation is that a fresh vCenter Server Appliance be deployed instead of upgrading.  If you upgraded an existing vCenter Server v6.0 or v6.5, to v6.7, you will want to apply the patch (6.7u3f) issued on 4/16/2020.  

For additional details, see the VMware security advisory at the link below:
https://www.vmware.com/security/advisories/VMSA-2020-0006.html

During this challenging time, many Cisco Networking Academies have found it necessary to shift from in-person instruction to alternative course delivery. The Linux courses developed by NDG provide an online learning environment that learners can easily access right from a web browser.

To help instructors that need to teach Linux online, NDG is sponsoring Linux I and Linux II for Cisco Networking Academies for sixty (60) days. Our goal is to help instructors that may need to shift from in-person to online courses to finish the semester.  For sixty (60) days, from April 1st to June 1st, NDG will provide learner access at no cost when instructors create a Linux I or Linux II course in https://www.netacad.com. 

Please note, because this sponsorship will be funded from April 1st to June 1st, this means that each learner will have sixty days to claim their access, and once the learner has access and begins the class, they will have ninety (90) days of access to the course content.  For example, if, as an instructor, you create a course on April 5th and your learners/students claim access on April 10th, your learners/students will have until July 10th to complete the assigned course content.

You’ll find additional details concerning the offer here. Please also consider passing this information on to any colleagues that might find it beneficial.

As health concerns continue to disrupt the academic calendar for many of our customers, now more than ever, alternate course delivery methods that enable learning outside the classroom are absolutely vital to the educational community.

We want to take this opportunity to thank you for choosing NETLAB+ as your IT training solution and briefly summarize some of the ways NETLAB+ can help you continue to deliver quality training to your learners – outside of the traditional classroom environment.

• Instructor-led Training: Schedule an instructor-led training session for lecturing and guiding an entire class.
• Team Reservations: Group students into teams and schedule team reservations – students can work collaboratively, with no face-to-face meeting necessary.
• Usage: NETLAB+ includes tools that allow you to monitor the progress of your class and individual students. See information such as the number of reservations made, and lab reservations attended.
• Screenshots: Students can be directed to take screenshots during their lab reservations, to document their activity.
• Lab History: Get a detailed view of the lab history including any screenshots taken, for a reservation.
• News and Announcements: Use your NETLAB+ system to communicate information with your user community.

For detailed instructions on using NETLAB+, please review the NETLAB+ VE documentation. Want to learn more about the content available on your NETLAB+ system? Please visit our interactive content list that will help you quickly identify more ways your NETLAB+ system can help you serve your learners. 

Upcoming Webinars: We anticipate that you may need to assist your peers in using NETLAB+ to enable online learning. To help you serve your community, we will be announcing a series of webinars focused on assisting NETLAB+ administrators with the setup of custom pods. We will present examples of custom pods and have a question and answer session. Details on the webinars will be sent out this week.

NDG is pleased to announce the following lab library has been added to our supported curriculum content options for NETLAB+ VE. 

High-Speed Networks: Network Tools and Protocols – New Labs Now Available

The High-Speed Networks: Network Tools and Protocols labs provide hands-on training in the technologies used to build and configure high-speed networks.

The development of this lab series was supported with funding from the National Science Foundation Award 1829698 “CyberTraining CIP: Cyberinfrastructure Expertise on High-throughput Networks for Big Science Data Transfers” at the University of South Carolina (UofSC). 

NDG is pleased to announce the addition of labs for the Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNAv7) curriculum, which builds the skills learners need to get hired and succeed in jobs related to networking computers and other devices. The following labs are now available for NETLAB+ VE:

• CCNA1: Introduction to Networks v7
• CCNA2: Switching, Routing, and Wireless Essentials v7
• CCNA3: Enterprise Networking, Security, and Automation 

All CCNAv7 labs are supported using the new, Multi-Device Pod (MDP).

Current users of the Multi-Purpose Academy Pod (MAP) and Multi-Purpose Academy Pod w/ASA (MAP w/ASA): We will be evaluating the feasibility of also supporting CCNAv7 labs with these topologies, and will provide additional information when available. 

This new content is available to all NETLAB+ customers with a current maintenance agreement who are participants in the Cisco Networking Academy.

We’d like to share some news with you about a program, Girls Go CyberStart (GGCS), which gives high school girls the opportunity to explore cybersecurity in a safe, barrier-free environment.

In the past, students may have been discouraged from playing in cyber contests due to hurdles with getting access to the technology girls need to play. To make sure technology isn’t a hurdle, we’ve partnered with GGCS to provide access to a cloud-based PC, so that every girl has what she needs to participate.

Girls have no limits on what they can achieve, and neither does Girls Go CyberStart! Learn More

To make it even more exciting, Girls Go CyberStart has cash prizes for individuals and schools to win! 

To be eligible to participate, students must:

• Identify as female.
• Be at least 13 years old on December 2, 2019.
• Be enrolled in 9th, 10th, 11th, or 12th grade at a public or private school (or the homeschool equivalent) within the United States.

To help spread awareness and give more students an opportunity to participate, please consider sharing this information with the high school instructors in your community.