iProject Requirements and Explanations
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In order to run the iProject client, your browser must have certain capabilities. This document enumerates these requirements and explains their security implications.

Specifically, your browser must:

1. Support HTML frames
2. Support JavaScript
3. Support true Java (usually by installing a compatible Java Plug-In)
4. Allow applets to run
5. Allow privileged applets to run
6. Be able to connect to the iProject server

The iProject uses JavaScript (more recently standardized as ECMA-Script) in several ways:

1. To run the browser tests conducted when starting the iProject.
2. To automate launching the iProject on browsers requiring specific HTML syntax.
3. To allow connection parameters to be stored and maintained in one place, separately from more changeable HTML documents.

None of these is absolutely critical, and we provide alternate launch links that do not use JavaScript.

What does this involve?

JavaScript is often enabled by default, or you may have to enable it manually.

Why is this safe?

Scripting languages are a source of legitimate security anxiety, especially when using Microsoft Internet Explorer or Outlook/Express.

In particular, one class of security problems that can affect Internet Explorer as well as many Web servers is called cross-site scripting, which generally involves unchecked client input. Although a poorly configured Web server may still be vulnerable to this type of problem, the iProject's pages and scripts do not introduce any additional vulnerability, because they do not accept any client input.

The risks of scripting can be addressed in several ways, including:

• Use a virus scanner that can block script viruses.
• Allow JavaScript only from specified sites.
• Set Internet Explorer to prompt before running scripts. (This is not quite as annoying as you might think, but since Internet Explorer doesn't give any information about the script in the prompt, it's also only minimally helpful.)
• Ignore it. (Not recommended, but common.)

For your convenience, you may view all of the iProject's JavaScript source.

The Java Plug-In provides the standardized libraries (in particular, user interface and network libraries) and secure "virtual machine" that the iProject client needs to run on multiple platforms.

What does this involve?

The first time you run the iProject client you will probably need to install the Java Plug-In on your machine. This only needs to be done once.

Why is this safe?

Sun's Java Plug-In has had very few security issues over its lifetime, and has no outstanding ones in its recent versions (including those mirrored here). No widespread exploit of the Java Plug-In has ever been made; the only one we're even aware of was a proof-of-concept in 1996 called "Brown Orifice," which never caused any damage.

The iProject client runs as an applet to ensure that users always have an up-to-date version, and to take advantage of the Java Plug-In's code caching and signature verification abilities.

What does this involve?

Usually no setup will be required after the Java Plug-In is installed. If you are using Netscape or Mozilla, you may have to enable applets manually.

Why is this safe?

Applets run in a very restrictive environment; normally, they can't do anything except paint to the screen a bit. In particular, applets can't read or write files on your local computer, or connect to any host except the one they came from.

Internet Explorer also gives you options to prompt before running any applet or to run only signed applets, and we recommend that you select one of those options.

One of the iProject's primary functions is the exchange of data, in particular, files. Because Java's strict security prevents normal applets from accessing files on the local computer, any applet like the iProject client that needs to do so has to run in a special "trusted" mode.

What does this involve?

The Java Plug-In detects when an applet requires privileges, and asks you whether to allow the applet to run. No system configuration or settings should need to be modified.

Why is this safe?

Applet code can be signed by its provider, allowing you to verify that it actually has been approved by the provider, that the provider is who it claims to be, and that the code has not been tampered with. When asking whether to run a privileged applet, the Java Plug-In will display the credentials of signed code.

You should never run a privileged applet unless it is signed by an organization you know and would expect to sign it!

The iProject client should be signed either by its host company or by iReservoir.com, Inc.

In order to store and retrieve data on the iProject server, the iProject client must be able to connect to the server. For network-enabled applications like the iProject, this involves making a TCP/IP socket connection over the fabled, cussed, elusive open port.

What does this involve?

Depending on the server configuration, this may require the ability to establish a connection on a non-standard port. This will likely be fine if the iProject client and server reside on the same LAN. When connecting to the iProject over the Internet, however, allowing such connections is almost certainly in the realm of the system administrator.

Why is this safe?

This is safe because the exception required is narrow:

• The iProject client opens sockets to the iProject server, never the other way around.
• Only one port needs to be allowed, to only one IP address, and only using TCP.
• HTTPS proxying is supported.

And because data is handled with care:

• All data is transmitted using 128-bit SSL encryption.
• Information is only sent to the server by explicit request of the user (i.e. by pressing Save or Upload buttons).
• Only information explicitly entered and files explicitly selected by the user are sent to the server.
  Actually, there's one small exception to this rule: The native language of the client (consisting of a two-letter language code and a two-letter country code) is sent to the server, to allow messages generated on the server to be translated to the user's language. This information is cleared from the server when the user logs out of the iProject.
• The only files stored to the client computer are those explicitly reqeuested by the user, and possibly a cached copy of the iProject client code. No other information is saved on the client.