Name:
David
Reade Student
No:
---99755629 Class:
-CASE4 Name:
Tim
Kelly Student
No:
---99755629 Class:
-CASE4
For our project we have decided
to implement a network management system in Java. It will run on Microsoft
NT4.0 and will be made up of five separate parts: ·
Server Check System ·
Server Allocation System ·
Virtual Network Map ·
Web-Accessed Employee Database ·
Helpdesk Functionality ·
Web-Interface
The purpose of this document is to specify exactly what we hope to achieve by doing this project and how we intend to achieve it. This document details our ideas and the schedule that we intend to follow in order to implement those ideas successfully. It also provides a comprehensive description of what we intend our system to do. After researching implementation options we have decided
on a final layout which we believe will allow us to successfully complete
this project on time and to a high standard.
-----------This section details the reason for
choosing this project along with the intended uses of the system and
the overall ---------- ----------------objectives
of the project
------This project was inspired
by real life situations observed whilst working on INTRA. It tries
to tackle some of the problems faced by medium to large scale networks
by automating some common network features and improving the functionality
of the I.T helpdesk. These include checking whether servers are online
or not which can be tedious if there are a large number of servers
and by providing a Web fronted helpdesk functionality which will save
time and effort on the part of I.T helpdesk staff.
------The Network Management System
will be aimed at medium to large scale corporate networks which will
have a large number of servers and a high number of users connecting
to hardware such as printers. The system itself will be aimed at both
the I.T department and at the end-users because it provides features
which can be accessed by both in order to improve network up-time
and allow for easy use of network resources. As the system will be
Web based it would ideally be integrated into the company’s
Intranet homepage or the Intranet page could be built up around this
system.
2.3.1 Overall
Objectives ------The overall objective of
this project is to produce a product which will be practical and complete
and could ideally be integrated into a real life business scenario.
The system will have to be robust and easy to use in order to make
it a success. The main aim of providing an easy to use interface to
run more complicated procedures will be done by providing a fully
web based interface from where the administrator will have full control
of the system. 2.3.2 Personal
Objectives Apart from the
overall objective of producing a fully working, efficient and easy
to use application we have a number of other reasons for pursuing
the development of this specific project. We believe that by completing
this project successfully and on time we will create a positive image
to any prospective employer especially in the area of Web development.
Java is the language of choice for us and we hope that by further
developing our programming skills in relation to business specific
problems we will strengthen our chances of securing employment in
a closely related area. Our main objectives are to: ·
Develop a complete, effective
system from conception to implementation on time and with all related
documentation. ·
Develop our skills specifically
relating to: Java, JSP, Servlets, Web development, Database Design
and Project management.
The project constraints
can be summarised as follows: ·
The
system will have to run on an NT4 platform with Internet explorer
support for Java – JSP and Servlets. ·
The
project will be designed to be accessed from a company Intranet homepage
which will need to be simulated, taking the Computer Applications
network as the sample company Intranet and using the map of the CA
building as a sample company map. ·
There is only one print server
on the Computer Applications network. This will require adding a temporary
second print server or mimicking the original in order to make it
appear as if there is more than one print server.
------This section provides a complete
and detailed analysis of exactly what the system should do.
Administrators
will be able to access the system via the company Intranet page which
will be simulated for the purpose of presenting this project. The
Intranet page will be divided into an administrator area and a client
area. Administrators will have to supply a password in order to access
the administrator area. When in the administrator area they will be
able to perform the following administration functions: (A) Server Check (B) Server Allocate (C) Helpdesk Functions (D) Database Management
– virtual network map (E) Health check
area
(A)Server
Check Facility The Server Check
facility will allow an administrator to easily add and remove the
IP address of any server or important machine on the network. The
Server Check will then either be able to run on demand with the output
to a health check area or be set to run at regular intervals with
alerts being sent to the administrator via email and possibly via
SMS for important machines. This facility will
allow administrators to quickly check if some problem can be related
to the status of a server and aims to save time by providing a mechanism
for quick diagnosis of a problem. The main aims of this facility are:
Provide quick analysis and diagnosis
of the network servers and problems.
Easy addition and removal of
new servers to the check list.
(B)Server
Allocate Facility The main objective
of this feature is to allow management of print servers while at the
same time maintaining efficient print services for clients. This facility
also serves to aid the I.T helpdesk by removing the need for the I.T
department to be involved in setting clients up on new printers. In the NT4 environment,
network users need to know the name of the printer that they wish
to connect to as well as the name of the print server. This can lead
to confusion among clients and result in one print server taking the
entire load as there is no facility to regulate the assignment of
new users to print servers. This facility will be accessed via the
virtual map with a printer icon being used to represent the physical
location of printers on the network. If a user wishes to connect to
a printer all they will have to do is click on the icon and then select
whether they want to set that printer as their default or not. The user does not
need to know anything about which print server to connect to as this
will all be done automatically, spreading out the connection of new
users equally over the available print servers. Once this feature
is complete it should effectively cut the amount of time and calls
that the I.T department has to spend dealing with problems relating
to print services and connections. The main aims of
this facility are: ·
Save I.T department time by
removing the cause of printer calls to the helpdesk and maximising
the potential of the print servers. ·
Easy and quick for clients to
connect to any printer.
(C)Helpdesk
Facility The aim of this
feature will be to provide an easy to use web fronted helpdesk system
which is effective in dealing with client problems. In the administrator
area, administrators will be able to see problems logged by clients
and once they have completed the call they will be able to enter a
resolution and then close that call. The closed call will be stored
and will be used again when a client enters a similar call. Once this facility
is developed more we will make decisions regarding the use of historic
calls, namely whether they are only for administrator viewing or whether
clients would be allowed to see completed calls similar to their current
problem in order to allow them to solve the problem themselves. If
we allow client access to completed calls there are a number of issues
which could be raised such as encouraging inexperienced users to tackle
I.T related problems on their own. On the other hand allowing clients
to see the calls could save the I.T department time especially when
the solution is trivial. The main aims of this facility are: ·
Provide an easy to use, effective
application with quick problem diagnosis. ·
Fully Web fronted.
(D)Database
Management Administrators will have full
access when it comes to the employee database. The database will need
to be easy to use and will correspond to the virtual network map.
Administrators will be able to quickly and easily add and remove people
from the employee database. The database will also include a photograph
of each employee and their exact location on the network map. The reason for including this feature is to allow quicker desktop support by the I.T department. If the network is large with a large number of employees, then having a facility which allows people to identify the physical look and exact location of a person will save time, especially for the I.T department. It will also aid new employees when it comes to finding their way around the network. The main aim of this facility is to provide easy uploading and removing from the database.
(E)Health Check
Area This area will be used to show
the administrator the current state of the network. Apart from receiving
an email or SMS information regarding servers will be sent to the
health check area. This area might also allow access
for clients so that when a problem occurs with some application that
they are using they could check this page to see if there is currently
some problem relating to that application. Administrators could also
inform users of expected completion time which would save on the amount
of traffic that the I.T helpdesk has to deal with because they would
not have to deal with calls from everyone who is affected by the problem.
The main aims of this facility are: ·
Provide a first port of call
when there is a problem. ·
Allow fast diagnosis of network
related problems.
Clients will also access the
system via the Intranet homepage. It is undecided whether or not clients
will require a password to access the system as the benefits will
be weighed against the overheads once more research has been carried
out. The basic core functions which are provided for clients are: (A) Virtual Map (B) Helpdesk
(A)Virtual Map The network map has two basic
functionalities: ·
Employee Information ·
Printer Connection Employee Information Once in the client area, users
will be able to view a map of the network. They will be able to view
the physical layout of the company on a floor by floor basis. They
will also be able to select any person on the map and have their photograph
and details displayed in the corner of the screen. This will provide
a mechanism by where people can easily retrieve contact details about
any employee in the company. There will also be a search facility
which will retrieve the details of any employee by entering the employees
name or phone number or some other personal detail.
Figure 3. Sample Virtual Map with Employee Search and printer connection
Printer Connection The virtual map will also contain
a printer icon which will correspond to the real physical location
of a printer on the network. A sample of what this may look like is
shown on Figure 3. Clients will be able to simply click on any printer
which they require connection to and they will be connected automatically. (B) Helpdesk The helpdesk area will allow
clients to enter their specific problems straight to the I.T department.
From here calls will be logged to the database. The Helpdesk area
will require the user to enter some fields relating to the problem
as well as some of their personal details.
This system will be based on
three layer architecture with a Web based front end, the middle-layer
being Java, JSP and Servlets and an Oracle database at the back–end.
This model is outlined in Figure 1. This will be the model for the
majority of the system. ·
The
front end will simply be designed as a companies Intranet page
with access for both clients and administrators. ·
The
Middle-Layer will comprise of a Tomcat Web Server along with
all the Java code responsible for accessing the database and connecting
people to printers. ·
The
back end will comprise of an Oracle database. There will be
an employee database as well as a helpdesk database. Figure 4. Three Tier Architecture
The system can be broken down
into the following sub-systems. (A) Server Check (B) Server Allocate (C) Helpdesk (D) Employee Database (E) Web-based Interface
(A)Server
Check The Server Check system will
run over the network as a Java program. The check list of IP addresses
will be stored in a database which the administrator can add and remove
from. The basic layout of the Server Check will be as follows: ·
Ping the server with output
to a text file. ·
Check the results to see whether
the server is online. ·
If
the server is offline alert the administrator via email, SMS or the
Web. ·
Clear up all files and continue
onto the next server.
(B)Server
Allocate The Server Allocate program
will incorporate some of the server check facility to carry out its
role. When a user has selected a printer to connect to, the Java executable
is run. Firstly, both print servers
are checked and if one of them is offline then the user is automatically
connected via the other print server the connection is recorded. If
both servers are online then a counter is checked for that specific
printer on both print servers. Which ever server has fewer connections
for that specific printer becomes the server which the user is connected
through. This connection is then added to the counter for that printer. Printer connection will be controlled
by the use of registry files which will be set up for each printer
on the network.
(C)Helpdesk The Helpdesk will comprise of
a relational Oracle database which will be accessed using JSP and
Servlets. A search Tool will also need to be implemented in order
to compare historic calls with current problems.
(D)Employee
Database The employee database will again
be an Oracle database which will be accessed via the Web. Database
Administration will be done using Java Servlets and JSP, allowing
easy addition and removal from the database.
(E)Web
Based Interface The Interface for this system
will be very important. It will need to be visually sound and easy
to navigate. For the purpose of this project we are going to create
a company Intranet Site based on the Computer Applications network.
We intend to use some development tool such as Microsoft Visio to
draw up a clear digital version of the CA building. Once online all
resources will be added to these maps using a photo editing tool such
as PhotoShop.
This system will run on Microsoft’s
NT4.0 and will require registry access. MS-DOS Batch files will be
used for running some of the automated processes within the system. This system will be developed
using the J2SDK as it will implement both Servlet and JSP technologies.
An Apache Tomcat Web Server will be required in order to run both
the Servlets and the JSP’s. Java development will be done using
Borland’s JBuilder 3.5.
Web
development will be done using Microsoft FrontPage and PhotoShop 6.0.
The
network map will be designed using a development tool such as Microsoft
Visio.
A relational Oracle database
will provide the back end storage.
Summary of Software
required:
Java, Java Servlets and JSP.
MS-Dos Batch files.
FrontPage and PhotoShop for
Web Development.
Oracle Database.
Visio.
This section outlines our schedule
for the project development. By the end of each month we intend to
have completed the area which we have outlined below. We intend to
produce documentation for each stage of development in order to build
up a complete picture of the system.
www.computing.dcu.ie/~dreade-case4/proposal.html www.computing.dcu.ie/~dreade-case4/requirements.html http://java.sun.com/products/servlet/ http://java.sun.com/products/jsp/ http://www.15seconds.com/issue/010327.htm http://www.jsiinc.com/SUBA/tip0100/rh0142.htm http://www.computerhope.com/msdos.htm
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Project Preparation
OO Models
Z-specification
1. Proposal
1. Functional
Spec.
1.
Object Oriented Metrics
1.
Object Oriented Models
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