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Technologies
Project objectives
- Development and commissioning of a browser-based software solution for nationwide technical and geospatial reference data based on a relational database system and a geographic information system. Replacement of an in-use desktop GIS application.
- Development and implementation of a multi-level security concept with strong authentication for secure access to the application by a defined group of persons via the Internet.
- Development of script-controlled routines for transferring very heterogeneous input data into standardized database structures of a previously developed data model
DigiNetzG
- With the coming into force of the Act to Facilitate the Development of Digital High-Speed Networks (DigiNetzG) of November 9th in 2016, § 77a Telecommunications Act (TKG) introduced that the Bundesnetzagentur as the Central Information Office of the Federal Government (ZIS) provides the infrastructure atlas.
A great system with fine details
The infrastructure atlas of the Bundesnetzagentur (Federal Network Agency)
The idea of the infrastructure atlas (ISA) by the Bundesnetzagentur was developed in 2009 as part of the Federal Government's broadband strategy. It should facilitate the planning and shared use of existing infrastructures in broadband expansion.
Initially, information services for infrastructures by the Bundesnetzagentur were exclusively provided by classic desktop applications. This procedure should be replaced by an automated web information system. The GDV mbH was allowed to rise to this task in 2011. Since then, the infrastructure atlas has continued to grow, not least to meet new legal requirements.
The IT system infrastructure atlas provides the core of the "central information office of the federal government" and consists of an IT system, which is developed by the GDV mbH and operated and expanded in the Bundesnetzagentur since 2011.
Big Data goes Geo
The infrastructure atlas (ISA) contains geodata of existing infrastructure in Germany which can generally be used for the expansion of broadband networks (e.g. fiber optic cables, ducts, cable distributers etc.). There are currently 15 different types of infrastructure with over 18 million geo-data sets available from more than 750 infrastructure owners. Numerous options of evaluation and input, as well as a diverse role concept set special requirements on data management.
High performance despite vast amounts of data
The provision of data and metadata management is possible via a self-administration application on the basis of web frameworks Oracle APEX. In addition to solely control functions, this application also has extensive form and report-based administration functions, for example for applications, infrastructure owners, contact persons, authorized viewers and users.
The administration application also makes it possible to control downstream database procedures, which optimally process infrastructure data for the WebGIS and transfer it to a second database at various generalization levels. In case of data updates, there are only very short switching times due to the use of so-called shadow tables. As a result, the WebGIS applications of the ISA generate only short downtime in the seconds range despite frequent data updates.
The access of data is highly configurable in the infrastructure atlas. Users can only be shown specific infrastructure types of specific infrastructure owners in a specific area. Various such "application configurations" can also be combined. In combination with the necessity to always generate map data directly during the actual access, this requires a high-performance, real-time access to large quantities of geo data that was realized in the infrastructural atlas.
Each system consists of several virtualized servers based on Windows Server 2012 operating system.
By establishing these systems, an efficient rollout is possible during expansions and maintenance work, which enables an early error detection even before changes of the productive system and thus minimizes downtime. In total, 25 servers are in operation for the infrastructure atlas.
Smart databases
The data management currently takes place in two Oracle 12c databases per subsystem. Database-internal Java methods and PLSQL procedures make the database a central part of spatial data processing in the infrastructure atlas. The migration of this central database core to PostgreSQL / PostGIS is in concrete planning.
Online with security
Due to the high demands placed on data security, some additional security-related requirements were made of the system during the initial development, for example, the system architecture was split into two parts: in a part accessible from the Bundesnetzagentur and in a part accessible from the outside via a demilitarized zone (DMZ). In the DMZ-part of the system, only data is stored that is necessary for the operation of the web components.
A separate authentication component with an additional PIN request and a session-based authentication of the users provide additional protection. Of course, all data traffic is encrypted using HTTPS. Through these and other measures to ward off potential threats, the infrastructure atlas fulfills large parts of BSI's basic protection requirements.
Modern type of map component
In 2018, a new map application for infrastructure data was put into operation, in which the data, with the permission of the infrastructure manager, can also be displayed in higher, not legally regulated positional accuracy. The WebGIS data sharing application was built on the basis of Spring Framework, using the OpenLayers card client and the TypeScript-based Angular front-end web application framework. The map data is provided by the to the needs of the infrastructure atlas specially adapted and extended map software GeoServer.
Would you like additional information on the application itself or its utilisation and development steps? Then get in touch with us: +49.(0)6132.7148.0 or send us an e-mail:: info at gdv.com!