Feature Story

Making connections in Greece.

The Sun Java Enterprise System, Sun Java Communications Suite, the Solaris OS, and Sun servers are linking employees of the Athens International Airport as the world gathers for the Games.

13.Aug.04--This month in Greece, thousands of athletes, spectators, and sports enthusiasts are passing through the Athens International Airport (AIA) on their way to the 2004 Olympic Games. Providing a superior and safe experience for these waves of travelers is an enormous undertaking that requires a highly sophisticated IT technology infrastructure. Fortunately, the AIA turned to Sun for an end-to-end solution that includes software, servers, storage, and IT services.

"We chose to work with Sun because of its broad expertise and ability to deliver best-of-breed solutions that help us achieve our business and technology goals now and in the future," says Fotis Karonis, director of information technology at the AIA. "The Sun solution has been critical in helping ensure that the airport's systems are available and accessible 24/7."

A major part of the Sun/AIA project included the deployment of an advanced internal communications portal that provides more than 1000 airline and airport employees with single sign-on access to vital operational information. The portal facilitates access to the airport's disparate multivendor applications and databases to increase employee productivity, reduce costs, and improve customer service. By requiring user authentication, the portal also helps protect the confidentiality of critical airport and passenger information and contributes to safe, secure travel.

Improved Communications and Airport Efficiency

The AIA internal communications portal serves the entire airport community, including operations, airlines, service companies, shops, and public sector organizations. The portal interface provides employee access to critical information about arrivals, departures, weather forecasts, transportation services, and telephone directories. Previously, airport employees and airline staff had to access many divergent applications and services to find this information.

The Sun Java Enterprise System's (Java Enterprise System or Java ES) Portal Services deployed include the Sun Java System Portal Server, the Sun Java System Web Server, and the Sun Java System Directory Server. The internal portal was deployed on the Sun Enterprise and Sun Fire servers running the Solaris 9 Operating System.

The airport also deployed the Java Communications Suite Communications and Collaboration services using the Sun Java System Messaging Server and Sun Java System Calendar Server to consolidate its infrastructure. The airport chose to integrate secure, scalable e-mail and calendar solutions into its portal environment to facilitate information access, further improving operational efficiencies.

The Sun Enterprise and Sun Fire servers are optimized for maximum availability and reliability through the Java ES's Availability Services, using the Sun Cluster software. The airport also relies on the Sun StorEdge A1000 arrays and the Sun StorEdge A5000 arrays to meet its demanding storage requirements.

All Sun technology at the AIA is supported by a SunSpectrum Platinum service agreement. Sun consultants also conducted a SunReady Availability Assessment Service to analyze the airport's existing data center capabilities and to improve its ability to meet availability requirements.

Sun Technology Boosts Portal Performance, Facilitates Expansion

To achieve even greater operational efficiencies, the AIA worked with Sun Services consultants to qualify the Java ES, an integrated set of shared network services that helps deliver a scalable, interoperable, available, and secure IT infrastructure environment. The AIA felt that the Java ES, with its combined software, support, maintenance, consulting, and educational services under one annual employee headcount-based fee, would easily accommodate additional users and facilitate the development of new applications as cost-effectively as possible.

"For an annual subscription of $100 per employee, we have received a fully integrated set of shared network services with an infinite right-to-use license that provides unlimited access to enterprise software resources," explains Karonis. "We will be able to add new applications and services that enhance operational processes, potentially reducing our total cost of ownership by as much as 30 percent."

Because the AIA depends on the smooth functioning of so many different applications, random and unplanned system updates can be costly and cause downtime and confusion. "With the Sun Java Enterprise System and its predictable upgrade schedule, we can avoid the complexity typical of most software upgrades and gain access to the latest technology to help maintain a competitive edge," says Karonis. The airport can also avoid the high cost of sourcing, integrating, and supporting traditional infrastructure software components from multiple vendors.

Built-in Application-Level Security

The AIA has improved access to business-critical data through its new internal communications portal. However, it now requires tighter security measures to protect confidential information. The airport plans to leverage the Java ES's Network Identity services to replace its previous application-specific authentication and authorization methods with a single account per user. This will provide user-level authentication and single sign-on access to existing multivendor and proprietary client-server applications.

Through the Sun Java System Access Manager (Access Manager) policy agents, the airport will be able to control access to Web resources, bringing "need-to-use" management to the airport's various application URLs. "As part of an overall identity management infrastructure, the Access Manager will improve security and productivity through Web single sign-on, user self-service, and strong authentication with Java Card technology and digital certificates," says Karonis.

Sun Services Meet Evolving Needs

Sun Services played a key role in the success of the airport's portal deployment. For instance, airport system managers underwent extensive training in all aspects of the Sun solution. To help achieve maximum system availability, the AIA also invested in a SunSpectrum Platinum service agreement, accessing Sun preemptive services, hardware support, and Solaris Operating System upgrades to help ensure optimal system performance.

"Sun Services outlined our support requirements and helped us plan for upcoming events and projects," says Karonis. "The Sun Services team conducts monthly review meetings to discuss system change requirements and the latest patch releases and upgrades to help meet our evolving needs."

The AIA also uses the Sun Remote Services Net Connect service, a secure, online communications channel to Web-based services that helps the airport connect its systems with Sun's knowledge bank and service organization, create performance and trend reports, and generally enable a proactive approach to infrastructure maintenance and problem solving.

Ready for Take-off

The AIA is planning to add more functionality to its portal by using additional components of the Java Enterprise System to help enable users to access maintenance applications and flight information systems with PDAs and other mobile devices, using the Sun Java System Portal Server, Secure Remote Access software, and the Sun Java System Portal Server, Mobile Access portal services components. "With immediate access to vital information from any location, mobile employees in hangars or on the runway can be productive without being tied to a desktop, improving their ability to deliver the best airport experience for travelers," explains Karonis.

Airports and airlines around the world are seeking to provide the most efficient, safe, and pleasant travel experience possible. With Sun's help, AIA is leading the way. "With Sun technology at the heart of our infrastructure, we created an integrated IT environment to streamline our systems and improve secure access to critical airport information," concludes Karonis. "Ultimately, we are improving operational efficiencies and enhancing customer service."

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