Pictures of the Future    Spring 2006

Immunization for Computer Systems

Many IT administrators dream of a network that not only repairs itself but also automatically immunizes itself against attacks. Wishful thinking? A project group from Fujitsu Siemens Computers (FSC) and Siemens Business Services (SBS) is using all its know-how to develop such "auto-immune systems."

Imagine an ATM that can automatically repair malfunctions within seconds and without customers even noticing; a system that almost never experiences faults because it learns from its own mistakes and from those of other ATMs; a system that is ready to repel external attacks even before it knows what those intrusions are," says Christoph König of Siemens Business Services (SBS).

For the last year or so, a ten-member team has been working to turn this vision into reality. Their ultimate objective is to ensure excellent availability of secure IT systems. "Many of the problems that afflict IT are self-inflicted, you might say," König explains. "And that's in spite of the fact that technology should really be there to help people, not the other way around." In recent years, with business processes becoming much more complex, it has become increasingly difficult to ensure the necessary transparency, controllability and operating stability of the infrastructure that supports these processes. It was in response to these conditions that the idea of "auto-immune systems" (AIS) first took shape. This concept is not to be confused with the medical sense of an auto-immune disease, where the body fights against itself. Instead, it refers to systems that automatically immunize themselves. "They'll allow us not only to rapidly correct problems, but to prevent them from happening at all," says König. "That's a radically new approach in service management. IBM had a similar idea with the self-learning computer, although that didn't go far enough, in my opinion. Instead of a single computer, we are working to create a fully networked IT system that is self-learning."

Initial Components. Although complete auto-immune systems are still a vision, the first three components of such a system have been available since October 2005. The first of these is Corporate Error Analysis (CEA), which provides an overview of an IT system's availability and security. A Microsoft-based software package gathers and evaluates information in order to propose solutions whenever memory capacity drops, updates don't function properly or programs crash. CEA was installed last November at the SBS location in Paderborn, Germany, which has 1,700 computers. "CEA gives us an overview of the most common problems," explains project coordinator Fritz Greisinger from FSC.

The second component is Remote Services (RS). With RS, a server will report in "sick" whenever it has a problem. If the temperature is too high, memory capacity becomes insufficient, or workload hits a ceiling value over an extended period of time, the server automatically transmits an alarm message.

Finally, Advanced Patch Management (APM) provides fast, effective software updates. This third component is being used by the Landesbank Rheinland-Pfalz, a large German bank, to supply 2,000 systems at one location with security patches within two hours. In the past, this would have taken up to two days.

These three components are just the beginning. The SBS team is also planning to complete development of a "Service Engine" by Fall of this year. This provides the basis that systems need to repair themselves and immunize themselves against faults. As soon as a fault occurs in an IT system, the Service Engine carries out first-aid measures. A few seconds later, normal operation resumes without the user having even been aware of the problem. The Service Engine also continues to inquire if the measures have fixed the fault and if there have been any side-effects. On this basis, it can determine if further action is needed and automatically carry it out. This continuously improves the tool's quality. The Service Engine learns from its mistakes and steadily strengthens its immunity to attacks. In doing so, it uses not only individual solutions but also the databases of software and hardware manufacturers, including Microsoft, IBM and SAP. After all, many problems facing users have already been solved elsewhere at some point. The Service Engine works to exploit this know-how and searches for possible solutions in many different locations. "Our aim is to network as many solutions as possible," says König.

Auto-immune systems also bring big changes to service management, which usually employs a three-tier concept. First-level support processes incoming inquiries and receives assistance for complex problems from second-level support; third-level support, meanwhile, takes care of any special problems requiring expertise in specific areas. With the advent of auto-immune systems, employees at the first and second support levels will be largely replaced by the Service Engine—except, that is, when facing first-time problems, which require human input. And while there will still be employees working at the second level, their job will change. They will be responsible for administering the "policies" upon which the system is based.

Besides the Service Engine, the AIS group has set its sights on another ambitious goal, this time for fall 2007: to complete the development of a Cybernetic Defense System, which will be capable of providing comprehensive IT security. "It's a vital task, because the rate at which viruses and trojans are propagating is increasing tremendously," reports König. "A few years ago, the IT industry would have had several months to plug a gap, but now it's just days. And in the future it will be only a matter of hours." When an attack takes place today, the software manufacturer releases a patch, and hackers immediately begin to look for the next security gap that will allow them to create more havoc. It's taking less and less time to do this, because systems are becoming more complex and networked. "The entire IT industry dreads the day when the next massive attack comes immediately after a patch has been released," says König.

Defense Strategy. That's why the AIS team is working to develop a Cybernetic Defence System that can rapidly deliver an appropriate response. This will also be based on the Service Engine, which will once again be networked with the databases of major software and hardware manufacturers. In addition to having access to comprehensive information for the right defense strategy, the Service Engine must also be able to evaluate any possible negative consequences of such action and weigh them against the risk of an attack. "If the system concludes that a defense measure will generate more costs than the attack it's designed to repel, it will opt to accept the risk—just as a person would, only much more quickly," König explains.

Auto-immune systems will pay off not only for any company with an IT system but also for manufacturers of complex technology such as ATMs, ultrasound and MRI scanners, security, telematics and robotic systems, and control equipment used in power plants or manufacturing. Embedded systems in these technologies are sometimes susceptible to problems that have long since been solved in other sectors. AIS technology is of great help in such cases, because it draws from a broad range of information—which explains why the group is working closely with Siemens Communications, Medical Solutions and Corporate Technology. "We're in a unique position here, with our access to know-how in IT and in hardware," continues König. And the advantage for equipment manufacturers is that they can ship their products at a relatively early stage. "With AIS," König says, "we're paving the way for far more reliable and secure business processes—and that means processes with much higher efficiency."
                                                                                                                   Gitta Rohling