Ontological Con guration Management for Wireless Mesh Routers

This is a post-peer-review, pre-copyedit version of an article published in Lecture Notes in Computer Science. The final authenticated version is available online at: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-04968-2_10[Abstract] Wireless mesh networks (WMNs) are a category of wireless networks that are self-organized, robust and which offer more flexible client coverage with less equipment requirements than wired networks. In WMNs, mesh routers constitute the network’s “backbone”. The distributed, ever-changing and ad-hoc nature of these networks poses new challenges in configuration management. In order to face them, we modelize the configuration and semantics of a preexisting mesh router using the CIM model and OWL ontology language and implementing XSLT transformations from the original configuration format to CIM/OWL and back. We thus represent it in a higher level of abstraction, an ontological representation that supports configuration semantic checking, policy enforcing and reasoning on the configuration of WMN nodes. We also use the capabilities of our AdCIM framework for persistence and the generation of web configuration interfaces.Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia; TIN2007-67537-C03Xunta de Galicia; PGIDIT06PXIB105228PRMinistère de l'Enseignement supérieur, de la Recherche et de l'Innovation; ANR-05-RNRT-012-0

On-demand provisioning of educational cloud-based services

[ES] El objetivo de este proyecto es facilitar la creación de nuevos entornos de capacitación en las aulas de las instituciones educativas, lo que permite a los docentes e investigadores aprovechar los medios tecnológicos al facilitar rápidamente el acceso y la organización de la información. Por esta razón, se presenta la implementación de un orquestador de servicios en la nube basado en el enfoque de la arquitectura dirigida por modelos (MDA), proporcionando así un acceso rápido a recursos y servicios basados en lecciones educativas interactivas. Los resultados del proyecto se utilizarán en la Nube Educativa de Małopolska (MCHE), el cual es un entorno educativo que conecta aproximadamente 150 escuelas con 10 universidades.[EN] The purpose of this project is to ease the creation of new training environments in the classrooms of educational institutions, allowing teachers and researchers to take advantage of technological means by promptly facilitating access and organization of information. For this reason, the implementation of an orchestrator of cloud services based on the Model Driven Architecture (MDA) approach is presented, thus providing quick access to resources and services which are based on interactive educational lessons. The results of the project will be used in the Małopolska Educational Cloud (MCHE), which is an educational environment connecting approximately 150 schools with 10 universities.Llopis Gandía, R. (2020). Aprovisionamiento bajo demanda de servicios educativos basados en la nube. http://hdl.handle.net/10251/149614TFG

Novel information and data exchange within power systems using enhanced blockchain technologies

This thesis was submitted for the award of Doctor of Philosophy and was awarded by Brunel University LondonCurrent energy systems are primarily designed for centralized power generation and supplying bulk electricity to users with stable and predictable usage patterns. However, with the increasing penetration of renewable energy sources (RES), future energy systems will require greater flexibility and wider distribution of both demand and supply. Integrating RES on a large scale poses challenges to the hosting capacity of distribution systems. To address these challenges, the digitalization of energy systems through novel Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) infrastructure is essential. The shift from centralized to highly distributed systems necessitates increased coordination and communication efforts. This is because a distributed system is composed of multiple independent entities that need to communicate and collaborate effectively to accomplish a shared objective. Coordination and communication are necessary to ensure that the system is operating efficiently and effectively. Traditional centralized cloud-based data exchange schemes depend on a single trusted third party, this may lead to single-point failure and lack of data privacy and access control. To overcome these issues, a novel approach is proposed for exchanging data within power systems using blockchain technology. This approach enables users to securely exchange data while maintaining ownership. The experiments conducted demonstrate that the proposed approach can handle more users and enables information and data exchange within power systems. Secondly, this thesis proposes an Artificial Neural Network (ANN) based prediction model to optimize the performance of the blockchain-enabled data exchange approach. A use case for exchanging data within the power system is implemented on the proposed platform using various performance metrics. The results of the proposed approach are compared to two other schemes: the baseline scheme and an optimized scheme. The evaluation results indicate that the proposed approach can enhance network performance when compared to the baseline and optimized schemes. In summary, the proposed novel approach to ICT infrastructure for successfully exchanging information and data within power systems entities. The performance of the novel approach is evaluated based on the ability to handle multiple users, scalability, reliability, and security

A New Simplified Federated Single Sign-on System

The work presented in this MPhil thesis addresses this challenge by developing a new simplified FSSO system that allows end-users to access desktop systems, web-based services/applications and non-web based services/applications using one authentication process. This new system achieves this using two major components: an “Authentication Infrastructure Integration Program (AIIP) and an “Integration of Desktop Authentication and Web-based Authentication (IDAWA). The AIIP acquires Kerberos tickets (for end-users who have been authenticated by a Kerberos single sign-on system in one net- work domain) from Kerberos single sign-on systems in different network domains without establishing trust between these Kerberos single sign-on systems. The IDAWA is an extension to the web-based authentication systems (i.e. the web portal), and it authenticates end-users by verifying the end-users\u27 Kerberos tickets. This research also developed new criteria to determine which FSSO system can deliver true single sign-on to the end-users (i.e. allowing end-users to access desktop systems, web-based services/applications and non-web based services/applications using one authentication process). The evaluation shows that the new simplified FSSO system (i.e. the combination of AIIP and IDAWA) can deliver true single sign-on to the end- users. In addition, the evaluation shows the new simplified FSSO system has advantages over existing FSSO systems as it does not require additional modifications to network domains\u27 existing non-web based authentication infrastructures (i.e. Kerberos single sign- on systems) and their firewall rules

A Semantic Wiki-based Platform for IT Service Management

The book researches the use of a semantic wiki in the area of IT Service Management within the IT department of an SME. An emphasis of the book lies in the design and prototypical implementation of tools for the integration of ITSM-relevant information into the semantic wiki, as well as tools for interactions between the wiki and external programs. The result of the book is a platform for agile, semantic wiki-based ITSM for IT administration teams of SMEs

Research and development of accounting system in grid environment

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.The Grid has been recognised as the next-generation distributed computing paradigm by seamlessly integrating heterogeneous resources across administrative domains as a single virtual system. There are an increasing number of scientific and business projects that employ Grid computing technologies for large-scale resource sharing and collaborations. Early adoptions of Grid computing technologies have custom middleware implemented to bridge gaps between heterogeneous computing backbones. These custom solutions form the basis to the emerging Open Grid Service Architecture (OGSA), which aims at addressing common concerns of Grid systems by defining a set of interoperable and reusable Grid services. One of common concerns as defined in OGSA is the Grid accounting service. The main objective of the Grid accounting service is to ensure resources to be shared within a Grid environment in an accountable manner by metering and logging accurate resource usage information. This thesis discusses the origins and fundamentals of Grid computing and accounting service in the context of OGSA profile. A prototype was developed and evaluated based on OGSA accounting-related standards enabling sharing accounting data in a multi-Grid environment, the World-wide Large Hadron Collider Grid (WLCG). Based on this prototype and lessons learned, a generic middleware solution was also implemented as a toolkit that eases migration of existing accounting system to be standard compatible.Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), Stanford Universit

Fostering Distributed Business Logic in Open Collaborative Networks: an integrated approach based on semantic and swarm coordination

Given the great opportunities provided by Open Collaborative Networks (OCNs), their success depends on the effective integration of composite business logic at all stages. However, a dilemma between cooperation and competition is often found in environments where the access to business knowledge can provide absolute advantages over the competition. Indeed, although it is apparent that business logic should be automated for an effective integration, chain participants at all segments are often highly protective of their own knowledge. In this paper, we propose a solution to this problem by outlining a novel approach with a supporting architectural view. In our approach, business rules are modeled via semantic web and their execution is coordinated by a workflow model. Each company’s rule can be kept as private, and the business rules can be combined together to achieve goals with defined interdependencies and responsibilities in the workflow. The use of a workflow model allows assembling business facts together while protecting data source. We propose a privacy-preserving perturbation technique which is based on digital stigmergy. Stigmergy is a processing schema based on the principle of self-aggregation of marks produced by data. Stigmergy allows protecting data privacy, because only marks are involved in aggregation, in place of actual data values, without explicit data modeling. This paper discusses the proposed approach and examines its characteristics through actual scenarios

Certifications of Critical Systems – The CECRIS Experience

In recent years, a considerable amount of effort has been devoted, both in industry and academia, to the development, validation and verification of critical systems, i.e. those systems whose malfunctions or failures reach a critical level both in terms of risks to human life as well as having a large economic impact.Certifications of Critical Systems – The CECRIS Experience documents the main insights on Cost Effective Verification and Validation processes that were gained during work in the European Research Project CECRIS (acronym for Certification of Critical Systems). The objective of the research was to tackle the challenges of certification by focusing on those aspects that turn out to be more difficult/important for current and future critical systems industry: the effective use of methodologies, processes and tools.The CECRIS project took a step forward in the growing field of development, verification and validation and certification of critical systems. It focused on the more difficult/important aspects of critical system development, verification and validation and certification process. Starting from both the scientific and industrial state of the art methodologies for system development and the impact of their usage on the verification and validation and certification of critical systems, the project aimed at developing strategies and techniques supported by automatic or semi-automatic tools and methods for these activities, setting guidelines to support engineers during the planning of the verification and validation phases

Un cadriciel pour la vérification en ligne, générique, flexible et évolutive de configurations de systèmes communicants complexes

Les systèmes communicants complexes constituent une base fondamentale de la vie d'aujourd'hui. Ils supportent de plus en plus de services et d'usages critiques, essentiels tant aux entreprises et administrations qu'à la société en général. L'exemple-type est celui d'Internet avec l'ensemble de ses services et usages variés, architectures et média allant de petits équipements mobiles comme les smartphones aux systèmes critiques à grande échelle comme les clusters de serveurs et le cloud. Il devient dès lors indispensable d'en garantir le fonctionnement effectif et continu. Pour ce faire, une vision consiste en la mise en œuvre de systèmes de gestion autonomes et adaptifs, capables de reconfigurer dynamiquement et en permanence ces systèmes afin de maintenir un état de fonctionnement désiré face à des conditions opérationnelles, instables et de moins en moins prévisibles. Un frein à l'exploitation effective des solutions de reconfiguration dynamique réside dans le manque de méthodes et de moyens garantissant l'effectivité et la sûreté de ces changements dynamiques de configurations. La contribution générale des travaux de cette thèse fournit des concepts, des méthodes et des outils qui favorisent la mise en œuvre d'une vérification en ligne de configurations. Notre démarche pour construire ce cadriciel a consisté dans un premier temps à définir un langage de haut niveau dédié à la spécification et la vérification de configurations. Nous avons architecturé dans un deuxième temps, un service de vérification générique, flexible et évolutive at runtime capable de manipuler les concepts définis dans ce langage. Enfin, nous avons défini une architecture de composants intermédiaires d'intégration de l'existant. Ce cadriciel permet de supporter un processus de vérification opérationnelle de configurations qui commence, en phase de conception par une spécification rigoureuse de modèles de configurations, puis se poursuit en phase d'exécution du système de gestion à travers une vérification automatique de configurations basée sur ces modèles. Le cadriciel a fait l'objet d'un prototype que nous avons expérimenté sur une série de cas issus de deux contextes applicatifs différents : la vérification de configurations d'un middleware orienté messages dans un environnement JMX et la vérification de configurations de machines virtuelles dans un environnement CIM/WBEM (standards du DMTF). Les résultats ont montré la faisabilité de l'approche ainsi que la capacité du cadriciel à soutenir une vérification en ligne, flexible et évolutive de configurations favorisant l'intégration de l'existant.Complex networked systems are a fundamental basis of today's life. They increasingly sup- port critical services and usages, essential both to businesses and the society at large. The evident example is the Internet with all its services and usages in a variety of forms, architectures and media ranging from small mobile devices such as smartphones to large-scale critical systems such as clusters of servers and cloud infrastructures. It is therefore crucial to ensure their effective and continuous operation. A vision to do this consists in the development of autonomous and adaptive management solutions, capable of dynamically and continuously reconfiguring these systems in order to maintain a desired state of operation in the face of unstable and unpredictable operational conditions. A main obstacle to the effective deployment of dynamic reconfiguration solutions is the lack of methods and means to ensure the effectiveness and safety of these dynamic con- figuration changes. The overall contribution of this thesis is to provide concepts, methods and tools to enable an online configuration verification. Our approach to build this framework was first to define a high-level language dedicated to the specification and verification of configurations. Second, we designed a generic flexible and adaptable runtime verification service, able to manipulate the concepts defined in this language. Finally, we defined an architecture of adapters for integrating existing systems and platforms. This allows our framework to support a runtime configuration verification process that starts at design time with a rigorous specification of configuration models and continues at runtime through automatic checking of configurations based on these models. The framework has been implemented in a prototype that has been experienced on a series of experiments from two different application domains: the verification of a messaging middle- ware's configurations in a JMX environment and the verification of virtual machines' configurations in a CIM/WBEM (DMTF standards) environment. The results showed the feasibility of our approach and the framework's ability to support a flexible and adaptable online verification of configurations that can be integrated with existing management solutions

Certifications of Critical Systems – The CECRIS Experience

In recent years, a considerable amount of effort has been devoted, both in industry and academia, to the development, validation and verification of critical systems, i.e. those systems whose malfunctions or failures reach a critical level both in terms of risks to human life as well as having a large economic impact.Certifications of Critical Systems – The CECRIS Experience documents the main insights on Cost Effective Verification and Validation processes that were gained during work in the European Research Project CECRIS (acronym for Certification of Critical Systems). The objective of the research was to tackle the challenges of certification by focusing on those aspects that turn out to be more difficult/important for current and future critical systems industry: the effective use of methodologies, processes and tools.The CECRIS project took a step forward in the growing field of development, verification and validation and certification of critical systems. It focused on the more difficult/important aspects of critical system development, verification and validation and certification process. Starting from both the scientific and industrial state of the art methodologies for system development and the impact of their usage on the verification and validation and certification of critical systems, the project aimed at developing strategies and techniques supported by automatic or semi-automatic tools and methods for these activities, setting guidelines to support engineers during the planning of the verification and validation phases