N Is For Networking

Packet Pushers

N Is For Networking deconstructs the concepts, jargon and acronyms of the data networking industry. Join recovering CCIE Ethan Banks with rising star Holly Podbielak for these episodes that will help you place context around networking terminology.

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21 episodes
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Avg 1 hr 6 min
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Episodes 21

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#62
August 20 · 56 min
N4N062: Your First Wi-FI Network, Part 3
In the third installment of the Wi-Fi networks series, Ethan Banks and Holly Podbielak discuss the basics of wireless security, the standards related to roaming between access points, and how to…
#61
August 6 · 1 hr 2 min
N4N061: Your First Wi-Fi Network Part 2
This week, Ethan and Holly continue their conversation around Wi-Fi. They go deeper into the benefits of Wi-Fi 7, look at what’s coming in Wi-Fi 8, and cover the differences among Multiple Input M…
#60
July 23 · 1 hr 2 min
N4N060: Your First Wi-Fi Network Part 1
Have you ever wondered how data actually travels through a Wi-Fi network? Holly and Ethan break down the fundamentals of wireless networking, including radio frequencies and channel planning. They…
#59
June 25 · 57 min
N4N059: Twisted Pair Cabling
Copper twisted pair cabling serves as a fundamental component of Ethernet infrastructure and Ethan and Holly are here to break down how it works. They discuss the technical differences between…
#58
June 18 · 50 min
N4N058: Future-Proofing Your Career for the AI Era (Sponsored)
In this sponsored episode by Cisco we explore how agentic AI is transforming network operations and what it means for your career. Robert Barton, an AI Distinguished Engineer at Cisco Systems, joins…
#57
June 11 · 1 hr 22 min
N4N057: The Art of Troubleshooting
As a network engineer, you’ll end up with a lot of weird problems to solve. Many times, the problems will not be with the network at all, and it’ll be up to you to figure it all out. But how? Ethan a…
#56
May 28 · 1 hr 10 min
N4N056: A Wireless NAC Walkthrough
In the previous episode of N is for Networking, Jennifer “JJ” Jabbusch gave us a thorough overview of Network Access Control (NAC) for wired networks. This week we’re going wireless! JJ walks us thro…
#55
May 14 · 1 hr 15 min
N4N055: A Wired NAC Walkthrough
Today’s topic is Network Access Control (NAC) for a wired network. To help walk us through it all is Jennifer “JJ” Jabbusch, a network security architect, public speaker, book author, and co-host of …
#54
April 30 · 1 hr 6 min
N4N054: Network Access Control (NAC) Basics
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 is at a high level and all of the jargon and a…
#53
April 16 · 57 min
N4N053: Well Actually 03 – Multicast, Routing Protocols, RFC 1918
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, security, and more. We also have a technical c…
#52
April 2 · 1 hr 25 min
N4N052: Multicast Part 2
Lenny Giuliano, Sr. Distinguished Systems Engineer at HPE Juniper Networks, joins Holly and Ethan for another round of multicast. Part two helps fill in details not covered in episode 50. They cover…
#51
March 19 · 1 hr 8 min
N4N051: MPLS Fundamentals
Today’s topic is Multiprotocol Label Switching or MPLS, a foundational technology that powers service provider networks and enterprise WANs all over the world. To help us break it down, we’ve inv…
#50
March 5 · 1 hr 21 min
N4N050: Multicast Fundamentals
Today’s learning adventure is an overview of multicast. Ethan and Holly have invited a guest to share his multicast expertise: Lenny Giuliano, Sr. Distinguished Systems Engineer at HPE Juniper N…
#49
February 19 · 1 hr 10 min
N4N049: Understanding Firewalls
Today, Ethan and Holly provide an overview of firewalls. While cybersecurity is a separate discipline from network engineering, much of what happens in cybersecurity is interesting at the packet…
#48
February 5 · 1 hr 23 min
N4N048: QoS Fundamentals
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 what QoS is and what it solves. Not only do…
#47
January 22 · 1 hr 8 min
N4N047: Virtual Router Redundancy Protocol (VRRP)
Go beyond the basics to understand the mechanics that keep your default gateway from becoming a single point of failure. Ethan and Holly demystify Virtual Router Redundancy Protocol (VRRP), which…
#46
January 8 · 1 hr 4 min
N4N046: In-Band vs. Out-of-Band Management
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 implement a proper OOB network and critical use…
#45
Dec 18, 2025 · 59 min
N4N045: Audience Follow Up & 2026 Preview
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 topics might include letters like B, G, P, Q, o, S, A and I. T…
#44
Dec 4, 2025 · 56 min
N4N044: Redundancy Vs. High Availability Part 2 – HA Networking Isn’t Free
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 disagree. Holly and Ethan do agree that high…
#43
Nov 20, 2025 · 1 hr
N4N043: Redundancy vs. High Availability Part 1
In today’s chat, Holly and Ethan consider a question from listener Douglas who asks, “How do you approach designing a network for high availability and redundancy?” They start by defining diffe…

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