PROJECT ON

XTUML

DEVELOPED BY:

NAME:

STUDENT NUMBER:

OLEBILE DITSHWEU

S103012902797
REGISTRATION:
S103012902984

BATCH CODE: NB9UK

COORDINATOR: MS BAME

OBJECTIVES

The following are the objectives behind this project;

Define XTUML
Discuss the use of XTUML
List and explain different components of XTUML
Outline characteristics of XTUML
Identify benefits of XTUML

SYNOPSIS

The idea behind this project is to investigate about Executable and Translatable UML
(XTUML) with much focus on the components of XTUML further extending to benefits that
are being provided by XTUML. The report will cover up characteristics of XTUML and how
XTUML is applied in day to day business across programming platforms in different
organisations.

1.0 INTRODUCTION

The project on Executable and Translatable UML introduces the readers and mostly those
who are interested much in programming to an understanding of XTUML theoretically
without excluding the practical aspect behind. Focus has been turned much on uses of
XTUML, components of XTUML and characteristic of XTUML. The author has extended
the report by further explaining the benefits behind XTUML usage. Different readers who are
going to use this report at any point have been considered therefore the author opted to use
the simplest language understood by all. The project has been subdivided into different topics
for clear understanding with flow of topics.

2.0 BACKGROUND STUDY

2.1 What is Executable and Translatable UML?

According to Mellor (2003) Executable and Translatable UML is deemed as a group of the
unified modelling language given with rules for execution.
Executable and Translatable UML (XTUML) allows the creation of comprehensive
specifications of application necessities that can be implemented on virtual machine, this
unified modelling language is supported by numerous tools and can be used to produce
highly efficient code for a variety of real time and embedded distributed platforms. Leon
(2008)

2.3 History of XTUML

Firewall security has been introduced to protect computer networks in the late 1980s the
point being to protect private networks for companies by having to secure gateway servers to
the internet or any other external network. One of the oldest type of firewalls include packet
filters which functions by inspecting the packets being transferred between computers on a
network, this firewalls are deemed stateless meaning that they dont pay attention to the state
of the connection between computers . Packet filters examines information in the packet
which might include the IP address and port numbers. Packet filter firewalls functions
between the network and hardware layers of the OSI model. Glynn (2006)

3.0 TYPES OF FIREWALLS

According to Hilal (2012), there are many types of firewalls companies and individuals
employ to protect their computers and the entire network from unnecessary internet traffic.
Firewall allows outside world to interact with local network assets therefore creating a threat
to the company. The following are types of firewall;

 Personal Firewalls- This type of firewall has been developed to guard a single
internet connected host from unauthorised access. Personal or desktop firewall as it is
commonly known operate in the background at the link layer in protecting the
integrity of the system from intruders by controlling internet connection coming in
and going out from a node. This firewall can even go into an extent of alerting the
administrator about the attempted intrusion. (Hilal 2012)
Network Firewalls- protects computer network of either an organisation or a
company from intruders, this firewall can be categorised as software firewall and also
hardware firewall or even an integration of both categories. Network firewall can be
used to limit outsiders from accessing the internal network. (Avolio (2001)
Packet Filtering Firewalls this type of firewall is being used to analyse network
traffic at the transport layer by monitoring each packet coming in and going out of the
companys network by either allowing or rejecting the packet depending on the
defined rules. (Avolio 2001)
Stateful Inspection Firewalls this firewalls keeps tracks of the connection status
depending on either the connection is in an initiation, data transfer, or a termination
state. Stateful firewall operates at the network, transport and session layers. (Hilal
2012)
Circuit Gateway Firewalls- are firewalls that functions at the session layer of the
OSI model by sustaining connections between two hosts that are sanctioned to be
secure. This firewall assumes that two hosts that have been authenticated trust each
other and can be permitted to communicate without having to monitor the kind of
communication between two hosts. According to Avolio (2001), Circuit Gateway
Firewalls protects the internal and external networks by making sure that there is
restriction of TCP/IP kernel handshaking activities.

3.0 CHARACTERISTICS OF FIREWALLS

4. 1Firewall Strength
Firewalls allow the implementation of audits and alarms that provides the ability to
monitor security related events.

 Firewalls provide a single block point that prevents unauthorised users away from
protected network
Firewalls can be used in implementing Virtual Private Network by the use of the
tunnel mode capabilities
Firewalls encapsulate security as administrators can be able to control and manage
multiple firewalls in a centralized location avoiding a situation the access control list
has to be maintained on a number of separate internal servers which are not using the
same systems of operation. The ability of the firewall to be administered centrally
allows administrators to be able to view the network and also deny or allow required
services efficiently in a faster way.
The above strength of firewalls has been denoted by Shinder (2008).

4.2 Firewall Weakness

Firewalls cannot stop internal user of the companys network from accessing websites
with malicious program
Firewalls cannot protect against attacks that does not go through the firewall but
instead the firewall may restrict every access from the internet but not protecting
equipment from dial in access to your workstation system
Firewall cannot go into an extent of protecting the internal network of the company if
the security policy is too sloppy.
Firewalls do not encrypt any data or document that is confidential, additional tools
might be need to do the encryption of all confidential data going out of the internal
network

Firewalls cannot stop hackers from masquerading as an employee as hackers have

many ways to obtain the companys employee use ids and passwords.
The above firewall weaknesses are denoted by Zwicky (2000).

5.0 DIFFERENCE BETWEEN FIREWALLS AND VPNs

Firewall and VPNs can be used both to strength the security of network resource and data
packets transmission from the internal network to public network and also from public
network to internal network due to their different functions. (Avolio 2001)
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Following are few differences that have been identified between Firewalls and VPNs;
Firewall prevents connections to the network ports of your workstation that a
malicious program may try to connect to in order steal information, to infect
computers connected to the network and also mess up with the entire internal network
while VPNs encrypts data that is transmitted over internal network connection from
the internet, VPN also ensure that an IP address is hidden from hackers or intruders.
Firewalls have been designed in such a way that they are positioned in a strategic
location on the network to block certain types of traffic whereas VPNs open secure
channels of communications and VPNs communicate through firewall. (Avolio 2001)

6.0 CONCLUSION

Despite the growth of Information Technology in different areas such as security of networks
and software and many expertise in software development and security analysis, many
products that strengths the security of large companies and personal internal networks from
the outside world have been developed to defend systems against hackers. In spite of this,
firewalls still play a major role in protecting both personal network and internal network of
large companies as there has been protocol enforcement, activity logging, IPS capabilities as
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well as VPNs modification to modern firewalls to tighten up the security of internal

networks by enhancing the firewall functionality closing the gap of technological growth
which affects the security of every network. Firewall is still the foundation on which a
security approaches is built in every companys internal network. Looking on to cloud
computing, virtualised systems and even mobile systems there are firewalls protecting your
system unobtrusively.

7.0 REFERENCES

Avolio, F. (2001), Firewalls, VPNs, and Remote Offices: [Online]. Available from:
http://www.avolio.com/columns/fwvpns+remote.html (Accessed 25/01/2014)
Ferguson, B. (2005), Network +Fast Pass. USA: Sybex, Pty (Ltd).
Glynn, F. (2013), Firewall Security (The History of Firewall Security): [Online]. Available
from: http://www.veracode.com/security/firewall-security (Accessed 25/01/2014)
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Hilal, Y. (2012), Internet Firewalls (Types Of Firewalls): [Online]. Available from:

http://yasserhilal.blogspot.com/2012/10/2circuit-level-gateways-firewall.html (Accessed
25/01/2014)
Rowlands, C. (2007), Breaching the Firewall (A network technology project) [Online].
Available from: http://acw1-nt.wikidot.com/types-of-firewalls (Accessed 28/01/2014)
Shinder, T. (2008), The Best Damn Firewall Book Period. 2nd ed. USA: Syngress, Inc.
Zwicky, E. (2000), Building Internet Firewalls. 2nd ed. USA: OReilly Media, Inc.

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