Security
We Have a Problem With Free Software
The Notepad++ compromise should be a wake-up call. The tools we've been trusting for 20 years were never built for the environments we're using them in.
Technical Resources
Reference guides, compliance checklists, and technical deep-dives for federal IT teams. Practical content that doesn't go stale.
Cloud
Oracle OCI for Federal: Why the Government Should Own the Root
How Oracle Cloud Infrastructure's compartment model gives federal agencies real oversight without slowing down contractors. Security zones, SETA delegation, and predictable costs.
Perspective
Government Shutdowns: What We Don't Talk About
A contractor's perspective on government shutdowns—the mission impact, the human cost, and what it means for the people who keep things running.
Perspective
The Career Choices We Make
A reflection on what we give up when we choose demanding careers—and what we hope our kids understand someday.
Perspective
RED: Remember Everyone Deployed
What 18 months in Iraq taught me about the people who serve—military and civilian—and why we should never forget them.
Compliance
GitHub Enterprise Server STIG Compliance Checklist
Complete STIG compliance checklist for GitHub Enterprise Server in federal environments. Authentication, audit logging, TLS configuration, and common findings.
AI
Deploying AI in Air-Gapped Environments: IL4/IL5 Patterns
Architecture patterns for deploying LLMs and AI workloads in disconnected government networks. Hardware, quantization, and security boundaries for IL4/IL5.
AI
RAG for Government Document Repositories
Building RAG (Retrieval Augmented Generation) systems for government document repositories. Architecture, security, and implementation for classified environments.
DevSecOps
OpenShift vs Kubernetes for Federal Workloads
Practical comparison of OpenShift and vanilla Kubernetes for federal government. Security, compliance, support, and real-world selection criteria.
DevSecOps
Jenkins Pipeline Security for Government CI/CD
Security hardening guide for Jenkins in government CI/CD environments. Authentication, secrets management, agent isolation, and audit logging.
Compliance
AI-Assisted STIG Compliance Checking
Using AI and automation for STIG compliance. Practical approaches to accelerating security assessments while maintaining accuracy and auditability.
Compliance
CMMC Compliance Checklist for DevOps Teams
A practical checklist for implementing CMMC Level 2 controls in your CI/CD pipelines, source control, and infrastructure automation.
GitHub
GitHub Enterprise Server vs Cloud for Federal Customers
When to choose self-hosted GitHub Enterprise Server versus GitHub Enterprise Cloud for federal agencies and defense contractors.
Company
Introducing Merlin System Solutions
Meet Merlin System Solutions—a Tampa-based IT consulting firm delivering DevSecOps, secure AI, and enterprise infrastructure to federal agencies and defense contractors.