Running head: EXECUTIVE PROPOSAL 1

Executive Proposal for the purchase of the Wireshark Packet Analyzer

Student Name

University Name
EXECUTIVE PROPOSAL 2

Executive Proposal

Project Summary

Medi-Ready currently uses a wide array of Microsoft and *NIX technologies in the

storage of critical information and continues to transmit data over WAN to the company’s New

York City headquarters location, business partners as well as clients. As is already apparent form

the past incidences of data breaches by cyber criminals, these platforms are quite vulnerable in

the event of any serious attacks mounted by malicious characters. Therefore, the present

generations of technological infrastructures that support our operations are gradually becoming a

liability with respect to its capacity to protect critical information from attacks. The continued

use of these outdated systems expose confidential in the form of intellectual property and other

patented materials at an enormous risk. For this reason, we propose the protection of the present

system by the acquisition of Wireshark which is an open source program created for the purpose

of profiling an organization’s network traffic as well as conducting packet analyses. The

subsequent paragraph offers insight into the Wireshark program as well as its benefits.

Wireshark and its Benefits

As stated earlier, Wireshark is tool specifically designed for network and packet analysis

and is an open-source resource. In this regard, the tool is resourceful in helping network analysts

to not only monitor, but also improve its performance. As noted by Biersack, Callegari, and

Matijasevic (2013), the analysis of computer network traffic should not only enhance

performance, but also observe, analyze and rectify the probable security issues. By recording and

reading of data from various network monitoring programs, Wireshark enables the network

analysts to oversee and enhance the performance within a given network whilst also identifying

and rectifying the possible and existing threats. As a tool, this program enables analysts to see
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the ongoing within any network in real-time (Wireshark webpage, 2018). This then allows the

analysts to act immediately they detect any suspicious activity.

Benefits

Improves Security and Performance

Wireshark is essentially a protocol analyzer for networks that is usually installed with a

view to fortifying the safety and performance. In this respect, the program has the capacity to

monitor a given network through sniffing packets of data relayed through the computer networks

and analyzing them (Wireshark webpage, 2018). For this reason, Wireshark has the ability to

point out suspicious network activities as well as performance-related issues. In the case of

Medi-Ready, the program will automatically alert our network administrators the moment any

activity is detected. At the end, our administrators will be able to single out and repair the issue

which may be in the form of a virus. The network will remain both secure and effective in the

long run.

Flexible Reporting

Besides security and performance, Wireshark entails various functionalities which enable

it to assist network administrators to oversee and analyze the organization’s networks (Wireshark

webpage, 2018). For instance, the program has the capacity to encode in several capture formats.

In our case, this means we can export our reports on comma separated value (CSV), plain text,

extensible markup language (XML), as well as PostScript. Through such reports, we will be able

to capture elements such as protocol hierarchy, statistics and end points among others.

Technical Specs and Requirements

One of the most notable benefits is that the program is not only free, but it can be run on

variety operating systems which include Windows, and UNIX which our company presently
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runs. Similarly, the distribution of Wireshark across the network enables the program to cover all

areas of the network (Wireshark webpage, 2018). Since the program is open-source, we have the

ability to customize it to meet out specific requirements. As noted earlier, the program may be

downloaded and installed for free which will certainly result in major cost saving for our

organization.

Reviews, Case Studies and Customer Recommendations

Reviews

One of the most candid reviews of Wireshark was provided by PC Mag, an industry

authority on matters of computing. In this review, the program was given an “excellent” rating

(Lynn, 2010). Concerning the advantages, it was noted that the program is an exceptional

protocol analyzer as well as packet sniffer. However, the reviewer also pointed out the main

disadvantage of the software arguing that it calls for a basic understanding of networking

meaning laypeople would struggle with it.

Case study (Bentley Systems)

Different organizations have tested the efficiency of Wireshark and given it a positive

rating. One of such companies is Bentley Systems Inc., a global organization that provides

engineers, architects owner operators as well as constructors with software for maintaining

infrastructure (Poth, 2015). As is evident from this organization, Wireshark continues to be used

whenever the organization experiences challenges with its applications. During such times,

Wireshark is instrumental in enabling the company’s network analysts to understand how the

behavior of their application on the network while also identifying obstacles which hinder it from

functioning optimally. Overall, Wireshark has enabled the company to pin-point the source of

problem and have it addressed in real-time (Poth, 2015).

Customer Recommendations

As a testimony to the software’s efficiency and practicality, a customer in the IBM online

Community rated Wireshark as the best open source network packet analyzer (Arora, 2012). The

customer adds that while numerous packet capturing and analysis programs exist, Wireshark is,

in his opinion, the best open source packet analyzer.

My Own Personal Experience

Based on my personal experiences with Wireshark, I was pleased with the program’s

ability to break down data packets. I was specifically impressed with its ability to filter live

packet captures. In this respect, I noted that the program has numerous resourceful filters.

Nevertheless, there are aspects of the program that I disliked. For instance, I noted that the

program did not recognize the network adapters when I first ran it. However, there are remedies

for this as shall be explained later in this report. For this reason, I would strongly recommend the

product for our organization as it is a highly resourceful tool. Overall, I have successfully used

Wireshark in troubleshooting both complex and simpler problems in the network. In a nutshell, it

has the ability to filter the live data packets that have been captured, reexamine the old captures

while also allowing the program to be run without administrator rights among many other

benefits.

Cost of Product

With respect to the acquisition costs, Wireshark is free so it does not require any purchase

or license fees. Even so, the program can be operated better by a team of administrators who

understand it. For this reason, it is important for the organization to have trained personnel so

they can diagnose the problems as and when they appear. In this regard, Medi-Ready will need a

structured technical training which covers the program’s features and functionality. It will also
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be important to have a training that is task and protocol specific to fill the existing concept and

practice gaps. As for the hardware requirements, Wireshark can run on our present Windows and

UNIX systems without the need to upgrade

Software Impact on Production Environment

As stated earlier, running this program does not cause any significant disruption in the

productivity of the organization other than the fact that it does not recognize network adapters

the first time it is run. However, this is easily resolved by running it in administrator mode.
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References

Arora, H. (2012). Wireshark: The best open source network packet analyzer. IBM Community,

Retrieved from https://www.ibm.com/developerworks/community/blogs/6e6f6d1b-95c3-

46df-8a26-

b7efd8ee4b57/entry/wireshark_the_best_open_source_network_packet_analyzer_part_i6

0?lang=en

Biersack, E., Callegari, C., & Matijasevic, M. (2013). Data traffic monitoring and analysis:

From measurement, classification, and anomaly detection to quality of experience.

Berlin: Springer.

Lynn, S. (2010, February 18). Wireshark 1.2.6. PC Magazine, Retrieved from

https://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2360038,00.asp

Poth, T. (2015). WireShark case studies. Retrieved from

https://sharkfestus.wireshark.org/sharkfest.12/presentations/BI-

8b_Wireshark_Software_Case_Studies-Tim_Poth.pdf

Wireshark. (2018). About Wireshark. Retrieved from https://www.wireshark.org/