Overview
In this unit, you will learn how Information and Communications Technology (ICT) infrastructure supports the operation of modern organisations. You will investigate the structure of the Internet, design wired and wireless networks, and deploy applications using virtualisation and cloud computing. You will discover mechanisms for securing ICT infrastructure and applications by studying the motivation of attackers and the common vulnerabilities they exploit. You will also learn frameworks and tools organisations use to manage cloud infrastructure, reduce cyber security risks, and deliver IT services to customers. As you explore cyber security and Internet technologies via hands-on laboratory tasks, you will reflect on the impact of those technologies on society, and your responsibilities as a future ICT professional. This unit gives you the broad knowledge of networking and cyber security that all ICT professionals require and is a starting point for a career as a cyber security analyst, cloud engineer, or network operations specialist.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
There are no requisites for this unit.
Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).
Offerings For Term 1 - 2023
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes – in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 6-credit Postgraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.
Class Timetable
Assessment Overview
Assessment Grading
This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of ‘pass’ in order to pass the unit. If any ‘pass/fail’ tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully (‘pass’ grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the ‘assessment task’ section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%). Consult the University’s Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades.
All University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
You may wish to view these policies:
- Grades and Results Policy
- Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework)
- Review of Grade Procedure
- Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure – Domestic Students
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure – International Students
- Student Refund and Credit Balance Policy and Procedure
- Student Feedback – Compliments and Complaints Policy and Procedure
- Information and Communications Technology Acceptable Use Policy and Procedure
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
Feedback, Recommendations and Responses
Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.
Feedback from Student feedback
Inadequate graphical illustrations on computer architecture and CPU topics.
Insert improved graphics on this topic into the lecture slides and tutorial materials. Alternatively, links to suitable online sites could be recommended to students in lectures and tutorials.
Feedback from Student and staff feedback
Outline a clear correlation between the unit content and the written assignment.
Communicate relationships between assignments and weekly topics.
- Investigate the role of ICT infrastructure, such as computer hardware, operating systems, virtualisation, and networks, in providing Internet applications and cloud services
- Recommend cyber security controls to prevent and detect attacks and vulnerabilities
- Apply standards and industry best practices to manage networks, ICT services, and cyber security
- Summarise key professional, social and legal issues relating to the Internet, cloud computing, and cyber security.
The Australian Computer Society (ACS), the professional association for Australia's ICT sector, recognises the Skills Framework for the Information Age (SFIA). SFIA is adopted by organisations, governments, and individuals in many countries and provides a widely used and consistent definition of ICT skills. SFIA is increasingly being used when developing job descriptions and role profiles. ACS members can use the tool MySFIA to build a skills profile.
This unit contributes to the following workplace skills as defined by SFIA 8 (the SFIA code is included):
- IT Infrastructure (ITOP)
- Network Design (NTDS)
- Network Support (NTAS)
- Information Security (SCTY)
- Security Operations (SCAD)
- Problem Management (PBMG)
- Service Level Management (SLMO)
- Change Control (CHMG)
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
1 - Online Quiz(zes) - 35% | ||||
2 - Learning logs / diaries / Journal / log books - 35% | ||||
3 - Project (applied) - 30% |
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
1 - Knowledge | ||||
2 - Communication | ||||
3 - Cognitive, technical and creative skills | ||||
4 - Research | ||||
5 - Self-management | ||||
6 - Ethical and Professional Responsibility | ||||
7 - Leadership | ||||
8 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures |
Textbooks
ICT Services Management
3rd edition (2016)
Authors: Brookshear & Brylow, Panko & Panko and Laudon & Laudon
Pearson
Sydney Sydney , NSW , Australia
ISBN: 9781488612732
Binding: Paperback
Additional Textbook Information
This book is available to read online through the Library website. If you would like your own copy, you can purchase either paper or eBook copies at the CQUni Bookshop here: http://bookshop.cqu.edu.au (search on the Unit code).
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)
- VirtualBox
- Wireshark
- Zoom
- Microsoft Windows on CQU Lab computer and/or personal computer
- Github.com Account
- Microsoft Teams
- PowerShell (version 7)
- Microsoft Azure Account
- Diagrams.net Drawing Software
All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: Harvard (author-date)
For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.
k.l.perera@cqu.edu.au
s.d.gordon@cqu.edu.au
Module/Topic
Computer Systems and Applications
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Computer Networks and The Internet
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Network Technologies
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Internetworking
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Journal Draft due Week 4 Monday 27 March 2023 9:00 AM AEST
Quiz 1 will be available online in Week 4
Module/Topic
Internet Applications
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Wireless Networks
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Cloud Services and IoT
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Project Draft due Week 7 Monday 24 April 9:00 AM AEST
Module/Topic
Attacks and Vulnerabilities
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Quiz 2 will be available online in Week 8
Module/Topic
Cyber Security Management
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Cyber Security Controls
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Managing IT Services
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Journal Final due Week 11 Monday 22 May 2023 9:00 AM AEST
Module/Topic
Managing Networks
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Project Final due Week 12 Monday 29 May 2023 9:00 AM AEST
Quiz 3 will be in-class in Week 12
Tutorials, Lectures and Textbooks
This is a hands-on unit where most of the learning is done by completing the tutorial activities. It is therefore important you attend all your tutorials, starting from Week 1. The lectures explain the background to prepare you for tutorials, so ensure you attend the live lecture or watch a recording before each tutorial. While the recommended textbook provides additional background material on several topics, the lecture and tutorial resources provided should be sufficient for most students to be successful in this unit. The Moodle website for this unit includes links to additional resources, including several alternative, free textbooks.
GitHub Account
You are required to use GitHub for your journal. You will need to create an account (if you do not already have one) and add the Unit Coordinator and your tutor as a collaborator. Instructions for doing so will be provided on Moodle.
GitHub is a website that may be hosted overseas (including in the United States). In setting up an account and using for your journal and project, you will be transferring personal information to GitHub (owned by Microsoft). While there is some risk in transferring your personal information overseas, we believe the benefits to you far outweigh the risk. You will gain experience using a tool widely used in industry, you will have access to tools for version control, backup, and collaboration on your resources, and will have artefacts to show to potential employers. If you have concerns with using GitHub, please contact the Unit Coordinator before the end of Week 1 to discuss options (such as setting up your own Git server).
Azure Account
You are required to use Microsoft Azure for tutorial activities. You will need to create an account (if you do not already have one) using a non-CQU email (e.g. personal email). Instructions for doing so will be provided on Moodle.
Microsoft Azure is a widely used cloud service provider that may be hosted overseas (including in the United States). In setting up account and using for tutorial activities, you will be transferring personal information to Microsoft. While there is some risk in transferring your personal information overseas, we believe the benefits to you far outweigh the risk. You will gain experience using a cloud service widely used in industry, you will be able to quickly create applications/services that would take much longer on a local machine, and you will have online access to those resources from anywhere. If you have concerns with using Microsoft Azure, please contact the Unit Coordinator before the end of Week 1 to discuss options (such as using a different cloud provider or setting up your own hosting).
1 Online Quiz(zes)
You will undertake three (3) quizzes on Moodle throughout the term. Each quiz will cover topics leading up that quiz and may include topics covered by previous quizzes. Typically, the quizzes will assess your knowledge of the lecture content and tutorial activities. Some questions may require you to use software, e.g., software demonstrated in lectures and/or used in tutorial activities. Each quiz will consist of multiple questions which may be of various types (e.g., multiple-choice, short answer, calculations, written text, upload a file). All quizzes are individual assessment.
Quiz 1 and Quiz 2 will be conducted online. You will have a set period of time during Week 4 (Quiz 1) and Week 8 (Quiz 2) to complete each quiz. There may be time limits on each quiz, e.g., you have 30 minutes to complete across a 24 hour period. The quiz time limits, topics and open/close times can be found on Moodle.
Quiz 3 will be conducted in-class under the supervision of your tutor. You must attend your allocated tutorial class in Week 12 and use a lab computer to complete the quiz during class. Online students will undertake Quiz 3 in a Zoom session in Week 12 (with the time to be negotiated with the Unit Coordinator). Online students will need access to a webcam, speakers, and microphone (e.g., headset).
You will not be allowed to take a quiz at any time outside of the specified open/close times unless an Assessment Extension Request is approved. In Quiz 3, if you arrive late for class, you will not be granted extra time. Changes to quiz times can only be granted with approval by the Unit Coordinator.
While quizzes will be open-book (e.g. you can use lecture slides), you will be expected to produce the answers yourself. That is, you are not allowed to communicate with others during the quiz (including other students or people online), and if you use online searches, forums or AI systems (e.g. StackExchange, ChatGPT), you are expected to write the answer in your own words. Advice on what resources can(not) be used may be provided before the start of each quiz.
You are assumed to have a working computer and Internet connection during term, and especially during times when attempting a quiz. Technical problems, such as a computer crash or loss of Internet connection, will not usually be a reason for an extra attempt or extension. You are expected to prepare your computer before the quiz starts. If problems outside of your control occur during a quiz, report immediately to your tutor, who may either extend the time or allow you to undertake the quiz at another time (with the Unit Coordinator's approval).
3
Other
Weeks 4, 8 and 12
One week after Quiz 1 and Quiz 2; Certification of Grades day for Quiz 3
- Quiz 1: 5%
- Quiz 2: 10%
- Quiz 3: 20%
In most cases, quiz answers will be automatically marked, with marks awarded based on the correctness of the answer within the context of topics covered in unit. Questions may be worth different marks, with the marks shown in the quiz. If quiz answers are manually marked (e.g., explanation style questions), then marks will be awarded based on the correctness and clarity of the answer.
It is important you answer the questions within the context of this unit. There are sometimes different meanings of terms in networking and cyber security. You will be expected to use the terms as covered in the lecture materials and tutorial activities.
As results and solutions may be released shortly after the due date, late submissions are not accepted. Making no attempts before the due date will result in a score of 0.
- Investigate the role of ICT infrastructure, such as computer hardware, operating systems, virtualisation, and networks, in providing Internet applications and cloud services
- Recommend cyber security controls to prevent and detect attacks and vulnerabilities
- Apply standards and industry best practices to manage networks, ICT services, and cyber security
2 Learning logs / diaries / Journal / log books
You will keep a journal throughout the unit that captures your tutorial activities and project contributions. Each tutorial has a set of tasks: the workings, results, answers and discussion arising from those tasks must be captured in your journal.
You must contribute to your journal every week, preferably during or shortly after each tutorial. Examples of content that may be included are:
- Screenshots capturing results of using software to complete tasks;
- Commands used to complete tasks, and the output of those commands, e.g., copy-and-paste from PowerShell;
- Network diagrams and other illustrations you develop;
- Links to websites/papers/software you used to solve problems or find information;
- Answers to questions in the tutorial activities, or relevant questions posed by your tutor or other students;
- Notes on how to use software, perform a calculation or solve a problem;
- Files you created or produced by software in conducting tutorial activities, e.g., web pages.
Tutorial activities may specify what must be included in your journal for a particular task. You should also use your journal to document your individual contributions to your project. As a general guide, include items in your journal that:
- Provide evidence that you completed a tutorial task or made a contribution to the project (e.g., screenshots, output, commands, files, diagrams);
- Demonstrate understanding and competence of the knowledge and skills taught (e.g., written insights, summary of concepts, reflections on what went wrong);
- Will be helpful for you later in the unit, or in future units, to refer back to (e.g., notes, steps you took, links to websites and other instructions).
You will have to maintain your journal such that there is evidence of regular (at least weekly) contributions. Your journal must be created on your private GitHub repository. The Unit Coordinator and your tutor must be added as a collaborator. As this is your own journal, you should not share with other students. The journal should use basic Markdown formatting (using just plaintext or uploading a Word document is insufficient). Details of creating the GitHub repository and adding collaborators can be found on Moodle.
You are required to submit your journal early in the term (Journal Draft) so you can gain feedback on the suitability of your entries so far. The entire journal is then submitted towards the end of term (Journal Final)
Journal Draft due Week 4 Monday 27 March 2023 9:00 AM AEST; Journal Final due Week 11 Monday 22 May 2023 9:00 AM AEST
Journal Draft returned one week after submission; Journal Final returned on Certification of Grades day
Your journal is an individual assessment worth 35% of the unit assessment, split as follows:
- Journal Draft: 10%, covering contributions from Weeks 1 to 3
- Journal Final: 25%, covering contributions from Weeks 4 to 10
Both the draft and final will be marked based on the quality of the contributions (e.g., demonstrating completion and understanding of tutorial activities) and the professionalism of the contributions (e.g., weekly entries relevant to the topics in the unit and presented in a professional manner).
While the journal will be maintained on GitHub, you must also submit a ZIP of the journal on Moodle before the deadline. The ZIP file can easily be produced by exporting the repository in GitHub. This is necessary so that a permanent record of your contribution is available in Moodle (in case the online platform is not available in the future).
- Investigate the role of ICT infrastructure, such as computer hardware, operating systems, virtualisation, and networks, in providing Internet applications and cloud services
- Recommend cyber security controls to prevent and detect attacks and vulnerabilities
- Summarise key professional, social and legal issues relating to the Internet, cloud computing, and cyber security.
3 Project (applied)
You will conduct a project involving network design and cyber security analysis. You will apply the knowledge and skills you have learnt in the unit to propose a networking and cyber security solution for a small/medium sized organisation. You will also identify and reflect on professional and ethical issues that may arise as a result of the project. The project is divided into two phases, network design and cyber security analysis. Details of the project tasks can be found on Moodle.
This is a group project consisting of two (2) students from the same class (or with the Unit Coordinators permission, three students, e.g., when an odd number of students in the class). Students should form their own groups, but if not formed within reasonable time, the Unit Coordinator may allocate students to a group. Generally, a change of groups is not allowed once the project starts.
Students must use a GitHub repository to track their project contributions (e.g., drafts, design files, code). Details of creating the GitHub repository can be found on Moodle. Your contributions on GitHub may be take into account when determining your overall contribution to the project.
You will produce written reports on the project, as well as a presentation at the end of the project. The presentation will be via a recorded video. Details of the presentation format and duration can be found on Moodle.
Project Draft due Week 7 Monday 24 April 2023 9:00 AM AEST; Project Final due Week 12 Monday 29 May 2023 9:00 AM AEST
Project Draft returned two weeks after submission; Project Final returned on Certification of Grades day
Your project is a group assessment worth 30% of the unit assessment, split as follows:
-
Project Draft: 10%. A written report covering most tasks in the network design phase.
- Project Final: 20%. A written report and presentation covering the entire project, i.e., the cyber security analysis phase and updates/improvements on the network design phase.
Both the draft report and final report will be marked based on the quality of the work, the application of knowledge and skills taught in the unit, and professionalism of the report.
The final presentation will be marked based on the ability to concisely summarise the overall design and to clearly explain key design decisions and professional issues.
Both reports and presentation are group work, and each member of the group is expected to contribute about the same to each deliverable (for example, you cannot have one student do all the work for the draft, and then the other student do all the work for the final report). Each member of the group must present. While all members of a group will typically receive the same mark, when a significant variance in contributions is determined by the tutor or Unit Coordinator, each member of a group may receive different marks. Group members may be asked to explain their contribution, e.g., in an interview.
- Apply standards and industry best practices to manage networks, ICT services, and cyber security
- Summarise key professional, social and legal issues relating to the Internet, cloud computing, and cyber security.
As a CQUniversity student you are expected to act honestly in all aspects of your academic work.
Any assessable work undertaken or submitted for review or assessment must be your own work. Assessable work is any type of work you do to meet the assessment requirements in the unit, including draft work submitted for review and feedback and final work to be assessed.
When you use the ideas, words or data of others in your assessment, you must thoroughly and clearly acknowledge the source of this information by using the correct referencing style for your unit. Using others’ work without proper acknowledgement may be considered a form of intellectual dishonesty.
Participating honestly, respectfully, responsibly, and fairly in your university study ensures the CQUniversity qualification you earn will be valued as a true indication of your individual academic achievement and will continue to receive the respect and recognition it deserves.
As a student, you are responsible for reading and following CQUniversity’s policies, including the Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure. This policy sets out CQUniversity’s expectations of you to act with integrity, examples of academic integrity breaches to avoid, the processes used to address alleged breaches of academic integrity, and potential penalties.
What is a breach of academic integrity?
A breach of academic integrity includes but is not limited to plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, cheating, contract cheating, and academic misconduct. The Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure defines what these terms mean and gives examples.
Why is academic integrity important?
A breach of academic integrity may result in one or more penalties, including suspension or even expulsion from the University. It can also have negative implications for student visas and future enrolment at CQUniversity or elsewhere. Students who engage in contract cheating also risk being blackmailed by contract cheating services.
Where can I get assistance?
For academic advice and guidance, the Academic Learning Centre (ALC) can support you in becoming confident in completing assessments with integrity and of high standard.