2.5 Admins 312: Bus Factor

2.5 Admins 312: Bus Factor

Author: The Late Night Linux Family August 14, 2026 Duration: 26:47

In a world where photos can no longer be trusted, Jim argues that we should move to a default distrust model where images are signed at every stage of the process of creation. We get into some of the potential issues. Plus how to ensure continuity for your clients in the event of your demise, and setting up a system to demonstrate ZFS replication capabilities.

 

Plugs

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

Piss up at The Shipwrights Arms (just next to London Bridge station) on Saturday 5th September from 5pm until late

 

Discussion

Google Earth risked ruin with retracted AI tool for making fake satellite pics

Apple is working on a way to authenticate that a photo came from an iPhone camera

 

Free consulting

We were asked about how to ensure continuity for your clients in the event of your demise, and setting up a system to demonstrate ZFS replication capabilities.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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: 50

2.5 Admins
Podcast Episodes
2.5 Admins 295: Orbital Meltdown [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 28:19
Why putting data center satellites in orbit is a terrible idea, Google might show people a made-up version of your website, and ZFS on really old Dell servers. Plug Support us on patreon and get an ad-free RSS feed with…
2.5 Admins 294: Oh, R2 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 22:24
Arm announces its first CPU, Anthropic accidentally leaks the source for Claude Code and it’s terrible, and setting up a backup for a friend’s photos. Plugs Support us on patreon and get an ad-free RSS feed with some ear…
2.5 Admins 293: Reduced Flicker [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 27:20
Microsoft says Windows 11 is getting less rubbish but we are skeptical, vehicles with alcohol interlocks won’t start because the manufacturer’s server is down, and whether you should virtualise a router or a NAS. Plugs S…
2.5 Admins 292: Trivyally Infected [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 27:12
The US government is drumming up fear about foreign routers, a pretty serious supply chain attack might be state-sponsored, and the safety of filesystems inside VMs. Plugs Support us on patreon and get an ad-free RSS fee…
2.5 Admins 291: UPS for LiFePO4 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 28:43
Why passkeys aren’t the right solution to everything, Allan tells us why he loves his new Lithium Iron Phosphate UPS, Btrfs vs ZFS on root, and restricting Internet access for IoT devices on your network. Plugs Support u…
2.5 Admins 290: Tired of Tracking [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 28:33
Microsoft Authenticator will delete Entra credentials on phones that aren’t running stock ROMs, Jim’s nightmare experience trying to get a user back into their MS account, tracking vehicles via tire pressure monitors, us…
2.5 Admins 289: Hunter2 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 27:02
An exciting new cold storage technology seems to be getting closer, Nvidia seemingly wants a slice of the laptop hardware action, why you (and your users) should definitely not use LLMs to “generate” passwords , and whis…
2.5 Admins 288: HDD Tourism [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 28:38
Hardware scarcity and price hikes spread to hard drives, the Bcachefs dev thinks his AI is ‘fully conscious’, an agent might have gone after a FOSS maintainer, Jim is disappointed with an Ars author, and ZFS and VMs in t…
2.5 Admins 287: Dual Arguators [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 32:44
Jim and Allan disagree on how new hard drive tech is likely to work, more on storage and compute in the same box, and how we set up disk encryption on laptops. Plugs Support us on patreon and get an ad-free RSS feed with…
2.5 Admins 286: Windows Crashed [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 25:41
Notepad++ falls victim to a state-sponsored attacker, AI agents talk nonsense to each other on an insecure vibe coded social network, and backing up a laptop properly. Plugs Support us on patreon and get an ad-free RSS f…