Enterprise IT Systems Research Articles

ESB-Based Sensor Web Integration for the Prediction of Electric Power Supply System Vulnerability

Electric power supply companies increasingly rely on enterprise IT systems to provide them with a comprehensive view of the state of the distribution network. Within a utility-wide network, enterprise IT systems collect data from various metering devices. Such data can be effectively used for the prediction of power supply network vulnerability. The purpose of this paper is to present the Enterprise Service Bus (ESB)-based Sensor Web integration solution that we have developed with the purpose of enabling prediction of power supply network vulnerability, in terms of a prediction of defect probability for a particular network element. We will give an example of its usage and demonstrate our vulnerability prediction model on data collected from two different power supply companies. The proposed solution is an extension of the GinisSense Sensor Web-based architecture for collecting, processing, analyzing, decision making and alerting based on the data received from heterogeneous data sources. In this case, GinisSense has been upgraded to be capable of operating in an ESB environment and combine Sensor Web and GIS technologies to enable prediction of electric power supply system vulnerability. Aside from electrical values, the proposed solution gathers ambient values from additional sensors installed in the existing power supply network infrastructure. GinisSense aggregates gathered data according to an adapted Omnibus data fusion model and applies decision-making logic on the aggregated data. Detected vulnerabilities are visualized to end-users through means of a specialized Web GIS application.

Deployment of a Hybrid Multicast Switch in Energy-Aware Data Center Network: A Case of Fat-Tree Topology

Recently, energy efficiency or green IT has become a hot issue for many IT infrastructures as they attempt to utilize energy-efficient strategies in their enterprise IT systems in order to minimize operational costs. Networking devices are shared resources connecting important IT infrastructures, especially in a data center network they are always operated 24/7 which consume a huge amount of energy, and it has been obviously shown that this energy consumption is largely independent of the traffic through the devices. As a result, power consumption in networking devices is becoming more and more a critical problem, which is of interest for both research community and general public. Multicast benefits group communications in saving link bandwidth and improving application throughput, both of which are important for green data center. In this paper, we study the deployment strategy of multicast switches in hybrid mode in energy-aware data center network: a case of famous fat-tree topology. The objective is to find the best location to deploy multicast switch not only to achieve optimal bandwidth utilization but also to minimize power consumption. We show that it is possible to easily achieve nearly 50% of energy consumption after applying our proposed algorithm.

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A Genetic Algorithm based Approach for Change Management in Enterprise IT Systems: Optimal Change Scheduling

this paper, we provide a Genetic Algorithm (GA) based approach for change management in Enterprise IT systems which minimizes change delay and improves change capacity. Change management evolves the implementation of change queues on the set of applications which are running on one or more servers. To implement these changes there are some constraints involved: atomic nature of changes; when a change is implemented then it cannot be interrupted; an application has a specific downtime, which causes timing constraint; applications that share same resources such as servers have overlapping downtime which causes conflicts among changes. In such complex system, scheduling of changes becomes a difficult optimization task. GA has the ability to optimize such constraint scheduling problems. Our GA base scheduling improves throughput and minimizes change delay of existing Capacity optimal Fluid Scheduling algorithm.

Introduction to the Software Quality and Maintainability special issue

This special issue on Software Quality and Maintainability offers a venue to researchers to present their original work and to practitioners to relate their experiences on issues pertaining to software quality and maintainability. Moreover, the theme of this special issue opens discussion on how to bridge the gap between end user expectations, business requirements, vendor performance, and engineering constraints regarding software quality. Out of 13 full-paper submissions for this issue, 6 papers were selected. The accepted papers address a range of topics related to software quality, including measurement, assessment, models, certificates, and tool support. Various authors have discussed their ideas on the analysis of the quality of source code properties and its impact on a system’s maintainability. Bijlsma et al. present an empirical study of the relation between technical quality of software products and the defect resolution performance of their maintainers. Certification of software products and processes is reviewed in this special issue. Baggen et al. provide an approach in which, when a software system reaches a minimum level of maintainability, it can be certified with the TUViT ‘‘Trusted Product Maintainability’’ certificate. Baldassare et al. discuss a specific process for comparing quality certifications, with specific reference to the CMMI-DEV and ISO 9001 models. Quality analysis of complex source code bases requires sophisticated tool support. Kienle et al. are exploring an approach that utilizes system-specific static analyses of code with the goal to improve software quality for specific software systems, especially targeting complex embedded systems. Franke et al. propose the use of a Bayesian decision support model, designed to help enterprise IT systems decision makers evaluate the consequences of their decisions by analyzing various scenarios. Lagerstrom et al. present a methodology that uses data from

Trends in cyber security of industrial control systems

As a result of commoditisation, industrial control systems (ICS) have become increasingly like the computer systems that run enterprises and are therefore exposed to the same cyber vulnerabilities. However, the solutions that have been developed for Enterprise IT systems are not always appropriate for ICS because of additional constraints such as safety. This study reviews the current threat landscape, presents the anatomy of an attack on ICS and summarises some future trends.

Rule Construction and its Execution for Root Cause Analysis

We have developed a root cause analysis system for enterprise IT system environment. In this paper, we propose a rule construction method which builds the analysis rule data object from the general analysis rules and the topology information of the actual target IT environment. By this method, IT administrator can use RCA system without any manual rule modifications. Regarding execution of analysis, we introduce the certainty factor to realize a robust analysis when the ordinarily and reachability of fault event can not be guaranteed.

Availability of enterprise IT systems: an expert-based Bayesian framework

Ensuring the availability of enterprise IT systems is a challenging task. The factors that can bring systems down are numerous, and their impact on various system architectures is difficult to predict. At the same time, maintaining high availability is crucial in many applications, ranging from control systems in the electric power grid, over electronic trading systems on the stock market to specialized command and control systems for military and civilian purposes. This paper describes a Bayesian decision support model, designed to help enterprise IT system decision-makers evaluate the consequences of their decisions by analyzing various scenarios. The model is based on expert elicitation from 50 experts on IT systems availability, obtained through an electronic survey. The Bayesian model uses a leaky Noisy-OR method to weigh together the expert opinions on 16 factors affecting systems availability. Using this model, the effect of changes to a system can be estimated beforehand, providing decision support for improvement of enterprise IT systems availability. The Bayesian model thus obtained is then integrated within a standard, reliability block diagram-style, mathematical model for assessing availability on the architecture level. In this model, the IT systems play the role of building blocks. The overall assessment framework thus addresses measures to ensure high availability both on the level of individual systems and on the level of the entire enterprise architecture. Examples are presented to illustrate how the framework can be used by practitioners aiming to ensure high availability.

How Does Enterprise Architecture Add Value to Organisations?

Enterprise architecture (EA) is the definition and representation of a high-level view of an enterprise's business processes and IT systems, their interrelationships, and the extent to which these processes and systems are shared by different parts of the enterprise. EA aims to define a suitable operating platform to support an organisation's future goals and the roadmap for moving towards this vision. Despite significant practitioner interest in the domain, understanding the value of EA remains a challenge. Although many studies make EA benefit claims, the explanations of why and how EA leads to these benefits are fragmented, incomplete, and not grounded in theory. This article aims to address this knowledge gap by focusing on the question: How does EA lead to organisational benefits? Through a careful review of EA literature, the paper consolidates the fragmented knowledge on EA benefits and presents the EA Benefits Model (EABM). The EABM proposes that EA leads to organisational benefits through its impact on four benefit enablers: Organisational Alignment, Information Availability, Resource Portfolio Optimisation, and Resource Complementarity. The article concludes with a discussion of a number of potential avenues for future research, which could build on the findings of this study.

6.2.4 On Systems Architects and Systems Architecting: some thoughts on explaining and improving the art and science of systems architecting

AbstractISO's process to adopt the IEEE 1471 standard on architecture descriptions has revealed of the order of 130 standards concerning or relating to architectures and architecting. Within the “enterprise architecture” theme alone, different people use the term to refer to mean quite different things: the “architecture of the enterprise as a system”; the enterprise context for the enterprise IT system; or the architecture of the enterprise IT system itself. A focus on tools and methods has led to confusion between the creative activity of “architecting”, by which I mean making or exposing the key strategic decisions about the purpose, organisation, behaviour and critical design features of the system, and the analytical and descriptive activity of architecture modelling, which supports and captures the results of architecting. The INCOSE UK Architecture Working Group established a “belief systems” methodology to explore and seek to reconcile the many conflicting views on architecting This paper expands on the views presented by the author at the IS08 Architecture panel session in an effort to identify and communicate a better understanding of the fundamental skills, principles, philosophy and approach underpinning effective systems architecting. It seeks to improve their integration by focusing on “purpose, context and process” of architecting with the perspective that “hard systems exist inside soft systems”, and to show that “lean pull” allows architecting to focus on the intended use of its products rather than adherence to process standard or frameworks.

Realizing the business benefits of enterprise IT

PurposeThe development and implementation of IT/IS systems inherently requires a deep understanding of user requirements. However, experience shows that a key barrier to the success of an IT/IS system, is the manner by which it is adopted by end users. As such, this viewpoint article presents an overview of those typical enterprise IT user traits as experience by the author.Design/methodology/approachBy outlining key benefits of such systems, the author presents a 6‐stage approach to benefits realization, known as the acronym, ASSIST. Practical implications – By applying such an approach, the management of business process change and delivery of IT/IS should be more achievable, by addressing the specific needs and expectations of different types of users, as identified in the text of the article.Originality/valueKey IT/IS benefits are therefore a useful addition to existing project management and business analysis tools and techniques, that can be utilized by enterprise IT system delivery managers as well as senior IT/IS management.

The role of DAM in the US Federal Government: The dragon awakes

Digital asset management (DAM) vendors are beginning to expand their product reach outside the traditional markets of media and entertainment, and into more enterprise IT environments. There are opportunities to expand into the US federal, state, and local governments. This paper looks at the US Federal Government and how DAM is and will be used to meet enterprise IT system designs. The Federal Government has just now started to realize the potential of DAM and is gradually establishing contracts that implement DAM technology into their capabilities. However, the Federal Government has a different business model to that of the traditional markets, so vendors and integrators must make improvements to meet technical and policy driven requirements. Eventually, the scope of DAM within the Federal Government will far outpace the estimated commercial marketplace.

Evolutionary trends in intelligent networks

A number of groups are currently developing technologies aimed at evolving and enhancing the capabilities of intelligent networks. In this article we discuss three of these initiatives: PINT, Parlay, and IN/CORBA interworking. The IETF PINT work addresses how Internet applications can request and enrich telecommunications services. The Parlay consortium is specifying an object-oriented service control API that facilitates the access, control, and configuration of IN services by enterprise IT systems. The OMG's IN/CORBA interworking specification enables CORBA-based systems to interwork with existing IN infrastructure, thereby promoting the adoption of CORBA for the realization of IN functional entities. We address how all three of these technologies could be deployed together in order to provide a basis for a more flexible and open IN architecture. We also identify a number of common trends and potential pitfalls highlighted by current work on the evolution of IN.