Cisco Systems on Windows Server 2008

Enterprises can now buy a networking appliance from Cisco Systems that runs basic Windows Server 2008 functions, a product designed for use in branch offices, Cisco and Microsoft announced Wednesday.

he companies said in February that they were working on a way for enterprises to run Windows Server 2008 services locally at a branch office on Cisco’s Wide Area Application Services (WAAS) networking appliance. The alternative for many companies is either to use a full Windows Server at every branch, which could be overkill, or run all functionality centrally, which could result in slow performance for branch workers.

With the new product, called Windows Server on WAAS, branch offices can host services locally including Active Directory, Microsoft Print Services, Microsoft Domain Name System Server and Microsoft Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol Server. That can improve performance for branch workers and reduce costs related to wide area network connectivity and branch systems management. An IT administrator can remotely manage the Windows Server functions using Microsoft System Center.

Cisco used embedded virtualization technology in its appliance to enable Windows Server 2008 to run on it.

Some companies that had early access to the product describe their experiences on a Web site set up by Microsoft and Cisco. Farm Credit Services of Mid-America had 180 Windows Servers companywide, including one in nearly every branch, said Jim Curtis, director of infrastructure. His goal with Windows Server on WAAS is to move most of the branch servers to the company’s data center to make better use of a small infrastructure support staff.

He currently runs Active Directory centrally, but once the appliance setup is complete he could move Active Directory to the branches as a read-only function, improving log-in times for workers and mitigating potential security issues, he said.

The product is one example of Cisco and Microsoft working together while they also compete in other markets, such as unified communications.

Pricing for Windows Server on WAAS starts at $10,000, including the hardware and the software license. Other configurations with more storage are also available.

Cyber-Threats’ Reality

WAR, crime and terrorism are traditional concepts that occur in the physical domain. The only difference between those concepts and ­cyberwar, cybercrime and cyber-terrorism is the “cyber” prefix.

Cyberwar refers to warfare in cyberspace and includes ­cyber-attacks against a nation state and critical communication network. Cyber-terrorism refers to the use of cyberspace to commit terrorism. It is generally understood to mean unlawful attacks and threats of attack against computers, networks and the information stored therein when done to intimidate or coerce a government or its people to further political or social objectives.

Cybercrime or crime in cyberspace has been much experienced by many parties where the motive is more of computer-related crimes and monetary gain is the focus.

What is a threat?

From the information security perspective, a threat is defined as the potential to cause an unwanted incident in which an asset, system or organisation may be harmed.

There are three sources of threats: Intentional, accidental and environmental. Some examples of intentional threats are those that use malicious software or illegal software. Accidental threats can be seen as service failure, human design error or hardware failure.

Meanwhile, examples of ­environmental threats are ­earthquakes, thunderstorms or lightning. All these threats cannot be totally eliminated, but can be reduced through the establishment of effective measures to curb such threats within each organisation.

Threats however, if not properly controlled, can create an unwanted impact on security, socio-economy and human lives.

Cheap method

The dimension of warfare can be categorised as conventional, space and cyber-warfare. Conventional warfare and space warfare are expensive whereas cyber-warfare is cheap. It is also accessible to many groups and individuals.

Cyber-warfare enables asymmetric warfare, where individuals have the abilities and capabilities to cause damage to a nation state.

Access to a personal computer with an Internet connection can create as much damage as traditio­nal weapons. It is attractive to many because it is cheap in relation to the cost of developing, maintaining and using advanced military capabilities.

The sophistication of an attacker’s tools and techniques is becoming more powerful and requires less technical knowledge nowadays.

Furthermore, all of these tools are available on the Internet, which is more user-friendly, at a very ­minimal cost and in many instances, are free of charge.

There are known threats which have limited capabilities and marginal opportunities with high risks of being detected. There are also emerging threats which have many capabilities and broad ­opportunities and provide low risks of detection. These are the ­dilemmas that we face today.

Case studies

Below are several case studies of cyberthreats reported outside Malaysia:

· Cyberattacks experienced by the Japanese government.

It was reported that the Japanese government’s computers were under attack on August 4, 2004. Eight Japanese government ­agencies’ computer networks were disrupted almost simultaneously, similar to what is known as barrage jamming in telecommunication terms.

Those networks experienced denial-of-service attacks whereby the affected networks were not accessible for a few hours.

· Hackers clogging up the US customs’ computers for hours.

This case was reported in August 2005 where viruses attacked the US Customs and Border Protection system for several hours. Several thousands of people were affected.

The viruses left a grave impact on the computers at airports in Miami, New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Houston and Dallas.

· Cyberattacks on Estonia

In May 2007, Estonia was under cyberattack for three weeks. The attacks paralysed Internet ­communications targeting the government, banking, media and police websites.

Huge economic losses were incurred as online transactions were disrupted. · Cyber-warfare between Russia and Georgia

Russia’s invasion of Georgia in August had moved into cyberspace as the Russians managed to siege and gain direct routing intended for Georgia.

It was reported that the Russians intercepted the network traffic to Georgia and redirected the route to their servers. Many of Georgia’s Internet servers were under their command and control.

Local attack

In 2001, Malaysia’s Internet ­infrastructure was attacked by the Code Red worm. This was a classic example of infrastructure attack in which the worm spread very fast and brought our national ­communication network to a ­standstill.

It was reported that the relevant agencies took three months to ­eradicate this worm and the ­estimated minimum losses was RM22mil, not inclusive of the losses to the business fraternity and other sectors as well.

Other incidents of cyberattacks were caused by the Blaster and Naachi worms in 2003. The incident started with the propagation of the Blaster worm through the scanning of vulnerable machines via the network, followed by Naachi worms.

These worms exploited the vulnerability found in the Windows NT, 2000 and XP software. The ­estimated cost to eradicate this worm was about RM31mil, not including lost productivity and the cost of lost opportunity.

Modern warfare

Today, cyberspace is the new war frontier whenever there are conflicts between countries.

The popular method of a ­cyberattack is the defacement of websites. Web defacement is a malicious activity whereby a website is “vandalised.”

Often the hacker replaces the site’s content with a specific ­political or social message. The hacker may even erase all the contents from the site by relying on known security ­vulnerabilities to access the site’s content.

The US-China conflict in May 2001, which resulted from an ­incident where a Chinese fighter was lost at sea after colliding with a US naval reconnaissance plane, is a good example to illustrate this scenario.

End word

In conclusion, cyber-threats are the problems of today and the future. They need to be addressed in a comprehensive manner. In dealing with cyber-threats, a country cannot stand alone. There is a need to have strategic alliances to deal with threats and vulnerabilities in the cyberworld.

Co-ordination and collaboration from all parties is important in order to enhance the security of Malaysia’s cyberspace.

Microsoft Has Weakness???

In many ways, Microsoft has little to worry about, at least not for now. Sure, they are losing market share steadily, but for their lead to be toppled it would take years and years, or would it?

Microsoft’s agreements with major OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) such as Dell and HP are highly confidential (which is a warning sign in itself), but by most accounts, the agreements give Microsoft a lot of power over these OEMs. This is part of what gives Microsoft so much power. As long as OEMs continue to sell Windows exclusively, which Microsoft essentially ensures with their agreements, they have a large part of the market all to themselves. These strangle-hold agreements may also be a weakness, though.

From the information we have, it appears that Microsoft controls OEMs not by making them love Microsoft, but by threatening them with increased licensing costs, something that could quickly kill any OEM. What this means is that most OEMs probably wish Microsoft has less of a monopoly. In fact, both Dell, by selling Ubuntu on some notebooks, and HP, with their rumored custom version of Linux, have indicated this.

It appears that Dell, HP, and others probably have two options: restrict their Linux stuff to remote areas of their businesses, or declare a revolution by offering Linux on all their computers. I suspect that any single OEM that tried this would get killed, but if several major OEMs did it together?

Let’s look at the pros and cons from the perspective of OEMs:

• PRO: Good chance of toppling Microsoft’s power, freeing them of restrictive licensing deals.
• PRO: Reduce costs by cutting out Windows licensing fees all together.
• CON: Potential technical problems and initial negative customer response.
• CON: Some possibility of getting absolutely crushed. In this case, the company in question could probably recover, but not without losses.

While we do not know exactly how bad the license with Microsoft is, it seems unlikey that any major company would take the risks involved. If I were Microsoft, I would, however, be somewhat concerned. If OEMs did “revolt,” Microsoft would be in deep trouble. Arguably, despite the low probability, this is Microsoft’s most immediate threat. Could it ever happen? Would it work?

Dell’s Smallest PC, Runs Ubuntu

Computers, which once used to occupy an entire room, today have shrunk to the size of a book. Intel’s Atom processor is further pushing the size envelope down making PCs smaller and smaller. Flowing in the same current, Dell has unveiled the Inspiron Mini 9 — a small, easy-to-carry device perfect for surfing the Web, chatting with friends, blogging, streaming content, uploading photos or enjoying favourite online videos, music and games. Dell calls it the best buddy of those who love to stay online.

With a starting weight of 2.28 lbs.1, digital nomads will value the Inspiron Mini’s durable design, with sealed keyboard and reliable solid state drive (SSD) memory storage. A bright 8.9-inch glossy LED display (1024×600) presents most Web pages with no left-right scrolling, and the keypads are large and easy to navigate. Standard built-in Wi-Fi means quick and easy wireless Internet access to hot spots in the home, on campus, in a local coffee shop, in the office or at a conference.

Powered by Intel Atom processor (1.6GHz, 512KB L2 Cache, 533MHz FSB), it runs on one of the most famous operating systems Ubuntu Linux 8.04 with custom Dell interface as well as Windows XP Home Edition SP3. The Mini 9 can have up to 1GB 2 533MHz DDR2 SDRAM, depending on your choice of configuration.

It also has a built-in Webcam, bundled with Dell Video Chat, making it easy to stay in touch using video chat, recording and sending video e-mails, or even PC-to-PC phone calls around the world. DVC even supports four-way calling, making virtual family reunions a reality. Its built-in Bluetooth enables easy wireless connections to Bluetooth-enabled accessories like a pair of stereo headphones, a mouse, a printer, etc.

Dell has teamed up with Box.net to offer exclusive Web-based file storage, access and sharing to Inspiron Mini users, including a free Basic plan with 2GB of remote storage space, expandable to 25GB. Dell’s Inspiron Mini will include a direct link to a Dell-exclusive home page on Box.net (www.box.net/dell), providing users with an easy way to add incremental online storage space to easily manage their digital lives. Individuals can safely and securely upload files of any type to their Box, including photos, videos, music, documents and presentations, and then access those files from almost anywhere on any device.

Box.net’s service requires no software to download. With its OpenBox platform, Box.net enables people to edit documents and photos directly from their Web browser and post media to their blog or social networks, further enhancing the mobility and user experience on the Inspiron Mini.