In this post, I want to share with you a review of accomplishments for 2022 and a preview of what to expect in 2023.
This will include what took place professionally, personally, and within the community in 2022. In a follow-up post, I will close out the year with some things to come in 2023 in these same areas.
We are a third of the way through 2022, so I thought that I’d post an update on what has been going on with me in the community and what is still to come in 2022.
Let’s take a look at some of the progress from what I expected to be doing at the end of 2021.
Today, I tore off the band aid and redirected http://captainhyperscaler.com to GitHub pages: https://captainhyperscaler.github.io
I had begun to publish my new blog posts to the GitHub pages site over the last 30 days, but had yet to re-direct to the new site. Mainly because I do still have some formatting on some of...
Identity and Access Administrator Associate Exam Prep book information
As I mentioned in my previous post “Becoming an author”, I recently completed my first published book with the Microsoft Identity and Access Administrator Associate (SC-300) exam preparation guide.
This has been an amazing, yet time consuming experience. I see why people write books because it becomes...
Over the past 12 months, I have had the privilege of working on two certification guides for Packt Publishing.
The books that I have been authoring are the Microsoft Identity and Access Administrator Associate (SC-300) exam preparation guide and the Microsoft Security Compliance and Identity Fundamentals (SC-900) exam preparation guide.
It is mid-November 2021 and I have an announcement. I have chosen to take on a new challenge. As of today, I am no longer a direct employee of Opsgility. Monday, I will begin at Cloudreach as a Senior Product Manager owning their multi-cloud migration...
Many of us out on social media create our own brand or “handle” that they use for Twitter and/or blog sites. I, myself, took that step in the fall of 2019 with the creation of Captain Hyper-scaler. It started with this blog site and as the past 18 months...
2020 was challenging in many ways to many. I’m not going to dwell on that, but I do wish anyone reading this continued health, happiness, and safety to them and their families.
As I summarized in my last post 2020…a reflection, the year was personally and professionally fulfilling for...
At the beginning of the year, I documented within a post my goals for growth in 2020: … 2020 a Year for Growth. Going back and reading that post was interesting. I didn’t necessarily accomplish everything that was laid out within that plan, but it...
Today I was awarded my very first Microsoft MVP award. I am very honored to receive this award and it has been quite a journey the past 18 months, give or take. I have seen many others post their experience getting to this point in their journey, so I would like to...
Microsoft has always been great at recognizing those community members that provided value through the Microsoft MVP program. This program is amazing, and a way for Microsoft employees and MVPs to nominate those contributors that stand out within the community.
For those individuals that are not in one of these two categories, there...
In my previous post, http://captainhyperscaler.github.io/2020/01/09/2019-year-in-review/, I provided a summary of how I continued to grow, develop, and spread knowledge within the Azure community. In this article, I will provide some ways that I have thought of to continue sharing...
After taking a couple of weeks off, I am back, refreshed, and ready for 2020. The past year for me had some very dramatic changes along with creating a tremendous amount of growth and opportunity. I hope that you find the following recap of some of the key professional developments...
As I mentioned in my Welcome post, I think of myself as a life-long learner. I have always continued to educate myself in the latest technologies and attempted to gain the most valid certifications. This has included obtaining my Master’s Degree in Business Information Technology, PMP certification, CISSP certification, AWS, and numerous Azure certifications. The latest list of certifications...
Check out the latest cybersecurity blogs from MCT Regional Lead and Azure MVP, Dwayne Natwick! In this five-part series, Dwayne will cover the different types of cybersecurity certifications and how to choose the right one for you!
Certification to Kick Off Your Cybersecurity Career New to Cybersecurity?...
This is the first part of a series that I have decided to begin as I start a new journey.
As someone that has been working toward Microsoft Azure and Microsoft 365 certifications for the past three plus years, I have started to expand to obtaining certifications with Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Google Cloud Platform...
In this article, I would like to provide my thoughts and guidance on going down your own path to certification. Everyone’s path is different and these are just my thoughts as...
I thought that I would share an update of my Microsoft cloud certification journey with you. This will accompany an article that I’m working on that provides my thoughts to guide you in choosing your own cloud certification path. My path started in 2019. Let’s revisit the timeline.
I’ve been seeing some questions coming through social media regarding taking Microsoft exams from home. I thought that I’d provide some insight around what to expect and some of the do’s and don’ts to the process.
Prepare your workstation. You cannot have anything but your computer with one monitor and a...
Microsoft is releasing four (4) new exams that are currently available in beta. These exams combine services across Microsoft 365 and Azure to create an exciting new Security, Compliance, and Identity track of exams. I have already scheduled to sit for the beta exams, and will be taking these...
Welcome to this installment of the “So You want to be an Azure Solutions Architect Expert” series. This is the sixth accompanying article, and it will focus on some exam tips and lab focus areas that can help you in your final preparation to take the AZ-303 and AZ-304 exams.
Welcome to this installment of the “So You want to be an Azure Solutions Architect Expert” series. This is the fifth accompanying article, and it will focus on some key objectives that are part of the AZ-303 and AZ-304 exams.
To attend the session on Friday, July 24, 2020, please access the...
Welcome to this installment of the “So You want to be an Azure Solutions Architect Expert” series. This is the third accompanying article, and it will focus on some key objectives that are part of the AZ-303 and AZ-304 exams.
To attend the session on Monday, July 6, 2020, please access the...
Welcome to this installment of the “So You want to be an Azure Solutions Architect Expert” series. This is the second accompanying article, and it will focus on some key objectives that are part of the AZ-303 and AZ-304 exams.
To attend the session on Monday, July 6, 2020, please access the...
Welcome to this installment of the “So You want to be an Azure Solutions Architect Expert” series. This is the fourth accompanying article, and it will focus on some key objectives that are part of the AZ-303 and AZ-304 exams.
To attend the session on Friday, July 17, 2020, please access the...
On June 22, 2020, I am starting a six part series for the Cloud Lunch and Learn sessions. In this series, I will highlight key subjects within the objectives for the AZ-303 and AZ-304 exams in one hour sessions.
If you are looking to gain focus on cloud technologies, the first step and question that you must ask yourself if "Where do I Start?"
There are different avenues that you can take to become 1. Generalist: with the foundational understanding in multiple clouds 1. Fundamentals/Practitioners: where you get...
As we continue My Microsoft Journey from Part I (https://captainhyperscaler.github.io/2019/11/05/my-microsoft-journey-part-i/), I have received four certifications in three months. I felt confident about the certifications that I had achieved and how they could help me as a professional. But how could I continue to grow my knowledge, and, more importantly, use this...
In late 2018, Microsoft began a shift in their certification program as it pertained to cloud. The change moved the cloud certifications from the traditional Microsoft MCP, MCSA, and MCSE paths into their own “role based” paths. https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/learning/certification-overview.aspx
Three’s a charm when coordinating these certifications. There are three key areas of focus: Azure, Microsoft 365, and Dynamics 365. Within these...
Modern authentication utilizing Identity Providers within the cloud creates a unique set of challenges. The most apparent of these is that users are utilizing their personal or work email addresses across multiple websites and applications on the public Internet. This is generally done without a complete understanding of where these identities are stored and who has access to them.
Apply Zero Trust to Identity When you apply Zero Trust to your identity and access management strategy, you should have a plan in place. This planning includes the deployment objectives, federation with multi-cloud and on-premises identity providers and systems, applying policies for conditional access, and security operations that will remediate issues and review analytics for gaps in controls.
The traditional way of securing identities does not provide the business agility, user experiences, and protections needed for a rapidly-evolving digital estate. Many organizations are implementing Zero Trust to alleviate these challenges and enable the new normal of working anywhere, with anyone, at any time.
However, the expanded ecosystem of remote users with multiple devices creates more attack surfaces to...
From the moment that a company makes a business decision to no longer contribute to leases on large and expensive data centers, the plan to migrate and modernize begins. The process of exiting a data center is not one without challenges, however. Most companies require outside assistance from a service provider that specializes in cloud adoption.
Five Strategies and Microsoft Solutions that Protect Against Ransomware Attacks
Ransomware has been in the news too frequently. In this article, “Five Strategies and Microsoft Solutions that Protect Against Ransomware Attacks,” we will address five (5) areas of focus that can decrease the attack surface and make it more difficult for an attacker to gain elevated privileges and take over...
Cybersecurity attacks continue to make headlines in the news. Our personal and business information is located on many different platforms over the cloud. Protecting this information from ransomware, brute force, injection, and man-in-the-middle attacks through proactive hunting, recognition, and resolution are paramount.
With Google’s announcement of the Siemplify acquisition, Google has strengthened their position...
This is a continuation of the two (2) part security series titled “Gimme Shelter”. The importance of securing your cloud and hybrid resources never decreases.
Part 1 of this series concluded on Friday, January 29 with Azure Sentinel, Part 1. The episodes in this series focused on Azure security services, technologies,...
As my first blog series wraps up this month for “Breaking Down the Azure Network Chains”, I wanted to find a new series to bring to the community. I have determined that this new series will be a two (2) part security series titled “Gimme Shelter”.
Part 1 of this series will focus on Azure security...
On Friday, August 7, 2020, I am launching a video series focusing on Azure Networking. On Friday of each week, a new video will be posted in the playlist as I build out descriptions of the Azure network services.
The list of services and premiere dates and times are provided here....
Back in April, I attended a presentation that explained the architecture. I thought that the ability to leverage your M365 subscription along with the Azure infrastructure was interesting, but the deployment did not, at the time, differentiate itself from a more mature Citrix VDI architecture. This perspective changed this...
Microsoft Azure has a wide range of services built into their cloud ecosystem. These services provide the ability to monitor resources, create and set policies, and identify and mitigate threats within not only the Azure infrastructure, but also to external resources for a consistent security posture across an organization. In the first...
I have created a video presentation of the break-out session that I was scheduled to present at Ignite the Tour - Chicago on April 16, 2020. As you know, this was cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic, but still wanted to share this information with you.
Please visit my YouTube page to access this video, and feel free to subscribe...
Thank you for everyone that attended my Virtual Live Expert Talk on Azure Sentinel on April 1, 2020.
The slides for this presentation can be accessed at this LINK. Skill Me Up is creating on-demand videos of the Expert Talks on their website, so this talk will be available...
Microsoft Azure has a wide range of services built into their cloud ecosystem. These services provide the ability to monitor resources, create and set policies, and identify and mitigate threats within not only the Azure infrastructure, but also to external resources for a consistent security posture...
Your organization has servers that need to be replaced, software that is at the end of support life, and no capital budget to upgrade. What can you do? Utilizing a cloud provider is an option, but your organization does not have expertise in performing migrations, and in addition, how do you choose...
You are a CIO/IT Director and your CFO has informed you that the organization wants to decrease the amount of capital investment in hardware, software, and real estate required in running data centers. The CFO wants you to transform these capital expenses into operating expenses and show a significant shift in next...
The Cloud continues to evolve, and the only constant is how it is ever-changing. How do organizations keep up and make the most out of cloud usage? Where are the key drivers and areas of immediate benefit when adopting a cloud usage model?
Here are five predictions for the future of cloud...
Microsoft Azure has a wide range of services built into their cloud ecosystem. These services provide the ability to monitor resources, create and set policies, and identify and mitigate threats within not only the Azure infrastructure, but also to external resources for a consistent...
Kubernetes, Containers, WebApps, App Services, Docker, DevOps, CI/CD, NoSQL, Cognitive Services, Bot Services, Micro-Services, Serverless computing, etc. The list goes on and on and on when it comes to the number of platform-based services that are available in Azure and other public cloud providers. In this article, I am...
Azure Back to School is back again this year. Last year, we had enough participants to have 1-2 presentations daily for all 30 days of September. I’d like to have twice this many...
In this article, you will be provided with guidance toward architecting a Zero Trust Framework within your Azure infrastructure. This will include areas of focus for identity, networking, devices, applications, and data for a defense in depth security design....
As mentioned in my 2022…The Year so Far post on 30 April 2022, I have been asked to be the Community Manager for Packt Publishing’s Security Pro Community.
Anyone that is involved or interested in security, cloud, on-premises, and hybrid is invited to join. The community is run on Discord. The link is below. Security...
Thank you very much to Joe Carlyle (@wedoazure) and Thomas Thornton (@tamstar1234) for organizing this event again this year. This is my third year participating and find this to be a great initiative with great content. Follow the #AzureSpringClean hashtag for daily content on https://www.azurespringclean.com/. Follow #AzureSpringClean on social media for daily posts on content.
This event will focus on a month of videos on Microsoft cloud technologies. This year, we will open it up to Microsoft 365 and Power Platform as well, even under though still under the Azure title.
This is my 2021 #AzureSpringClean contribution. Special thanks to Joe Carlyle (@wedoazure) and Thomas Thornton (@tamstar1234) for putting together this event for another year. All of the posts for this year’s event can be found at Azure Spring Clean.
If you are following along with the #FestiveTechCalendar, below are the lyrics to my video contribution, if you would like to sing along. https://festivetechcalendar.com/ Special Thanks to Richard Hooper and Gregor Suttie for coordinating this great #CloudFamily event. Happy Holidays, everyone!!! - One, certification poster with a path continued learning (first verse only) - One, path...
It’s September 1st, 2020. Today marks the first day of this month long event to learn more about Azure services. When I thought about this idea in February, the reason was to create an event as the summer ends to get everyone excited about learning Azure along the same lines of the...
Join the #cloudfamily with live and recorded sessions from the global community of Azure professionals. Dates for this event are April 23, 24, and 25, 2020. Join the sessions here: https://azureglobalbootcamp2020.azurewebsites.net/
Recorded sessions can be accessed on the Global Azure Virtual Bootcamp website or on the dedicated YouTube channel. Live sessions will...
The European SharePoint, Office 365 and Azure Community is providing a week of free online Azure learning starting on Monday May 25 through May 29. There will be webinars, guest speakers, and articles focusing on Azure technologies and services.
Today, I had the honor of being asked to be the keynote speaker at the virtual graduation ceremony for Focus:HOPE, a group that provides workforce development and education out of Detroit, Michigan USA.
Many of you may be aware, but Detroit, Michigan has been one of the “hot spots” in the United...
https://azurebacktoschool.tech has been redirected to a new GitHub pages site. This site has better mobile viewing and it will continue to be used annually for this event. This will be the location to find content for #AzureBacktoSchool. Content will be posted every day in September 2020 starting on...
Azure Advent Calendar 2019 - reposting this to remind everyone of the great videos available at https://azureadventcalendar.com/ and the YouTube channel.
Welcome to Day 13 of the Azure Advent Calendar. This has been a great experience to be a part of and...
You are an IT Director that is building a case to upper management to move data center resources to a public cloud infrastructure. However, when you looked at the costs associated with moving your current servers, databases, and storage environments, the return on investment did not make the impact that you expected...
You are a CIO/CTO who has been told that the organization needs to evaluate current infrastructure costs and how to maximize applications availability for your user. As you think about your long-term strategy, the benefits of moving to a cloud infrastructure to decrease capital expenses seem to be a potential option, but...
Your enterprise is building a roadmap to move applications to Microsoft® cloud services, both M365 and Azure. How will you determine whether to utilize an existing (or new) Enterprise Agreement (EA) for licenses, or purchase through a Cloud Solutions Provider (CSP)? This blog provides some questions to ask yourself along with some...
Harnessing AI in Amazon Web Services to Automate Security Operations
Revolutionizing Cloud Security through Artificial Intelligence
Introduction
In the rapidly evolving digital landscape, securing cloud-based infrastructure is paramount. Amazon Web Services (AWS), a leader in cloud computing, offers a suite of tools and services that leverage Artificial Intelligence (AI) to automate and enhance security operations. By integrating...
Enhancing Compliance and Mitigating Risk with Amazon Web Services
Leveraging AWS for Organizational Security and Governance
In today’s dynamic business landscape, organizations face multifaceted challenges in maintaining compliance and mitigating risks. Amazon Web Services (AWS), a leading cloud service provider, offers a comprehensive suite of tools and services designed to bolster compliance and reduce organizational risk. This article...
Amazon Web Services (AWS) offers a comprehensive suite of artificial intelligence (AI) services that enable businesses and developers to seamlessly integrate intelligent solutions into their applications. These services leverage the power of machine learning (ML) and deep learning to provide actionable insights, enhance user experiences,...
In this article, you will be provided with guidance toward architecting a Zero Trust Framework within your Amazon Web Services (AWS) infrastructure. This will include areas of focus for identity, networking, devices, applications, and data for a defense in depth security design. This article will close with a case study example of how...
This is part of a series of posts to use as a study guide for the AWS Security Specialty exam
What is SCP?
SCPs are Service control policies. These are types of organization policies to manage permissions in your organization. SCPs provide central control over the maximum available permissions that can be provided for all accounts within the organization. SCPs...
I have been preparing for the AWS Security Specialty exam which takes a deeper dive into the creation and use of policies to manage permissions within AWS. In this post, I will discuss some of these...
This is the fifth post of content for preparing yourself for becoming an AWS Solutions Architect Associate.
In this post, we are going to focus on CloudWatch on AWS.
As I have done previously let’s look at the similarities and differences to the closest equivalent in Azure. CloudWatch is the monitoring service for performance on AWS...
This is the first post of content for preparing yourself for becoming an AWS Solutions Architect Associate.
We are going to start by discussing AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM). As cloud architects and engineers we know already that IAM is extremely important to protecting our cloud infrastructures. That is no different within AWS.
This is the series of articles to use as a study guide for the (ISC)2 CGRC exam. In this article, we will discuss the Monitor steps in the Risk Management Framework.
This is the series of articles to use as a study guide for the (ISC)2 CGRC exam. In this article, we will discuss the Authorize steps in the Risk Management Framework.
This is the series of articles to use as a study guide for the (ISC)2 CGRC exam. In this article, we will discuss the Assess steps in the Risk Management Framework.
This is the series of articles to use as a study guide for the (ISC)2 CGRC exam. In this article, we will discuss the Implement steps in the Risk Management Framework.
This is the series of articles to use as a study guide for the (ISC)2 CGRC exam. In this article, we will discuss the Select steps in the Risk Management Framework.
This is the series of articles to use as a study guide for the (ISC)2 CGRC exam. In this article, we will discuss the Categorize steps in the Risk Management Framework.
This is the series of articles to use as a study guide for the (ISC)2 CGRC exam. In this article, we will discuss the Prepare steps in the Risk Management Framework.
