Life-Cycle Management - Army Logistics University - U.S. Army

UltraLog is a distributed, agent-based software architecture that is inherently survivable even in the
most hostile environments. It is a resilient system that can protect and adapt itself under the most
harsh and dynamic wartime conditions.
traffic, reports violations, and, if warranted, isolates
the unit transmitting suspect messages.
• Communications security service. Encryption
and digital signature of data in the communications
pipeline protect data from compromise or unauthorized
modification. Encryption ensures confidentiality,
and digital signature ensures integrity of data and
serves to authenticate the source.
• Monitor and response service. This provides a
framework for monitoring the security condition of the
logistics information system. It looks for signs of
attack, such as denial-of-service flooding, using data
collected from a range of sources; analyzes the data;
and selects a course of action determined to minimize
the security risk. The framework includes UltraLogdeveloped
sensors to monitor such things as unauthorized
service requests or denial-of-service probing;
analyzers to evaluate sensor input against decision
rules; and a policy-management service that provides
the ability to manage the security posture of the system.
Examples of responses include simply monitoring
intruder activities, deactivating portions of the
system under attack, updating security policy
(strengthening or weakening it as appropriate), and
locking out offending users.
Assessment of Security Defenses
In order to assess the suite of security technologies,
an UltraLog society was designed, built, and tested in
the computer lab located at DARPA’s Technology
Integration Center. A battery of over 100 high-speed
servers, along with related routers and switches running
on a fractional T–3 network connection, were assembled
to demonstrate an UltraLog society of over
1,000 military organizations and vehicles.
A scenario was run simulating units of the Army’s V
Corps fighting a 180-day major regional contingency
in Southwest Asia. UltraLog’s task was to propagate an
operation plan (OPLAN); build an executable transportation
plan; plan the sustainment of deploying units;
and then, during a simulated execution of the scenario,
accept and propagate changes to the OPLAN and revise
the transportation and sustainment plans accordingly.
All of this was to be accomplished with minimal loss of
function while independent assessors attacked the system
by such means as cutting or reducing communications,
limiting available computer processing and
memory, and conducting a variety of IW assaults.
With the testing infrastructure in place, UltraLog
security functionality was assessed using a combination
of distinct structured experiments and a variety of Red
ARMY LOGISTICIAN PROFESSIONAL BULLETIN OF UNITED STATES ARMY LOGISTICS 21