Network-centric Infrastructure forCommand, Control, and Intelligence

(NICCI)

Potential New DARPA ITO Program — Enabling a Global Grid that Works

John SalasinDARPA/ITO

jsalasin@darpa.mil

INFORMATIONPLACE FORM++ TIME

The Problem

Mission accomplishment requires

Manipulating massive amounts of increasingly complex information–fast and predictably

“Habitats” – A Solution

Habitats specialize the information processing space

What’s NewOperationally

Infrastructure automatically provides context information “Business rules” included as integral part of system Better and faster decisions

Technically Simultaneously organize and manage the information processing

space along multiple dimensions Dynamic capabilities Combines concerns about process integration (event sequences) and

application integration (Application Program Interfaces (APIs))

Technical Characteristics – Dynamic Command Structure

Core Computing Services

Authority/Accountability

Dynamic information management infrastructure

Policy specification, execution, and rule consistency services

Context management and reconfiguration services

Core Computing Services – Authority/Accountability

Authority/Accountability

– Functionality – schedule and monitor tasks; enforce

rules/policies – Have now – operating system level monitors, enforcement

mechanisms

– Need – task specific capabilities

Core Computing Services – Dynamic Information Management

Infrastructure

Dynamic information management infrastructure– Functionality – interoperability with multiple COTS infrastructures (e.g.,

.NET); connectivity protocols, and InfoSec; information exchange, correlation, and coordination

– Have now – CoAbs grid provides many functions

– Need – expansion to support distributed rule/process definition and enforcement, and to monitor and share context

Core Computing Services – Policy Services

Policy specification, execution, and rule consistency services– Functionality – distributed (peer to peer)

rule/process specification/execution; habitat rule/policy negotiation and deconfliction; operational responsibility tracking and coordination

– Have now – much work, particularly in security area. Negotiation (over resources) in agents community. Process execution efforts being applied to coordinate agents/robots

– Need – expansion to handle multiple concerns (e.g., quality of service, performance, resource use; more integration; efficient negotiation; and use of distributed/decentralized mechanisms. Inclusion of authority and accountability

Core Computing Services – Context Services

Context management and reconfiguration services– Functionality – mission/task context tracking;

event/task coordination; context-relevant resource management

– Have now – run-time reconfiguration to provide dynamic customization of heterogeneous systems (DASADA)

– Need – automated recognizing, locating, and providing of needed services/resources in a decentralized environment

Benefits

Habitats enable systems that

Interact predictably in a network-centric world

Can find and predictably recruit resources needed for task

Safely use commercial infrastructure

Provide run-time dynamic reconfiguration to optimize performance

Benefits – Accelerate C2

Going up and down the chain of command delays operations and makes some impossible

Habitats can enable new operational concepts (e.g., command by negation) by removing roadblocks to their expression

Benefits – AdaptSystem to Context

Important JSTARS/AOC operations are dependent on context

Information sources (for verification) not under OPCON Threat Condition, Rules of Engagement (ROE), and ROE

flexibility Available assets (and tasking rules) Infosec requirements

Benefits – Improved Application Performance

Habitats improve application performance

Component access to business rules and context information enables:– Controlled/constrained horizontal sharing (shorten

chain of command)

– Improved coordination within constraints

Potential for major reductions in latency

Benefits – Wedge for “De-rigidifying” Doctrine

Habitats provide wedge for “de-rigidifying”doctrine

Provide flexibility to operate efficiently within doctrinal constraints

Benefits – Terrorism/CBW

Asymmetric threat

– Currently can’t configure command center or assets for response until threat emerges

– (Semi) dormant habitats tailored to local environments (e.g., Indianapolis) could maintain information on resources, deployment plans (for different situations), etc.

Coalitions to fight terrorism will include Governments, NGOs, and (perhaps) rebel and religious groups with different roles/responsibilities/rules of engagement, e.g.,

– Military operations

– Financial transactions

– Intelligence

Contextual information packaging and dissemination is key

Major theme: Increasing speed and precision of command– (Human or automated) decision agent has all (more) relevant

information– System includes (easily evolvable) rules about actions to be

taken based on level of uncertainty– Rules can

• be understood and written by military personnel

• direct background information identification, collection, and filtering

• ensure that specified processes are followed

• Reduced time for decisions

– Reduced time for decisions– Increased speed of dissemination (while controlled with respect

to both scope and content disseminated)– Reduced effort/time/error in building and evolving capabilities

Success Criteria – Measures of Effectiveness

Major theme: Infrastructure provides improved support for– Dynamic membership model– Dynamic trust management operating across organizational/

operational trust boundaries– Dynamic policy management– Notification services operating on global scale– Peer-to-peer connectivity on demand with managed quality of

service– Uniform and seamless model for access to resources and

service

Success Criteria – Measures of Performance

NOT DOABLENOT FEASIBLE IN DECENTRALIZED MODE

Why Now?

Flowering of COTS infrastructure technologies for integration and interoperability– eXtensible Markup Language (XML)– Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP)– Universal Description, Discovery and Integration (UDDI)– DARPA Agent Markup Language (DAML)– E-Services (HP) – Platform and language independent

middleware for services– .NET (Microsoft)– Others

Why Now – Next Step in Coordination and Synchronization

“Chat rooms” are today’s advanced State of Practice

Missing elements

– Specified, enforceable rules/processes

– Pro-active context sensing and awareness

– Ability to recruit resources within defined constraints

Why DARPA?

DISA/C3I standards-based, flat world view won’t work Automated specialization of function based on

context is critical to major Service initiatives (currently working Services on requirements)

Early technical leadership needed to avoid fragmented solutions

NICCI Technical Challenges

Distributed, dynamic operation withdecentralized mechanisms to provide

Rule specification – in multiple domains and form usable by operational forces

Efficient rule consistency management and enforcement

Negotiation capabilities

Service deployment and reconfiguration