ronin

here's the scenario: Company A and Company B are both sub's of Company C. Company A houses some of Company B's data for some years. this data grows and grows, as is usual for Companies. then Company A and Company B start to squabble. personal differences and egos get in the way of clear thinking. Company A decides to eject Company B's data and sets a deadline for having it moved. and then they one up themselves and hold the data ransom. that's when i get a phone call.

can i meet so-and-so in front of my office in 15 minutes? of course i can. ;-) a van pulls up and takes me to another office complex. i'm briefed on the basics on the way and handed a very crude "our best guess" network diagram on the way in. i'm given a desktop and a laptop and tasked with getting the data back.

the data sits on an HP/UX box and is usually accessed via a Windows application that resides on a Windows terminal server. i investigate the client and it's traffic, then take a look at the server. i make some suggestions and am told to stay within legal parameters if at all possible. no B&E today, even if it is their data. but i do get the number of an IT person within Company A's bowels and manage to get one or two (rather vague) hints.

four hours later i have found a way in and the data is trickling graciously across the continent to safer havens.

Friday will be an interesting day for Company A when the deadline comes but has no teeth.

wired on caffeine and adrenaline (yes, i'm easily excited) i come back to my office to get my own work done. it's 20:00 and i'm so tired it isn't even funny. time to eat, play some music and then get some sleep.