NIST guide to secure web servies

A well written guide on the topic of securing web services coming from the Computer Security Resource Center (CSRC) of the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). SP 800-95, “Guide to Secure Web Services” provides detailed information on standards for Web services security.

The document explains the security features of XML, Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP), the Universal Description, Discovery and Integration (UDDI) protocol, and other open standards related to Web services. It also provides recommendations to ensure the security of Web services-based applications.

A must read ...

FAQ: Understanding Oracle versioning of application server products

Ever wondered what's behind each digit of 10.1.3.3 version of Oracle Middleware (application server) products including OWSM? See the run down of the convention followed below.

10=Major release family number (as in 10g)

1=DB client version consumed by the release (AS10.1.3 uses db client 10.1.0.5)

3=AppServer Release number (as in 10gR3)

3=Patchset number (as in 10gR3 PS3)

0=Platform specific release number (none in this case)

How to get rid of Windows Update restart nag

I stumbled upon this useful post Windows: Get rid of Windows Update restart nag that most of us using Windows face the dreaded restart pop-up.

OWSM 10.1.3.1: FAQ: Types of installations and licensing

OWSM 10.1.3.1 is packaged and licensed as either

• SOA suite (alongwith BPEL, ESB, etc.)
• Standalone OWSM

Both install packages comes with 2 options to install - Basic and Advanced
Once the product is installed using Basic install it cannot be migrated to Advanced install.
The following table captures the various combinations, and lists some of the targeted usage for each of them.

Type of installation	Targeted usage	Comments
SOA Suite Basic Install	Demos, Evaluations	pre-packaged with Oracle Olite database, runs on production quality OC4J
SOA Suite Advanced Install	Production	allows configuration with Oracle database, runs on production quality OC4J
Standalone OWSM Basic Install	Developers	pre-packaged with Oracle Olite database, lightweight quick install for developer use, runs on oc4j_extended.zip
Standalone OWSM Advanced Install	Production, HA topology	allows configuration with Oracle database, runs on production quality OC4J. Required for OWSM HA topology setup. Refer to Configuring OWSM for HA OBE.

Licensing:
OWSM (and any of it's components) comes with per-CPU license inline with other Oracle products except for agents which are offered for free.
Any bundled software such as OracleAS and OLite database comes with restricted use license.

Related links:
Console authentication based on type of install