It has been a few weeks since Geek Summer Camp has ended, oh how I miss seeing everyone.  Now that I have somewhat recovered from the whirlwind adventure, I figured it was time to put my thoughts into html. It was great to see everyone again – and see how much many of them have grown professionally over the past year. As you can see from the image at the top of this article, there is an amazing group that makes Cisco Live what it is.  It is not the education, not the vendors in World of Solutions, not even the keynotes – but the people you meet.  This group goes beyond just other attendees, there are people from the vendors (Cisco and others) that are great to see and catch up with.  Granted we all keep in touch primarily via Social Media (twitter, facebook, etc), but nothing beats a face-to-face talk.

This is an update to my original post that can be found here: LINK I just received an e-mail (below) in regards to the CCIE/CCDE NetVet reception that was originally scheduled for Wednesday, June 29th.  Per the e-mail, the reception is now scheduled for **Thursday, June 29 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m**.  Below is the context of the e-mail in case you miss it or have not registered. This event is invite-only and only available to CCIE/CCDE NetVet attendees. In case you are wondering what a NetVet it, it is a person who has attended at least three previous Cisco Live conferences in the last five years (making CLUS 2017 your fourth event attended in that timeline). E-mail image is below:

Cisco Live is just a few days away and I wanted to blog about the Pearson Vue testing center location.  I waited a few days to release this post until I was able to confirm with Cisco Live Support my suspicions on the location. In the past, the testing center has been located in the lower levels of the Mandalay Bay Convention Center, but this year we see a departure from that routine.  If you review the Cisco Live Certifications Page (Link Here), you will notice that one section mentions that the_** testing center is located over at the MGM Grand Hotel.**_ Yes, the testing center is at a different hotel this year.

Cisco Live is just a few days away and I figured it was a good time for a Know Before You go type post. Here are some important things to know before you go:

• Know the Wireless info!
  Wireless SSID: #CLUS
  Protocol: WPA2 – personal
  Passcode: @ciscolive

• It’s going to be HOT HOT HOT.
  Pack accordingly, but also don’t forget that we will be inside for most of the conference. This also means drink lots of water!
  Here is a 14-day forecast for Las Vegas taken from Time and Date.  To sum it up, we are looking at high temperatures over 100**°** F / 37**°** C every day.

• Know the bus schedule!Here is a link to the bus schedules and their pickup/dropoff locations.

It amazes me that in just a few more weeks it will be time for Cisco Live 2017 to begin in Las Vegas, NV.  If you are a CCIE / CCDE, you know that one of the highlights for us is the CCIE Party.  Some of the places that they have had the party at have been amazing – that beach in San Diego was just amazing! I have not heard any solid information as of today (6/11) about the location of the part, just that there will be a party on the standard Tuesday evening.  So if you are still making plans for the week, just remember to keep Tuesday night open for this. **———————– UPDATE 6/14/17 ———————– ** I just received my CCIE Party invite in my e-mail and have heard others have as well.  It is confirmed that the party is on Tuesday, 6/27 from 7 PM to 10 PM.  Shuttles will be picking us up at the Shark’s Reef Entrance (same place as last year) and taking us over to where the party is.  Return shuttles will run to Mandalay Bay, Luxor, and Cosmopolitan. To enter the party you will need your Cisco Live Badge and proper government-issued photo ID for entry. So if you bring a guest (one guest per person allowed), make sure they have their badge and their ID. See you at the party! ————————– END UPDATE ————————–

This morning while looking at new blog posts I came across one that grabbed me.  For forever and a day the Cisco CCIE recertification policy was that you are required to take a CCIE/CCDE level written exam every two years to stay active.  Well, reading Daniel’s blog over at LostInTransit, it seems that has finally changed. Seems today (6/6/17) Cisco has updated their recertification policy to also include a Continuing Education Program where you earn credits that will count towards recertification. This brings their recertification policy in line with other certification tracks (CISSP, CISA, ISC2, etc.). Reading the Cisco Continuing Education Program site, it seems that the program is based on three principles – Flexibility, Diversity, and Integrity.  Flexibility means that there are now additionals ways for CCIE/CCDE to recertify besides the written exams.  Diversity is by allowing individuals to take approved courses and training, as well as Cisco Live offerings.  Integrity is based on having Cisco authorized providers to validate the class and credits that a person takes. Here is a bulleted list of the information that I have been able to find:

Cisco Live 2017 is just over a month away, amazing how the time flies!  There is time to [register,][1] so what are you waiting for? You waiting for the closing keynote speaker to be announced If that is the case then you missed the announcement last week from the @CiscoLive twitter account.  There they announced the closing Keynote Speaker as none other than Bryan Cranston! Bryan is a multi-talented actor, voice actor, screenwriter, director, producer, and even an author.  His most famous role is that of Walter White from Breaking Bad.  I am really curious to see what he will say as I was not able to find any TED talks or anything else from him.  There is a good chance that this will rank up there with William Shatner.  Perhaps Bryan has a boat story that we need to know about ( you had to be there!).  Based on the below video from 2013, I am sure there will be some great entertainment.

How many of us have a home network rack in a closet someplace and leave the door open (or just off) to help keep things cool?   Has your home lab been tucked away under the stairs so you don’t need to hear it? Or is it in the open so it stays cool and the noise drives you (or your other half) nuts? Well, let me tell you about what I am using to keep my home rack cool in a closet. For me, I have a bunch of Ubiquiti devices (future post), Synology NAS, Cable Modem, UPS’, and some Intel NUC servers in my home rack.  I also have a decent amount of lab Cisco and Juniper gear that I spin up when necessary ( I use an APC managed PDU ).  Overall it is fairly quiet, but I still wanted to keep it out of the eyes of others and also to keep the kids from touching anything. What I found is that when I closed the door, the temperature in the closet would rocket up and I would start to get temperature alarms from devices.  That forced me to keep the door open, not an optimal solution for when guests are over.

It is time for a [Cisco Live][1] update… and this update has some information about the Cisco Store, contests, and what everyone is waiting for, the CAE headliner over at the T-Mobile Arena! Once again this year Cisco Live will be giving out daily Amazon Gift Cards to people who submit their best photos/videos/gifs on Twitter and Instagram with the tag of #CLUS.  You can snap a photo around the Cisco Live sign, Super Hero Cape and Mask, Keynotes, Cisco Hat, Tiles, just about anything.  This is a great contest – and the prizes are awesome! For the overly ambitious people, create an album and share that with the #CLUS tag as well!  They are rumored to be giving away a 2018 Social Pass to their favorite album!  Now that is a cool prize!