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An alarm system watches for network probes. The alarm system can be configured to watch for TCP or UDP probes from either the external or internal networks. Alarms can be configured to trigger E-mail, pop-up windows, and messages sent to a local printer, or halt the system upon detection of a security breach.
Another important function of firewalls is to remap and hide all internal IP addresses. The source IP addresses are written so that outgoing packets originate from the firewall. The result is that all of the organizations internal IP addresses are hidden from users on the greater Internet. This provides organizations with the important option of being able to use non-registered IP addresses on their internal network. By not having to assign every computer a unique IP address and not having to register them for use over the greater Internet, which would result in conflicts, administrators can save hundreds of hours of work.
Intranets bring together yet another set of technologies that need to be managed. Instead of using different management systems, organizations should strive to monitor and administer intranet applications from the same console used to manage their underlying operating system software and server hardware. This is a distinct advantage when it comes to ensuring end-to-end availability of intranet resources to users.
For example, the hierarchical storage management capabilities of the Unicenter platform from Computer Associates can be extended to HTML pages on a Web server. HTML pages that are not accessed from the server for a given period of time can be migrated to less costly near-line storage. If a user then tries to access such a page, storage management directs the query to the appropriate location.
Some enterprise management vendors are turning to partnerships to provide users of their management platforms with data on intranet server performance. For example, Hewlett-Packard Co. and Cabletron Systems, Inc. have joined with BMC Software Inc. to provide application management software that monitors Web-server performance and use. The software forwards the data it collects to management consoles, such as HPOV and Cabletrons Spectrum, in the platforms native format or as basic SNMP traps. Instead of looking at their internal Web sites in an isolated way, this integrated method allows full-fledged enterprisewide applications management.
IBMs Tivoli Systems unit provides Web server management through a combination of its internally developed applications and software from net. Genesis Corp. Tivoli is also working with IBM Corp. and SunSoft, Inc. to develop the IMS for submission to the DMTF. IMS would provide a standard interface for monitoring and controlling all types of Internet and intranet resources.
Managing Web servers is only one aspect of keeping an intranet up and running. IP administration can also become unwieldy as intranets lead to a proliferation of devices and addresses. Intranet-driven IP administration can be facilitated by DHCP software, which streamlines the allocation and distribution of IP addresses and insulates network operators from the complexity of assigning addresses across multiple subnetworks and platforms. Because intranets depend on the accurate assignment of IP addresses throughout a company, such tools are invaluable to ensuring the availability of resources.
Intranets also have the potential to significantly increase traffic, causing bandwidth problems. For some technology managers, the obvious concern is that bandwidth for vital business applications is being consumed by less-than-vital intranet data. Users access files that may contain large graphics files, and that alone has created a tremendous bandwidth issue. As Web servers across an enterprise entice users with new content, intranets also can alter the distribution patterns of network traffic as users hop from one business units intranet server to anothers and as companies make it easier to access information and applications no matter where they may be located.
More servers and bandwidth can be added and the network itself can be partitioned into more subnetworks to help confine bandwidth-intensive applications to various communities of interest. But these are expensive solutions. A policy-based solution can be just as effective, if not more economical.
To prevent these applications from wreaking too much havoc on the network infrastructure, companies can issue policies that establish limits to document size and the use of graphics so that bandwidth is not consumed unnecessarily. These policies can even be applied to E-mail servers, where the server can be instructed to reject messages that are too long or which contain attachments that exceed a given file size.
Companies that have implemented intranets are gradually finding that they are able to use Internet technologies to communicate and link information internally and externally in ways that were not possible before. Many other companies may be tempted to jump on the intranet bandwagon using the fastest means possible. This tactic may meet basic requirements, but it often does not take into account future network growth, the advantages gained by leveraging existing data and resources, or how to add new intranet-enhancing products as they become available. These considerations demand that intranets be flexible, open, and integrated.
Any time a company makes information accessible to a wide group of people or extends an intranet to suppliers or vendors, it must establish appropriate security mechanisms, ranging from firewalls to access control to authentication and encryption. In addition, network manager upgrade the network infrastructure to support the increased traffic that will flow over the intranet and maintain acceptable network response times.
Despite the allure of corporate intranets and their benefits, companies will not be able to move rapidly toward the kind of full-fledged intranet being predicted by some vendors, with a single browser-type COM interface and thin clients that download applications and data all at once. For some considerable time to come, intranets, as defined by the browser suppliers, will be distinct from and complementary to existing systems.
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