Knowledge Management

Technical Architecture Overview

31 May 2000

Scope

This document is to be used as a discussion document to describe and develop the Technical Architecture for Knowledge Management Infrastructure for the BG Group.

Technical Architecture

We are using a layered architecture to understand how each component set fits into the overall Technical Architecture. Figure 1 identifies the layers:

Network and Addressing layer

K-solutions bases the Knowledge Management Infrastructure toolset on I’net based protocols delivered as web pages and applications. The lowest level is the TCP/IP network, which provides the computing connectivity. Importantly, the next layer is the name and addressing level as a Domino hub, one for the Intranet and one for the Internet. Domino security model is used and firewalls are placed between the internal and external Internet hubs. The Extranet secured firewall is designed to allow partners to remotely communicate with internal organisations across the Internet. The following are the key attributes of the network and addressing layers:

Use of standard I’net protocols.

• A common set of protocols central to the value of an I’net strategy linking internal, trusted & public environments.
• Gives commonality in document exchange, communications and network connections giving benefits of speed & lower cost.

Group wide addressing

• Single addressing hierarchy for all web based applications.
• Provides lower administration costs per name, simpler directory management and simpler, faster & lower cost web based application development.

Web based security facilities

• Secure boundaries using firewalls to private, shared & public domains.
• Standard user authentication on infrastructure for all web applications.
• E-commerce requires secure server environments (SSL) & encryption.
• Allows lower cost web application development..

Viewing & information retrieval standards

• Common minimum browser standards
• Applications tested for all browsers in use.

Just in time extranets process

• Establishing extranets in one day for fast response collaboration.
• Requires appropriate infrastructure to be in place.

High physical network performance

• Bandwidth provision and enhanced ‘reliability.
• Getting connections to virtually all locations.

The Desktop

The active desktop if enabled with K-desk available, can offer a web page on the desktop that offers access to communities, knowledge containers and alerts from either when updated. In Lotus Domino R5 then the use of Personalised Pages is preferable to K-desk.

Generally most of the current files and data is stored either in shared folders, virtual drives or on the desktop drive. To start any community indeed there is a need to populate the communities from these drives. To do this a utility known as K- SendTo, which allows the copying of files from the source drive folder or file to the destination of the desired K-Project library has been made available.

Ideally, all files should be accessible via the intranet, yet secured to the individual or known areas. This would mean configuring either an IIServer or Webstore and making links available to SMS delivered files. The security then would need to change that links using urls to files could be stored in the libraries rather than the files themselves.

Communities layer

The Communities layer provides for closed group access that may be located either in the intranet or as an extranet dependent on the Domino administration of replicating between the intranet and the extranet. The communities take three forms:

1. Linked to via the k button on Intranet or via the extranet, that are mastered and can publish to the I’net with open or selectively secured access
2. Linked to via the k button on Intranet or via the extranet, that are mastered, but cannot publish,
3. Linked to via the k button on Intranet, that are only available through the Intranet
4. Linked to via K-desk using the active desktop part of windows

The notion is to have many communities focusing on developing knowledge in projects, organisation or strategic knowledge. The configuration of the network layer and domino will be the only constraints imposed.

Master layers

These communities therefore need managing in terms of library sciences in the form of creation, membership, categorisation, location and so forth. This we term mastering. The notion is to have a super master librarian and sub librarians’ profiles that may maintain certain aspects of the communities.

Knowledge Container layer

The knowledge containers provide the means to publish from the closed areas to the I’net either to allow open or selective access. Again the management of the set up of the containers and the publication rules require to be mastered.

Therefore we connect the computing and communications together using the network layer and the Domino hub with firewall security management. We manage the communities closed groups to either publish or not to the knowledge containers where they can be viewed openly or selectively dependent on access control.

Application layer

Groupware with mail integrated

• Simple & lower cost implementation of pull technology.
• Rich application development environment.
• Database & mail integration in workflow process applications.

Web based application development

• Faster, simpler & lower cost application development.
• More choice of developers / off the shelf applications.
• Just in time application development.
• Shared usage / global applicability

Web site building processes & tools

• Commonality of build gives lower cost maintenance, more usability & easier enhancement with new technologies.
• The many forms of publishing can be administered simply.

Librarian science techniques for BG wide content management

• Structure vital for usability, trust, value & high ratio of browsing to hits.
• Lack of control will confuse users and increase administrative costs.