What I am currently reading...

This is the book I am currently reading...

Patch 'em if you have 'em (and you have 'em)

Nearly everyone has a version Flash on their machines... As such, this applies to everyone. If you are not sure what version you have, head on over and update anyhow. Better safe then sorry. This allies to nearly every program you run on your compluters nowadays... We have reached the period of "liquid code", updates are common and neccessary.

Make sure you update your appliations periodically and when you hear of exploits that is a good time to double-check. It only takes a few moments.

More about this vulnerability :

Malware Attack Exploiting Flash Zero Day Vulnerability on Dancho Danchev's Blog. Adobe Flash zero-day exploit in the wild on ZDNet.com

Hiking at Kennesaw Mountain

Today we went for a morning hike at Kennesaw mountain. It was a beautiful day, with a light breeze. Perfect for outdoor activities. The hike was nice, and we got to see a snake on the way back to the car. It was crossing the path and another hiker noticed it first.

We watched it cross the path. It was about 3.5-4 feet in length and looked similar to to the one pictured below, thus at this point I am going to state that it was a Black Rat Snake, primarily because it flicked its tail to simulate a rattle, and this is the closet looking picture I was able to find when we returned.

Video of the F1 tornado in Woodstock, GA

Nesset740 posted a clip of the tornado from their viewpoint on YouTube. You should be able to see below, or click on the link to go to the YouTube page.

Storms Damaged 1,000 Cherokee Homes

Seems like it may have been a tornado. The above image from CBS46, while below is a story from ABC2

"A spokesman for the National Weather Service told WSB-TV Channel 2 reporter Ross Cavitt some of the damage was caused by a F1 tornado."

Read the slight more expansive reporting here

Storms Damaged 1,000 Cherokee Homes
http://www.wsbtv.com/news/16347555/detail.html

It really was this dark too, however, I was not able to see any light, there was too much, wind, rain, and debris. Also saw a clip for tonights newscast on FOX (I believe), which looks to have video from people in a car.

Alternative Rock Tracks

Looking for some alternative tracks? Just stopped by this site? Well check out the MP3 clips widget to the right for some alternative rock tracks... covering the whole genre from Ska, through punk, to american alternative.

Intel vPro Resources

A while back the new machines we ordered began coming with something called Intel AMT; we had not heard of it, nor did we have time to dig into it. We kept getting dialogs that AMT was disabled from our images (we had the drivers loaded), but since we had neither the time nor inclination to dig into the technology we just turned off or removed the drivers.

Well that all changed after this year's MMS. Intel was actively promoting vPro and with the information gleaned there I was able to see real uses that we would be able to begin to incorporate today. Thus, begins the long journey through documentation and is there loads of it (as is always the case nowadays).

I will say this, that AMT (or vPro) looks to be an awesome technology, Intel really needs to work on the sales/marketing folks as the information (as is pointed out in the links below) is not found as easily as it could be and the channels they were communicating through were not probably optimal… many a system admin is AMT? What's that… (The Word 2007 dictionary wants to correct vPro to vapor? I find humor in that.)

What do you really need to know to start?

What can it do?

• Discover platform assets using data retained in non-volatile storage
• Heals systems remotely even when the operating system is down
• Protect against malicious software attacks by making it easier to keep software virus protection consistent and up to date across the enterprise
• Limit the effect of "malware" and platform misuse by containing outbreaks and software tampering on the managed client, isolating the infected network element from the rest of the network.
  The above is just a partial listing.
  

Which Provisioning Platform?

Enterprise or Small Business, simply, if you have any security requirements go with enterprise implementation. Our machines are preconfigured for that (as I would assume most are).

What Infrastructure is needed?

• Server

Pre-Requisite Patches (see documentation)

Database

Active Directory (w/schema update)

SMS 2003 or SCCM 2007

Add-on for SMS 2003

SP1 for SCCM

As you can see from the partial listing the enterprise deployment is not something that is going to happen overnight, especially when most of the functions that this will address end up crossing multiple group and political lines in most medium-large organizations. First thing ensure you have an executive level champion who can get this moving if you plan on utilizing in your organization.

Core Links

• Intel AMT SCS (Setup and Configuration Service) Manual
• http://softwarecommunity.intel.com/isn/downloads/Manageability/Intel_AMT_SCS_Installation_and_UserManual.pdf
• Intel AMT SMS 2003 - Add on
• http://softwarecommunity.intel.com/articles/eng/1356.htm
• NOTE: SCCM 2007 SP1 has native support for Intel AMT.
  

Additional Links

• Intel AMT Console (Developer SDK)
• http://softwarecommunity.intel.com/articles/eng/1034.htm
• WikiPedia on vPro (See AMT link below)
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel_vPro
• WikiPedia on AMT
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel_Active_Management_Technology
• Tips on vPro
• http://softwareblogs.intel.com/2008/01/28/tips-tricks-for-setting-up-accessing-an-intel-amt-client/
• Toms Hardware Review of vPro Remote Control (Recommended Read
• http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/command-conquer,1591.html