ECE 6102: Dependable Distributed Systems

Past Projects


You are encouraged to develop your own project ideas and discuss them with me. The constraints are that it must involve distributed computing, it must entail substantial C/C++ and/or Java programming (no primarily Perl, Tcl, Visual-Basic projects accepted), and it must have a significant part dealing with security, fault tolerance, or general robustness.

  1. Virtualization and VoIP Security: Embedded Soft Phone Virtual Machine

    Soft phones provide VoIP phone functionality within standard operating system environments such as Windows and Linux, and are subject to the vulnerabilities of those underlying platforms. Design and implementation of a soft phone that runs on VMWare without relying on an underlying full-functionality operating system.

  2. Sensor Networks: Physical Access Control using a Sensor Network

    Controlling physical access to a building using a network of sensors that read ID badges as people enter and leave the building. Maintainenance of black lists of people not permitted to enter. Operation in a fault-tolerant manner.

  3. Dependable Storage: Fault-tolerant Secure Distributed File System

    Block-oriented distributed storage with replication and encryption.

  4. Dependable Storage: Secure FTP Repository

    Design and implementation of a distributed FTP repository using proactive secret sharing techniques to maintain confidentiality and integrity. Includes an approach to deal with nearly-coincident attacks on all repository sites.

  5. Virtualization: Support for Software Replication

    Modification of a virtual machine monitor to provide totally ordered message delivery, deterministic execution, etc., in order to provide support for software replication. Demonstration of a simple replicated process execution on the chosen platform.

  6. VoIP Security: Detecting and Blocking VoIP Spam

    VoIP spam (sometimes referred to as SPIT, short for SPam over Internet Telephony) is a growing problem. Design and implementation of techniques to detect and block VoIP spam calls.

  7. Mobile Devices: File System Verification and Repair on Resource-Constrained Devices

    Maintain distributed integrity information about a mobile device file system, detect unauthorized changes to file system, and repair corrupted files with help of other devices and/or servers.