Heavy Networking

HN842: How Network Engineers Can Prepare for a Post-Quantum World

Q-Day signals the public emergence of a cryptographically relevant quantum computer that can break public key encryption. The date of Q-Day is unknown but the tech indust

HN841: HPE Melds Apstra and Mist for Self-Driving Data Center Networks (Sponsored)

In this sponsored episode, Kyle Baxter and Sridhar Katere from HPE join Drew to talk about automating enterprise data center networks. They discuss how HPE integrates its

HN840: How to Make a Technology Buying Decision

When engineers look to buy new technology they tend to focus on features and functionality, but there’s more to it than that. Sian Morgan joins Drew and Ethan to discuss

HN839: Why Flows, Packets, and DDI are All Critical for Operational Effectiveness (Sponsored)

If you think of BlueCat as just an IPAM or DDI company, think again. BlueCat acquired LiveAction in 2024, and since then, they’ve been working to integrate LiveAction’s n

HN838: Meet Mr. Packets – Building Your Own Agentic AI Team Member

What does it take to build your own AI agent that could help with day-to-day network tasks? Hank Preston, a Distinguished Architect at Cisco, asked himself that question.

HN837: Agentic AI to Reduce MTTR

Ethan Banks sits down with Eduard Dulharu live at AutoCon 5 to explore how agentic AI can be used to reduce Mean Time to Recovery (MTTR) for complex network environments.

HN836: Optimize AI Traffic on the WAN with Ciena’s Integrated IP Networking (Sponsored)

As more applications and services rely on AI inferencing, that means more traffic on the WAN. Yes, bandwidth can solve a lot of problems, it’s not unlimited and AI infere

HN835: The Pros and Cons of Shortest Path Bridging (SPB)

Shortest Path Bridging (SPB) remains an intriguing and reliable fabric technology, offering a unique approach to Ethernet that differs from more widely deployed fabrics s

HN834: HPE Self-Driving Networks: The Next Evolution of Network Automation (Sponsored)

In this sponsored episode, HPE’s Sunalini Sankhavaram and Jose Tellado discuss the architectural evolution toward self-driving networks. Together with Ethan and Drew, the

HN833: The State of Packet Pushers 2026

Ethan and Drew gather the rest of the Packet Pushers team to discuss the State of the Packet Pushers Network. Together they provide a behind the scenes look into current

HN832: AI Agents Are Just Another Tool: How to Integrate With Your Network Automation Strategy (Sponsored)

AI has complicated network automation. It has created questions: If AI generates code for me, do I need to learn Python? Should I be writing a script to gather network in

HN831: The Sum, Not Just the Parts: How and Why to Think Holistically About Your Network

Your network is an interconnected system. A change you make on one device has consequences beyond that device. Therefore, to do your job well, you must think about the ne

HN830: Tailscale CEO on WireGuard, Zero Trust, and Securing AI (Sponsored)

If you think Tailscale is just a VPN for the home lab, think again. On today’s sponsored episode Ethan and Drew are joined by Tailscale CEO Avery Pennarun. Avery explains

HN829: EVPN/VXLAN Vs. TradCore

Drew and Ethan sit down with Tony Bourke to determine whether TradCore or EVPN VXLAN is right for your network. Tony is a seasoned instructor in automation, network desig

HN828: How Selector Unifies Cloud and On-Prem Network Observability (Sponsored)

Selector is extending its AI-driven network observability capabilities into public clouds. On today’s sponsored episode, we dig into how Selector gathers and analyzes pub

HN827: When Buffers Attack: Understanding Buffers to Better Diagnose Network Weirdness

Today’s episode covers buffers, the space between ingress and egress where a packet might have to live for a fraction of a second if the egress port is tied up transmitti

HN826: An Inside Look at Palo Alto Networks Prisma Browser for Business (Sponsored)

A Mastercard survey reveals that 46% of small and medium businesses have experienced a cyberattack, and nearly 20% of those that suffered an attack were then forced to fi

HN825: Faster Than Dijkstra? Exploring a New Shortest-Path Algorithm with Bruce Davie

Dijkstra’s algorithm is the foundation of shortest path calculations for link state routing protocols. But researchers have developed a new algorithm that improves on thi

HN824: That’s Not a Job for an LLM: The Right Way to Apply AI to Network Operations (Sponsored)

On today’s sponsored Heavy Networking, we get off the AI hype train to talk about how different artificial intelligence techniques usefully impact network operations—and

HN823: Defining A Modern Network Service

On today’s episode Ethan is joined by Mark Prosser, a self-described Network Operator Advocate and Network Automation Dreamer, to embark on a thought exercise about netwo