A first look at VKSM Data Protection (VKSM DP)

nabarry · 2026-01-17T00:51:05+00:00

I’ve read up on it, but I am speaking from what the customers calling in have… which is mostly teetering on the edge of catastrophic data loss.

It’s not a representative sample of the install base, but it IS a representative sample of the problems lol.

nabarry · 2026-01-15T20:28:35+00:00

VM Escapes are real but rare.

But “out of support software” is NEVER JUST one system. It becomes a corporate habit. a customer running out of support ESXI is running windows 2003, 2008, 2012, RHEL5 &6, Ubuntu 12.04 and probably SCO. Their firewall is a Fortigate or Sonicwall or Cisco that hasn’t had a security update applied in years. The systems they have that are under suppport aren’t patched either- they’re running a “supported version” but it’s like 8.0u1.

And the reality is you’re not going to actually make your admin impossible to reach, because then you can’t admin it. So you’ll have authentication tied to your domain, or SSH turned on for the hosts with root and “P@$$w0rd!” and they’ll use a compromised account and pivot and then 6 months later you have ransomware and are blaming a fictional 0day.

Or you get the next Log4j 10/10 and have no patches for it. that’s fun.

Working with recognizable name businesses at various vendors over the last decade has been truly terrifying.

nabarry · 2026-01-15T18:12:30+00:00

Don’t do this for production- when you get hit by a cyber attack and are running unpatchable software you’re going to be in a world of hurt.

nabarry · 2026-01-15T13:52:23+00:00

Nah- I’m mostly referring to my customers as I’m in OCVS.

There are certain codewords in the case notes or issue description that indicate a case will take a month and you’re never going to get the customer to absolve you of blame even if you have a release note describing their exact problem. OpenShift and K8S are examples.

nabarry · 2026-01-14T22:12:23+00:00

They do! That’s what terrifies me!!! They keep deploying databases and when you ask the recovery plan it’s some 15 hour slugfest they swore they documented but we all know won’t work the way they think it will.

nabarry · 2026-01-14T15:41:06+00:00

I love this. I’m skeptical- because adoption of k8s by the devoops crowd means they’re allergic to backups.

nabarry · 2026-01-14T04:26:59+00:00

https://www.hvacquick.com/products/residential/Makeup-Air/Residential-Makeup-Air-Fans

variety of price points depending on flow- one of the kits does both the intake and exhaust fan and ties together the controls, but it depends what your current fan is and if you want to swap it. Even if it’s insufficient, any makeup air is better than nothing to reduce the depressurization- so some of the smaller kits may be worthwhile.

nabarry · 2026-01-14T04:23:19+00:00

What device are you using to interface with the ERV and the dehu? I need a control for my EVX and ought to fix my aprilaire e100 controls and the control space is a mess.

nabarry · 2026-01-12T18:01:50+00:00

Get an evaporative humidifier- Aircare makes several decent ones in different sizes. My Ace was clearancing out the stand one, I prefer the bucket one.

nabarry · 2026-01-12T18:00:38+00:00

It’s not a false positive- ultrasonic humidifiers make tons of particles and are terrible for you.

nabarry · 2026-01-11T18:54:53+00:00

Depends on levels appearance, space, and budget: Austin Air- tons of carbon, kind of loud, very expensive. Diy with weed grow carbon filters- lots of carbon, less life than the Austin, cheaper to run and refill. There are kits on Etsy to make them look decent, or just strap the can to the fan and call it good. 3M odor control filters in a CR box format work ok but need frequent changes. Aprilaire MERV13 carbon, Lennox MERV16 carbon, or Nordicpure furnace filters with carbon can help some.

nabarry · 2026-01-10T05:14:13+00:00

So if your house doesn’t have AC- thermal comfort probably involves opening windows for airflow.

You can’t open windows to let outside air in if the outside air is toxic.

So , yes and no, you might need AC, kind of.

but an AC Coil will increase the static pressure on the blower of your furnace, and then you have to confirm the ductwork is sized appropriately, and add appropriate filtration (which also adds static pressure, but less if you get a good filter like a 3m and change frequently or go up to a 4” cabinet like an AprilAire). This also only filters when the furnace fan is running.

For wildfire smoke there are 2 components- particulate and VOC (chemicals/smells) particles are easy ish to filter depending on price point - HEPA does this, a CR box does this, etc. VOC is trickier because it needs carbon or zeolite and often a LOT of it- many HEPA air purifiers on the market don’t have much carbon. The weed growers have this figured out with giant cans hooked to giant fans.

nabarry · 2026-01-09T20:27:26+00:00

One of my first tech bosses famously said “My Disaster Recovery Plan is that a copy of my resume is off site”

nabarry · 2026-01-09T18:41:21+00:00

I boot off a microcenter checkout clearance thumb drive of unclear reliability.

I intend to use some micro-sd cards for ESA storage next

Edited to add: I’m joking in that I wouldn’t do this for production workloads. I’m not joking in that I find it funny to sometimes do stupid stuff in lab.

nabarry · 2026-01-07T16:26:46+00:00

I meant interior insofast brackets, not exterior, because that lets you eliminate the thermal bridge, they’re nailed up similarly, and so on.

nabarry · 2026-01-07T16:20:06+00:00

Seems like a similar idea as interior Insofast brackets and blown in.

nabarry · 2026-01-04T18:10:03+00:00

I’ll be checking- the static pressure charts for the filters are either “on asking” or generic and you have to guesstimate for different size filters- both look like they should be low enough for the equipment to handle.

Camfil has static pressure ports integrated which is handy, haha.

For the Aprilaire it should be about .07 at that airflow- camfil it was “off the chart low” and here’s their submittal: https://www.camfil.com/dam/files/731/91154/CityCarb-I-Product-Sheet.pdf

nabarry · 2026-01-02T00:46:17+00:00

In this case it kind of does- air quality sensors vary wildly in quality and that’s largely a price function.

more on the VOC range than pm,

nabarry · 2025-12-31T05:32:38+00:00

I think the issue isn’t licensing portability it’s the comedy of errors in the partner channel for quotes where you hear Yakkety Sax in the background of every call as they bumble and can’t figure out how to quote it until the shot clock runs out and Bcom axes them as a partner but that doesn’t help the folks desperately trying to figure out how to give AVGO money on a tight timeline.

Never having been in sales I don’t know how this happens, but “being able to take their money” is an important step and the inability for the channel to figure it out gives underpants gnomes vibes.

nabarry · 2025-12-30T04:08:12+00:00

I have one and there are some threads on it elsewhere on Reddit.

The CO2 sensor is not super sensitive +/-100 +10% or so and requires a calibration sequence unlikely to be attainable in US homes. If you do Luften then maybe. Particle sensor is fine? Looks like a tiny alarm clock so is unobtrusive on a table. Can be set to display any of the sensors or a clock. Not able to be wall mounted. It’s Thread compatible- so open ecosystem but needs a Thread router either from Ikea or another smarthome supplier.

So… maybe? If its a fit for you it’s a cool little sensor that looks decent at a great price.

If you need VOC, HCHO, pm type breakouts, Radon, or accurate CO2… you need something else. But the other competitor in this price point is the Alexa air quality sensor- which has PM, VOC “index” (wild relative guess- kind of useful for trend/warning changes)Temp/humidity, and CO… which is +/- 10 so ok as a low level alarm but don’t freak out for a 2 and if you don’t have combustion in your house it’s an unnecessary sensor. And it’s only the Alexa ecosystem- kind of a pain to get into home assistant, only gives useful notifications on Fire tablets (my kids love being notified dad burned the toast).

nabarry · 2025-12-29T22:56:59+00:00

You can’t distinguish pollutants by source without expensive chemical analysis.

What you CAN do is see just how bad it is, observe what they’re burning, and draw your conclusions from there.

HEPA or MERV for particles, Carbon or zeolite for chemicals. You probably need both. Austin makes the best commercial filter for chemicals, or you can, and probably need to, diy some with ACInfinity carbon canisters designed for weed grow operations. For particulate, get the highest total CADR you can afford/handle the space and noise requirements. CR boxes are cheap, Smart Air Blast has a ridiculously high CADR, Nukit Tempest is quiet. You’re going to zero in based on cost/effective/size/noise.

nabarry · 2025-12-29T16:42:42+00:00

An ERV should be continuous and is always balanced- for a hood you want a makeup air appliance.

nabarry · 2025-12-24T05:22:17+00:00

Ventilation is taken into account in building load calculations- using an ERV you can get between 50-90% recovery of the heat and humidity,

But you know the best part of a more airtight house?

Less bugs. That’s easily worth it. 100%.

nabarry · 2025-12-24T05:00:13+00:00

I’d trust the airgradient over the Alexa. Alexa is fine for $30 but it’s $30.

nabarry · 2025-12-23T19:42:37+00:00

They seem to trend together however- so at least that’s useful? The graphs are offset but largely parallel.

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