2.5 Admins 250: Better RAIDz?

2.5 Admins 250: Better RAIDz?

Author: The Late Night Linux Family June 6, 2025 Duration: 32:26

Google bypasses the usual channels to distrust two certificate authorities, Meta’s new escalation in the privacy arms race, Allan gives us the inside details of a new mixed-disk-size ZFS RAID feature, and moving from UniFi gear to TP-Link.

 

Plugs

Support us on patreon and get an ad-free RSS feed with early episodes sometimes

The Overlooked Complexity of Firmware Security in the IoT Era

 

News/discussion

Google Chrome to Distrust Two Certificate Authorities Over Compliance and Conduct Issues

Meta pauses mobile port tracking tech on Android after researchers cry foul

Introducing ZFS AnyRaid, Sponsored by Eshtek

 

Free consulting

We were asked about moving from UniFi gear to TP-Link.

 

 

 

 

 

See our contact page for ways to get in touch.

 


Ever wondered what happens when two seasoned system administrators and a producer who knows just enough to be dangerous get together for a weekly chat? That’s the premise behind 2.5 Admins, a refreshingly honest tech podcast from The Late Night Linux Family. Hosts Allan Jude and Jim Salter bring their deep, real-world expertise to the table, while Joe Ressington-the “0.5” who can configure a Samba share on a good day-keeps the conversation grounded and relatable. Each episode feels like eavesdropping on a lively breakroom discussion, where the latest headlines in technology are dissected not with sterile analysis, but with the practical, sometimes weary perspective of people who keep the digital lights on. You’ll hear them tackle listener-submitted admin questions, offering solutions that are tried and tested rather than purely theoretical. This isn’t about hype or buzzwords; it’s about the tools, headaches, and occasional triumphs that define life in IT. The chemistry between the hosts makes complex topics accessible, and the blend of professional insight with Joe’s every-user viewpoint creates a uniquely balanced listen. If you’re looking for a tech podcast that feels like talking shop with knowledgeable friends, this is it.
Author: Language: en-us Episodes: 100

2.5 Admins
Podcast Episodes
2.5 Admins 225: Kinetic Response [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 30:06
The US government tells people to use encrypted messaging, mandated MFA in healthcare raises a scary geopolitical question, QNAP bungles a firmware update, and securing access to self hosted applications with mTLS. Plugs…
2.5 Admins 224: ZipLocked [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 30:04
Intel’s CEO departs but replacing him won’t magically solve its serious problems, Zipcar wasn’t prepared for an outage and handled it really badly, moving to an email provider that supports DMARC, and picking a NAS distr…
2.5 Admins 223: Google Juice Abuse [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 30:53
Equinix is shutting down its bare metal service, D-Link advises people to dump old vulnerable routers, Google makes changes to how it ranks some affiliate-driven “reviews”, and data caps seem to be sticking around. Plus…
2.5 Admins 222: Surprise Upgrade [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 30:22
Windows server unexpectedly upgrades major versions, Microsoft reinvents the idea of a thin client, restricting a friend’s access to just their backups, and the importance of warranties when buying hardware. Plugs Suppor…
2.5 Admins 221: Two Firewalls [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 35:58
Jim and Allan discover modern charging tech and marvel at what’s possible in the USB-C era, more on IPv6 firewalls, using ZFS like Git, and running your own authoritative DNS server. Automox Check out the brand new Auton…
2.5 Admins 220: Get a Job [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 31:08
How using a copy-on-write filesystem like ZFS can get systems back online within seconds after ransomeware encrypts all your data, and even warn you more quickly that it’s happening. Plus Jim and Allan’s advice on gettin…
2.5 Admins 219: Spooky Stories [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 32:37
It’s Halloween so Jim and Allan share horrific and spooky stories from their sysadmin careers. Plus picking a UPS for a homelab. Plugs Support us on patreon and get an ad-free RSS feed with early episodes sometimes Klara…
2.5 Admins 218: TLS TTL [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 31:20
SSL certificates are likely going to last less time, the latest Windows 11 update leaves a huge chunk of data behind and doesn’t play nicely with some SSDs, picking a modern dhcp server on a homebrew router, and storing…
2.5 Admins 217: Drive Scavenging [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 32:19
The difference between monitoring and metrics analysis, the security pros and cons of cloud vs on-prem, why Jim and Allan don’t use Unraid, and cloud storage and email for a small company. Feedback Netdata Nagios ZFS and…
2.5 Admins 216: Pa55w0rd% [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 30:01
NIST has finally proposed some sensible password standards, why server CPUs with high core counts make sense in a lot of deployments, the .io TLD is probably sticking around, and the best options for a Linux-based router…