Disaster Management e-Gov Initiative Program

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Disaster Management e-Gov InitiativeProgram

• A Deceptively Simple Approach
• to an Emergency Data Exchange Language
• Distribution Element (EDXL-DE)
• Based Web Service

Connectivity Week Presentation June 11,
2009 Gary A. Ham
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Disaster Management Program CapabilitiesDM
Framework

• DM-Framework
• User Facing Interface
• Available to Responders and Emergency managers
• An integration station for applications that
  may need to be concurrently accessed on the desk
  top
• Defines ways by which applications can be
  plugged in
• Users can create a computing and communication
• device that meets their individual
  requirements
• Interacts with other systems via DM-OPEN

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Disaster Management Program CapabilitiesDM-OPEN

• DM-OPEN
• Application Facing Middleware as a free
  Government Service - Federal infrastructure
• Operational non-proprietary interoperability
  backbone
• A vendor neutral Web services platform open to
  all - Acts as a level playing field
• Allows disparate third-party applications,
  systems, networks and devices to share
  information in a non-proprietary, open based
  standards format.
• Connects Emergency Systems to Each Other
• Uses Emergency Messaging Standards
• EDXL-DE and CAP
• NIEM IEPDs

Federal Infrastructure
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DM-OPEN A Totally Non-proprietary Solution

• DM-OPEN is actually open.
• Enables interoperability between differing
  networks
• APIs are publicly available
• DM-OPEN is government infrastructure
• No vendor controls DM-OPEN, nor does any vendor
  control access
• Prototype development and production activity is
  not restricted by license, non-disclosure
  agreement, or any other form of intellectual
  property control
• Supports the delivery of real-time data and
  situational awareness to public emergency
  responders in the field, at operation centers,
  and across all levels of response management
• Serves as test bed to facilitate the development
  of open non-proprietary standard to support
  interoperable information sharing for the
  emergency responder community

Allows disparate networks to connect to each other
A network of networks
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Benefits DM-OPEN

• Reduced cost of development
• One interface is usable by other DM-OPEN partners
• Cost of connectivity is dramatically reduced
• A system only has to write to one interface per
  ICS function instead of one for each connecting
  system per ICS function
• Example WebEOC, Previstar, E-Team, MyStateUSA
  and the DMIS Tools (and others) have all built a
  Common Alerting Protocol (CAP) exchange
  capability through DM-OPEN.
• This amounts to 10 possible pathways for CAP
  Alerts between systems
• There are 15 possible connection paths for the
  cost of 6 interfaces
• The benefit increases

• Reduced system rigidity
• Loosely coupled systems using standard messaging
• Easy to update an application in one area without
  affecting the others, making maintenance easier,
  and improvement more fluid and less traumatic in
  terms of installation and training costs

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DM-OPEN Interoperability is Available Today

• DM-OPEN is Federal infrastructure
• Operational today In production
• Available at no cost to end users
• Uses common XML data standards
• Application, system, and tool agnostic.
• Its not a we will have it soon.
• It is a fully funded program that can be
  leveraged to help solve information sharing and
  interoperability issues.

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CAP In Production 4 Different Products Same
Data
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DM-OPEN Improvement Pending

• Our current interfaces are RPC-encoded SOAP
• This is fine in a function-oriented,
  other-than-Microsoft environment
• It is out of date in a Web 2.0 SOA environment
• It is costly to maintain as new EDXL (and other)
  standards come into Play
• The new Goals
• A truly data-driven interface that relies on the
  content of the request document to define the
  actions of the server and what is returned in
  response
• Make EDXL-DE the centerpiece for the interface
  (CAP1.1 and NWEM are maintained, but every thing
  else will be DE Driven)
• A single request response pattern for all
  activity.

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DM-OPEN A Concept of Operations for the DE

• One DE interface for all content types
• One connection to build even as the number of
  data standards increase
• Data driven retrieval as opposed to process
  driven
• Data driven interest registration
• Access to values allowed in known ValueList URN
  Structures
• A low-cost solution to participation in a network
  of networks

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Leveraging the Distribution ElementTo Meet
Multiple Information Sharing Requirements

• DE serves two primary purposes
• Allows an organization to wrap and characterize
  important pieces of information into a single
  easy-to-distribute XML "package for sharing
• Allows an organization to "address" the package
  in flexible ways to support intelligent routing
  including specification of recipients by role,
  geographic area, or keywords
• Organizations can use standardized lists of roles
  or keywords, or their own for additional
  flexibility and tailoring.

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DM-Open as a Virtual Post Office
DM-OPEN is a backbone message distribution server
maintained by DHS that acts as a Virtual post
office.
COGs are mailboxes

• EDXL DE
• Facilitates discriminatory access Metadata
• Role-based permissions
• geo-location

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DM-OPEN Excerpts from Design Documentation

• All complexity is hidden
• Used Oracle Identity Management, BPEL, Oracle Web
  Service Manager, and the Oracle Service Registry
  behind the scenes
• Uses two operations (WSDL Port Types) for all
  transactions
• postOp()
• getRequestOp()

Drawing Courtesy IBMs EADIS Design Team for
DM-OPEN
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DM-OPEN Scope at IOC

• The two use cases cover the entire scope of the
  actions that the using system is able to perform.
• The Post and Request/Receive use cases contain
  several sub-use cases with detailed data
  manipulation actions
• Post and Request/Receive are common message
  transaction services

Post and Request/Receive use cases form the base
for the specific message service use cases
Drawing Courtesy IBMs EADIS Design Team for
DM-OPEN
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DM-Framework DM-OPEN Support Incident
Coordination Management

• Information needs to be managed and shared
• Within a Single organization
• Laterally between multiple peer organizations
• Along the Chain of Command
• Vertically
• Externally
• To the public

Facilitation and information exchange, but NOT
command and control !!!
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Contact Information

• For Information on DM-OPEN -http//www.disasterhel
  p.gov/disastermanagement/open/index.shtm
• To request DM-OPEN Access - http//fema.eyestreet
  .com/dmis/administratorUpdate.do?actionInittype
  Interop
• For Frequently Asked Questions -
  http//www.disasterhelp.gov/disastermanagement/ope
  n/faqs.shtm
• DM-OPEN Support
• For developer assistance with implementation
  questions, please email OPEN_at_eyestreet.com.