Abstract

National Grid Corporation of the Philippines is a commercial enterprise with 140

substations that holds numerous numbers of employees with devices such as laptops, personal

computers, printers, biometrics, cellphones and other networked applications and devices that

depends on IP and requires address assignment. Using manual procedure in managing IP address

like spreadsheets will reduce their productivity. NGCP’s IP Address Web Application will help to

manage and monitor all IP addresses within their LAN and network, automatically detect and alert

IP conflicts or issues. This system will be beneficial and make a huge impact to the company.
 Executive Summary

We currently live in an IP dependent world; the explosion of IP enabled devices such as

smartphones, laptops, tablets and other random devices in the workplace has made today’s

enterprise networks more dynamic and complex. If an organization does not have the right tools

in place to handle this demand, managing the network can become a nightmare. Immediate access

to accurate network information is important to an organization’s success and the only way to

ensure the network is reliable, secure and well maintained is through NGCP’s IP Address Web

Application.

NGCP’s IP Address Web Application is a system proposed to the National Grid

Corporation of the Philippines. The system provides a centralized management of the IP address

space with a web-based environment. This helps the network administrator to identify whether an

IP address is currently available or not in an easiest way. They can check whether a particular IP

is reserved or available using NGCP’s IP Address Web Application. The system automatically

detects a conflict within the entire network that sends an alert to the network administrator. Its

cohesive IP address management can save time and enhance IP address reliability as well as the

real time monitoring that can reduce errors and IP address conflicts by means of alerting the

network administrators to troubleshoot IP address conflicts, depleted subnets and mismatched

DNS entries, while automated IP scanning and powerful search option can improve the accuracy

of output and secure IP addresses

NGCP’s IP address Web Application is an economical system that will help NGCP a lot in

terms of saving time instead of having a hard time searching an IP address in a spreadsheet, reduce

errors and IP conflicts with its smart alarm and automated IP address monitoring and improve the

accuracy of output.
 Chapter I

Introduction

NGCP is a privately-owned corporation in charge of operating, maintaining, and

developing the country's state-owned power grid, an interconnected system that transmits

gigawatts of power at thousands of volts from where it is made to where it is needed. The company

performs its mandate as transmission service provider with the full awareness of its nature as a

public utility, and in full compliance with the rules and regulations of the regulator, and existing

laws governing its transmission operations.

NGCP has the crucial role of linking power generators and distribution utilities to deliver

electricity where it is most needed. Its network of interconnected transmission towers and

substations serve as the highway where electricity travels from various energy sources to the

smaller thoroughfares of distribution utilities and electric cooperatives until it reaches the

households. NGCP's task is to ensure that the country's transmission assets are in optimal condition

to convey safe, quality, and reliable electricity. NGCP does this through regular inspection and

repair of lines and substations, clearing of Right-of-Way obstructions, and timely restoration

during and after natural disasters. Reliability of power is the company's utmost priority so it closely

monitors the grid and immediately responds to any system disturbance.

NGCP acts as System Operator that balances the supply and demand of power to maintain

the quality of electricity that flows through the grid. Building new transmission lines and

expanding substation capacity are equally important as increasing power supply. NGCP ensures

that the grid is prepared whenever new plants come online and when the demand for power in a

certain area increases by anticipating these scenarios and constructing new facilities. All of

NGCP's projects are well laid out in its 10-year Transmission Development Plan.
 NGCP's nationwide operations is one of the largest in the country with 140 substations.

Each substation has its own IT Department that functions as technical assistant, network manager,

and company device monitor. Being the network manager of the whole company, one of the

problems the department have encounter was managing numerous numbers of IP addresses

assigned to every device such as laptops, personal computers, printers, biometrics, cellphones, etc.

used by the employees. Before we proceed, let us first define the IP address.

According to Stephanie Crawford (12 January 2001). Every machine on a network has a

unique identifier. Just as you would address a letter to send in the mail, computers use the unique

identifier to send data to specific computers on a network. Most networks today, including all

computers on the Internet, use the TCP/IP protocol as the standard for how to communicate on the

network. In the TCP/IP protocol, the unique identifier for a computer is called its IP address.

There are two standards for IP addresses: IP Version 4 (IPv4) and IP Version 6 (IPv6). All

computers with IP addresses have an IPv4 address, and many are starting to use the new IPv6

address system as well. Here's what these two address types mean: IPv4 uses 32 binary bits to

create a single unique address on the network. An IPv4 address is expressed by four numbers

separated by dots. Each number is the decimal (base-10) representation for an eight-digit binary

(base-2) number, also called an octet. IPv6 uses 128 binary bits to create a single unique address

on the network. An IPv6 address is expressed by eight groups of hexadecimal (base-16) numbers

separated by colons, as in 2001:cdba:0000:0000:0000:0000:3257:9652. Groups of numbers that

contain all zeros are often omitted to save space, leaving a colon separator to mark the gap (as in

2001:cdba::3257:9652).

At the dawn of IPv4 addressing, the Internet was not the large commercial sensation it is

today, and most networks were private and closed off from other networks around the world. When
the Internet exploded, having only 32 bits to identify a unique Internet address caused people to

panic that we'd run out of IP addresses. Under IPv4, there are 232 possible combinations, which

offers just under 4.3 billion unique addresses. IPv6 raised that to a panic-relieving 2128 possible

addresses.

An IP address can be either dynamic or static. A static address is one that you configure

yourself by editing your computer's network settings. This type of address is rare, and it can create

network issues if you use it without a good understanding of TCP/IP. Dynamic addresses are the

most common. They're assigned by the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP), a service

running on the network. DHCP typically runs on network hardware such as routers or dedicated

DHCP servers. Dynamic IP addresses are issued using a leasing system, meaning that the IP

address is only active for a limited time. If the lease expires, the computer will automatically

request a new lease. Sometimes, this means the computer will get a new IP address, too, especially

if the computer was unplugged from the network between leases. This process is usually

transparent to the user unless the computer warns about an IP address conflict on the network (two

computers with the same IP address). An address conflict is rare, and today's technology typically

fixes the problem automatically.

After discussing what is IP address, let us now focus on why is it important to manage the

IP address. According to Dawn Bedard (January 20016), IP addresses are an integral part of any

corporate network, and companies large and small are consuming them faster with more

applications and devices than ever before. Overlooking the importance of getting a handle on IP

addresses can prove disastrous.

IP addresses are one of the most critical resources that need to be managed in any network.

Every networked application and device, from e-mail and Web connectivity to file storage and
networked printers, depends on IP and requires address assignment. That presents a big enough

challenge, but it's becoming an even bigger challenge as new core services like VoIP and mobile

networks increase IP address assignment needs, requiring more robust allocation, classification,

and tracking of addresses. This is known collectively as IP address management. IP address

management can enable administrators to eliminate network conflicts and outages, track critical

assets and ensure network security by providing reports based on a wide range of parameters,

including IP address status (dynamic, static, available, reserved, etc.), hostnames, MAC address,

and DHCP lease data including lease date/time, time left on lease, time of last renewal, and more.

Having real-time access to IP address management data is increasingly important for any

network administrator or security officer. For example, the ability to immediately access

information such as IP addresses in use, when they were allocated, which devices they were

assigned to, and who is using them is critical to identifying potential network abuse or security

breaches by internal or foreign users. In addition, as network access control (NAC) systems

become more widely deployed, IP address management plays a key role in facilitating and

monitoring enforcement of policies, like validating that operating system and anti-virus software

is current before assigning an IP address and granting access to the network.

Most companies have been operating without a formal IP address management strategy,

and many are now realizing they can no longer afford to go without. But finding the right solution

means doing some homework, since no single approach is the answer to every company's IP

address management needs. Prospective customers should start by getting familiar with new IP

address management solution options. IP address management functionality within reach of most

enterprises across a wide range of size and budget limitations. In the end, every companies large
and small need to consider IP address management as a requirement for a modern network,

especially as new applications are increasing IP address demands.

NGCP’s IP Address Web Application is proposed to the National Grid Corporation of the

Philippines for them to innovate. Using a manual procedure in managing IP address like

spreadsheets will take too much time from the IT department. With NGCP’s IP Address Web

Application, the NGCP can easily manage and monitor all IP addresses within their LAN and

network. NGCP’s IP address Web Application can enable network administrators to eliminate IP

address conflicts by having a managed and organized IP addresses wherein they can immediately

access IP addresses in use, when they were allocated, which devices they were assigned to and

who is using them.

With its integrated IP address management, it can save time and enhance IP address

reliability wherein network administrators can easily add track and audit countless number of IP

addresses using the NGCP’s IP Address Web Application. Real time monitoring can reduce errors

and IP address conflicts by means of alerting the network administrators to troubleshoot IP address

conflicts, depleted subnets and mismatched DNS entries. The automated IP scanning and powerful

search option can improve the accuracy of output and secure IP addresses by scouring the network

to easily get details of an IP address and always know how they are used anytime of the day.

The system includes login page wherein only the network administrator has the access to

system so they are the only ones who will have the account to login., dashboard that display the

real time monitoring and the current status of the IP addresses, the inventory that tracks all the IP

address inputted in the database and can be used for auditing, alarm to notify the administrators

about the change in the state of a static IP address and specially on DHCP IP addresses, IP overlaps

and conflicts, and settings for user to manage their account.

Objectives

General Objectives

To develop an efficient and fast web-based IP address management system in National

Grid Corporation of the Philippines, IT department.

Specific Objectives

 To design a system that can save time and enhance IP address reliability, reduce errors and

IP address conflicts and improve the accuracy of output and secure IP addresses using a

web-based system.

 To develop an integrated IP address management where network administrators can easily

add track and audit countless number of IP addresses instead of searching the IP address in

some spreadsheet, a real time monitoring application where network administrators will be

alerted to troubleshoot IP address conflicts, depleted subnets and mismatched DNS entries

and an automated IP scanner with a powerful search option that will scour the network to

easily get details of an IP address and always know how they are used anytime of the day.

 To implement the NGCP’s IP Address Web Application in the IT department of the NGCP

as well as training the network administrator how to use the system effectively for ensuing

a progressive output and remarkable productivity.

 To evaluate the effectiveness and outstanding performance of the NGCP’s IP address Web

Application in terms of its consistency, efficiency and productiveness to measure its impact

to the company.
Scope and Limitations

The study will mainly focus on describing the importance and function of the NGCP’s IP

Address Web Application for the IT department of the National Grid Corporation of the

Philippines. NGCP’s IP address Web Application can enable network administrators to eliminate

IP address conflicts by having a managed and organized IP addresses wherein they can

immediately access IP addresses in use, when they were allocated, which devices they were

assigned to and who is using them.

The study will also describe the different uses of NGCP’s IP Address Web Application.

This includes the login page for the network administrator of the IT department, the dashboard

which will display the real time monitoring and the current status of the IP addresses, the inventory

which will easily track all the IP address inputted in the database and can be use for auditing, the

alarms to notify the administrators about the change in the state of a static IP address and specially

on DHCP IP addresses, IP overlaps and conflicts, and the settings for user to manage their account.

The study will not include the auto-mapping of IP address, IP address auto-discovery,

automatic IP management via subnet discovery, DHCP or DNS management for forwarding and

pointing traffic, manage workflow and automate task through VMware, and scanning and polling

multiple subnets.
Definition of Terms

Internet Protocol address (IP address) - is a numerical label assigned to each

device connected to a computer network that uses the Internet Protocol for communication. An IP

address serves two principal functions: host or network interface identification and location

addressing.

Local area network (LAN) is a group of computers and associated devices that share a common

communications line or wireless link to a server. Typically, a LAN encompasses computers and

peripherals connected to a server within a distinct geographic area such as an office or a

commercial establishment.

Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) is a network management protocol used on

networks whereby a DHCP server dynamically assigns an IP address and other network

configuration parameters to each device on a network so they can communicate with other IP

networks.

Domain Name Servers (DNS) is the Internet's equivalent of a phone book. Humans access

information online through domain names, like nytimes.com or espn.com. Web browsers interact

through Internet Protocol (IP) addresses. DNS translates domain names to IP addresses so

browsers can load Internet resources.

Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is a method for taking analog audio signals, like the kind

you hear when you talk on the phone, and turning them into digital data that can be transmitted

over the Internet. If you are calling a regular phone number, the signal is converted to a regular

telephone signal before it reaches the destination. VoIP can allow you to make a call directly from

a computer, a special VoIP phone, or a traditional phone connected to a special adapter.

Network Access Control (NAC) is an approach to network management and security that

enforces security policy, compliance and management of access control to a network. It is a

network solution that enables only compliant, authenticated and trusted endpoint devices and

nodes to access network resources and infrastructure. It also monitors and controls their activity

once they are on the network. Network access control is also known as network admission control

(NAC).

Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) is a set of protocols of

communication used to interconnect network devices on the internet. TCP/IP can also be used as

a communications protocol in a private network (an intranet or an extranet).

VMware is an application used to install and run multiple copies or instances of the same operating

systems or different operating systems on a single physical computer machine.

Network Administrator refers to the person designated in an organization whose responsibility

includes maintaining computer infrastructures with emphasis on networking. They are responsible

for keeping an organization's computer network up-to-date and operating as intended.

Security breach occurs when an individual or an application illegitimately enters a private,

confidential or unauthorized logical IT perimeter. A security breach is also known as a security

violation.

Database is a collection of information that is organized so that it can be easily accessed, managed

and updated. Data is organized into rows, columns and tables, and it is indexed to make it easier

to find relevant information.

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