The time was September, 2014. Scotland narrowly voted to stay in the U.K. Guardians of the Galaxy was the number one box office hit. And the Devolutions Crew was busy asking the wonderful members of our community (a.k.a. YOU) to share the top 3 reasons to become a SysAdmin, and the top 3 reasons not to become a SysAdmin.

So today, as we gear up to celebrate SysAdmin Appreciation Day on July 28, we thought it would be fun to hit the wayback button and recap the results from our September 2014 poll.

Top 3 Reasons to Become a System Administrator

1. You’re always needed.

As a SysAdmin, someone always needs your help. At times it can be overwhelming, but it’s nice to know how essential you are. Your job really matters.

2. You help others.

This is an extension of the first reason to be a SysAdmin: you’re very helpful, even to the point that people think you have superpowers (which you kind of do, in the sense that you have the power of the life and death over their computer, software, devices, and so on!). But really, what makes this aspect of the job so special is that you get the chance to work with some great people, and make a positive difference in their lives.

3. You get to play with the newest toys.

As a SysAdmin, you’re always first in line when it comes to playing with the newest techie toys — and best of all, you’re paid to do it! Plus, you’re constantly learning new things, which boosts your knowledge and supports your career progression.

Top 3 Reasons NOT to become a System Administrator:

1. STRESS!

Ugh. When you’re a SysAdmin, everything is URGENT — even when it’s not!  There’s a lot of pressure, especially since most of your colleagues don’t understand what you do (and never will). Sometimes you may not even want to open your email, because you know there are a lot of freaked out people banging on your virtual door.

2. Hours, hours… and more hours!

SysAdmins work long hours — there is no typical 9-5 workday. Sometimes you get a call at 7am, other times you’re just about to settle in to watch Game of Thrones, and you have to spring into action. And even when you aren’t solving problems, there’s always ongoing maintenance, updates, patches, and so on. You’re working lots of weekends, holidays, and even on SysAdmin Appreciation Day!

3. Your advice is sometimes ignored.

As a SysAdmin, you have a clear understanding of what’s really going on with your IT infrastructure. You know about the inefficiencies, the security vulnerabilities, the users who do things they really shouldn’t be doing, and so on. But what happens when you escalate all of this feedback to the Powers That Be in your company? A lot of times, they don’t do anything. So that means you often have to wait for things to turn into a full-blown crisis before people actually take action, and do what you advised them to do months or years beforehand.

Our Opinion

At Devolutions, we have an enormous respect for SysAdmins, and we work very hard to make your lives easier and simpler. We know the pressures you face, and we also know that you don’t always (or often) get the recognition and praise that you deserve. That’s why we’re dedicating a whole week to appreciating the SysAdmins out there.  Keep up the essential and amazing work!

As you hopefully know, here at Devolutions we think we have the SMARTEST community of IT pros in the world (make that the galaxy). But every now and then, we like to throw out a quiz to test this immense wisdom. In the past, we’ve tested your knowledge of two sacred topics: Star Trek and Remote Desktop Manager.

Today, I’m thrilled to share the latest addition to our diagnostic roster by asking: are you a TRUE techie? Take this quiz and find out!

As you probably know, SysAdmin Appreciation Day is tomorrow. And to continue our series of blog posts on the topic, today I’m pleased to share 10 ways to celebrate this special occasion on the geek calendar:

1. Get Your Creativity On

Why not take a moment to work on a project that has absolutely nothing to do with work? Stimulating your creativity can be very motivating, and allows you to escape — at least momentarily — from the chaos that you deal with each day.

2. Prank Your Colleagues…Just Because!

Being the IT Master in your environment has its perks, including the fact that you can prank your friends and spend the next several days (or weeks or months) reminding them about it. Here’s a hilarious but harmless suggestion: install a browser extension that changes all of the images to Nicolas Cage (which someone actually did here at Devolutions once upon a time…).

3. Game On!

Why not take the day (or part of the day, if you aren’t lucky enough to be off duty!) to play your favorite games? You deserve to have some fun. Hey, even Superman needs a break from time to time.

4. Chest Thump Like King Kong

Even if you’re the humble behind-the-scenes type, spend the day tomorrow reminding your colleagues just how valuable you are. If you need some inspiration, here’s a blog post we wrote on why IT pros are the life-giving veins of an organization.

5. Party Like a Rock Star

One nice thing about SysAdmin Day is that it always falls on a FRIDAY, which means for many of you, it’s the last work day of the week! So why not hit your favorite spot for drinks, or try something new like going to karaoke? Maybe in the middle of a passionate rendition of My Way you’ll be spotted by a talent scout and get a recording deal.

6. Bacon & Beer

If you’re not a Canadian, then become an honorary Canuck for a day by getting a pound of Canadian Maple Bacon and some of your favorite craft microbrewery beer, then heading outside to bask in the glory of doing absolutely nothing. Good times.

7. Eat Whatever You Want

Not a bacon and beer fan? No problem! Reward yourself by eating whatever you want. Feel like pizza for breakfast? Live the dream, my friend. Want to make a restaurant regret ever having uttered the words “all you can eat”? Make it so!

8. Vacation Time

If you’re one of the lucky IT pros out there that get the day off, then why not treat yourself to a mini vacation? You don’t have to go far. Just head out to a local park, visit your favorite part of the city — there’s no limit! You’ll have fun, reduce stress, and come back to your job ready to tame the IT chaos in your world.

9. Gift Yourself

You spend so much time helping other people — why not treat yourself by getting a nice gift? Go ahead and indulge yourself on this special occasion. You deserve it!

10. Save on RDM!

Hey, you know what’s even more fun than celebrating SysAdmin Day? Saving money! And we’ll help you get started by reminding you that until midnight tomorrow (July 28), you’ll save 50% on an RDM Enterprise License. With the money you save, you can buy more bacon and beer! ??

What Are Your SysAdmin Traditions?

Do you have any fun and unique SysAdmin traditions? Or do you have anything special planned tomorrow? Please comment below and tell us what you’re up to.

Can you believe that SysAdmin Day is TOMORROW? On behalf of Devolutions team, I hope that you’ve enjoyed our series of blogs celebrating this special day on the IT calendar. Here’s a recap of all the fun stuff we’ve been up to:

• The Origins of SysAdmin Day
• 3 Reasons to Become – or Not to Become — a SysAdmin
• 10 Interesting Ways to Celebrate SysAdmin Day
• Our 50% Off Sale on an RDM Enterprise Single License (hurry though, the sale ends tomorrow!)

But guess what? We're not finished yet, because I have something VERY SPECIAL to share: I recently had the privilege of speaking with the IT pro who created SysAdmin Day back in 2000: the one and only Ted Kekatos!

As you might expect, my conversation with Ted was very interesting, and he shared some insights about his work experience, and technology in general. I really wanted to get to know The Man behind SysAdmin Day a little more! If you want to learn more about the celebration, read this GREAT interview he did with Spiceworks. Below are some key takeaways from our discussion that I couldn’t wait to share with all of you!

On the eternal debate between Android vs. iPhone…

I was curious to learn about Ted’s view on Android vs. iPhone, which is a topic that we’ve explored here as well in previous polls. Well, if you thought that Ted was a big Apple guy or a dedicated Android fan —you’d be right and wrong at the same time! That’s because he doesn’t have a clear preference on the matter. His view is that as long as his smartphone does what he needs it do, then it doesn’t matter. With that being said, he does have two Android phones, one for his personal use, and one for work. So, I guess that’s 10 points for the Android team!

On whether he’s a Sysadminotaur fan…

Whenever I meet people from around the world — either online or in person — I’m always happy to hear that they’re big fans of our beloved comic strip Sysadminotaur. I was thrilled to discover that Ted is too; he reads them all! When I inquired about his favorite, he mentioned this month’s Sysadminotaur which is about — you guessed it — SysAdmin Appreciation Day. Good choice Ted!

On his tech heroes…

My team and I love looking into new technologies, and celebrating the heroes that are behind them. I figured that with Ted’s global profile, he probably met many of these larger-than-life visionaries. When I asked him about this, he brought up two very interesting names: Steve Wozniak and Dean Kamen.

As most of you know, Steve Wozniak— or The Woz — co-founded Apple, and together with Steve Jobs helped pioneer the personal computer era. He was also an inventor, electronics engineer, programmer, tech entrepreneur, and a quite charitable and philanthropic man.

Dean Kamen is the man behind Segway – now you know who to thank! He's also the co-foundeder of FIRST, or For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology, which is an international youth organization that aims to inspire engineering and technology students through cooperative competition.

On his must-have IT tools…

I wanted to know which tools Ted couldn’t live without as a sysadmin, so I could share this valuable information with all of you. He jokingly told me that he doesn’t need any tool to survive! But he understood the point of my question, and mentioned three tools:

1. SoftPerfect Network Scanner. This is used by sysadmins and other IT pros working in the network and device security space. It lets you ping computers, scan ports, and discover shared folders. Plus, it can retrieve practically all information about network devices via WMI, SNMP, HTTP, SSH and PowerShell.
2. Microsoft Outlook and SharePoint. I can understand why Ted picked these. Outlook and SharePoint are great because they are much more than simple apps. There are many features that make them powerful teamwork solutions.
3. Remote Desktop Manager. Yeah! Ted said he’s been using RDM since day one, and has been an ambassador of our products ever since. Currently, he uses RDM to store around 260 entries, which includes 80% RDP, 10% SSH and 10% web connections. Thanks Ted, we appreciate your support and loyalty!

On his worst help ticket experience…

I thought it would be fun to ask Ted about the worst help ticket he’s ever experienced — we asked this in a poll last year and the responses were hilarious. Well, Ted’s answer was fairly short: he said that there have been so many bad ones, that he just couldn’t pick one! I couldn’t stop laughing when he said this. I’m pretty sure many of you can relate!

On mentoring…

Ted has had many interesting and noteworthy professional accomplishments — including of course creating SysAdmin Day! — but one thing that really came to light during our conversation, was how much he enjoys mentoring at his company. He stressed the value of sharing his knowledge and experience, and helping young professionals develop their skills.

On his top 3 reasons to become a sysadmin…

As mentioned above, one of the blogs we featured this week looked at the top 3 reasons to become a sysadmin, based on input from our amazing community. I was curious to get Ted’s take on this, and here are his top 3 reasons for entering the profession:

1. To work with new technology
2. To help and educate users
3. To learn something new everyday

On his advice to new IT grads…

Recently, we asked the experienced IT pros in our community to share some advice with young professionals who have just finished school, and are now entering the professional IT world. As you’d expect, I really wanted to know what Ted thought about this, especially since he’s so dedicated to mentoring. Here’s what Ted advises for all emerging IT professionals:

• It’s very important to work on your technical skills, and keep up with new technologies and techniques. Always remember that the IT world evolves very fast.
• To be a great IT pro, you need to be professional at all times, have good people skills, and always deliver the best support possible.

On his broader mission…

Ted shared that he would love to change the view that sysadmins are nerds and geeks. He thinks that this marginalizes and limits people, and creates a prejudice. He believes that sysadmins are part of a great big global community of professionals who share similar interests, and work very hard to make everyone else’s lives easier. Ted, we couldn’t agree more with you on this one, and our community of amazing IT pros is a perfect example!

Thank You Ted!

I was honored to have the opportunity to chat with Ted, and while of course I thanked him when we spoke, allow me the chance to do so again: THANK YOU TED!

Your Turn!

What do you think of Ted’s insights? Please comment below and share what’s on your mind.

HAPPY SYSADMIN DAY EVERYONE!  The special day has finally arrived. If you’re not sure how to mark this annual occasion, read our blog post and discover 10 fun and interesting ways to celebrate.

Also, today is your LAST CHANCE to purchase a Remote Desktop Manager Enterprise Single License and save 50%. So, whether you’re planning on heading out tonight to dine and drink, or maybe ordering a pizza and having yet another Game of Thrones marathon, make sure that you get your RDM license now — because it might be gone before you know it! Click below to lock-in the discount:

 *Please note that this offer only applies to Remote Desktop Manager Enterprise single license, and will not work for any other products or packages.

Already a RDM user?

If you’re currently using RDM Free, now is a great time to upgrade to the Enterprise version. For an overview of the two editions, check out this helpful comparison.

And if you’re currently using RDM Enterprise, please share this special offer with your fellow IT pros, so they can save money — and you can earn some gratitude.

Curious About SysAdmin Day?

If you want to learn more about SysAdmin Day (which is also known as SysAdmin Appreciation Day), read this blog post to discover the origins. You can also get to know Man behind the celebration - Ted Kekatos - in this very cool interview.

Keep in Touch

If you have any questions, comments, advice — or want to share how you’re spending SysAdmin Day in your world — please comment below.

Once again, we wish you an AMAZING SysAdmin Day!

Remember when the “next big thing” was HDTV? Well, these days HDTV is standard, and what everyone’s looking forward to is when (not if) Virtual Reality takes over and thrusts us into the action. I mean, can you imagine watching a baseball game as if you were standing in the batter’s box? What about watching your favorite rock band as if you were on stage?

Of course, the problem right now is that while VR is cool, high-end displays are expensive and programming is limited. So, for most of us (i.e. those that don’t light our cigars with $100 bills!), it’s going to be a while before we dive into the VR experience. Or is it?

You may not be aware, but there are some surprisingly low-cost headsets available. All you need is to plug your headset into a smartphone or tablet, head to the web, and voilà: you can get your VR fix anytime, anywhere. Here’s a look at 7 really cool apps that I think you’ll enjoy:

Cardboard

Google’s Cardboard is a good place to start if you’re new to the VR universe. The app lets you explore the planet with Google Earth, visit famous places, watch your favorite videos and more. Yeah, it’s been around for a while, but it’s still a must-have app.

Within VR (VRSE)

This one is my personal favorite. VRSE, which is now called Within – VR, offers a collection of high-quality short films and documentaries. The company behind this app works hard to give users an amazing experience. The app immerses you in intense and beautiful situations that will fascinate you. I highly recommend it!

Titans of Space

The two previous apps let you visit interesting places on earth, but Titans of Space will launch you into space. You’ll see what things look like from the captain’s chair, and the experience lasts about an hour. This app is amazing. Check it out – trust me, you won’t regret it.

YouTube

Yes, that’s right: good old YouTube, home to an infinite number of cat videos and unboxings, actually has some surprisingly cool VR videos. Just download the app and immerse yourself in a 360 degree experience. Grumpy Cat would approve.

Chair in a Room

If you’re an easily scared person, don’t try this one alone at night. Chair in a Room is an immersive horror game with a storyline that will, sooner or later, make you scream and jump up in fright (so make sure you don’t have a beer in your lap or anything!). And no: the game isn’t about you sitting on a chair in a room. There are multiple environments, stories, and many mysteries to resolve.

Fulldive VR

Fulldive is one of the most useful VR apps out there because it allows you to do many different things, including:

• Explore and stream YouTube Videos (normal, 3D and 360 videos)
• Watch your videos
• Browse the internet in VR with the app’s built-in VR browser
• Take VR pictures and videos
• Store and access your pictures and videos in the VR gallery
• Access all VR applications you have installed on your phone directly

You’ll also soon be able to use the app to watch Netflix and stream content to a monitor. I’ve tried lots of VR apps, and this is likely the most practical.

Nighttime Terror VR

This VR game was one of the first I ever played, and I’m still fascinated by it. Nighttime Terror VR is simple and fun. Here’s the story: you’re in a kid-like environment and must defend yourself from the evil toys. There’s also a demo if you’d like to give it a try before buying.

What should I try next?

Have you tried any of these apps? If so, please share your experiences. Please also let me know what apps I should try next!

Last month, we asked you to share your favorite IT conferences. There were some great responses, including an interesting discussion on paying for IT conferences. We’ll explore that further in a minute.

First, here’s a snapshot of some of your favorite conferences:

• #TechstravaganzaNYC
• Salon Informatique ProContact
• VeeamON
• VMworld

These are conferences that some of you are planning to attend, or wish that you could attend:

• VMUG UserCons
• AWS re:INVENT
• DEF CON

And some of the best perks of attending an IT conference:

• Discovering and learning about new products or product features
• Networking with peers
• High quality sessions and speakers
• Meeting major IT leaders
• Connecting with vendors

Need to Convince Your Boss?

As mentioned earlier, there was an interesting discussion about covering costs. As community member Tea EarlGreyHot (love that username!) pointed out, “Companies do not want to pay any money for conferences.”

This is something that a lot of conference planners have noticed as well, and many of them are now including “how to convince your boss” hacks and template proposals that make a compelling case. For example, Cyber Security Chicago has a good one here.

Also, some conferences are free, such as AWS Summits, VMUG User Cons, and Oracle CloudWorld events. No, it’s not the same as VMworld or AWS re:INVENT, but it’s still a chance to increase your knowledge, connect with peers and have some fun!

Conference Funding Hacks

Community member Ben Liebowitz mentioned that he has used crowdfunding in the past to help cover the costs of attending IT conferences. That’s a great idea. If you have any conference funding hacks — or you have a colleague or friend who has some good ideas about this — please share them below so we can all benefit!

And the Winners Are…

The July poll winners are…drum roll please…Darren Toews and Peter Nopp. Congratulations! Please send me your email address at malie@devolutions.net to claim your prize.

Thank You!

Thank you to everyone who participated in the poll. Hopefully we’ll have a chance to meet all of you at a conference in the near future. And please stay tuned for the August poll, it’s coming up very soon.

As you may recall, a couple of weeks ago we announced that each week we’d be spotlighting a wonderful new team member. Well, we took a break last week to celebrate SysAdmin Day (which was more like SysAdmin Week around here). But we’re back on schedule now, so it’s my pleasure to introduce you to our new software developer, Marie-Pier Robitaille!

The first thing is that Marie-Pier is a woman, which wouldn’t be notable in fields like medicine or marketing. But the IT world is still very male-dominated for a lot of reasons, including the fact that at a young age, many highly intelligent women are implicitly (and sometimes explicitly) steered away from careers in technology, and into more “traditional” fields.

I’m so proud of Marie-Pier and women like her who are not just extremely good at their jobs, but are also serving as role models for future generations of IT experts and leaders. I’m also proud to be working for a company like Devolutions that is VERY committed to equality, diversity and inclusion. From our CEO to our interns, we’re all one big happy family (unless we’re having our annual foosball tournament in pursuit of the DEVOLUTIONS CUP, in which case it’s every team for themselves!).

So, with that being said, allow me to share my recent conversation with Marie-Pier so you can get to know her a little better:

 Can you tell me a bit about your background?

I’ve always been very interested in developing video games, websites and other technology-driven products. I studied video game design, and gained valuable experience in animation, texture and modeling. Over time, however, I realized that I was more interested in coding, and working more on the back-end. So I shifted my focus to software development.

What would you say is your biggest professional achievement so far?

It’s strange, but I’d say that the achievement that I’m proudest of is a website that I created for a pet shop that I was working in. This was many years ago, and the website was quite simple. I remember that it was basically just HTML, CSS and a little bit of JavaScript. Today, I could make something ten times better, but back then I was just so excited and proud. Sometimes in life, it’s the smaller things that can give us the most inspiration!

What was it about Devolutions that made you want to work here?

I had heard several times that Devolutions was a great place to work, but I had no idea how much this was true until I started work here. The first thing I noticed was the slush machine and unlimited supply of M&M’s! Then I noticed the people and culture. Everyone here is so friendly and supportive. It’s really important to have this kind of interaction when you spend so much of your day staring at different screens. The atmosphere here is unique, and I’ve never seen anything like it. It’s a big family and I’m proud to be here. I love it.

What would you say are your top three strengths at work?

First, I’d say that I persevere. I don’t like leaving things unfinished. Second, I’d say that I’m creative, and often come up with solutions that are unique. Third, I have strong analytical thinking skills, and can often solve problems quickly and effectively.

What tasks do you carry out in your job, and what are some of the tools that you use?

Currently, I’m working on our CRM. It’s an internal platform, and in need of an overhaul. We wanted to make it faster and more functional, and are rebuilding it in a different language. For tools, I’m working mainly with Visual Studio and WebStorm, and for language we’re mainly working with Angular and C#. We’re also working with SQL.

What are your impressions about working here?

Like I said before, I really like the atmosphere here. We work hard, but not in a stressful way, which makes it easier to be productive. Everyone contributes to this culture and is proud of it!

What professional goals would you like to achieve at Devolutions?

I’d like to further deepen my programming skills and experience. For example, I sometimes practice by identifying different bugs to see how quickly and effectively I can resolve them. I also plan on staying up to date with emerging web programming languages. But right now, really, my attention is on the CRM project I just mentioned. It’s a really big effort and I am totally focused on it!

On a personal note, what are some of your hobbies and interests?

I'm interested in a lot of things, like ornamental fish. I have several aquariums at home that I spend a lot of time maintaining. I also like reading, watching movies, and of course, playing video games! I also love animals, especially my baby Aéro, a female Birman cat that I love. My days aren't empty!

Please share a few words with our community of IT pros:

You should know that the two most important priorities here are creating outstanding solutions and providing excellent support. Everyone here works very hard to meet your high expectations. I will do my best to support my team and serve your needs!

In last month’s poll, we asked you to share your favorite IT conference. This month, we’d like to know: who’s the best speaker you’ve ever heard, and why did their message impact you so deeply?

You Make the Rules

The best speaker you’ve ever heard could be someone you encountered at a conference, in your workplace, at school, or online (please share the link if possible!). It could be a family member or friend, or perhaps even a politician…it’s up to you! All that matters is that they have made a positive lasting impression on you.

You Could Win

In addition to sharing your inspiration and inspiring others in our community, by participating in the poll you’ll have a chance to win a $25 Amazon gift card! Don’t worry if you missed their “Prime Day” — you can still get all kinds of stuff, from Echo to Lego.

We look forward to reading all of your responses. Thank you in advance, and good luck!

THIS ARTICLE WRITTEN BY TOMMY BOUCHER, IT DIRECTOR AT COVEO, IS PART OF OUR GUEST BLOG SERIES. PLEASE CONTACT US IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO BE FEATURED ON OUR BLOG.

In the world of software, recruiting is difficult. Good candidates already have good jobs, and companies are investing heavily to get their candidates. If you want to be able to recruit these candidates, you have to offer something different. We can’t all be video game companies...

I had the chance to visit the Devolutions office in Lavaltrie. Wow! Thank you for the opportunity to learn about your success.

First of all, what surprised me was the geographic choice. A few steps from Montreal, they have still decided to settle in Lavaltrie. To paraphrase an old saying, "A star among a sky full of stars goes unnoticed, but a star in the center of a completely black sky is impossible to miss." If Devolutions was in Montreal, they would be a star among many others, but in Lavaltrie they definitely have the most beautiful building in the village.

I went around the city, curious to see what could be found there, and I fell in love. What a wonderful place to live! How lucky for Devolutions employees to be able to acquire a home close to work, at an affordable price, with all the services needed. A great way to combine work and family! I am already on board with this idea. And what a chance for Lavaltrie to have a company that invests in the community. Devolutions will not stop there to help local entrepreneurship!

I asked Max Trottier, Director of Marketing (and employee #5), if recruiting was difficult given the distance from the major centers. He proudly replied that because of the lack of traffic in the opposite direction, as well as proximity to many nearby cities (even Trois-Rivières, he told me), Devolutions employees are not afraid to commute to work in exchange for a motivating company with awesome people. Max pointed out a few houses, visible from the parking lot of Devolutions, where several employees live, including one “full of trainees." What a good idea! Allowing people to live in the suburbs and walk to work, without worrying about traffic!

I was amazed to see that there were no closed offices! Everyone is in open spaces! Even David Hervieux, the CEO (and employee #1 :-P), was there in the center of the open office space. No differentiation between the top and bottom of the pyramid, everyone equals, in a good-looking office. Even though some teams are grouped in closed offices, no one has their own kingdom. No executive offices worth 10 times the price of the employee’s spaces – everyone is equal. What a beautiful message!

The pinball room is quite impressive. I did not think it was possible to get so many machines into such a small space. A person was playing when we passed by so I asked if it was used enough to justify the investment. Max told me that yes, it is, especially during the winter. Sometimes there are even several people on the same machine, but usually just one person each. The great thing is that everyone still speaks and interacts with each other while playing! That fact was confirmed by Joey Dupont, Marketing Coordinator (and employee #46). I'm not a pinball fan, but it definitely looks fun! Employees can play whenever they want – it's even encouraged!

There’s a terrace, BBQ, volleyball court, large yard, gym, video console – nothing is missing. They even have a full kitchen with an oven, said Joey proudly. Really, this office isn’t missing anything. It’s impossible to be indifferent after visiting this office. They are already thinking about their next expansion!

The visit took almost two hours, and was constantly interrupted by long and interesting discussions about the products. Each feature is the result of a request from a customer, David told me. He seems to really want to meet customer needs. Open to my ideas and passionate about their products, they continued to listen to me and to suffer my long monologues until we completed the tour of the office. Everyone was really nice, interesting, and passionate, and the atmosphere was incredible! When I left, I had the impression that my comments were going to go a long way. I look forward to the new features coming! = -) Sorry, David, for some of my remarks; I now really understand your reality better! What a great job!

I don’t know if they are recruiting now, but if I were you, I wouldn’t hesitate and send a resume – there’s nothing to lose! And if you don’t already use RDM, you are missing out!

Happy Monday, everyone!

Yes, I know that after a fun weekend it can be hard to jump back into work. But when you’re working with such a great team and in such an amazing place, you actually look forward to coming into work — especially because each Monday, it’s my honor to introduce you to a new Devolutions team member.

This week’s spotlight is on Julien Dufresne, the newest member of our Wayk Now development team. Like my colleague Richer Archambault, who you met a few weeks ago, Julien completed an internship with us in the past. We were so impressed by his attitude and performance that we asked him to join us full-time after he graduated, and were thrilled when he agreed.

Here’s a look at my chat with Julien, where I learned more about his background, role, goals and personality:

Can you tell me a bit about your background?

I spent two years studying computer science in college at Joliette, and then transitioned to software engineering at Polytechnique Montreal, where I developed several software solutions for our student group. I also completed my internship here at Devolutions and had a very positive learning experience.

What would you say is your biggest achievement so far?

Being a part of the Wayk Now team is something that I’m very proud of, but I’d have to say that my biggest achievement so far is working with NAT traversal and WebRTC. We are actually integrating my implementation of NAT traversal in Wayk Now, and it will be part of a future release. I can’t wait for our users to see it!

What was it about Devolutions that made you want to work here?

As soon as I met David, our CEO, and Marc-André, our Wayk Now Project Manager, I felt that I was part of the team, and that’s what made me want to work here.

What would you say are your top three strengths at work?

I would say that my biggest strength is perseverance. I always find a way to solve problems. I’m also very flexible, and love learning new things.

What tasks do you carry out in your job, and what are some of the tools that you use?

I’m mainly working with Linux, and so my principal tool is CLion. When I need to work on Windows, I use Visual Studio.

What are your impressions about working here?

Working here is very nice. The environment is friendly and relaxed, the team is great, and the place is amazing. I could not be at a better organization.

What goals would you like to achieve at Devolutions?

I want to improve my programming skills and work on new technologies. I also want to learn more about the software development process.

On a personal note, what are some of your hobbies and interests?

When I have some free time, I like to play Ultimate Frisbee with friends. I am also a big fan of hackathons, and have attended many in the past. I even organized one a few months ago called “Hackatown”, where the theme was smart city.

Please share a few words with our community of IT pros:

Wayk Now is a great tool, and very powerful. We’re constantly working to make it even better, and to help make your lives even easier and simpler!

Remote Connection Management is one of the main challenges in the life of a sysadmin. In the following article, you will learn how managing a wide range of remote connection technologies and protocols from a centralized platform can increase security and boost productivity.

What's the challenge

Remote connections are at the heart of every IT department. On a typical workday, sysadmins might connect to remote systems using Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP), PuTTY, browser-based tools, proprietary software, virtual private networks (VPNs) and many more remote connection technologies. These tools are essential—no one wants to go back to the days of trying to talk users through a problem over the phone. But the same tools can also lower productivity. Sysadmins use multiple remote connection technologies, each of which supports specific protocols and has its own tools and unique user interface.

On a one-off basis, remote desktop mechanisms seem simple enough to manage. For a single session, it is just a matter of using the right protocol and having access to the appropriate credentials to launch a connection and gain access to the system. But as sysadmins scale their efforts across larger networks, new cloud services, various connection protocols, numerous users, different business groups and customer environments, the difficulty of securely managing and configuring remote connections for each situation starts to arise. When IT groups manually manage connections, it doesn’t take long before the number of configuration settings and lack of user management foster chaos that quickly overwhelms the team.

How we can help

IT teams need a way to control the chaos on all these fronts. They need a system that can help centralize configuration and connection information as well as manage users and permissions. The IT teams need to evolve to a place where you can monitor your IT environment from a single pane of glass, using a single source to deliver valuable information. Using an advanced remote connection management solution with the right capabilities will allow you to scale across hundreds of different types of connections with wide-scale interoperability and technology agnosticism, providing a clear audit trail to prove the high level of security of each connection to customer and regulator.

Devolutions Remote Desktop Manager (RDM) lets you centralize all your remote connections in a single platform that can be securely shared between users and throughout an entire team. It’s paired with an intuitive interface that can serve as an admin’s Swiss Army knife for remote access. It offers more than 160 integrated technologies and protocols, including add-ons that support more than 25 types of virtual private networks (VPNs).

What's in it for you

Using a remote connection management system like Remote Desktop Manager provides you secure remote access to your network’s users by centralizing all your data storage, configuring network for remote access, and restricting data access permissions. IT teams can use the integrated credential management features to store and manage account passwords as well as integrate existing password manager solutions directly into Remote Desktop Manager. The platform is designed to protect users’ credential data by never giving sysadmins direct access to that information. All privileges and permissions are managed using our role-based security system which allows you to create a granular protection system that is quite flexible, creating the necessary separation of departments to protect sensitive data and comply with data security regulations

THIS ARTICLE WRITTEN BY BEN LIEBOWITZ, VCP AND SYSTEM ENGINEER, IS PART OF OUR GUEST BLOG SERIES. PLEASE CONTACT US IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO BE FEATURED ON OUR BLOG.

As you may have seen, I really like a tool from a company called Devolutions called Remote Desktop Manager. I use it to manage my RDP sessions, Credentials, SSH sessions, as well as my iDRAC/iLO connections. It also manages my connections to my VMware environments. For the environments that support the VI Client, I have set those up here as connections to the vCenter Web Client!

First, you have to make sure you have the connection working properly via the web browser of your choice. Here, I’m using Chrome. You’ll also need to make sure you have the vCenter Client Integration Plugin installed.

I created an entry for each of my vCenter environments. In Remote Desktop Manager, choose where you want to place these connections, right click and select NEW ENTRY. Scroll down and choose WEB BROWSER (http/https). Then click OK.

Change the browser to Google Chrome, check to Ignore Certificate Errors, and enter the name of your vCenter and the Web Browser URL.

I also selected the Advanced tab, checked the Automatic Refresh box, and set the timer to 55 minutes.  This way, I don’t get logged out of my session until I’m ready. ??

As it’s Java, we cannot set credentials to pass…  So you’re good to click OK and attempt connection.

You’ll be prompted for the Client Integration Plugin to run. Select Remember My Choice (though it’ll prompt you each time, so you can skip this if you want) and click YES.

The page will load, and in a few seconds the box will light up to log in using windows session authentication.

Click the checkbox and you can now log in!

And you’re IN.  And it’s very easy to connect again, next time!

In an effort to help our incredible community of IT pros make informed decisions, over the last year we’ve published several product review/comparison articles, such as:

• Reviewing the Top 10 Free Remote Desktop Connection Software Solutions
• Comparing the Most Popular Password Managers
• Comparing the Most Popular 2-Factor Authentication (2FA) Tools

As we dive deeper, it’s my pleasure to announce that we’ve been working closely with Eugene Kalayev, VP of Product Management at ControlUp, to create a detailed white paper that explores the features of various leading remote desktop management connection solutions, including: Royal TS, ASG Remote Desktop, Remote Desktop Manager, ControlUp, RDCMan, mRemote and Terminals.

The white paper is an excellent and objective resource that helps you discover what each solution has to offer, so that you can focus and refine your decision-making process. Plus, it’s available to you free and on-demand. Please click the following link to download it now:

For the past few Mondays (with a brief pause for SysAdmin Day festivities), we’ve been shining a spotlight on some of our great new team members here at Devolutions, such as Julien, Marie-Pier, and Richer. Today, it’s my pleasure to continue the fun by introducing you to Patrick Lamarre, our new QA Specialist.

Like many of our recent hires, Patrick completed an internship here at Devolutions and did such an incredible job that we asked him to join us full time — and we’re thrilled that he said yes!  I recently had a chance to chat with Patrick about his background, role, hobbies and more. Here’s a look at our conversation:

Can you tell me a bit about your background?

I’ve just finished studying IT, and did my internship here at Devolutions. I’m really excited to have the opportunity to make a bigger contribution to our team. I can honestly say that I learned more here during my internship than I did in all of my time at school!

What would you say is your biggest professional achievement so far?

Honestly, I would have to say that my biggest professional achievement would be starting here at Devolutions. A lot of people want to work here, and I know the hiring process is competitive. I think this is a great opportunity for me.

What was it about Devolutions that made you want to work here?

There were many things. The office vibe is great, and so is the team spirit. When I first arrived here as an intern, I was amazed at the environment. Plus, it’s also near where I live, which means I don’t have to spend hours commuting each week.

What would you say are your top three strengths at work?

I’m a quick learner, I always strive to do my best, and I’m a perfectionist. But at the same time, I understand that perfection in software development is not always realistic, because there are always going to be improvements and upgrades over time.

What tasks do you carry out in your job?

I hunt down bugs! It’s a very interesting and challenging job. You never know what bugs will pop up, because our customers are constantly using our products in new ways.

What are your impressions about working here?

It’s a great place to work, and everyone is always pushing to do better.

What goals would you like to achieve at Devolutions?

I’d like to increase my knowledge by taking more programming courses while I’m working. I’d also like to improve my efficiency.

On a personal note, what are some of your hobbies and interests?

I’m a skateboarder, a gamer and a fighter. I love all types of extreme sports, but especially Karate. I love the adrenaline kick — it really makes you feel alive!

Please share a few words with our community of IT pros:

Everyone here is passionate and dedicated to making sure that you get the best experience possible.  And if you encounter any bugs, please let me or any other member of my team know!

Hi everyone,

I have some exciting news for all you Sysadminotaur fans: Patrick Désilets, the fantastic artist behind your favorite IT comic, is now working full time at Devolutions! Soon, I’ll be interviewing Patrick for our blog. In the meantime, you can get to know Patrick by visiting his website.

What’s Sysadminotaur?

If you’ve been stuck in a board game for the last few years and don't know what Sysadminotaur is, here’s an update: it’s our comic by IT pros, for IT pros. I guarantee that some of the characters will remind you of people in your workplace (past or present). If you want to start your Sysadminotaur journey from the beginning, here’s the very first one, published back in 2012: it's called Backup System. You can then spend the next few hours checking out the Sysadminotaur archives.

What’s Ahead

Patrick has many more Sysadminotaur comics planned, and he’ll be introducing a new member of the gang very soon. He’s also working hard on a special project: the Sysadminotaur cartoon! The project is still in development so the release date has yet to be announced, but everyone around here is excited and I promise to keep you up to date.

Got a Funny IT Story?

If you have a funny IT story — either real or imagined — Patrick would love to hear from you. You’re also invited to suggest new characters or share any feedback. Who knows? You might inspire a Sysadminotaur comic and become a legend! Simply send me an email at dsthilaire@devolutions.net and I’ll make sure Patrick gets it. You can also leave a comment below.

First and foremost, we would like to thank all of you for your interest in Remote Desktop Manager on all platforms, including Linux. While we do not have an official Linux port of RDM, there is a workaround to run it on Linux: using Remote Desktop Manager for Android. Lately, there are more and more options for running Android on a Linux system. They require some tinkering and elbow grease, but isn’t that part of the fun of the Linux world?

At this moment, there are several ways to run Android apps on Linux. However, they are not all robust, and most are still in alpha stage. We’re keeping a close eye on the development of these tools. For now, we’ve managed to run the RDM for Android APK with Shashlik, an open source project to run Android apps on Linux in a simulated environment.

NOTE: We did encounter certain bugs with Shashlik, which we will discuss below. Bear in mind that this is not a perfect solution, but it does allow the use of RDM in a Linux environment.

Prerequisites

In order for this process to work, you will be required to have the following:

• Ubuntu 16.04 LTS and up
• A user with sudo/admin privileges for the installation
• Latest GPU drivers for your Linux system
• Python 3 installed on your system
• Hardware virtualization (e.g. Intel VT-x)

Known Issues

There are some bugs when running Shashlik and Remote Desktop Manager. Sometimes, when trying to run Remote Desktop Manager, it is unable to start. If you do not have the latest GPU drivers, then RDP and other graphic connections are unusable. You may be required to rerun the APK install to make RDM start properly again. Though there are some small issues with Shashlik, as of right now neither Anbox nor ARChon are compatible with our APK.

Steps

1. Download the Shashlik Debian package

Head on over to http://www.shashlik.io/download/ and download their .deb package.

2. Install Shashlik

You can double-click on the Shashlik package, or open your favorite terminal and run the following commands:

$ sudo dpkg -i /path/to/the/shashlik/deb/file

$ sudo apt-get install -f

Make sure you have the libgl1-mesa-dev package in your system. You can install it with the following command:

$ sudo apt-get update

$ sudo apt-get install libgl1-mesa-dev

3. Download the Remote Desktop Manager APK

We have made the APK available on our website. You can download it directly using the following links:

Latest version: https://cdn.devolutions.net/download/Linux/rdm/RemoteDesktopManager.apk

Version 3.6: https://cdn.devolutions.net/download/Linux/rdm/RemoteDesktopManager36.apk

The Password Vault Manager APKs can be obtained from here:

Latest version: https://cdn.devolutions.net/download/Linux/pvm/PasswordVaultManager.apk

Version 3.6: https://cdn.devolutions.net/download/Linux/pvm/PasswordVaultManager36.apk

4. Install the APK with Shashlik

Now that Shashlik is installed on your system, you can install the APK. Shashlik is located in /opt/shashlik, so all the scripts are in the /opt/shashlik/bin directory. I recommend adding /opt/shashlik/bin to your path to make life easier, but it is up to you. Navigate to where the APK is located and run the following command:

$ /opt/shashlik/bin/shashlik-install /path/to/the/apk/file

You will also need to create a Shashlik system folder. To do so, please run the following command:

$ mkdir -p $HOME/.local/share/shashlik/system

If you see a python3 error that says that ‘kdialog’ is not there, do not panic! This is simply because most of the development of this project is done in KDE.

5. Run Remote Desktop Manager for Android

Shashlik automatically runs in a small window, but you can change that by modifying one line in the “shashlik-run” script. Open “shashlik-run” with sudo rights and your favorite editor. Find the line where it says “-noskin”, and replace it with “-skin”, “1280x720p”, to make Shashlik run in a 720p resolution. I also encourage you to increase the “-memory” if you can spare it. You can now run Remote Desktop Manager with Shashlik using the following command:

$ /opt/shashlik/bin/shashlik-run com.devolutions.remotedesktopmanager RDM

It may take a few seconds to load, but eventually it will start up RDM for Android.

Troubleshooting

If you find that Shashlik is not starting, try rerunning the “shashlik-install” command. This usually fixes the problem. If it continues, try deleting the Shashlik folder located in $HOME/.local/share and running the “shashlik-install” command again.

Hopefully, everything went well and you’re now running RDM for Android on Linux! We are working on making RDM accessible across all major platforms, and we’re keeping a close eye on developments for running Android apps on Linux.

Do you know the old expression, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”? Well, sometimes IT companies ignore this wisdom, and in their efforts to improve something they actually make it worse. Unfortunately, the latest example of this appears to be 1Password.

As you probably know, 1Password is one of the most popular password management software tools on the market. And until now, there were many good reasons for its popularity — especially the local storage password vault capacity, which allowed users to store encrypted website credentials on their local machine.

However, 1Password recently announced that their latest Windows version is heading to the cloud (SaaS), and that means the local storage vault will be a thing of the past. While some users won’t care that much, others will definitely have problems with being forced to store their credentials in a cloud repository that is owned and controlled by a third party. That’s the bad news.

The good news is that there are some great FREE alternatives to 1Password that will allow you to continue storing credentials on your local machine. Here are a few options worth exploring, in alphabetical order:

Dashlane

Dashlane authenticates your machine, which means you only have to input your master password when you wish to decrypt data locally on your computer.

KeePass

KeePass is an open source password manager. You can put all credentials in one local database, which is then locked with a master key or a key file. The databases are secured using AES256 bit encryption.

Password Vault Manager

Password Vault Manager (yeah!) is another popular local password management solution that securely stores your credentials locally — so you’re always in control vs. a third party. You can also use the auto-fill browser extension to save time when accessing preferred websites. Password Vault Manager is available as a standalone solution, or as part of Remote Desktop Manager, since it’s fully integrated in RDM.

Roboform

Roboform securely stores all of your credentials, and all you need to unlock them is your master password. There is also a bookmark-style login feature that automatically logs you into preferred websites.

Sticky Password

Sticky Password lets you sync devices over Wi-Fi or local connection, and avoid encrypted data from leaving your network. There are some good features like autofill, form filling, super secured data, two-factor authentication, and more.

Compare Different Solutions

To save you time and help you see which tool is best for your needs (free and paid), check out our comparison of several popular password management solutions.

Note: We’ve heard through the grapevine that 1Password might be reverting back to local storage, but in the meantime you have the above-mentioned alternatives.

Yes, our team is still growing! As part of our Monday series spotlighting new Devolutions team members, it’s my pleasure to introduce you to France Lymburner, our newest Business Solutions Specialist!

The first thing I want to tell you about France is that she has an awesome transformer desk! She’s also an outdoor enthusiast, just like me. Maybe one of these days we can organize a Devolutions back-to-nature hike…

I recently had a chance to chat with France to get to know her a bit better. Here’s a look at our conversation:

Can you tell me a bit about your professional background?

I have over 20 years of experience in the IT field in various roles, including user liaison, QA, analyst, implementation advisor and trainer. And while I’ve done a lot in the field, I’m not that old!

What would you say is your biggest professional achievement so far?

I would say it was contributing to the development of an optometric management software solution, which has made a positive impact in the lives of many people around the world. I also enjoyed building an IT support and training team.

What was it about Devolutions that made you want to work here?

Three things: the business philosophy, the challenge, and the positive energy of David Hervieux – my IT business idol!

What would you say are your top three strengths at work?

I learn quickly and efficiently. I’m also very focused on listening to people’s needs, and am creative in my work. All of these strengths will definitely help me in my role as Business Solutions Specialist.

What tasks do you carry out in your job, and what are some of the tools that you use?

As part of our legendary Customer Success team, right now my focus is on developing a new training program for internal staff, as well as our channel partners. Soon I will be developing some user training tools for our customers. And throughout this process, I am always helping our team deliver great support!

What are your impressions about working here?

Wow! What a change of work life and routine! Everything we need to be productive and focused is here, including a gym, healthy foods, and fun things to keep us entertained. The balance is perfect to keep us motivated, but without getting exhausted.

What goals would you like to achieve at Devolutions?

My goals are to continue learning more and more, to make a significant contribution to my team, and to ensure that the IT pros in our community get the most value and benefits from our solutions.

On a personal note, what are some of your hobbies and interests?

I’m an outdoor person and love to hike. I’m always looking for things to recycle and give them a second life. I also love music, and play a little bit of guitar. Mostly these days I’m playing a lot of djembe and percussion.

Please share a few words with our community of IT pros:

I invite you to explore all the solutions that we offer at Devolutions, and to continue sharing your experiences, needs and suggestions. You are our motivation, and there’s much more to come!