LinkWare Personal Computer (PC) Cable Test Management

General Information

Technologies must be operated and maintained in accordance with Federal and Department security and privacy policies and guidelines. More information on the proper use of the TRM can be found on the TRM Proper Use Tab/Section.

Website:	Go to site
Description:	LinkWare Personal Computer (PC) Cable Test Management allows users to manage and report network cable test results. This technology allows users to manage reports from multiple Fluke testers in one centralized location. It also offers users the opportunity to organize and filter results within the application.
Technology/Standard Usage Requirements:	Users must ensure their use of this technology/standard is consistent with VA policies and standards, including, but not limited to, VA Handbooks 6102 and 6500; VA Directives 6004, 6513, and 6517; and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) standards, including Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS). Users must ensure sensitive data is properly protected in compliance with all VA regulations. Prior to use of this technology, users should check with their supervisor, Information Security Officer (ISO), Facility Chief Information Officer (CIO), or local Office of Information and Technology (OI&T) representative to ensure that all actions are consistent with current VA policies and procedures prior to implementation.
Section 508 Information:	This technology has been assessed by the Section 508 Office and found non-conformant. The Implementer of this technology has the responsibility to ensure the version deployed is 508-compliant. Section 508 compliance may be reviewed by the Section 508 Office and appropriate remedial action required if necessary. For additional information or assistance regarding Section 508, please contact the Section 508 Office at Section508@va.gov. Please see reference tab for more information concerning product versions.
Decision:	View Decisions

Decision Source:	TRM Mgmt Group
Decision Process:	One-VA TRM v22.12
Decision Date:	12/12/2022 at 03:45:10 UTC
Aliases:	network cable analysis reports; network reporting, LinkWare PC, Fluke Networks LinkWare
Introduced By:	TRM Request
Vendor Name:	Fluke Networks

Vendor Release Information

The Vendor Release table provides the known releases for the TRM Technology, obtained from the vendor (or from the release source).

Version	Release Date	Vendor End of Life Date	Vendor Desupport Date
6.x	04/24/2009
8.x	06/01/2013
9.x	05/01/2014
10.x	01/31/2019
11.x	06/01/2022

Current Decision Matrix (12/06/2022)

Users must ensure their use of this technology/standard is consistent with VA policies and standards, including, but not limited to, VA Handbooks 6102 and 6500; VA Directives 6004, 6513, and 6517; and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) standards, including Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS). Users must ensure sensitive data is properly protected in compliance with all VA regulations. Prior to use of this technology, users should check with their supervisor, Information Security Officer (ISO), Facility Chief Information Officer (CIO), or local Office of Information and Technology (OI&T) representative to ensure that all actions are consistent with current VA policies and procedures prior to implementation.

The VA Decision Matrix displays the current and future VA IT position regarding different releases of a TRM entry. These decisions are based upon the best information available as of the most current date. The consumer of this information has the responsibility to consult the organizations responsible for the desktop, testing, and/or production environments to ensure that the target version of the technology will be supported. Any major.minor version that is not listed in the VA Decision Matrix is considered unapproved for use.

Legend:

White	Approved: The technology/standard has been approved for use.
Yellow	Approved w/Constraints: The technology/standard can be used within the specified constraints located below the decision matrix in the footnote[1] and on the General tab.
Gray	Unapproved: This technology or standard can be used only if a POA&M review is conducted and signed by the Authorizing Official Designated Representative (AODR) as designated by the Authorizing Official (AO) or designee and based upon a recommendation from the POA&M Compliance Enforcement, has been granted to the project team or organization that wishes to use the technology.
Orange	Divest: VA has decided to divest itself on the use of the technology/standard. As a result, all projects currently utilizing the technology/standard must plan to eliminate their use of the technology/standard. Additional information on when the entry is projected to become unapproved may be found on the Decision tab for the specific entry.
Black	Prohibited: The technology/standard is not (currently) permitted to be used under any circumstances.
Blue	Planning/Evaluation Constraint:The period of time this technology is currently being evaluated, reviewed, and tested in controlled environments. Use of this technology is strictly controlled and not available for use within the general population. If a customer would like to use this technology, please work with your local or Regional OI&T office and contact the appropriate evaluation office displayed in the notes below the decision matrix. The Local or Regional OI&T office should submit an inquiry to the TRM if they require further assistance or if the evaluating office is not listed in the notes below.

Release/Version Information:

VA decisions for specific versions may include a ‘.x’ wildcard, which denotes a decision that pertains to a range of multiple versions.

For example, a technology approved with a decision for 7.x would cover any version of 7.(Anything) - 7.(Anything). However, a 7.4.x decision would cover any version of 7.4.(Anything), but would not cover any version of 7.5.x or 7.6.x on the TRM.

VA decisions for specific versions may include ‘+’ symbols; which denotes that the decision for the version specified also includes versions greater than what is specified but is not to exceed or affect previous decimal places.

For example, a technology approved with a decision for 12.6.4+ would cover any version that is greater than 12.6.4, but would not exceed the .6 decimal ie: 12.6.401 is ok, 12.6.5 is ok, 12.6.9 is ok, however 12.7.0 or 13.0 is not.

<Past

CY2022

CY2023

CY2024

Future>

Release

Q1

Q2

Q3

Q4

Q1

Q2

Q3

Q4

Q1

Q2

Q3

Q4

8.x

Unapproved

9.x

Unapproved

10.x

Approved w/Constraints
[3, 4, 6]

Divest
[3, 4, 7, 8, 9]

Divest
[3, 4, 8, 9, 10, 11]

Divest
[4, 9, 10, 12, 13, 14]

Divest
[4, 9, 10, 13, 14, 15]

Unapproved

11.x

Unapproved

Divest
[3, 4, 7, 8, 9]

Approved w/Constraints
[3, 4, 8, 9, 10, 11]

Approved w/Constraints
[4, 9, 10, 12, 13, 14]

Approved w/Constraints
[4, 9, 10, 13, 14, 15]

Decision Constraints


[1]	As of April 23, 2015, per the Deputy CIO of Architecture, Strategy and Design (ASD), all technologies in use by the VA require an assessment by the VA Section 508 office. Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act Amendments of 1998 is a federal law that sets the guidelines for technology accessibility. A VA Section 508 assessment of this technology has not been completed at the time of publication. Therefore, as of April 23, 2015 only users of this technology who have deployed the technology to the production environment, or have project design and implementation plans approved, may continue to operate this technology. In the case of a project that has implemented, or been approved for a specific site or number of users, and that project needs to expand operations to other sites or to an increased user base, it may do so as long as the project stays on the existing version of the technology that was approved or implemented as of April 22, 2015. Use of this technology in all other cases is prohibited.

[2]	If free trialware is utilized, the software must be purchased or removed at the end of the trial period.

[3]	Users should check with their supervisor, Information Security Office (ISO) or local OIT representative for permission to download and use this software. Downloaded software must always be scanned for viruses prior to installation to prevent adware or malware. Freeware may only be downloaded directly from the primary site that the creator of the software has advertised for public download and user or development community engagement. Users should note, any attempt by the installation process to install any additional, unrelated software is not approved and the user should take the proper steps to decline those installations.

[4]	Technology must remain patched and operated in accordance with Federal and Department security policies and guidelines in order to mitigate known and future security vulnerabilities.

[5]	If free trialware is utilized, the software must be purchased or removed at the end of the trial period. Users must ensure that an approved version of Microsoft .NET Framework is installed prior to installing a new instance of LinkWare Personal Computer (PC) Cable Test Management Software. If a version of Microsoft .NET Framework is not installed, the technology will automatically install Microsoft .NET Framework 4.5.2, which is unallowed by TRM.

[6]	If free trialware is utilized, the software must be purchased or removed at the end of the trial period. Users must ensure that an approved version of Microsoft .NET Framework is installed prior to installing a new instance of LinkWare Personal Computer (PC) Cable Test Management Software. If a version of Microsoft .NET Framework is not installed, the technology will automatically install Microsoft .NET Framework 4.5.2, which is unallowed by TRM. Users must ensure that Microsoft .NET Framework is implemented with VA-approved baselines. (refer to the ‘Category’ tab under ‘Runtime Dependencies’)

[7]	If free trialware is utilized, the software must be purchased or removed at the end of the trial period. Users must ensure that Microsoft .NET Framework and Microsoft Excel are implemented with VA-approved baselines. (refer to the ‘Category’ tab under ‘Runtime Dependencies’) This technology requires using a Universal Service Bus (USB) technology to transfer data into the records. As such, proper precautions need to be taken to protect data. Users must divest the use of Internet Explorer with this technology. Other approved internet browsers are available. See Category Tab for details.

[8]	In cases where the technology is used for external connections, a full Enterprise Security Change Control Board (ESCCB) review is required in accordance VA Directive 6004 , VA Directive 6517, and VA Directive 6513. The local ISO can advise on the ESCCB review process.

[9]	New installations or major expansions of this technology that transmit data over the VA Wide Area Network (WAN) must complete a WAN impact review (yourIT Service Portal:[SNOW Service Requests]) prior to implementation to ensure proper compliance to VA network design and usage requirements.

[10]	If free trialware is utilized, the software must be purchased or removed at the end of the trial period. This technology requires using a Universal Service Bus (USB) technology to transfer data into the records. As such, proper precautions need to be taken to protect data. Users must divest the use of Internet Explorer with this technology. Other approved internet browsers are available. See Category Tab for details.

[11]	Veterans Affairs (VA) users must ensure VA sensitive data is properly protected in compliance with all VA regulations. All instances of deployment using this technology should be reviewed by the local ISO (Information Security Officer) to ensure compliance with VA Handbook 6500.

[12]	Veterans Affairs (VA) users must ensure VA sensitive data is properly protected in compliance with all VA regulations. All instances of deployment using this technology should be reviewed by the local ISSO (Information System Security Officer) to ensure compliance with VA Handbook 6500.

[13]	Users should check with their supervisor, Information System Security Officer (ISSO) or local OIT representative for permission to download and use this software. Downloaded software must always be scanned for viruses prior to installation to prevent adware or malware. Freeware may only be downloaded directly from the primary site that the creator of the software has advertised for public download and user or development community engagement. Users should note, any attempt by the installation process to install any additional, unrelated software is not approved and the user should take the proper steps to decline those installations.

[14]	In cases where the technology is used for external connections, a full Enterprise Security Change Control Board (ESCCB) review is required in accordance VA Directive 6004 , VA Directive 6517, and VA Directive 6513. The local ISSO (Information System Security Officer) can advise on the ESCCB review process.

[15]	Veterans Affairs (VA) users must ensure VA sensitive data is properly protected in compliance with all VA regulations. All instances of deployment using this technology should be reviewed by the local ISSO (Information System Security Officer) to ensure compliance with both VA Handbook 6500 and VA Directive 6500.

Note:

At the time of writing, version 11.2 is the most current version, released 10/01/2022.

References

The following reference(s) are associated with this entry:
Type	Name	Source	Description
Vendor Provided*	Release Notes	Publicly Available	This site provides release notes for this technology.
Vendor Provided*	System Requirements	Publicly Available	This page contains the system requirements for the technology.
*NOTE: Vendor provided information is subject to the accuracy of the manufacturer.

Technology Components

Note: This list may not be complete. No component, listed or unlisted, may be used outside of the technology in which it is released. The usage decision for a component is found in the Decision and Decision Constraints.
Name	Description
No components have been identified for this entry.

VA Categories View the VA Categorization Framework

Domain Area	Category	Customer Guidance	Category Locked By ELT Date
Systems Management Systems Management Tools	Network Performance Optimization

Operating Systems Supported by the Technology

Windows Client - Approved w/Constraints

Technologies/Standards Relationships

Runtime Dependencies:

Comparable Technologies:

Companion Technologies/Supported Standards:

General Analysis

Adoption Benefits

This technology may improve productivity for network administrators through improvements in network infrastructure analysis and reporting.
At the time of writing, no National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) vulnerabilities had been reported and no VA Cyber Security Operations Center (CSOC) bulletins had been issued for the latest versions of this technology.
This technology provides proprietary functionality for vendor`s associated hardware.

Adoption Risks

This technology has a free trial period, which carries the potential for the disruption of service delivery and inaccurate financial planning.
Due to the rapid release schedule of this technology, the VA may be unable to update to the most recent patch and may require a deployment model requiring the use of specific versions.
This technology involves the use Universal Serial Bus (USB) connections and proper security precautions must be taken when used.
Microsoft Internet Explorer, a dependency of this technology, is in End-of-Life status and must no longer be used.
This technology may transmit data over the VA Wide Area Network (WAN).
This technology may utilize external data connections.
The potential exists to store Personally Identifiable Information (PII), Protected Health Information (PHI) and/or VA Sensitive data and proper security standards must be followed in these cases.

Architectural Benefits

This technology is compatible with virtual machines, therefore consistent with the enterprise Server Virtualize First Policy (VAIQ 7266972 08-27-2012).

Architectural Risks

This technology is not portable as it runs only on Windows platforms.

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VA Categories View the VA Categorization Framework

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Comparable Technologies:

Companion Technologies/Supported Standards:

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