active backup google workspace backup complete

How to Backup and Restore Google Workspace Data Using Synology Active Backup

Synology
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The importance of data backup can’t be overstated. Whether you’re safeguarding enterprise data or just personal files, a reliable backup tool is a must.

In this guide, I’ll be sharing how you can utilize Synology’s Active Backup to backup and restore your Google Workspace data, ensuring that your information remains secure and accessible at all times.

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How to Upgrade PowerShell 7 to latest version

Home Lab
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Have you opened a Windows Terminal and seen a highlighted message stating “A new PowerShell stable release is available …“?

powershell 7 upgrade prompt

Well you could go to the link provided in the prompt, download the upgrade and then run it on your machine, or you can quickly and easily upgrade PowerShell 7 directly from the terminal by typing the following command.

Invoke-Expression "& { $(Invoke-Restmethod https://aka.ms/Install-PowerShell.ps1) } -UseMSI"

This will automatically download and run the latest version of PowerShell 7 and run the installer for you. See quick and easy!

My Vultr firewall group rules

A Few Steps to Secure a WordPress Site

Security
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Use a Password Manager

The very first layer of security starts with your password.

You could have the most secure server and WordPress setup ever, but if your password is “qwerty” or some other equally awful password, then all that security is for nothing.

Good passwords need to be lengthy, randomized, and every site and service you use should have it’s own unique password. Do NOT re-use passwords. Ever.

I recommend using KeePass, KeePassXC or Bitwarden.

Then the only the password you need to remember is your master password. Which should be more of a phrase than just a single pass”word”. It should be something you can remember, long, and include upper/lower case, numbers, and special characters.

All other passwords should be generated by your password manager.

Cloudflare Firewall Rules

Cloudflare provides of a number of benefits that many people probably already use such as their Content Delivery Network (CDN), DDoS mitigation, Bot filtering, and caching. All of which is offered for free!

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security headers static site

How to add Security Headers to an AWS S3 static website

AWS
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I’ve created a couple posts in the past on how to create a static website using AWS S3 bucket and Cloudfront and using S3 with Cloudflare. Recently I’ve been getting more questions on how to add security response headers to an AWS S3 static website.

If you’re not familiar with security headers, basically security headers is another layer used to protect your websites. Web.dev has a good article here is a good article on many of the popular security header types. You’ll also want to check out securityheaders.com to easily check the security headers of your own site too.

With that, lets see how to add these security headers to your own static website.

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Fixing a Synology DS1515+ not powering on

Other
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A few days ago my old Synology DS1515+ that I gave a friend wouldn’t power up. Press the power button and not a single thing would happen, no fans or lights would come on – not even for a second.

I started looking around and found there to be three common issues with several of the DSxx15 units:

  1. Dead motherboard battery
  2. Intel Atom C2000 bug
  3. Dead B847B transistor

Good stuff right?! Well luckily it’s not nearly as bad as it might sound at first and all three are pretty easy to fix.

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Synology 10GbE Upgrade for the Home Lab

Synology
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One big feature I was looking forward to taking advantage of when I replaced my old Synology DS1815+ with a new Synology DS1621+, was the PCIe expansion slot and support for 10GbE cards. I could now setup a 10GbE network between the NAS, the home lab Dell R720, and my main PC.

My goal was to create a small 10GbE network without spending a ton of money.

In order to achieve this goal I purchased the following items:

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Backup Synology NAS to Amazon Glacier

Synology
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Recently I replaced my Synology DS1815+ with a new Synology DS1621+ NAS.

After migrating all the data from the old to new NAS and re-setting up Backblaze on the new Synology, I wanted to have a second backup of everything… just in case.

If you already have an AWS account and want to know how to backup your Synology NAS to Amazon Glacier then keep reading.

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How to upgrade vCenter Server Appliance 6.7 to 7.0

VMware
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VMware vCenter 7.0 has been released for several months now and figured it was about time I upgraded my home lab to the latest version.

This post will detail all the steps needed to upgrade vCenter Server Appliance 6.7 to 7.0 without any issues.

Getting Started

Before beginning, I HIGHLY recommended you first check the VMware Interoperability Matrix before performing any upgrade to check compatibility of other VMware products.

Then go download the VCSA 7.0 ISO if you haven’t already and lets get started with the upgrade!

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How to Replace a Failed Hard Drive in a Synology NAS

Synology
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Earlier this week I received a notification from my Synology NAS that a hard drive was failing. Right now in the middle of this COVID-19 pandemic, one thing I don’t need is my NAS down and the kids and wife unable to watch any shows or movies.

Luckily for me Synology has made drive replacement a breeze. Here is how to easily and very quickly replace a failed hard drive in your Synology NAS.

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