- About -

Hi there! If you're looking at this 'About' page, you may be confusing me for someone more interesting. Welcome all the same.

My name is Aaron Balchunas. I live in Michigan, and am married to a lovely wife. We also have a young son. I work in IT, and I really love Networking. If you're so inclined, check out my Linkedin page. Warning - may cause blindness. That's a bald joke.

I am currently the Vice President of Information Security and Support for Credit Acceptance. I am fortunate to work with a diverse group of skilled colleagues. We also routinely make Fortune Magazine's Top 100 Places to Work.

For eight years, I taught Cisco Networking and Security courses part-time for Baker College. I also designed the curriculum - which meant that everything wrong with the program was my fault. This site started as a place to post lecture notes and labs. Unexpectedly, it morphed into something more.

In 2010, I took a hiatus from teaching, after graduating my last group of students. I was blessed with fantastic students over the years, and I will miss them. I am thankful for all they taught me, and for sticking with me through grueling labs and marathon lectures.

Though my teaching hobby is on indefinite hold, this site will stay online permanently. And the material will always be free.

However - time is precious, especially with a family. I no longer regularly update content here. Apologies for that. Networking fundamentals stay fairly constant, but any referenced commands are likely horrifically out of date. Use with caution! I would love to hear from you if you find any errors. Please berate me. I don't bite back. Usually.

Best of luck in your studies and career. I sincerely hope you find the information on this site helpful. All I ask is that you don't steal, sell, or alter any of the guides. I am not entirely without ego - I will hunt you down.

Thanks for stopping by. Stay frosty!