N Is For Networking
Episodes
N4N054: Network Access Control (NAC) Basics
30 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Today’s episode is part one of a three part series to break down Network Access Control (NAC). Ethan and Holly start simple by explaining what NAC i...
N4N053: Well Actually 03 – Multicast, Routing Protocols, RFC 1918
16 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
We asked for follow ups and you did not disappoint! On today’s show we respond to listener comments and corrections on multicast, routing protocols,...
N4N052: Multicast Part 2
02 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Lenny Giuliano, Sr. Distinguished Systems Engineer at HPE Juniper Networks, joins Holly and Ethan for another round of multicast. Part two helps fill ...
N4N051: MPLS Fundamentals
19 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Today’s topic is Multiprotocol Label Switching or MPLS, a foundational technology that powers service provider networks and enterprise WANs all over...
N4N050: Multicast Fundamentals
05 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Today’s learning adventure is an overview of multicast. Ethan and Holly have invited a guest to share his multicast expertise: Lenny Giuliano, Sr. D...
N4N049: Understanding Firewalls
19 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Today, Ethan and Holly provide an overview of firewalls. While cybersecurity is a separate discipline from network engineering, much of what happens i...
N4N048: QoS Fundamentals
05 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Quality of Service (QoS) is a huge topic with a punishingly large group of acronyms. Join Ethan and Holly as they help you build a mental framework of...
N4N047: Virtual Router Redundancy Protocol (VRRP)
22 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Go beyond the basics to understand the mechanics that keep your default gateway from becoming a single point of failure. Ethan and Holly demystify Vir...
N4N046: In-Band vs. Out-of-Band Management
08 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Ethan and Holly discuss the major differences between In-band and Out-of-band (OOB) management and the pros and cons of both. They explore how to impl...
N4N045: Audience Follow Up & 2026 Preview
18 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
If you’re curious as to what Ethan and Holly have in store for 2026, they give you a sneak peak on today’s episode. Hint: Some of these to...
N4N044: Redundancy Vs. High Availability Part 2 – HA Networking Isn’t Free
04 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In Part 1 of Redundancy vs. High Availability, we said that sometimes high availability and redundancy are considered to be the same thing, but we dis...
N4N043: Redundancy vs. High Availability Part 1
20 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s chat, Holly and Ethan consider a question from listener Douglas who asks, “How do you approach designing a network for high availab...
N4N042: Meet MACsec
06 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
MACsec is a protocol for encrypting Ethernet frames on a local (though not always local) network. Ethan Banks and Holly Metlitzky have an ELI5 (explai...
N4N041: Switched Virtual Interface (SVI) and Integrated Routing and Bridging (IRB)
23 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
If you’ve ever wondered what the difference is between a Switched Virtual Interface (SVI) and Integrated Routing and Bridging (IRB), today’...
N4N040: Mock Interview for a Network Administration Job
09 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The job interview is an inescapable part of a career journey. Today on N Is For Networking, we conduct a mock interview with a candidate who’s apply...
N4N039: Configuring an IPsec Tunnel
25 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
We dive back into the world of IPsec with an episode dedicated to configuring IPsec tunnels. After discussing a listener comment regarding transport m...
N4N038: Well Actually 02 – OSPF Multi-Area and LSA Types
15 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
We got some interesting listener feedback from our series on OSPF, so today’s N Is for Networking is another “Well actually” episode...
N4N037: IPsec Basics
28 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
It’s time to talk crypto. No, not the Bitcoin kind. Ethan and Holly introduce the basics of IPsec, the protocol that authenticates and encrypts ...
N4N036: OSPF Area Types
14 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Ethan and Holly bring you the last installment of the OSPF series discussing OSPF area types. They discuss why OSPF areas exist, do a quick recap of w...
N4N035: Well Actually . . . Listener Comments and Corrections
31 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
We ask listeners for follow up and you’ve sent it in. On today’s show we respond to listener comments and corrections on tunneling, the li...
N4N034: OSPF Network Types
24 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Ethan and Holly continue their OSPF journey this week with OSPF Network Types. They discuss the two main OSPF network types used today: the broadcast ...
N4N033: OSPF Neighbor Formation and Timers
17 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Our OSPF series continues with a look at OSPF neighbor formation and related timers. We talk about the five major packet types that carry information ...
N4N032: OSPF Basics
26 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
By popular request (and now that we have some other background topics covered) we start our series on the Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) routing prot...
N4N031: When Is It Time For a Routing Protocol?
19 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
If you need to route in your network, you can program static routes into all your routing-capable devices. And this can work. But at some point, you&#...
N4N030: Network Shapes and Sizes
12 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What shape is your network? In other words, what is its topology? On today’s episode, we discover the different types of network topologies and ...
N4N029: Four Goals of Network Design
05 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Let’s explore four goals of network design: stability, speed, scalability, and security. These goals are based on Ethan’s experience desig...
N4N028: The Wide World of WANs
29 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
We wanted to do an episode on SD-WAN, but realized we needed to set the stage for how wide-area networking developed. That’s why today’s e...
N4N027: Tunneling Quirks & Features
22 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
On today’s show, we’re going to dig deeper into tunnels and explore some of the quirks and features of tunnels. This week we’ll disc...
N4N026: What Is a Tunnel?
15 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Let’s dig into tunnels. While some network engineers may want to quibble, a tunnel is when you put one packet inside of another packet to carry ...
N4N025: DHCP – Someone Get Me an Address!
08 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) assigns an IP address to a host that joins a network, along with other information necessary for the ho...
N4N024: DNS Security, Record Types, and Reverse DNS
01 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This week we continue with DNS. In our last episode we covered the basics; today we expand our scope to cover topics such as security for DNS, reverse...
N4N023: DNS – Turning Names Into Numbers
24 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The Domain Name System (DNS) keeps the Internet running. On today’s N Is For Networking podcast, we talk about how DNS transforms human-readable...
N4N022: SNMP Fundamentals
17 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Following last week’s introduction to network monitoring, we discuss the Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP), one of the most implemented type...
N4N021: Is It the Network? Network Monitoring Basics
10 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
How do you know what is happening within your network, especially when something isn’t working? Network monitoring is the answer. On today’s show,...
N4N020: To Cert Or Not To Cert?
03 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
To cert or not to cert? That is the question Holly & Ethan discuss on today’s episode. Will a certification really land you a networking job? Ar...
N4N019: Howdy, Neighbor! And Other Routing Stuff
27 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s episode, we continue the discussion about routing and routing protocols by focusing on commonalities rather than differences among prot...
N4N018: RIB vs. FIB & Administrative Distance or Route Preference
20 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Ready for more routing and routing protocols? Today we discuss the roles of the network operating system (NOS), routing protocols, the Routing Informa...
N4N017: Routing Fundamentals
13 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
On today’s N Is For Networking, we explore the fundamentals of routing, focusing on layer 3 of the OSI model. We explain the concepts of routers, ro...
N4N016: Routers Are Not Switches…Are They?
06 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The line between switches and routers can get a little blurry. On today’s N Is For Networking, we try to clear things up. We start by defining w...
N4N015: Spanning Tree Part 3 – Versions, States and Guards
27 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
We’re back with the third and last (for now) installment of our spanning tree series. Today’s episode includes an explanation of spanning tree ver...
N4N014: Spanning Tree Part 2 – Root Bridge, Edge Port, Forwarding and Blocking
20 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to part 2 of our spanning tree series. We start with a quick review and then discuss root bridges, root ports, designated ports, and forwardin...
N4N013: Spanning Tree Part 1 – An Introduction and Broadcast Storms
13 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Spanning tree is a topic so mysterious and complicated that common advice is just to disable it. In today’s episode, we start a mini-series on spann...
N4N012: Russ White On Why We Need Network Models
06 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Why do we need network models such as OSI? Network architect and author Russ White joins Holly and Ethan to talk about how network models can help eng...
N4N011: What’s the Difference Between LAG, MLAG, MC-LAG, and Stacking?
30 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s episode, we address listener Kieren’s question about the differences between LAG, MLAG, MC-LAG, and stacking. We tackle the nuances of ...
N4N010: Why Was the Colon Chosen as a Delimiter in IPv6?
23 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
It’s history day on N Is For Networking! We learn about the development of IPv6 directly from Bob Hinden, one of the pioneers who made it happen...
N4N009: High-Speed Ethernet Lanes Explained
16 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
On today’s episode, we’re explaining high-speed Ethernet lanes at the request of listener Matthew. We cover lanes, channels, and their physical re...
N4N008: What Is a Default Gateway?
09 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Today’s topic is the default gateway, essential for routing traffic between networks. We explain its purpose, configuration, and the consequences of...
N4N007: Performance vs. Cost
13 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
When building your network and buying equipment, is performance or cost more important? On today’s episode, we discuss the balance between performan...
N4N006: Packet Analysis Basics
12 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Packet analysis can be your friend for troubleshooting network problems. In this episode, hosts Ethan Banks and Holly Metlitzky explore packet analysi...
N4N005: The Sort-of-Useful OSI Model
05 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Network engineers should be familiar with the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) model, a framework for understanding network communications. On today...
N4N004: Essential Topics in Networking: Ethernet, NAT, and More
21 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
What are the most essential topics to understand for a new networkers? Ethan Banks and Holly Metlitzky address a listener’s question about foundatio...
N4N003: What’s a VLAN?
14 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Today we explore Virtual Local Area Networks (VLANs). This topic was prompted by a question from college student Douglas. We’ll explain the fund...
N4N002: Bandwidth and Latency Explained
07 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of N Is For Networking, co-hosts Ethan Banks and Holly Metlitzky take a question from college student Douglas that turns into a ride o...
N4N001: Frames and Packets: What’s the Difference?
31 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Frames and packets: how are they different and why is it important to know those differences? On this first episode of N Is For Networking, join co-ho...
N4N000: Announcing N is For Networking – A New Podcast for the New Network Engineer
07 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to N Is For Networking, the newest podcast on the Packet Pushers network, where we explain the jargon, acronyms, and concepts of the networkin...