Showing posts with label website development. Show all posts

Wednesday, 19 December 2012

All about Oracle Security Developer Tools

Sophina Dillard 06:06 , , , , , , 1 comment :

If I talk about, Oracle Security Developer Tools i.e. OSDT the foremost thing which come into my mind is set of java libraries (JARs) used by developers to secure the enterprise applications. It is one of the SDKs (Software Development Kits) for building up Oracle Platform Security Services (OPSS) and to manage and identify the services, etc. It is delivered as a set of Java libraries that ship with Oracle Application Server and JDeveloper.

Security tools are always treated as critical components for the application development project. The commercial necessities and government regulations convey that sensitive data that need to be kept confidential and protected from being altered. It comes with the cryptographic building blocks which are necessary for basic responsibilities e.g. secure messaging to more complicated projects such as securely implementing a service-oriented architecture.

OSDT architecture



 Image reference:  “http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/testcontent/osdt-133323.pdf”

So what are the business benefits using it?


  • Standards-compliant (i.e. Conformance and Validation) – It enables greater control over document display. In this, Java, XML are available.
  • It is certified with Oracle’s Crypto Engine FIPS 140-2 Level 1 certification. 
  • It is extensible – i.e. Modular architecture, portable, scalable, easily integrated with enterprise applications.
  • It is used by several other Oracle products
  • It is installed at hundreds of customer sites worldwide since 1996
  • Interoperable – Interoperability is the key toward preceding the use of IM in the workplace. OASIS / W3C / LAP events are included in it.
  • It is readily available i.e. The OSDT JARs are installed with the Oracle Application Server in ORACLE_HOME (OC4J and WebLogic Server)

OSDT is part of Oracle Platform Security Services (OPSS), which provides an abstraction layer in the form of standards-based APIs that separate the developers from security and identity management of implementation details. OSDT APIs are –

  1. Oracle Crypto – It is a pure Java library that offers fundamental cryptography algorithms, including those directed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in their FIPS publications.
  2. Oracle Security Engine – It extends Oracle Crypto by offering X.509 based certificate management functions. This component is a superset of Oracle Crypto.
  3. Oracle CMS – It implements the IETF Cryptographic Message Syntax (CMS) protocol. CMS defines data protection schemes that allow for secure message envelopes.
  4. Oracle XML – In this, security implements the W3C specifications for XML Encryption and XML Signature.
  5. Oracle S/MIME – It implements the IETF S/MIME (Secure/Multipurpose Mail Extensions) specifications for secure email.
  6. Oracle PKI SDK – It implements the security protocols that are necessary within Public Key Infrastructure implementations (LDAP, OCSP, TSP, and CMP).
  7. Oracle Web Services – It provides security to a framework for authentication and authorization using existing security technologies as outlined in the OASIS specification for Web Services Security.
  8. Oracle Liberty SDK – It implements the Liberty Alliance Project specifications enabling federated single sign-on between third-party Liberty-compliant applications.
  9. Oracle SAML – It provides a framework for the exchange of security credentials amongst disparate systems and applications in an XML based format as outlined in the OASIS specification for the Security Assertions Mark-up Language.
  10. Oracle XKMS – It implements the W3C XKMS 2.0 specification providing PKI integration capabilities with Web Services.

You can find more information about this on the oracle website -  http://docs.oracle.com/cd/B14099_19/idmanage.1012/b15975/intro.htm. They have their dedicated documents and articles on specific products and services. If you have any query or if you want add furthermore in it, please put your suggestions and comments in the comment box below. I request you to put your name or initial so that I can address you for the same.

In-and-Out of Enterprise Application Development

Sophina Dillard 05:44 , , , , No comments :

Today let’s talk about Enterprise apps in a wide-ranging approach i.e. what is enterprise application is all about? Why one need an enterprise application? What are its specifications and components? Etc.

Enterprise Application Development (EAD) is the term used to define detailed applications or software installed in an organization to solve the problem or issues faced by them. Data processing, maintenance and improvement of the current process are few chores of this application. The EAD follows the Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC) methodology when developing computer programs or applications for the system. In this, it is important to maintain the relationships between end-users and the programmers to make sure computer applications and modifications meet the specific business needs and requirements mentioned.

The development process has the following stages:



  • Scope
  • Development
  • Control and Constancy
  • Delivery










There are majorly two types of enterprise application development. One is Web-Based and other is Desktop application. Both are actually the flip sides of a coin with some pro and cons to the user as well for the developer. If I compare both, for web-based app you don’t have to install the application on your system whereas for desktop app it is completely dependent on the installation first. But the desktop applications have better user experience than the web-based one. In the desktop one, developers can monitor every user action easily, and can take out the full statistics and feedback on it and the list goes on. 

Enterprise applications are sometimes designed as per the user requirement; this is known as Custom Enterprise application. You also have few standard or common applications which can be installed easily with little bit of modifications in it. The common types of applications are –



However, it is advisable to go for customized application because no two systems can work likewise. Every Business has their own strategy, planning and specific pain-points, addressing to these pain-points is vital and later to develop an application which can amend the process to work seamlessly and efficiently.

If I converse further, there are four main components of an Enterprise Application Development System:
  • Application Development
  • Infrastructure Management
  • Application support
  • Quality assurance

The most important stage in the life cycle of development of an application is to understand the requirements. The clients generally know what they want, while ambiguous and contradicting requirements are easily detected and corrected by seasoned professionals.

What are the specifications?

In this, it is the responsibility of precisely and thoroughly describing the software that need to be written and more importantly to the external interfaces have to be constant. If I take an instance, most of the successful specifications are written to understand and define the applications that were already well developed. Safety-critical software systems are often carefully specified prior to application development.

What are the top trends in Enterprise Application Development?

  1. Mobile Workplaces: It’s important to understand the need of the application on mobile devices and how it will help in getting more business by reducing the extra efforts.
  2. Cloud Computing: It will expect to be able to store data in the cloud and access it from any variety of devices.
  3. Data Analytics: In this we need to figure out how to present information quickly so people can understand it quickly in order to gain the insight information to make a business decision.
  4. Context Awareness: Developers should simplify their interfaces accordingly
  5. Specialization: Developers will need to have better understanding of vertical industries in order to create applications that meet their needs.


Enterprise apps have its many benefits. But for time being let’s leave it, may be next I will discuss about its benefits briefly in my next blog from a user or client point of view as well as from the developer side too. Till then, if you any queries or if you want to share something related to this topic feel free to post comments below.

Friday, 14 December 2012

.Net: Are you planning to go for it for the enterprise development?

Sophina Dillard 04:12 , , , , , , No comments :

If I talk about the internet era, it was highly evolved, when W3C (World Wide Web Consortium) took a role of standards transmission. Because of this, all major software vendors agreed with this new Web Services technology, proposed by W3C committee. Here, Microsoft did as a pioneer in web services technology when they released their .NET architecture. It is reliable, scalable and trustworthy. And it represents a big step towards software interoperability, which makes spot-on software integration finally possible for the developers.

Well in this, it integrates the control of web-based solutions with the distributed application model of traditional multi-tier client-server design. While client-server design has traditionally relied on proprietary technologies to control information flow between the tiers, the current solutions take advantages of this industry-standard communications protocols to connect the power of the Internet. By creating solutions based on a combination of supplied and created services, more powerful and flexible applications can be built in a fraction of the time required using previous development methodologies.

.NET also serves a base for new programming languages that have already been functioned out, e.g. asp.NET, VB.NET, C#, J#. Microsoft .NET architecture spans from Microsoft Enterprise Servers to Smart Mobile Devices, and Web Services technology, powered by SOAP, WSDL and UDDI.

What are the current challenges?


In the past, the companies that have tried to offer solutions for enabling a website to expose application integration in a scalable, modular and Internet-friendly way but still they have met with significant challenges. Topmost among these challenges are the following:

• Time to market: The span of development time for getting an application or website to market may reduce the offering no longer feasible.
• Scaling to the Web: Existing object models and component designs simply do not work over internet protocols. Banished application development that can be redirected and served by any other server is a new concept for many developers.
• Lack of end-to-end development tools: Tool sets available today don't empower organizations with the flexibility necessary to stay ahead of their competitors. In the rapidly changing world of the internet, organizations must exhibit the agility to integrate with new partners, using development tools that solve the challenges of today's heterogeneous computing environments.

Why we need it?


The answer is simple i.e. to improve the operational efficiency or to manage the business risk and for that all we need is migration of the applications or databases in enterprises that arises from changes in business demands or technology challenges. Many enterprises are present on both the flip-sides of system to ensure that the investments they are putting in these legacy systems do not get gridlocked in proprietary and other outdated technologies while moving towards the newer systems. The necessity is to preserve standard of the business rules and practices in the old one and at the same time manage the valuable human resources in sustaining these legacy systems.

Why to migrate legacy applications to .NET?


• Distributed system
• Ease of development
• Xml web services
• Ease of deployment
• Richness of the .NET framework
• Smart client with win form as well as thin client with web form

The .NET Framework is an essential component of the Windows Server platform, with the end-to-end Internet platform built on the Windows operating system gives rapid development and deploying of the customized enterprise applications. These applications include web services and web applications that integrate customers, businesses, and applications. The .NET Framework allows developers for rapid development of web services and web applications with the use of competent features, such as multiple-language support, adherence to public Internet standards, and the use of a loosely coupled, scalable architecture.
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