IT Governance

IT Governance, or Information Technology Governance, is a subset of Corporate Governance focused on information technology (IT) systems performance and risk management. There is a continual interest in IT governance as a result of compliance initiatives and the knowledge that IT projects can easily get out of control and have a serious effect on the performance of a company.

A characteristic theme of IT governance discussions is that IT can no longer operate in a “black box.” Traditionally, board-level executives stayed out of the IT decision making process. IT governance implies a system in which all stakeholders, including the board, have input into the information technology decision making process. This prevents IT from independently making decisions that can affect the outcome of the entire organization.

A popular new certification program has been implemented by the It's called Certified in the Governance of Enterprise Information Technology or certification is an advanced certification created in 2007. It is designed for experienced professionals serving in a management or advisory role focused on the governance and control of IT at an enterprise level.

Information Security

Information security refers to protecting information and information systems from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification, or destruction. The goals of information security include protecting the confidentiality, integrity and availability of information.

All organizations, including governments, military, financial institutions, hospitals, and private businesses, gather and store a great deal of confidential information about their employees, customers, products, research, and financial operations. Most of this information is collected, processed and stored on electronically and transmitted across networks to other computers. Protecting confidential information is a business requirement, and in many cases also an ethical and legal requirement. For the individual, information security has a significant effect on privacy and identity theft.

The field of information security has grown significantly in recent years. There are many areas for specialization including Information Systems Auditing, Business Continuity Planning and Digital Forensics Science, for example. There are also specific information security technical certifications that can assist getting started in this field.

nformation Technology - Definition and History

Information Technology – A Definition:

We use the term information technology or IT to refer to an entire industry. In actuality, information technology is the use of computers and software to manage information. In some companies, this is referred to as Management Information Services (or MIS) or simply as Information Services (or IS). The information technology department of a large company would be responsible for storing information, protecting information, processing the information, transmitting the information as necessary, and later retrieving information as necessary.

History of Information Technology:

In relative terms, it wasn't long ago that the Information Technology department might have consisted of a single Computer Operator, who might be storing data on magnetic tape, and then putting it in a box down in the basement somewhere. The history of information technology is fascinating! Check out these history of information technology resources for information on everything from the history of IT to electronics inventions and even the top 10 IT bugs.

Modern Information Technology Departments:

In order to perform the complex functions required of information technology departments today, the modern Information Technology Department would use computers, servers, database management systems, and cryptography. The department would be made up of several System Administrators, Database Administrators and at least one Information Technology Manager. The group usually reports to the Chief Information Officer (CIO).

Popular Information Technology Skills:

Some of the most popular information technology skills at the moment are:

• Computer Networking
• Information Security
• IT Governance
• ITIL
• Business Intelligence
• Linux
• Unix
• Project Management

LANforge ICE WAN/Network Emulato

LANforge-ICE, WAN Simulator

• Reduces lab and training costs by replacing expensive WAN hardware, such as T1 and FrameRelay devices.
• Automates testing with various scripting features and libraries.
• Compact form factor and rack-mount chassis conserves valuable lab space.
• Netbook, Laptop or network appliance form factor makes LANforge-ICE a friendly traveling companion, and a good option for trade shows, customer demos and shared work spaces.
• Validates stability and functionality of devices and programs functioning across a wide variety of network conditions.
• Very affordable, especially when compared to competitors.
• Delivers advanced, remote, cross-platform, graphical management interface.
• Implements a modular architecture that allows you to leverage your existing LANforge investment as your need for capacity increases.
• Turn key solution. The LANforge systems come pre-installed and ready to run.
• Ease of use - central management of entire LANforge system from anywhere on the network.

LANforge-ICE: Feature Highlights

• General purpose WAN and Network impairment emulator.
• Able to simulate DS1, DS3, OC-3, OC-12, OC-24, OC-48, GigE, DSL, CableModem, Satellite links and other rate-limited networks, from 10bps up to 2.4 Gbps speeds (full duplex).
• Can modify various network attributes including: network-speed, latency, jitter, packet-loss, packet-reordering, and packet-duplication.
• Supports Packet corruptions, including bit-flips, bit-transposes and byte-overwrites.
• Supports WanPath feature to allow configuration of specific behaviour between different IP subnets or MAC addresses using a single pair of physical interfaces.
• Able to impair packets based on an arbitary filter that is created using the popular and the well documented tcpdump filter syntax.
• Supports WAN emulation across virtual 802.1Q VLAN interfaces for more efficient use of valuable physical network interfaces.
• Ethernet hardware bypass option allows LANforge to be deployed in networks with high availability requirements.
• Supports routed and bridged mode for more flexibility in how your configure your network and LANforge-ICE. Virtual routers can be configured with the Netsmith tool. Supported routing protocols include: IPv4 static routing, IPv6 static routing, IPv4 OSPF, IPv6 OSPF, IPv4 Multicast routing (IGMP) and BGP. LANforge-ICE on Windows and Solaris supports only bridged mode currently.
• Supports 'WAN-Playback' allowing one to capture the characteristics of a live WAN and later have LANforge-ICE emulate those captured characteristics. The playback file is in XML format, and can be easily created by hand or with scripts. The LANforge-ICEcap tool can be used to probe networks and automatically create the XML playback file.
• Available configurations include all-in-one Netbooks, Laptops, silent appliances and rackmount systems for demo, desktop, benchtop and lab environments.
• Allows packet sniffing and network protocol decoding with the integrated Wireshark protocol sniffer.
• Comprehensive management information detailing all aspects of the LANforge system including processor card statistics, test cases, and ethernet port statistics.
• GUI runs as Java application on Linux, Solaris and Microsoft Operating Systems (among others).
• GUI can run remotely, even over low-bandwidth links to accommodate the needs of the users.
• Central management application can manage multiple units, tests, and testers simultaneously.
• Supports scriptable command line interface (telnet) which can be used to automate test scenarios. Perl libraries and example scripts are also provided!
• Automatic discovery of LANforge processor cards simplifies maintenance of LANforge test equipment.
• LANforge systems come pre-installed and configured with customer supplied network information.
• LANforge-FIRE feature set may be combined with LANforge-ICE for more realistic testing.

LANforge Netsmith: Virtual Network Builder

Netsmith is a drag-and-drop virtual network builder. It can support virtual routers, emulated network links, bridges (switches), virtual and physical interfaces, and more. When using routers, it supports static routing for IPv4 and IPv6, OSPF routing for IPv4 and IPv6 and IPv4 multicast routing protocols. LANforge-FIRE stateful traffic generating connections and LANforge-ICE network emulations are easily placed in the virtual networks. The virtual routers can connect to external OSPF and multicast routers and static subnet routing for easy integration into your network.

• Emulates networks of arbitrary complexity using real-world routing protocols by integrating with the XORP router daemon.
• Supports IPv4 and IPv6 static routing.
• Supports IPv4 and IPv6 OSPF routing.
• Supports IPv4 multicast routing.
• Supports ethernet bridges, including spanning tree protocol (STP).
• The virtual interfaces are 'real', so you can configure them like normal network interfaces and use sniffers and other tools on the individual interfaces.
• Virtual router interconnections can be associated with LANforge-ICE network emulations.
• Interfaces can be associated with LANforge-FIRE stateful traffic generation connections.
• See the LANforge-FIRE and LANforge-ICE and cookbook for examples of how Netsmith works.

LANforge ICEcap Network Probe Feature Highlights

• The LANforge-ICEcap tool can probe a network and save the probed latency, packet loss and other values to an XML file that can be replayed by the LANforge-ICE WAN emulator. This allows for realistic WAN emulations based on real-world networks.
• LANforge-ICEcap currently supports Linux and Windows.

LANforge FIRE Stateful Network Traffic Generator

LANforge-FIRE Stateful Network Traffic Generator

• Validates stability and data throughput on devices under evaluation.
• Useful for testing any network, and especially cost effective for efforts requiring many data-generating ports, such as DSL, Cable-Modem, and Satellite modems.
• Turn key solution. The LANforge systems come pre-installed and and ready to run.
• Implements a modular architecture that allows you to leverage your existing LANforge investment as your need for capacity increases.
• Ease of use - Manage entire LANforge installation through one interface, from anywhere on the network.

LANforge VoIP/RTP Call Generator Feature Highlights

• SIP and/or H.323 protocol used for call management.
  • SIP and H.323 are now supported on both Windows and Linux.
  • SIP/UDP supported, H.323 uses both UDP and TCP.
  • Can use directed mode, where VoIP phones call directly to themselves.
  • Can also use Gateway mode where the VoIP phones register with a SIP or H.323 gateway.
  • SIP authentication is supported.
• RTP protocol used for streaming media transport, and supports the following CODECS. More codecs may be supported in the future.
  • G.711u: 64kbps data stream, 50 packets per second (SIP, H.323)
  • G.729a: 8kbps data stream, 50 packets per second (SIP ONLY)
  • Speex: 16kbps data stream, 50 packets per second (SIP on Linux ONLY)
  • G.726-16: 16kbps data stream, 50 packets per second (SIP ONLY)
  • G.726-24: 24kbps data stream, 50 packets per second (SIP ONLY)
  • G.726-32: 32kbps data stream, 50 packets per second (SIP ONLY)
  • G.726-40: 40kbps data stream, 50 packets per second (SIP ONLY)
  • NONE: A messaging-only configuration is now supported (SIP ONLY)
• Supports PESQ automated voice quality testing.
• RTCP protocol used for streaming media statistics (SIP only)
• Each LANforge VoIP/RTP endpoint can play from a wav file and record to a separate wav file. Almost any sound file can be converted to the correct wav file format with tools bundled with LANforge. Sample voice files are included.
• Current benchmarks show support for 140 or more emulated VoIP phones per machine.
• LANforge VoIP/RTP endpoints can call other LANforge endpoints or third party SIP or H.323 phones like Cisco and Grandstream. Third party phones can also call LANforge endpoints and hear the WAV file being played.

LANforge FIRE & Armageddon: Feature Highlights

• Supports real-world protocols: (Benchmarked on high-end Candela Technologies-supplied hardware, typically equivalent to the LF1002 server.)
  • Layer 2: Raw-Ethernet (225 Mbps+ bi-directional on GigE)
  • PPP: Supports PPP and multi-link PPP over T1/E1 interfaces at full line speed
  • Layer 3: Armageddon accellerated UDP/IP (9.99 Gbps+ with 1514 byte frames on 10 GE; 990 Mbps, 81,800 pps on GigE; both symmetrical and bidirectional, sending to self (2 ports))
  • Layer 3: UDP/IP (990 Mbps+ bi-directional with 64K byte PDUs (1500 byte MTU) on GigE)
  • Layer 3: UDP/IPv6 (990 Mbps+ bi-directional with 64K byte PDUs (1500 byte MTU) on GigE)
  • Layer 3: IGMP Multicast UDP (500+ receivers)
  • Layer 3: IGMP Multicast UDP over IPv6 (500+ receivers)
  • Layer 3: Stateful TCP/IP (980 Mbps+ bi-directional with 64K byte writes (1500 byte MTU) on GigE)
  • Layer 3: Stateful TCP/IPv6 (980 Mbps+ bi-directional with 64K byte writes (1500 byte MTU)on GigE)
  • Layer 4: FTP (200 Mbps+, bi-directional, per processor)
  • Layer 4: HTTP (4 Gbps+ download, 65,000+/13,000+ Requests per Second, 3,000+ concurrent connections)
  • Layer 4: HTTPS (990Mbps+ download)
  • Layer 4: TELNET (not benchmarked, via integrated script)
  • Layer 4: PING (not benchmarked, via integrated script)
  • Layer 4: DNS (not benchmarked, via integrated script)
  • Layer 4: SMTP (not benchmarked, via integrated script)
  • Layer 4: VoIP Call Generator (SIP, RTP, RTCP, PESQ/MOS), 250+ calls per machine
  • Layer 4: Streaming audio and video with flexible plugin architecture.
• Supports over 2000 connections on a single machine.
• Supports real-world compliance with ARP protocol.
• Supports ToS (QoS) settings for TCP/IP and UDP/IP connections.
• Uses publicly available Linux, Windows and Solaris networking stack for increased standards compliance.
• Utilizes libcurl for FTP, HTTP and HTTPS (SSL) protocols.
• Supports file system test endpoints (can be used for NFS, SMB, and iSCSI file systems too!). Can emulate 1000+ CIFS and/or NFS clients with unique mount points, IPs, MACs, etc
• Supports custom and command-line programs, like telnet, SMTP, and ping.
• Comprehensive traffic reports include: Packet Transmit rate, Packet Receive rate, Packet Receive Drop %, Transmit Bytes, Receive Bytes, Latency, various ethernet driver level counters, and much more.
• Supports generation of reports that are ready to be imported into your favorite spread-sheet.
• Allows packet sniffing and network protocol decoding with the integrated Wireshark protocol sniffer.
• GUI runs as Java application on Linux, Solaris and Microsoft Operating Systems (among others).
• GUI can run remotely, even over low-bandwidth links to accommodate the needs of the users.
• Central management application can manage multiple units, tests, and testers simultaneously.
• Supports scriptable command line interface (telnet) which can be used to automate test scenarios. Perl libraries and example scripts are also provided!
• Comprehensive management information detailing all aspects of the LANforge system including processor card statistics, test cases, and ethernet port statistics.
• Supports 20 or more physical data-generating ethernet ports per 2U LANforge chassis.
• Emulates over 2000 unique machines with one physical interface with the MAC-VLAN feature!
• Supports over 2000 802.1Q VLANs.
• Supports PPP-over-T1/E1 and PPPoE, including automated creation and deletion of the PPP interfaces
• Supports 802.11a/b/g with WiFIRE feature set (see below.)
• Automatic discovery of LANforge data generators simplifies configuration of LANforge test equipment.
• LANforge stateful traffic generation and management software supported on Red Hat Linux, Microsoft Windows and Solaris.
• Custom packet builder interface allows hand crafting of headers and payloads. Headers supported at Layer 2 include ARP, SNAP/LLC, 802.1Q, 802.1QinQ and MPLS. Some Layer 3 protocol headers supported include IP, IPX, UDP, TCP, ICMP, IGMP, IP-ENCAP, RDP, IPinIP and IPv6 protocols.

LANforge WiFIRE 802.11a/b/g Stateful Traffic Generator

• Useful for testing Wireless Access Points and deployments.
• Can emulate up to 126 802.11a/b/g wireless client stations (Virtual STAs) per radio.
• Each Virtual STA can be associated with a particular Access Point (AP).
• Each Virtual STA has unique MAC address, IP address and routing table.
• 128bit WEP, WPA2 and related wpa_supplicant authentication methods supported.
• Supports all LANforge FIRE stateful traffic generation features, including HTTP, TCP, UDP, VOIP (SIP, RTP) and more.

LANforge NetReplay & Backtrack Feature Highlights

• Using a combination of the LANforge-FIRE traffic generation and LANforge-ICE network emulation, LANforge supports capture and replay of ethernet packet streams.
• Capture protocol can be converted to standard 'libpcap' format for use with other tools such as Ethereal and tcpdump.
• Capture has been benchmarked at 1Gbps bi-directional on high-end hardware using 6TB RAID configuration.

WAN Information - Wide Area Networks

WAN – Wide Area Network – usually a large network of interconnected computers and devices. WANs typically span a large geographic area. An example could be a large enterprise that has systems that communicate with each other throughout several offices located in numerous cities and/or countries.

LAN Information - Local Area Networks

LAN – Local Area Network – usually a small network, within a small geographic area. An example of this would be a small office, with 2 or more computers connected to the same printer. Another example would be a school, where several computers are connected to shared resources (pronters, faxes, etc) and are then connected to the internet or some other kind of WAN.
Also Known As: Local Area Network