Compsci2207 | Database | A Assessment Answers

You are required to conduct research on how you will implement the web database, described in Assignment 1 (Modelling) business case,in a cloud instance.

Your research should be based on recent developments in the field of database technology.

Your response should address not only the implementation considerations but also the security issues.

The applications of the cloud database have experienced rapid growth due to the high level of technology in the current world. Its applications have also been activated by the high level of security encompassed in the cloud-stored data. However, this does not mean that any stored data is safe from vulnerabilities, but it has to incorporate some security practices to ensure the data is not prone to attacks. It is, therefore, essential to think first of the security practices required in the cloud-based database since the failure to consider the security issues exposes the database to attacks. The high level of technology offers the updating services in addition to the installation and maintenance services, therefore, improving the performance of the cloud database and its security. According to Kunath, Voigt, Baptist, Spindler, & Heitmann (2016), database updates offers security through authentication (identity verification), tracking of the user activities and also ensuring that the access of the data is only authorized to the permitted person. The essay aims to describe how to implement the database into the cloud, the security threats in the area and how to mitigate the problems with the modern technology.

The https://www.liquidweb.com/ link allows the user to create an account for hosting the database into the cloud. It is a procedural task that requires the user to create an account with the cloud platform first before hosting (Doddavula, & Singh, 2014). The user should be keen to ensure the correct details have been fed into the system. The user can moreover, through the cloud suite control panel, check whether the details of the created account are according to his/her specifications.The credentials have to be authenticated to ensure that the authority to access the data is only granted to the permitted users, therefore, controlling the database access practices to ensure no any alteration reported.

The file containing the database should have an identifiable name which differentiates it from the other files. Various database implementation options are also accessible in the cloud and offer different services according to their features. These options include the FTP, Crons, Alias and the Database (Coronel, & Morris, 2016). The technique to choose the best options lies in the future expectations that may alter the database capacity. Due to the uncertainties in the business, it is recommended to use the Database option as it allows the user to expand the cloud-based database to accommodate more data.

By going with the Database option, the user is therefore prompted to provide the database name to be hosted into the cloud. According to Hammes, Medero, & Mitchell (2014), there are various cloud databases such as:

MySQL

MySQL is an open source database management system that offers relational database management. This means that it encompasses the relationship between data by nature. It allows the modeling of the data using tables like a spreadsheet. It uses the SQL language in accessing the data. MySQL offers a range of cloud database services such as logging applications, electronic commercial transactions, and data warehousing. It provides integrated backups and can upload custom images. Moreover, it offers SUPER privilege to the users.

Amazon Web Service (AWS)

It is a distributed relational database running on the cloud and offers services such as the enabling point-in-time recovery and the database backup. However, the API call is used in scaling storage and computer resources since the AWS does not offer SSH connections to RDS. It also has no SUPER privilege to users as in the MySQL

Oracle Database

It is a collection of data that is stored as a unit. It is responsible for storing and retrieving information. Is development is based on various languages such as the Visual Basic, JavaScript and the SQL. Its applications are limited by the high skills required for installation and the high license charges.

Microsoft Azure

It is a cloud computing service build for testing and managing applications. It is created by the Microsoft and provides SaaS, IaaS, and PaaS. However, it lacks the Hyper-V Snapshot Support and also has no integrated backup.

The MySQL is, therefore, considered the best due to its low cost and less technology in installation and maintenance. It also offers integrated backups to the stored data. The cloud database implementation is finalized by creating a password. It is a requirement that the password created should be more secure to prevent any illegal practices into the database. According to Rittinghouse, & Ransome (2016), the following precautions should be considered at this final stage:

• Avoiding default password.
• Updating and varying the password frequently.
• Creating a long password.
• Using a mixture of both the upper and the lowercase letters to avoid number sequence.

End-to-end encryption is one of the best security practices that can be used to ensure the security of the cloud-stored data. It limits the third-party access to the information. The plain text is converted into ciphertext which is only accessible by the end users. Additionally, a non-default value can be assigned to a specific database port number as a security measure to prevent any automated attacks. According to Yoo, & Shon (2015), for an instant, the default setting for the database can be achieved by randomly assigning a non-default value to the MySQL port 3360. It is, therefore, vital to ensure that all the security measure necessary in the cloud-stored data are considered before hosting the database.

References

Coronel, C., & Morris, S. (2016). Database systems: design, implementation, & management. Cengage Learning.

Doddavula, S. K., & Singh, A. P. (2014). U.S. Patent No. 8,832,130. Washington, DC: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Hammes, D., Medero, H., & Mitchell, H. (2014). Comparison of NoSQL and SQL Databases in the Cloud. Southern Association for Information Systems (SAIS) Proceedings. Paper, 12.

Kunath, P., Voigt, M., Baptist, S., Spindler, C. C., & Heitmann, M. (2016). U.S. Patent No. 9,285,229. Washington, DC: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Rittinghouse, J. W., & Ransome, J. F. (2016). Cloud computing: implementation, management, and security. CRC press.

Yoo, H., & Shon, T. (2015). The novel approach for detecting network anomalies for substation automation based on IEC 61850. Multimedia Tools and Applications, 74(1), 303-318.