Oracle Application Server 10g Essentials

Secure Deployment

To ensure security throughout your IT environment, you have to decide how you are going to deploy the components of the overall environment. This section covers some of the considerations you need to keep in mind when implementing a secure deployment of Oracle Application Server 10g, including the use of DMZs, the delegation of security privileges, and the use of Oracle Enterprise Manager 10g to manage security.

DMZ Deployment

Oracle Application Server 10g enables deployment using a DMZ topology. In the context of computer networking, a DMZ is a server placed between two firewalls and thus separated from the Internet and intranet(s). Its placement means that the server exists in a secure buffer zone.

Tip

The word DMZ comes from a military term referring to a "demilitarized zone.” DMZ was a term used during the Korean War to indicate a no-man’s land where troops residing in North Korea and South Korea were not allowed to enter. The DMZ was a zone of security created to prevent attacks or incursions from either side.

In one typical deployment, you might want to use a DMZ to separate an OracleAS Portal repository database from the database containing business data. The DMZ prevents a hacker from gaining access to the OracleAS Portal password in Oracle Application Server and then using the OracleAS Portal’s DBA privileges to wreak havoc on corporate data. In another typical deployment, you might use the DMZ topology for intrusion containment.

Figure 4-2 shows a typical ...