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I’m very proud and honored to have been invited at the second Security Field Day (#XFD2) event. This is a brand new Tech Field Day (TFD) event, the Tech Field Day team started the Security Field Day event because they recognized that security is just as vital to IT operations as storage, networking, or virtualization. And of course there is more demand on those type of topics.

You can learn more in this post by Tom Hollingsworth: Security Field Day – The Non-Conference.

As usually a TFD event mean means no crowds, no marketing stuff, in-depth and very interactive technical discussions, and live streamed for all to follow the event and the discussions.

At this moment the list of presenters is not complete, but the confirmed names are:

  • Banyan – new company for Tech Field Day events focused on continuous authorization for today’s dynamic workforce and distributed applications in hybrid and multi-cloud environments.
  • Edgewise Networks – new company for Tech Field Day events specialized in zero trust microsegmentation.
  • ExtraHop Networks – new company for Tech Field Day events specialized in deliver enterprise cyber analytics from the inside out, giving Security and IT teams the power to understand the entire environment from core to edge to cloud. 
  • Guardicore – new company for Tech Field Day events for application segmentation made simple to maximize speed and minimize risk.
  • Illumio – recurring sponsor (from other Network Field Day events) for
     protect their crown jewel applications, achieve regulatory compliance, securely migrate applications to the cloud, and to overcome all sorts of other data center and cloud security challenges.
  • Palo Alto – this company does not need presentation at all, considering their good security products and how they are gaining market share.
  • VMware – a recurring company to Tech Field Day events that also does not require introduction. Will be interesting see what will be the focus, but I guess will be NSX or AppDefense.

Why an infrastructure guy like me have been invited at a Security Field Day? The short answer is because I’ve proposed myself to a different TFD event, and of course they accept me.

Storage Field Day or generic Tech Field Day events remains my main target and references, but I really think that attend (sometimes, like one each year) to a different type of TFD event can really increase your knowledge and open your mind to new stuff.

Of course, this means to leave the comfort zone… but it means also learn something new or increase your knowledge where you are weaker or where you think that you should learn more.

And security it’s becoming pervasive not only in the network layer, but in the entire infrastructure layers. To make a simple example, for a VMware vSphere guy, just consider how NSX and/or AppDefense can completly change the security approaches.

And security it’s also evolving faster and faster, with the need for new technologies, but also new approaches. For example, think about a firewall, how the introduction of stateful firewall has changed the rules approach… and now how deep learning, or AI or new approaches can change again this world.

And security it’s not only a technological aspect (or it’s not limited to it), but requires an holistic and pragmatic approach, that include also organizational and process re-thinking.

All those reasons are enought to understand why I’m very exicted to attend at the #SDF2… but there are also more.

Learn from the other delegates (and the list is very impressive) in order to have different point of view and sharing experience is one other reason.

And learn the state of art is one other… it’s impressive how you can be ahead in timing (at least for the Italian technology reality) by following the TFD events: you can learn of new products just announced (or that will be announced), new companies that exit from stealth mode, new technologies that can become relevant in the next years, …

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Virtualization, Cloud and Storage Architect. Tech Field delegate. VMUG IT Co-Founder and board member. VMware VMTN Moderator and vExpert 2010-20 and vExpert Pro. Dell TechCenter Rockstar 2014-15. Microsoft MVP 2014-16. Veeam Vanguard 2015-19. Nutanix NTC 2014-20. Several certifications including: VCDX-DCV, VCP-DCV/DT/Cloud, VCAP-DCA/DCD/CIA/CID/DTA/DTD, MCSA, MCSE, MCITP, CCA, NPP.