OS Containerization Architecture for Reuse (OSCAR)

The Navy’s Personal Electronic Maintenance Aid (PEMA) devices are subject to Department of Defense (DoD) security regulations that impose strict guidance on the security maintenance of DoD systems. DoD security guidance is issued using a number of mechanisms, including Security Technical Implementation Guides (STIGs), Information Assurance Vulnerability Management (IAVM) messages, and DoD memorandum.  Failure to comply with these DoD guidelines endangers the program’s ability to retain its authorization to operate, risking failure of mission for the warfighter. The PEMA Windows 10-based software architecture and the variation across PEMA due to differences in installed Types/Model/Series (T/M/S) specific applications impart significant cost and effort to meet the DoD security requirements.  Our approach to investigate alternative operating systems (OS) and software architectures for PEMA aims to reduce the time and effort required to meet DoD security guidelines while ensuring that PEMA systems remain compliant with overarching DoD guidance. Our approach is designing and prototyping an architecture leveraging alternative open source software (OSS) for the PEMA operating systems and exploring the use of software containerization of PEMA applications. By combining each of these approaches into an overarching solution, we can reduce the time and effort required to meet DoD security guidelines and streamline the deployment of patches and configuration changes across PEMA systems.