Communication Appliance Path Isolation for System Availability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing communication systems face challenges in preventing control processing on one system from affecting another system when they share communication paths, particularly during maintenance operations, which can impact availability and security, and current technologies lack mechanisms to automatically isolate the impact of one system on another.
Innovation Solution
A communication appliance and system that automatically configure communication paths between systems and an instrumentation system, using a communication appliance to redirect the communication paths of one system to avoid those used by the other system based on historical usage, ensuring that the critical system's availability and security are maintained.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If systems 1 and 2 share communication paths to reduce cost and installation capacity, then device complexity and installation cost are reduced, but the reliability and security of system 1 are compromised because control processing on system 2 can affect system 1
Solution Approach 1:
The communication paths are segmented into distinct groups: paths used by system 1 are separated from paths available to system 2. The communication appliance monitors and identifies paths used by system 1, then configures access control to permit system 2 only on non-conflicting paths, thus segmenting the shared communication infrastructure to prevent interference while maintaining cost efficiency
Solution Approach 2:
The communication appliance acts as an intermediary between systems 1 and 2. It monitors communication paths, identifies which paths are used by system 1, and automatically configures access control rules to prevent system 2 from using those same paths. This intermediary function resolves the conflict between shared resource utilization and system isolation requirements
2Reliability
If access control is manually configured to prevent system 2 from affecting system 1, then security and reliability are improved, but productivity and ease of operation deteriorate due to time-consuming manual configuration
Solution Approach 1:
The communication appliance performs self-service by automatically monitoring communication paths, identifying which paths are used by system 1, and configuring appropriate access control rules without manual intervention. The system autonomously maintains security and reliability while enabling maintenance personnel to perform operations on system 2 without being hindered by manual configuration requirements
Solution Approach 2:
The communication appliance performs preliminary actions by proactively monitoring and identifying communication paths used by system 1 before system 2 attempts to use them. It pre-configures access control rules to prevent potential conflicts, thus ensuring security and reliability is maintained while eliminating the need for manual configuration during maintenance operations
Data Source
AI summary
Regarding communication paths between first and second systems and an instrumentation system, a communication path(s) usable by the second system is set from a communication path(s) other than a communication path(s) used by the first system.