Basic Features and Benefits Of Scada Software
Computers - Computers
Written by Robert Brown   
Tuesday, 20 October 2009 08:50
A Scada system takes data from various sensors connected to various instruments in a factory or any location. It collects and analyzes the data with a central computer on which the scada software is installed.
by RobertBrown


A Scada system takes data from various sensors connected to various instruments in a factory or any location. It collects and analyzes the data with a central computer on which the scada software is installed.

The SCADA systems are being used even in nuclear facilities worldwide. These are in use in very large plants that depend entirely upon these for efficient control and working. These can handle hundreds of thousands of input output channels.

A scada system has various hardware attached to it. These include controllers, HMI Interfaces and software. The data from various sensors is collected and sent to a central computer that may be located nearby or several miles away.

The main computer is called master terminal unit. In addition to it, there are many remote terminal units that are also connected to the master unit via various links. The remote units gather data from remote devices.

Scada systems are in use in various industrial plants where these are called Distributed Control Systems. Closed loop control is more popular here and the communication is handled within local area networks.

Unlike the above locations, open loop control is used in scada systems. There may be few cases where closed loop is also used but it is rare. Not all communication links are established over LAN here. The control devices are also not confined to small areas.

There are often windows in software code that are often exploited by hackers propelled by various objectives. Power infrastructure is one such vulnerable place that has to be protected from Chinese or Russian hackers. Penetration testing can minimize these problems to a big extent.

Various hardware and software equipment is used for penetration testing and all systems are monitored to find out any problem or leaks as they occur. Various equipments used in communication are also monitored for security windows.

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