General

title: “The Mistakes I Made (And Why They Led Me to Build My Own Password Manager)” date: 2026-03-26 draft: false author: “Pragmatic Sysadmin” tags: [“mistakes”, “security”, “passwords”, “learning”, “story”] categories: [“stories”, “security”] description: “I’ve locked myself out of servers, forgotten more domains than you’ve heard of, and once deleted a production database on a Friday. Here’s the mistakes that taught me more than any certification.” slug: “mistakes-that-taught-me-password-manager” The Mistakes I Made (And Why They Led Me to Build My Own Password Manager) Every IT professional has a graveyard of mistakes behind them. Most of us just don’t talk about them until we’re several drinks in at a conference, or until we’re writing a blog post that we hope will save someone else the same pain. ...

title: “What IT Pros Actually Do On Their Own Machines (vs What They Tell You)” date: 2026-03-17 draft: false author: “Pragmatic Sysadmin” tags: [“productivity”, “security”, “tips”, “sysadmin”, “real-talk”] categories: [“insights”] description: “There’s the advice IT gives everyone else. Then there’s what they actually do on their own machines. Here’s the honest version.” slug: “what-it-pros-do-on-their-own-machines” What IT Pros Actually Do On Their Own Machines (vs What They Tell You) There’s the advice IT hands out. The official line. The stuff in the company handbook. ...

title: “Your OS Has Been Hiding Things From You (Windows & Linux Edition)” date: 2026-03-10 draft: false author: “Pragmatic Sysadmin” tags: [“windows”, “linux”, “productivity”, “tips”, “automation”] categories: [“tutorials”] description: “Both Windows and Linux are packed with powerful hidden features most users never touch. Here’s a side-by-side breakdown of the best ones.” slug: “windows-linux-hidden-tricks” Your OS Has Been Hiding Things From You (Windows & Linux Edition) Windows users think Linux is complicated. Linux users think Windows is a toy. ...

title: “I Was the Only IT Person for 3 Years: The Documentation I Wish I’d Written” date: 2026-03-03T23:00:00Z draft: false tags: [“documentation”, “career”, “solo-it”, “best-practices”, “knowledge-transfer”] categories: [“Career”, “Best Practices”] description: “When I left my solo IT job, my replacement called me 47 times in the first month. Here’s the documentation I wish I had written before I left - and the template you can use today.” The Call I Didn’t Want to Get Three weeks after leaving my job as the only IT person at a mid-sized company, my phone rang. It was Mike, the guy they hired to replace me. ...

title: “Why Your Computer is Slow (And How to Fix It Without Calling IT)” date: 2025-12-07T16:00:00Z draft: false tags: [“beginners”, “troubleshooting”, “small-business”, “security”] categories: [“For Everyone”, “Small Business”] description: “Your computer doesn’t need to be slow. Simple fixes anyone can do, plus essential security tips for small business owners who can’t afford a full-time IT person.” Your Computer Shouldn’t Take Forever You know that feeling when you click something and then… wait. And wait. And your coffee gets cold while Windows decides whether or not it wants to open Excel today. ...

title: “The Art of Reading Logs Like a Detective: Finding Needles in Haystacks” date: 2025-12-07T12:00:00Z draft: false tags: [“logging”, “troubleshooting”, “debugging”, “sysadmin”] categories: [“Troubleshooting”, “Best Practices”] description: “Stop drowning in log files. Learn how to find the exact problem in millions of lines of logs without losing your mind.” The Log File Problem Nobody Talks About It’s 2 PM on a Friday. Your application is throwing errors. Your manager is hovering. And you’re staring at a 50GB log file wondering where the hell to even start. ...

The Problem Every Sysadmin Knows Too Well It’s 3 AM. Your phone buzzes with a critical alert. Production is down, customers are angry, and your manager is asking questions you don’t have good answers to. Sound familiar? You’re not alone. According to a recent survey, 78% of sysadmin emergencies could have been prevented with better proactive monitoring. But here’s the thing: most monitoring solutions are overkill for what you really need. ...