Oracle Server Research Articles

A Distributed Oracle Using Intel SGX for Blockchain-Based IoT Applications.

A blockchain oracle problem is a problem that defines a mechanism for how to safely bring external data to the blockchain. Although there have been various research efforts to solve this problem, existing solutions are limited in that they do not support either data availability or data integrity. Furthermore, no solution has been proposed to minimize the response time when an oracle server is malicious or overloaded. This paper proposes a distributed oracle using Intel Software Guard Extensions (SGX). The proposed approach uses multiple oracle servers to support data availability. It also supports data integrity using Intel SGX and Transport Layer Security (TLS) communication. The reputation system, which favors oracle servers with short response times, minimizes the average response time even if some of the oracle servers are malicious. The benchmarking results show that the response time of the proposed approach with 3 oracle servers is only 14% slower than a centralized oracle called Town-crier and scales well even if the number of oracle servers is increased up to 9. The reputation system is also evaluated, and its feasibility is analyzed using various experiments.

Spatial progression of estate property management system with customized freeware GIS

Estate property management system mainly deals with geographical area with associated information for monitoring and managing estate properties. Geographic Information System (GIS) has potential to handle spatial and aspatial data in a single platform which makes GIS a favourable choice for estate property management system. The availability of free and open source GIS helped this technology affordable and popular in large number of applications. Hence there is a demand to develop a new or upgrade an existing non-GIS based system to a GIS based property management system. In this paper a novel case study is presented where an Oracle based system is integrated with GIS platform using freeware ArcGIS Explorer (AGX) customization. The integration of dynamic data from Oracle server is challenging due to non-supportive database type in AGX. The issue is overcome by introducing an intermediate file handling mechanism in the GIS interface using Oracle client in .net frame work. The proposed system can run in multiple nodes in a local area network and capable of fetching data from Oracle server. It serves user queries on both spatial and aspatial data that enables spatial visualisation of aspatial data.

Engineering-Geological Data Model - The First Step to Build National Polish Standard for Multilevel Information Management

The efficient geological data management in Poland is necessary to support multilevel decision processes for government and local authorities in case of spatial planning, mineral resources and groundwater supply and the rational use of subsurface. Vast amount of geological information gathered in the digital archives and databases of Polish Geological Survey (PGS) is a basic resource for multi-scale national subsurface management. Data integration is the key factor to allow development of GIS and web tools for decision makers, however the main barrier for efficient geological information management is the heterogeneity of data in the resources of the Polish Geological Survey. Engineering-geological database is the first PGS thematic domain applied in the whole data integration plan. The solutions developed within this area will facilitate creation of procedures and standards for multilevel data management in PGS. Twenty years of experience in delivering digital engineering-geological mapping in 1:10 000 scale and archival geotechnical reports acquisition and digitisation allowed gathering of more than 300 thousands engineering-geological boreholes database as well as set of 10 thematic spatial layers (including foundation conditions map, depth to the first groundwater level, bedrock level, geohazards). Historically, the desktop approach was the source form of the geological-engineering data storage, resulting in multiple non-correlated interbase datasets. The need for creation of domain data model emerged and an object-oriented modelling (UML) scheme has been developed. The aim of the aforementioned development was to merge all datasets in one centralised Oracle server and prepare the unified spatial data structure for efficient web presentation and applications development. The presented approach will be the milestone toward creation of the Polish national standard for engineering-geological information management. The paper presents the approach and methodology of data unification, thematic vocabularies harmonisation, assumptions and results of data modelling as well as process of the integration of domain model with enterprise architecture implemented in PGS. Currently, there is no geological data standard in Poland. Lack of guidelines for borehole and spatial data management results in an increasing data dispersion as well as in growing barrier for multilevel data management and implementation of efficient decision support tools. Building the national geological data standard makes geotechnical information accessible to multiple institutions, universities, administration and research organisations and gather their data in the same, unified digital form according to the presented data model. Such approach is compliant with current digital trends and the idea of Spatial Data Infrastructure. Efficient geological data management is essential to support the sustainable development and the economic growth, as they allow implementation of geological information to assist the idea of Smart Cites, deliver information for Building Information Management (BIM) and support modern spatial planning. The engineering-geological domain data model presented in the paper is a scalable solution. Future implementation of developed procedures on other domains of PGS geological data is possible.

DATABASE CONNECTOR: A TOOL FOR MANIPULATION ON DIFFERENT DATABASES

A database is an organized list of facts and information that can easily be accessed, managed, and updated. Database management system is a software application that interacts with the user and the database itself to capture and analyze data. A general-purpose DBMS is designed to allow the definition, creation, querying, update, and administration of databases. There are many well-known DBMSs which include MySQL, MS Access Database, MS SQL Server, Oracle etc. A database is not generally portable across different DBMSs, but different DBMSs can interoperate by using standards such as SQL and ODBC or JDBC to allow a single application to work with more than one DBMS. This paper presents the salient features of developed DataBase Connector tool. The developed tool allows the user to perform DDL (Data Definition Language) and DML (Data Manipulation Language) command on different DBMSs including MS Access Database, SQL Server Database, SQL Express Database, XML Database and Oracle Server Database. The user has no need to have different software application to perform data definition and data manipulation operation on these different DBMSs.

Scaling up ATLAS Database Release Technology for the LHC Long Run

To overcome scalability limitations in database access on the Grid, ATLAS introduced the Database Release technology replicating databases in files. For years Database Release technology assured scalable database access for Monte Carlo production on the Grid. Since previous CHEP, Database Release technology was used successfully in ATLAS data reprocessing on the Grid. Frozen Conditions DB snapshot guarantees reproducibility and transactional consistency isolating Grid data processing tasks from continuous conditions updates at the "live" Oracle server. Database Release technology fully satisfies the requirements of ALLAS data reprocessing and Monte Carlo production. We parallelized the Database Release build workflow to avoid linear dependency of the build time on the length of LHC data-taking period. In recent data reprocessing campaigns the build time was reduced by an order of magnitude thanks to a proven master-worker architecture used in the Google MapReduce. We describe further Database Release optimizations scaling up the technology for the LHC long run.

Protected Research Information Management Environment (PRIME) provides a secure open source data management option for clinical and scientific research

Meeting abstract The Biomedical Information Sciences Unit (BISU) of the UT-CTSI developed a secure, centralized information management system that is accessed through web applications. This system, called Slim-Prim [1,2], is mounted on an Oracle server housed within the UT-ITS and currently hosts three multi-site clinical trials and several institutional trials. In addition, Slim-Prim houses databases of clinical and laboratory information and provides a centralized location for several physician-generated surveys. In the majority of these cases users have approached the BISU and asked for assistance with their data management needs. Slim-Prim [1,2] and the BISU provide a cost effective mechanism for funded groups to handle their data management needs. However, we are also aware that many smaller groups are in desperate need of secure yet flexible database solutions; thus there is the need for a portable, secure and open source instance of Slim-Prim. To this end we have developed and released an open source instance of the Slim-Prim system under the Affero GPL v3 (http://www.gnu.org/) called “Protected Research Information Management Environment (PRIME)”. The PRIME instance is written in PHP, based on an objected-oriented programming (OOP) architecture, and JavaScript with inverted file indexing search algorithms to render the graphical user interface (GUI) (http://www.php.net/). PRIME has a user-friendly interface that is menu driven with help features that assist the user in navigating through the application. PRIME exploits the MySQL database system and allows powerful SQL queries across tasks through using fully normalized table structures (http://www. mysql.com/). It is a web-enabled application that runs on most popular browsers. It is provided to the clinical and translational science community as a free and easily customized database solution.

Collaborative design and manufacture on intelligent system

This research is based on the intelligent system and we develop a knowledge base of the computer-parts. It's a cross-platform and stores the part-diagrams which the manufacturers produce. The part-diagrams are draw by the AutoCAD software. We also plug the software in the knowledge base; therefore it can be updated in real-time. The part-diagrams are similar to the real objects and are present with two dimensions. The intelligent system is built on the manufacturers' oracle server and the real objects' width and length are their characters. To reach the aim of the collaborate design; the under-distributorships can use the internet to know about the modes and specifications of the products from the manufacturers' database. The under-distributorships can talk to the manufacturers what are their demand and they can purchase their orders to the manufacturers. If the specifications of the products are not their demand, they can download the part-diagrams from the manufacturers' database and correct the part-diagrams which they want, thus they upload the part-diagrams to the manufacturers' database that the manufacturers can produce. It's the theory of the build-to-order. The expect result of this research is as the manufacturers build the intelligent system, they can accumulate the knowledge of the under-distributorships' demand, therefore the manufacturers have the most competitive advantage. The under-distributorships can control the market's demand and supply the products to the consumer in real-time. We also can use the intelligent system which is link to the manufacturers' ERP system that the under-distributorships can know the evaluated price and working-time of the products. The production line can work with synchronize. Therefore, to build the cross-platform-intelligent system can reduce the inventory and the bullwhip.

Utilisation of mobile handheld devices for care management at an Australian aged care facility

This paper reports on research into the implementation and evaluation of a wireless hand-held clinical care management system at an Aged Care Facility in Launceston, Tasmania. This socio-technical trial involved the use of handheld computers connected to an 802.11 wireless network itself linked to an ADSL broadband connection and Oracle server. Following system implementation, research was conducted to evaluate the usefulness of the system for the collection of care management data. This evaluation was conducted through the use of qualitative techniques that analysed the impact of this wireless system holistically to produce insights from three perspectives: technical, organisational and end-user. More broadly, this trial generated insights for the development of ‘next generation’ mobile technologies to support health care. These developments are one of the foci of the Smart Internet Technology Cooperative Research Centre ( www.smartinternet.com.au). At this broader level the paper indicates that potentially significant benefits may be generated by enabling ‘live’ two-way transmission of clinical information to the point of care. It is anticipated that a future trial will investigate the suitability and feasibility of using voice activation and other modalities to support patient care.

Chemical Inventory Management Solutions from CambridgeSoft

Managing a chemical inventory consists of tracking the usage, disposal, and ordering of substances that are at the heart of an enterprise’s endeavors.[...]

Real-time data attack isolation for commercial database applications

Traditional database security mechanisms are very limited in defending against data attacks. Authorized but malicious transactions can make a database useless by impairing its integrity and availability. This paper presents the design of a real-time data attack isolation system, denoted DAIS. DAIS isolates likely suspicious actions before a definite determination of intrusion is reported. In this way, the database can be immunized from many malicious transactions. DAIS is a COTS-DBMS-specific implementation of a general isolation algorithm that we developed [Liu P, Jajodia S, McCollum CD. Intrusion confinement by isolation in information systems. Journal of Computer Security, 2000;8(4):243–79]. In this paper, the design of the first DAIS prototype, which is for Oracle Server 9.2, is discussed. DAIS uses triggers and transaction profiles to keep track of the items read and written by transactions, isolates attacks by rewriting user SQL statements, and is transparent to end users. The DAIS design is very general. In addition to Oracle, it can be easily adapted to support many other database application platforms such as Microsoft SQL Server, Sybase, and Informix.

A virtual-reality-based telerehabilitation system with force feedback.

A PC-based orthopedic rehabilitation system was developed for use at home, while allowing remote monitoring from the clinic. The home rehabilitation station has a Pentium II PC with graphics accelerator, a Polhemus tracker, and a multipurpose haptic control interface. This novel interface is used to sample a patient's hand positions and to provide resistive forces using the Rutgers Master II (RMII) glove. A library of virtual rehabilitation routines was developed using WorldToolKit software. At the present time, it consists of three physical therapy exercises (DigiKey, ball, and power putty) and two functional rehabilitation exercises (peg board and ball game). These virtual reality exercises allow automatic and transparent patient data collection into an Oracle database. A remote Pentium II PC is connected with the home-based PC over the Internet and an additional video conferencing connection. The remote computer is running an Oracle server to maintain the patient database, monitor progress, and change the exercise level of difficulty. This allows for patient progress monitoring and repeat evaluations over time. The telerehabilitation system is in clinical trails at Stanford Medical School (CA), with progress being monitored from Rutgers University (NJ). Other haptic interfaces currently under development include devices for elbow and knee rehabilitation connected to the same system.

Query rewriting for SWIFT (First) answers

Traditionally, the answer to a database query is construed as the set of all tuples that meet the criteria stated. Strict adherence to this notion in query evaluation is, however, increasingly unsatisfactory because decision makers are more prone to adopting an exploratory strategy for information search which we call "getting some answers quickly, and perhaps more later". From a decision-maker's perspective, such a strategy is optimal for coping with information overload and makes economic sense (when used in conjunction with a micropayment mechanism). These new requirements present new opportunities for database query optimization. In this paper, we propose a progressive query processing strategy that exploits this behavior to conserve system resources and to minimize query response time and user waiting time. This is accomplished by the heuristic decomposition of user queries into subqueries that can be evaluated on demand. To illustrate the practicality of the proposed methods, we describe the architecture of a prototype system that provides a nonintrusive implementation of our approach. Finally, we present experimental results obtained from an empirical study conducted using an Oracle server that demonstrate the benefits of the progressive query processing strategy.

DECIDE and value analysis: Presentation of the VASS tool

ABSTRACT Value analysis is a standard method used mainly by companies to evaluate a product's main functions during product creation or improvement. This article demonstrates how the method may be used in a decision making process associated to request for proposal (RFP) bidding. The main characteristics of the tool supporting the method—VASS (Value Analysis System Support)—are presented. VASS has been developed through the Esprit project N° 22298: DECIDE. It runs on PC (Oracle or SQL server)

Managing attribute--value clinical trials data using the ACT/DB client-server database system.

ACT/DB is a client-server database application for storing clinical trials and outcomes data, which is currently undergoing initial pilot use. It stores most of its data in entity-attribute-value form. Such data are segregated according to data type to allow indexing by value when possible, and binary large object data are managed in the same way as other data. ACT/DB lets an investigator design a study rapidly by defining the parameters (or attributes) that are to be gathered, as well as their logical grouping for purposes of display and data entry. ACT/DB generates customizable data entry. The data can be viewed through several standard reports as well as exported as text to external analysis programs. ACT/DB is designed to encourage reuse of parameters across multiple studies and has facilities for dictionary search and maintenance. It uses a Microsoft Access client running on Windows 95 machines, which communicates with an Oracle server running on a UNIX platform. ACT/DB is being used to manage the data for seven studies in its initial deployment.

Distributed database security

As critical information systems are increasingly moved from mainframe and proprietary platforms to open systems environments, the management and implementation of security faces complex challenges. This article describes several of the security challenges raised by heterogeneous, distributed database environments; for example, distributed authentication services, encryption of network data and secure remote database administration. It then proposes how some of these challenges can be addressed by using current and forthcoming releases of Oracle server and networking products. It also briefly discusses the increased complexity of those challenges in a multilevel secure environment. This article focuses primarily on aspects of security which concern confidentiality (or privacy) of information rather than those which concern integrity (or correct maintenance of information) and availability (or proper accessibility to information and continuity of that service). However, measures which protect confidentiality, such as password control, often also help to protect against threats to integrity and availability.