SJA

Yes, we had the same problem. My complaint went to director level and they denied any knowledge. We have wasted so much money replacing these before their time. Further to this, almost all our Stone desktops have developed fan issues which required replacing. They are on our avoid list.

Queens' School Aldenham Road Bushey WD23 2TY Phone: 01923 224465 Queens' School | A specialist sports and science college NOR: 1670 (including 350 in sixth form) Assistant Network Manager Pay Scale: H7 (26-29) (£23,166 - £25,694) 36 Hours per week, full time We are looking for an Assistant Network Manager to join our small team responsible for all aspects of IT. To provide the development, support, maintenance and security of all IT systems. Applications to the Headteacher, Jonathan Morrell, to include school application form, covering letter and full contact details of two referees (e-mail [email protected] ) For Job Description and Application Form please visit our website Vacancies | Queens' School Closing date: Midday Thursday 6th July If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. Queens’ school is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. All appointments will require an enhanced DBS record check and references from previous employers. Queens’ School (Bushey) Ltd (registered number: 07650609)

A very relevant thread for me right now. Does anyone feel the pension is something that draws them towards staying in education? I fully understand that if you're really unhappy then the pension can be seen as a trivial issue.

Yes, it would be very interesting to clarify that. We are starting plans to move to Google Apps and the potential future MS licencing costs are a significant driver behind this. The future licensing costs will be influencing how much of our IT we move to other alternatives. Windows itself is next on my radar.

Oh good luck with all that. We did it also, and it was a nightmare. It was also a horror just buying and obtaining upgrade software! I am determined to try and move the music department away from it to an alternative next time it's due for renewal/upgrade.

Really grateful for the replies so far. Thank you Ruckus is definitely somewhere around the top of my list for the hardware. All suggestions for hardware and supplier very welcome.

I am looking for a new wireless network for our (large) school in the South Hertfordshire/North London area. I have my own existing suppliers, but I would like to open the door to new ones for this project. This is because wireless often requires people with training and experience to advise, supply, and setup properly. It would be useful to find a company who specialises more in the wireless side of things than just everything, and has more than one qualified engineer. Also, some of my existing suppliers are glued to HP/Dell or such like, and I want to explore the all best options. I'm looking for companies to put themselves forward*, and persuade me that they are brilliant. I'm also looking for recommendations from fellow Edugeek users. As well as all the other things I mention, after sales support will be important. Thank you! *We use HP Comware switches, and Fortigate UTM, and will be looking for people who can work with us to integrate all this together.

Who implied that seeking knowledge and solutions online means you are not good at your job? I suspect it more likely means they (the accuser) are a troublesome person. Maybe someone who doesn't work in IT support?

I received one of these free AP's with a three year license. It was disabled after one year and has been gathering dust ever since. A reminder of what can happen when someone else controls access to and management of your equipment.

The stacks of four do bother me slightly. Would there be a major advantage of using IRF in our situation? The current plan is that there would be an LACP link back to the core, using the top and bottom edge switch in each stack. This along with the stacking would provide full redundancy against one dead switch or module, as well as max 20Gb bandwidth back to the core. What I do find slightly concerning is the way HP don't describe this on the spec of the 2920, as I know that with Juniper and Dell it's called MC-LAG and is a big selling point.

Thanks to all of you who have replied so far. Some good food for thought. I'm still looking into the options and thinking about it. One thing to mention is that we don't plan for any Software Defined Networking. Most of our traffic is core to edge, and adding more cabling to make a 'web' wouldn't be worth it in our environment.

We're planning a major switch refresh this summer. HP is one of the strong contenders. The HP proposal is essentially a 10GbE network with HP 5820 at the core, and HP 2920 at the edge (access). There are several standalone 2920, and some in stacks (currently biggest are stacks of four devices but maybe five one day). I'm wondering if 2920 is the best choice for the edge, over the alternative which might be a 5130. I'm pretty sure both these are very common edge switches, and many people on here will have chosen to go with one or the other (maybe mixed in a few cases). I know that we can stack four of the 2920 together, and if we require five then a new stack is needed (and will use up more fibre cores and 10GbE ports in the core). The 2920's make use of modules for 10GbE and stacking, whereas the 5130 have what is required built in. I am just wondering, if there is anything you guys think one of these (2920 or 5130) does better over the other? I am told in regard to pricing that there is not that much in it. I know they are both good switches, and will work for years doing what they are fundamentally required for. I know about the two firmware types and generally either seem to be well regarded. So where is the extra benefit with one or the other? Why did you choose one over the other? In my case they both will do what I need them for fundamentally (switching, QoS [VoIP], multicast, VLAN, 802.1x, LACP, virtual chassis), but I would be interested if either has some better authentication features for end device or user control. Is there any difference you can suggest that someone could make use of? Essentially, which one did you choose, and why?

We have a Cisco system near end of life. No way will it be replaced with Cisco again! Given the choice of Cisco or Ruckus, I'd be choosing Ruckus.

We have been ordering from Ebuyer until recently. A Yodel delivery was botched and failed. Various issues, including trying to deliver to us at 9pm. Under no circumstances will we place any more orders with Ebuyer while they use Yodel (unless they improve considerably)!

Dado trunking under the bench. Cable tray just under the dado trunking. Holes cut in desktop. We have moved towards PC's mounted to monitor with stands. These usually have a cable cover that hides the mess at the back of the PC. It's the tidiest we have been able to make them, and it works very well.

Medhurst Dashboard.

Medhurst Dashboard.

I have just had a trial of a Fortinet device, and am currently in the second week of a Palo Alto trial. I managed to persuade the supplier to set up the Palo as a fully operational firewall and filtering device, rather than the in-line mode they usually advocate. This has allowed me to trial it in more detail, as it is functioning as it would if we were to go ahead and buy. I have the budget approved for both the Fortigate and Palo Alto. At the moment I am just really not convinced by all the praise that the Palo Alto receives. I am not thoroughly persuaded at the moment that it does anything more than slightly better than the Fortigate. It is very expensive. I see also that the log size is somewhat limited on the box (PA 3020), and the supplier suggests buying the Panorama product. This is another several thousand pounds! The Safe Search feature works, but it is annoying. With the Fortigate device it worked without bothering anyone. The Palo Alto insists that you set your own Safe Search to 'filter explicit results'. This is currently causing disruption to students and staff, as well as increased calls to support, as many people see an 'error' and immediately freeze and call IT support. I have trialled Sonicwall, Cyberoam, Watchguard, Smoothwall, Fortinet, Palo Alto, and considered Lightspeed, Bloxx, Sophos, Meraki, Cisco, Juniper, and Barracuda. They are all lacking in some significant way that makes the perfect solution (for us) possibly a combination of two of them. However, we can't afford that, and so I will have to make a compromise. This is why I need something that fits as closely as possible. Therefore it will likely be Fortinet or Palo Alto.

I am currently trialling a Sonicwall. Nearly at the end. Will not be buying. It's buggy. The web content filtering leaves a bit to be desired. Regarding the application filtering, I carefully applied rules to block all sorts of nasties, including Ultrasurf. I tested Ultrasurf, and it was allowed right through. I Googled this issue and was led to This is unrelated to the specific block Ultrasurf rule which I had already implemented. I'm a bit annoyed by this.

Have had a cold call from Exponential-e offering some very low cost broadband. I must admit I haven't heard of them before. Before moving forward, I was hoping to find out if anyone else uses them. What have been your experiences? I'm also keen to find out a bit about their network... Are they reselling/re branding another product (BT Wholesale, Entanet, Daisy etc)? Who do they peer with? Anything else that's useful. I'm a bit concerned by the reviews here: Exponential-E Reviews, Price Quotes, Problems, Support | Spiceworks Other than that, info is very thin! I'd be very grateful for any info or experiences you might have to share.

Queens' School A Specialist Sports & Science College (Academy) Aldenham Road Bushey WD23 2TY http://www.queens.herts.sch.uk JUNIOR IT TECHNICIAN 8.30 am – 4.30 pm (Full time) We seek a reliable and enthusiastic person for this junior role. You will provide first line support for hardware, software and user issues. Experience with Microsoft technologies is essential. Experience with networks is an advantage. The role of the Junior IT Technician involves supporting the staff and students, as well as diagnosing and troubleshooting basic problems with the IT equipment. It is a varied role, providing plenty of challenges, and a great opportunity to learn. You would learn most things on the job, but for the right person we will provide training for CompTIA A+ or similar. It would be highly suitable for someone starting their IT career who has a great passion and aptitude for Information Technology. This year we are undertaking a project to modernise the IT systems. This will include a fully virtualised server environment (Hyper-V), Microsoft System Centre 2012, and Windows 7. Job Description: Junior IT Technician Reports to: Network Manager and Senior IT Support Engineer. -Predominantly works on one side of the school, but flexibility to cover any area may be needed. -Provide first line IT support to the school. -Respond quickly in an appropriate manner to all requests for assistance or support. -Be available by phone, email etc during working hours. -Support, troubleshoot, and maintain basic hardware, infrastructure, software, and operating systems. -Setup new equipment (e.g. PC’s, laptops, printers, projectors, visualisers, and others). -Proactively check and ensure devices are fully operational. -Assist with day to day running of the school network, including tasks such as but not limited to changing toner and ink cartridges, backups, cabling, software installation, hardware installation, asset register, and upgrades. -Ensure server rooms and office are kept clean and tidy, including disposal of boxes etc. -Assist with any reasonable technical or administrative IT related task that may be requested. -Complete all work to a high standard, under the supervision of the senior engineer, network manager, and SLICT. Salary range: £14,387 - £15,531 per annum (including fringe) - depending on experience. Letter of application together with full CV and names of two referees should be sent to the Head, Terence James. (e-mail: [email protected] ) Closing date: Friday 30 March Queens’ School (Bushey) Ltd (registered number: 07650609) If you would like to discuss this opportunity further, please contact our Network Manager, Steve Jaques at [email protected]