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Artwork for Heavy Networking

Heavy Networking

Packet Pushers
Network Automation
Networking
Cybersecurity
Artificial Intelligence
Sd-Wan
Python
Network Operations
SASE
Fortinet
Packet Pushers
OSPF
Ethernet
AI In Networking
Automation
Palo Alto Networks
Ansible
Agentic AI
BGP
Machine Learning
Ipv6

Heavy Networking is an unabashedly nerdy dive into all things networking. Described by one listener as "verbal white papers," the weekly episodes feature network engineers, industry experts, and vendors sharing useful information to keep your professional knowledge sharp and your career growing. Hosts Ethan Banks & Drew Conry-Murray cut through the marketing spin to explore what works—and what doe... more

PublishesWeeklyEpisodes250Founded16 years ago
Number of ListenersCategory
Technology

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Artwork for Heavy Networking

Latest Episodes

Ethan and Drew gather the rest of the Packet Pushers team to discuss the State of the Packet Pushers Network. Together they provide a behind the scenes look into current initiatives like adding video and raising the standards of our audio. They also ... more

YouTube

AI has complicated network automation. It has created questions: If AI generates code for me, do I need to learn Python? Should I be writing a script to gather network information if I can dispatch an AI agent to gather that information for me instea... more

YouTube

Your network is an interconnected system. A change you make on one device has consequences beyond that device. Therefore, to do your job well, you must think about the network as a whole. That’s the big idea behind a blog post written by guest Jason ... more

YouTube

If you think Tailscale is just a VPN for the home lab, think again. On today’s sponsored episode Ethan and Drew are joined by Tailscale CEO Avery Pennarun. Avery explains how the company has evolved into an enterprise-grade connectivity and security ... more

YouTube

Key Facts

Accepts Guests
Accepts Sponsors
Contact Information
Podcast Host
Number of Listeners
Find out how many people listen to this podcast per episode and each month.

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Recent Guests

Robin Young
CEO
Packet Pushers
Episode: HN833: The State of Packet Pushers 2026
Nathan Jackson
Audio Engineer / Audio Lead
Packet Pushers
Episode: HN833: The State of Packet Pushers 2026
Somerset Banks
Production Manager
Packet Pushers
Episode: HN833: The State of Packet Pushers 2026
Jason Gintert
Co-founder and president of the United States Networking User Association
USNUA
Episode: HN831: The Sum, Not Just the Parts: How and Why to Think Holistically About Your Network
Avery Pennarun
CEO of Tailscale
Tailscale
Episode: HN830: Tailscale CEO on WireGuard, Zero Trust, and Securing AI (Sponsored)
Tony Bourke
Seasoned instructor who teaches automation, network design and more for hands-on folks
Independent/Instructor
Episode: HN829: EVPN/VXLAN Vs. TradCore
John Hintz
Senior Global Systems Engineering Director at Selector
Selector
Episode: HN828: How Selector Unifies Cloud and On-Prem Network Observability (Sponsored)
Rob Sherwood
Researcher and entrepreneur with deep background in data center fabrics and buffers
Episode: HN827: When Buffers Attack: Understanding Buffers to Better Diagnose Network Weirdness
John Howard
Guest co-host who initiated the topic on data center fabrics
Episode: HN827: When Buffers Attack: Understanding Buffers to Better Diagnose Network Weirdness

Hosts

Ethan Banks
Host of Heavy Networking
Drew Conry-Murray
Co-host of Heavy Networking

Reviews

4.9 out of 5 stars from 657 ratings
  • Deep dive into both current

    Heavy Networking is a deep dive into up and coming and relevant technologies in our business. And they get on experts that show you the practical applications of the technologies and how you're going to use it, what situations you're going to use it in, so that you're aware of what's out there. What I think is important is that they're both currently widely deployed technologies and the stuff that's still on the startup scene that you probably don't want to deploy yet. But in three years it's go... more

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    spuluka
    United States3 years ago
  • Great podcast

    Wonderful information!

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    linux 66
    United States4 years ago
  • Excellent.

    Podcast Addict
    5
    crashmaster18
    4 years ago
  • Such a wealth of knowledge! 🧠

    This is one of the most insightful podcasts that I have ever come across! The Packet Pushers team does such a great job of sharing their wisdom and I love how they lead meaningful conversations with guests who bring so much experience to the table. If you’ve got a question related to anything “networking technology” this is definitely the place to go. Highly recommend checking this show out - you won’t be disappointed!

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    ASobering
    United States5 years ago
  • Great podcast from a great network

    Podcast Addict
    5
    ggiesen
    6 years ago

Listeners Say

Key themes from listener reviews, highlighting what works and what could be improved about the show.

Many reviews note the value as a professional development resource and a reliable source for industry trends.
Listeners praise the show for deep, practical technical content and expert guests.
Feedback highlights the hosts' ability to balance detail with accessibility, though some criticise bias in guest selection.

Chart Rankings

How this podcast ranks in the Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube charts.

Apple Podcasts
#244
United States/Technology
Apple Podcasts
#46
Philippines/Technology
Apple Podcasts
#144
Singapore/Technology
Apple Podcasts
#149
United Arab Emirates/Technology
Apple Podcasts
#149
Hong Kong/Technology
Apple Podcasts
#189
New Zealand/Technology

Talking Points

Recent interactions between the hosts and their guests.

HN827: When Buffers Attack: Understanding Buffers to Better Diagnose Network Weirdness
Q: Is there a practical takeaway for tuning buffers versus changing workloads to reduce issues?
There is no one-size-fits-all answer; for most workloads you can often ignore exhaustive buffering adjustments, but for high-priority or very sensitive workloads you should profile bursts, adjust per-port versus shared buffers, and consider host-level optimizations (like tail loss probes) and congestion-control alignment to ensure bottlenecks aren't hidden by large buffers.
HN827: When Buffers Attack: Understanding Buffers to Better Diagnose Network Weirdness
Q: What should engineers instrument to diagnose buffer-related problems beyond simple utilization graphs?
Beyond utilization, monitor per-port buffer high water marks, out-discards, queue depths, and device-wide telemetry streams; use tools that expose data at high time resolution (microseconds to milliseconds) and consider host-side indicators like tail loss probes; correlate with workload patterns and congestion events to identify misconfigurations or contention hotspots.
HN827: When Buffers Attack: Understanding Buffers to Better Diagnose Network Weirdness
Q: Can we define buffers more formally for engineers who might only have an intuition?
Buffers are memory pools in devices (chips) used to absorb burstiness by queuing packets; their depth, sharing across ports (virtual output queues), and the way they are managed (_MMUs, traffic managers, and schedulers) determine how well the network handles bursts without dropping packets.
HN825: Faster Than Dijkstra? Exploring a New Shortest-Path Algorithm with Bruce Davie
Q: Why might this not be a game-changer for networking in practice?
Because even with a faster SPF, the practical bottlenecks—failure detection, rapid propagation of topology updates, and converging everyone to a common network view—limit improvements, and local fast reroute and other techniques already address many latency-sensitive aspects.
HN825: Faster Than Dijkstra? Exploring a New Shortest-Path Algorithm with Bruce Davie
Q: What makes the new algorithm theoretically faster, and does that translate to real-world gains?
The new approach avoids the full sort by using a hybrid technique that explores neighborhoods and leverages elements of Bellman-Ford, potentially reducing complexity. However, real-world gains depend on convergence time, failure detection, topology changes, and propagation delays, which often overshadow SPF computation speed.

Audience Metrics

Listeners, social reach, demographics and more for this podcast.

Listeners per Episode
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Frequently Asked Questions About Heavy Networking

What is Heavy Networking about and what kind of topics does it cover?

Heavy Networking presents deep, technically focused discussions on networking infrastructure, operations, and emerging tech. Episodes frequently center on practical architectures (SD-WAN, multi-cloud, telemetry and observability), real-world deployment experiences, and vendor ecosystems, often with hands-on guests from vendors, operators, and engineering teams. Noteworthy are its robust technical debates, emphasis on practicality and reliability, and sponsorships that spotlight relevant enterprise networking tools. The show tends to attract senior engineers, architects, and network operators who value concrete insights, migration strategies, and realistic assessments of new technologies, rather than marketing fluff. Potential listeners will... more

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Which podcasts are similar to Heavy Networking?

These podcasts share a similar audience with Heavy Networking:

1. Network Break
2. N Is For Networking
3. Packet Protector
4. Network Automation Nerds
5. Total Network Operations

How many episodes of Heavy Networking are there?

Heavy Networking launched 16 years ago and published 250 episodes to date. You can find more information about this podcast including rankings, audience demographics and engagement in our podcast database.

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What guests have appeared on Heavy Networking?

Recent guests on Heavy Networking include:

1. Robin Young
2. Nathan Jackson
3. Somerset Banks
4. Jason Gintert
5. Avery Pennarun
6. Tony Bourke
7. John Hintz
8. Rob Sherwood

To view more recent guests and their details, simply upgrade your Rephonic account. You'll also get access to a typical guest profile to help you decide if the show is worth pitching.

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