Virtual Private Network Architectures

 In the present economy, service provider profitability hinges on moving beyond a focus on transport to delivering value-added services. The market for managed virtual private network (VPN) services is expected to reach $5.3 billion by 2006, according to research firms IDC and Ovum. Managed VPN services can include e-commerce, IP telephony, managed security, remote site backup, application hosting, and multimedia applications. The type and deployment of a VPN architecture—Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS), IP Security (IPSec), or a combination of these—influence the service provider’s market coverage, service offerings, and revenue.

This white paper compares MPLS- and IPSec-based VPN architectures. It begins by explaining the evolution of the two distinct VPN technologies, and the general goals for VPN architectures. Next, it presents the relative strengths of MPLS- and IPSec-based VPNs and explains where service providers can deploy each architecture for optimum advantage. The white paper concludes with a brief description of the integrated IPSec-to-MPLS VPN solution from Cisco Systems, which takes advantage of the respective strengths of the two architectures.

Two VPN Architectures?

In recent years, two Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) working groups have been established, focusing on three important components of VPNs—Internet security, label

switching standardization, and quality of service (QoS). In the IETF’s Routing Area, the MPLS working group is developing mechanisms to support higher-layer resource reservation, QoS and definition of host behaviors. Concurrently, in the IETF’s Security Area, the IPSec working group is concentrating on the protection of the network layer by designing cryptographic security mechanisms that can flexibly support combinations of authentication, integrity, access control, and confidentiality. The IETF has left the issue of integrating MPLS and IPSec to the discretion of networking vendors. As a result, two VPN architectures have emerged—one based heavily on MPLS and the other on IPSec. MPLS and IPSec-based VPNs are complementary rather than mutually exclusive. Service providers can increase their service footprint and gain other competitive advantages by using the strengths of the two architectures.

Essential Attributes of VPNs

The service goal of VPNs is to provide customer connectivity over a shared infrastructure, with the same policies enjoyed in a private network. A VPN solution must protect against intrusion and tampering, deliver mission-critical data in a reliable and timely manner, and be manageable. Following are essential attributes of VPN architectures.

Scalability:

A service provider’s VPN deployments might range from small office configurations through the largest enterprise implementations,spread across the globe. The VPN architecture must adapt to meet customers’ ever-changing bandwidth and connectivity needs. In today’s fiercely competitive, dynamic market environment, service providers must be able to deploy and provision large service requests rapidly. This requires the ability to scale the VPN to accommodate unplanned growth and changes driven by customer demand. Service providers that have the potential to support tens of thousands of VPNs over the same network maximize their revenue and profit potential.

Security

It is essential that the VPN protect sensitive data so that it remains confidential. Security mechanisms used in VPNs include tunneling, encryption, traffic separation, packet authentication, user authentication, and access control.

QoS :

Support for QoS enables the VPN to prioritize mission-critical or delay-sensitive traffic such as voice and video, and also to manage congestion across varying bandwidth rates. QoS mechanisms include queuing, network congestion avoidance, traffic shaping, and packet classification.

Manageability:

Typical VPN management tasks include:

• Provisioning

• Distributing and installing VPN-enabled customer premises equipment (CPE) and VPN software clients where needed

• Installing security and QoS policies

• Managing and making changes to VPNs

• Billing

• Supporting service-level agreements (SLAs)

To perform these tasks, the service provider relies on an operations support system (OSS). An OSS with automated flow-through provisioning systems, reporting, and monitoring enables service providers to quickly fulfill VPN orders and support SLAs.

Reliability and Redundancy :

The VPN must be able to deliver the predictable and high service availability that business customers expect and require. A combination of reliability and redundancy is the key to maintaining business continuity and recovering from failures. Mechanisms

to improve service availability include enabling the VPN network to provide server stateful failover, VPN redirect, VPN session keepalive, VPN redundant server and backup sites. Some of these mechanisms may be offered by the service provider as a premium service at additional cost.

Network Configuration Services

Network Systems Design, Installation & Implementation:

We will consult with you to determine what your company needs. We will discuss the existing systems, their advantages and disadvantages. We will assist you in determining the number of work stations needed and what task that workstation is to perform. We will discuss the number of business locations and users at each location. We will discuss remote communications, customer or vendor access to your system, Email, Faxing and other outside communication methods. We will discuss security, data protection and disaster recovery. We are committed to providing you with the highest level of quality service. When it comes to technology, we have the skills to meet and exceed your needs. We will discuss speed expectations, performance issues and growth expectations.

Installation & Implementation 
MegaTech has the experienced, talented and well- trained staff required to install and implement the systems we recommend and design. We perform most of the system setup, configuration and implementation at MegaTech facilities. When the system is completely tested and configured, we deliver it to your facilities and plug it in. This approach provides your business with an efficient implementation, minimal down time and interruptions to your staff and business operations. Our staff and large client base assure that surprises are kept to a minimum. 

MegaTech will provide the proper connectivity products. The design of your connectivity products will determine the flexibility, growth and expansion opportunities that are available to your system.

Annual Maintenance Contract at MegaTech Infoserve

Annual Maintenance Contract (AMC) covers desktops, laptops, Printers, Networking products etc. 

We manage and provie services as per SLA designed specifically to maintain maximum uptime of clients IT infrastructure covered under AMC. 

 

Our Monitoring and Management programs ensure improved service levels, better response-times, minimized downtime and proactive support. Comprehensive and flexible solutions addressing all significant layers of technology are provided that includes:

•    Server Management & Monitoring

•    Network Management & Monitoring

•    Application Management & Monitoring

•    Desktop Management

•    Security Patch Management

•    Spyware Management

1.AMC benefits:

a.  Diagnosing & solving hardware related issues i.e. changing the hardware parts, swapping the hardware parts etc.

b. To provide standby as per SLA

c. AMC can be customised as per customer requirements and IT infrastructure.

Microsoft Office Communications Online

Microsoft Office Communications Online is a hosted, enterprise-class communications solution based on Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 R2. Office Communications Online provides your organization with real-time communications capabilities including secure instant messaging and delivery of "presence" information. Presence enables users to see at a glance if someone is available online to receive an instant message.

As an enterprise-class instant messaging and presence solution, Microsoft Office Communications Online helps individuals be more productive without increasing their company’s IT burden.  Here are some of the key benefits of the service.

Business-class presence and instant messaging

Phone or e-mail "tag" is an all too common communications problem in today’s business world. Often the problem stems from workers lacking visibility into other people's availability or "presence." Presence information is especially important when there is a need for a critical business discussion or a time-sensitive decision has to be made. Office Communications Online helps organizations increase individual productivity by combining presence with instant messaging in a secure environment.

Real-time collaboration capabilities within Office programs

Office Communications Online adds real-time collaboration capabilities and presence to the Microsoft Office programs workers use on a regular basis, such as Microsoft Office Outlook®, Microsoft Office Excel®, and Microsoft Office Word. Integrating presence in these applications helps integrate collaboration into the everyday workflow.

Collaboration capabilities within SharePoint sites

Office Communications Online serves as the presence engine for Microsoft SharePoint Online sites and portals, providing presence and IM access from within SharePoint sites. SharePoint Online is a separate service available from Microsoft Online Services.

Reduced travel and IT costs

Using Office Communications Online allows person-to-person communication across an organization without expensive business travel or costly long-distance or international calls. The service gives organizations the opportunity to focus IT resources on developing value instead of running IT infrastructure. Microsoft manages the risks and complexity of operational systems.

Reliability

Microsoft has extensive expertise with Office Communications Server, supporting more than 100,000 global users on the Microsoft internal network. Since 2003 when the product was introduced, Microsoft has implemented Office Communications Server client and server services in an array of environments and developed best-in-class deployment and operational practices along the way.

Timely platform upgrades

The Office Communications Online service is regularly upgraded to take advantage of new features that become available with service pack releases or new versions of Office Communications Server. Any upgrade to the service is available to customers at no additional charge. This means that companies are not burdened with the planning and execution of upgrades and their users can start working with the latest features and improvements without delay.
  
Features of Microsoft Online Services

Office Communications Online is one of a suite of services available from Microsoft Online Services. Microsoft Online Services are Internet-based services hosted by Microsoft that make it easier for a business to rapidly—and cost-effectively—access the latest communication and collaboration technologies. They help deliver business-class reliability and reduce the burden of performing routine IT management tasks such as installation, provisioning, ongoing maintenance, patches, updates, and upgrades.

Office Communications Online subscribers benefit from a set of features that are common to all Microsoft Online Services offerings:

·         Secure access: Microsoft Online Services are accessed via 128-bit Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) encryption. Anyone who intercepts a communication sees only encrypted text.

·         Business continuity: Redundant network architecture is hosted at geographically dispersed Microsoft data centers to handle unscheduled service outages. Data centers act as backups for each other: If one fails, the affected customers are transferred to another data center with limited interruption of service.

·         Intrusion monitoring: Microsoft continuously monitors the Microsoft Online Services systems for any unusual or suspicious activity. If Microsoft detects such activity, it investigates and responds as appropriate. In the unlikely event that a significant incident occurs, the customer is notified.

·         Security audits: Ongoing assessment of the Microsoft Online Services infrastructure ensures installation of the latest compliance policies and antivirus signatures, along with high-level configuration settings and required security updates.

·         High availability: Microsoft Online Services has a 99.9 percent scheduled uptime. If a customer’s service is affected, Microsoft Online Services offers financial remedies subject to the terms and conditions of the service level agreement (SLA).

·         Support: Web form and phone support is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, for the service administrator.

·         Administration Center: This easy-to-use Web site is made available to your service administrators for managing all Microsoft Online Services. This is also where service administrators can download software, such as the Microsoft Online Services Sign In application, Directory Synchronization tool, and Migration Tools.

·         My Company Portal: Users log on to the My Company Portal Web site to launch Microsoft Online Services. There they can access services such as e-mail, create a SharePoint site, download the Sign In application—and more.

·         Sign In application: This tool conveniently allows Microsoft Online Services end users to sign in once and access all services without being prompted repeatedly for their password.

·         Virus filtering: Microsoft Online Services helps guard against online threats that could potentially affect Microsoft Exchange Online and Microsoft SharePoint Online users. Microsoft Forefront™  Online Security for Exchange automatically removes viruses and spam in incoming and outgoing e-mail. Microsoft Forefront Security for SharePoint scans for viruses in intracompany e-mail and in all documents that reside in SharePoint Online sites.

·         Directory Synchronization tool: For subscribers with an on-premise Active Directory® service deployment, this tool helps keep the on-premises Active Directory and the Microsoft Online Services directory in sync.

Hard Disk Drives - Todays storages for desktops, laptops, servers

IDE or PATA

PATA (Parallel Advanced Technology Attachment) 
These hard disks used to be the standard for all desktop computers. You might know them better as IDE or EIDE drives. IDE and EIDE refer to the type of interface that is used to connect the hard disk to your computer.  It uses the underlying AT Attachment (ATA) and AT Attachment Packet Interface (ATAPI) standards. To connect, they use a 40 or 80 wire ribbon cable that connects to the motherboard inside your PC. As the PATA technology improved, more speed was needed and therefore more data transferred. This is why some disks use 40 wires and some use 80.  Parallel ATA cables have a maximum allowable length of only 18 in (457 mm). Because of this length limit the technology normally appears as an internal computer storage interface. You will also find smaller 2.5 inch IDE or PATA disks inside laptop computers too.

SATA Connector

SATA (Serial ATA) 
Compared to a PATA disk, the connections on the SATA ones are totally difference. That goes for the data connection as well as the power connector. In the computer industry, speed is the factor that most people crave. SATA disks were created to supply high amounts of data at very quick rates. The later models of PATA disks have a similar fast transfer rate, but the newer, slimmer design of the SATA drives allows for better use of technology and therefore provides quicker hard disks. Also, they use less power too, which is a requirement for most modern computers and operating systems. The advantage of the SATA is that it has the capability to provide point to point channel communication between mother board or the main board and the drive. Where as in the Parallel ATA that can be termed as the PATA the architecture of the master slave combination is supported on a single cable for the two drives it supports. The speed of the data transmission is about 1.5 giga bits per second or 150 mega bytes per second. This is a unidirectional. Eventually the SATA II was introduced in the year of 2003 that has the speed of about 3 giga bits per second or 300 mega bytes per second. The Parallel ATA hard disk drive uses the flat cable that has the width of around 18’’. But in the case of the Serial ATA a four wire cable is used that has a length of one meter.

SCSI

SCSI (Small Computer System Interface) 
The SCSI acronym stands for Small Computer Systems Interface and is pronounced "skuzzy". You could think that SCSI hard disks are similar to PATA one, but they differ in a few ways. The SCSI disks need a special controller to make them work. Where as a SATA or PATA drive will connect direct to the computer motherboard, this kind needs it's own controller to make them work. They both offer fast data transfer, but the SCSI models spin at a faster rate and are therefore quicker at sending and receiving data. It would be more common to find a SCSI hard disk inside a server rather than a desktop PC though. Their higher data rates and error correction capabilities make them perfect for using as part of a disk array. Although the SCSI type are considered to be more reliable, they also tend to wear out quicker due to the high speed that the disks spin at. SCSI is most commonly used for hard disks and tape drives, but it can connect a wide range of other devices, including scanners and CD drives. Up to 8 or 16 devices can be attached to a single bus.

Solid State Drive

SSD (Solid State Drives)
These drives are the future of computing storage - mainly because they have no moving parts. Conventional hard disks like the ones we have already discussed, consist of a spinning set of "platters" and a head that moves back and forth reading data as it spins past. The SSD drives are more akin to a USB memory stick and have no moving parts, therefore being more stable and less likely to break. In terms of a SSD, it refers to the fact that the primary storage medium is through semiconductors rather than a magnetic media such as a hard drive. The only downside with these disks at the moment is the price. As they are relatively new, the cost often outweighs the benefits.

This provides three distinct advantages:

·         Less Power Usage

·         Faster Data Access

·         Higher Reliability

4th Genearation Internet (4G) - will it change our lives?

Gone are the days when we use to wait for loading a single web page in internet browser. Now you got the improved technology, high-end computers and faster internet connection. Till today we were and still using 2G mobiles and mobile connections. But now in India we are moving slowly towards 3G (still far behind) than other countries, they are using 4G already. We will have to till mid 2012 (might more but not less) for 4G for us.

Imagine every device we will be using will have 4G in it, from anytime you will be connected to the internet from all types of electronics devices. For corporates 4G will help lot and will cut down the cost of traveling as well communication, its gonna definitely change our life.

Let's talk about how mobile broadband will change non-PC devices. Think about digital cameras and multimedia players. You will no longer have to download files to a computer, since these new devices can instantly connect to the Internet. It's like having a small computer contained within your portable gadget. This will also make GPS systems more reliable, as they can access live updates in real time

 The future is looking exciting! Best of all, you don't have to worry about paying insanely high prices for this technology. You can ask for Internet services and pay only for the Internet you use.

What change you want to see with 4G in you life...any guesses.

Please comment and share your ideas. Will 4G change the way we use our electronics devices today?

Internet Protocol Version 6 - IPv6

IPv6 or Internet Protocol Version 6 is the next generation protocol for the Internet. It's designed to provide several advantages over current Internet Protocol Version 4 (or IPv4). The main motivation for the redesign of the Internet Protocol was IPv4 address exhaustion, anticipated after the Internet experienced broad acceptance outside of the academic and research environments that created it. IPv6 is designed by IETF (Internet Engineering Task Force) Both IPv6 and IPv4 define network layer protocol i.e., how data is sent from one computer to another computer over packet-switched networks such as the Internet.

Specifically, IPv6 contains addressing and control information to route packets for the next generation Internet. We believe that the expansion of the Internet is important and upgrades are sometimes warranted. Gathering information concerning every aspects of IPv6 we would hope to provide knowledge about this technology so everyone can benefit. It is therefore also called the Next Generation Internet Protocol .

IPv6 is documented in several RFCs (or request for comments) starting from RFC 2460. Although IPv6 is the successor of IPv4, both protocol versions will continue to be data-oriented protocols for the Internet in the coming years.

IPv4 uses 32 bits for an Internet Protocol address, and can support approximately 4 billion addresses, IPv6 uses a 128-bit address and the new address space supports 2¹²⁸ (3.4×1038) addresses.

IPv6 does not implement interoperability features with IPv4, and creates essentially a parallel, independent network. Exchanging traffic between the two networks requires special translator gateways, but modern computer operating systems implement dual-protocol software for transparent access to both networks.

IPv6 Categories:

IPv6 addresses are broadly classified into three categories:

1) Unicast addresses A Unicast address acts as an identifier for a single interface. An IPv6 packet sent to a Unicast address is delivered to the interface identified by that address.

2) Multicast addresses A Multicast address acts as an identifier for a group/set of interfaces that may belong to the different nodes. An IPv6 packet delivered to a Multicast address is delivered to the multiple interfaces. 

3) Anycast addresses Anycast addresses act as identifiers for a set of interfaces that may belong to the different nodes. An IPv6 packet destined for an Anycast address is delivered to one of the interfaces identified by the address.

IPv6 Address Notation 

IPv6 addresses are denoted by eight groups of hexadecimal quartets separated by colons in between them.

Following is an example of a valid IPv6 address: 2001:cdba:0000:0000:0000:0000:3257:9652 

Any four-digit group of zeroes within an IPv6 address may be reduced to a single zero or altogether omitted. Therefore, the following IPv6 addresses are similar and equally valid:

2001:cdba:0000:0000:0000:0000:3257:9652
2001:cdba:0:0:0:0:3257:9652
2001:cdba::3257:9652

The URL for the above address will be of the form:

http://[2001:cdba:0000:0000:0000:0000:3257:9652]/