NPLACE

What is Network Centric Warfare?


 
 

Network Centric Warfare (NCW) is a concept where joint forces are able to share data in real-time to provide fielded forces with true interoperability and greater flexibility. NCW facilitates more effective warfighting abilities by linking operational entities with common goals for real-time solutions on the battlefield.

In the NCW platform, a network treats Command, Control, Communications, Computers, and Intelligence (C4I) systems as services that any user may employ to complete the mission. Future C4I systems can be designed to smoothly interact within the DoD’s NCW architecture.

Meanwhile, existing systems – previously considered “stovepiped” or unable to interface with systems developed for another application or organization – can utilize custom application interfaces built to expedite information sharing.

The Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) has identified nine core Network Centric Enterprise Service types crucial to Network Centric Operations. NPLACE is developing and testing software to support four of those services including:

Discovery – Services that proactively search a network for data and services that will help a user complete the mission.

Messaging – Services that provide users with notification of events; used in close coordination with Discovery services.

Security – Services that provide system access and authentication, as well as data filtering for multi-level secure systems.

Collaboration – Services that allow users with a common mission to exchange information in a real-time, dynamically-sized virtual forum.

Specifically, NPLACE supports the US Air Force efforts in a variety of areas including:

• Developing Service Oriented Architectures (SOAs)

• Packaging SOA tools for field deployment

• Developing interface tools for legacy C4I applications

• Testing C4I systems and commercial products for NCW compatibility.

 
NetCentric Warfare goes beyond the traditional platform-centric paradigm.
 
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