vExpert Spotlight: Ben Liebowitz
Ben Liebowitz
Today’s vExpert Spotlight interview is with Ben Liebowitz. Ben is a Systems Engineer & VMUG Leader from my home state of New Jersey. W00t! He is an avid BBQ and Bacon lover like most of our kind. A busy man that I was able to track down and bend his ear. Here is what transpired.
The Interview
Star Wars or Star Trek?
Star Trek
Peanut Butter?
Crunchy
Favorite Adult Beverage?
Not much of a drinker
What was your 1st IT gig?
My first IT job was working for an Aerospace company as a PC Technician. At the second interview for the job, I was put into a cubicle with all the parts to build a PC. Although I knew how to do it, I had never done it before. My then future boss told me, “Come to me when you run into a problem.” I mounted the motherboard, installed the cards/drives and went to him for media to install.
He handed me DOS 6.22 floppies and I went off to install it. I went back to him shortly after, handed him the DOS Floppies and asked if he wanted me to install Windows too? He looked surprised, but handed me the Win 3.11 floppies. I finished and went back to him. Turns out the HD was supposed to be bad, but I got it working. I learned a lot working there and it helped prepare me for my career. 🙂
What is your current job title and role?
I am currently a Systems Engineer working for a global news organization working on the Server team. I manage & support the virtual and physical server environments. We have 6 different vCenters servers (currently migrating two 4.1 environments to 5.5. My day to day tasks can be anything from managing projects, resolving issues in the VMware environment, or even building a new server when needed.
How many years have you been a vExpert?
This is my first year!!
What other IT Communities are you involved with or frequent?
I’m currently one of the leaders for the NJ VMUG group, so that gets me involved in lot of different areas as I seek vendors to sponsor events, etc. I’m a big fan of a product by Devolutions called Remote Desktop Manager. I’ve been using it for many years now and I encourage everyone to check it out!
What advice would you give to others involved in the VMware community who are looking at becoming a vExpert?
Be active in the virutalization community. Be it in your local VMUG group as a leader or steering committee member, start a blog, be active on social media, and/or post in the VMware community forums.
Do you currently have a Home Lab environment?
My home lab is nothing special. I built it using Autolab in VMware Workstation on my desktop PC at home. It’s slow, but gets the job done. I have a nice sized lab environment at work that I get to use. As I’m one of the only ones using it, it’s kind of like my own personal home lab. It’s currently running on several Dell M610 blades on ESXi 5.5. I’m planning to upgrade to vSphere 6 at some point.
How do you use VMware products or services in your daily work life?
Between the multiple environments I currently support, anywhere from ESX 4.0 to ESXi 5.5, to View 4.0 (yes, 4.0 running on ESX 4.0), we have recently deployed vRealize Automation and are working to customize it to fit our needs. We will be upgrading the View environment to Horizon 6 later this year and I’m looking forward to that.
What certifications do you currently hold (if any)?
I have my VCP4-DCV and VCP5-DCV.
What’s your go to song or music genre when work stress becomes too much?
I have to say my go to artist has to be Weird Al. His songs always make me laugh and/or smile so they help when things become stressful. His songs also make for interesting listening at the gym.
Tell us something about yourself that the community may not already know.
Lets see… I have a beautiful wife (Renee) and we have a little boy named Shane (18 months old) and a Golden Retriever named Doc. I love all things Sci-Fi, especially Doctor Who. I am also a lover of Bacon, Chuck Norris Facts, and an avid BBQ guy. I’ve been known to make my own bacon and have been told my spare ribs are better than some BBQ restaurants.
While this is my first year as a vExpert, I’ve also been awarded a Devolutions Expert and PernixPro.
Do you have a blog that you would like to share?I do not, but I will plug my brother’s blog (Matt Liebowitz) www.thelowercasew.com
Let us know how to contact you via social media.
Twitter: @ben_liebowitz
LinkedIn: https://goo.gl/1uwcjS
I run a Facebook group called VMware Certified Professional: http://www.facebook.com/groups/vmwarevcp
Ben thank you very much for being a part of the vExpert Spotlight series! I appreciate you taking time out of your busy day to chat with me.
Please follow Ben on Twitter & also on LinkedIn as well as his Facebook page for VCPs!
Lookup and browse the current vExperts in the vExpert Online Directory
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