If you have a Cisco Modeling Labs appliance in your lab or running on a piece of dedicated hardware, you have probably noticed two browser warnings every time you log in. CML ships with self-signed certs on both the main web UI and the Cockpit management UI, and your browser will complain about both. Cisco publishes an …

You read the release notes cover to cover before every upgrade, right? This one almost caught me. I was prepping a cluster for an upgrade to AOS 7.5.1 when a known issue in the release notes gave me pause. A quick look at the upgrade history confirmed the cluster was squarely in the affected population, and the upgrade …

If you have ever cloned a Windows VM on Nutanix and watched five identical machines come up with the same hostname, the same SID, and a domain join you have to redo by hand, you already know why guest customization matters. For years my workflow involved hand-rolling an unattend XML file for each new template, version …

If you are a network engineer who has ever stared down a change window and wished you could test the exact topology before touching production, this post is for you. I want to walk through why Cisco Modeling Labs (CML) has become one of the most used tools in my day to day, and how it has shaped the way I approach …

There's a not-so-quiet crisis unfolding in organizations across the country. It's making headlines, driving water cooler conversations, and even finding its way to the dinner table. The cost of hardware is climbing. Lead times are stretching. And the quotes your team received last month? They may already be obsolete. …

Fair warning, this one's a bit longer than usual, so grab a cup of coffee or your favorite adult beverage and settle in. Last year I wrapped up my DC recap by saying "I look forward to seeing you next year in Chicago," and here we are. Nutanix .Next 2026 brought us back to the Windy City, McCormick Place, and a week …

Over the past couple of posts, I have covered what MST is and how to choose between Zero Compute and Pilot Light deployment models. Throughout that series, I mentioned that a new capability in Prism Central 7.5.1 was what prompted me to revisit MST in the first place. This is that post. If you're new to MST, check out …

In my previous post, I covered what Multicloud Snapshot Technology (MST) is, the object stores it supports, and where it fits in your DR strategy. Now I want to dig into the decision that shapes most of your MST architecture: which deployment model to use. Nutanix offers two distinct approaches, Zero Compute and Pilot …

I have been recently revisiting Nutanix Multicloud Snapshot Technology, aka MST. What prompted the fresh look was the Instant Restore capability that shipped with Prism Central 7.5.1. When a feature fundamentally changes the recovery time story for an entire DR approach, it is worth going back and re-evaluating the …

Last week I had the opportunity to attend CentralSquare Engage 2026, and as always, it was a reminder of why this space matters. Representing eGroup at this event is something I genuinely look forward to. We have been supporting Public Safety and Public Administration agencies for over ten years, and conferences like …