OSS CASE STUDY AWARD 2010

OSS CASE STUDY AWARD
2010
TABUNG BAITULMAL SARAWAK
SISTEM AGIHAN ONLINE
OSS CASE STUDY
Name
: Bolhassan Iskandar Taibi
Government Agency
: Tabung Baitulmal Sarawak.
Full Street Address
: Jalan Hj Muhammad Kassim, Seksyen 8, KTLD, 93400, Kuching, Sarawak.
Full Postal Address
: Tabung Baitulmal Sarawak, Bangunan Baitulmal, Jalan Hj Muhammad Kassim,
Seksyen 8, KTLD, 93400, Kuching, Sarawak.
Email
Phone
Fax
URL
: [email protected]
: 082-415563
: 082-253786
: www.tbs.org.my
Type of Solution
: Application
Group
: Public Sector Agency.
BACKGROUND
Tabung Baitulmal Sarawak (TBS) was incorporated in 1984 under the Majlis Islam Sarawak (MIS)
Ordinance (Incorporation) (Amendment) 1984. On behalf of the MIS, TBS is responsible for the
management of Zakat and the collection, management and distribution of the Zakat and Baitulmal Funds.
TBS employs 104 staff throughout Sarawak where 60 are based in Kuching and 44 at its 8 branches and 3
Liaison offices.
VISION
To be a dynamic Islamic institution and savior of man especially the Muslims of Sarawak.
MISSION
Tabung Baitulmal Sarawak is a representative of Majlis Islam Sarawak responsible in the management of
Zakat and Wakaf in Sarawak
Tabung Baitulmal Sarawak provides the infrastructure to collect, distribute and manage the Zakat, Wakaf
and Baitulmal Funds while educating the Ummah on their obligation to pay Zakat.
Tabung Baitulmal Sarawak’s clients include Muslims, Government agencies, Corporates and organizations.
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BACKGROUND OF OSS USE IN TABUNG BAITULMAL SARAWAK
Exploration of Open Source Systems (OSS) began in 2001 arising from a need to implement a cost
effective integrated transaction processing system that can be utilized across the whole organization. It
must be customizable and able to run under a wide area network covering the whole of Sarawak where our
8 branches are located. After several discussions with different solution providers, Management decided on
the Open Source path.
The approach taken at that time was to develop an integrated system running on a web based platform
which was believed to be less complex and cheaper to implement. Thus Sistem Amil Tekno Tabung
Baitulmal Sarawak (SATTBS) was built by a start up OSS vendor for RM95,000 including equipment.
SATTBS was developed based on a mutually beneficial arrangement (win-win) with the vendor who was an
obscure OpenSource outfit looking a showcase project. TBS on the other hand requires a cost effective
system and was willing to be a reference organization for Open Source implementation. There were two
core modules namely the Collection System and the Distribution System. Both were supported by
subsidiary systems like Human Resources Management, Customer Relationship Management (CRM),
Document Management, Internal Electronic Mail etc. Continuous improvement were however focus on the
core systems which formed the critical operations of TBS. For the purpose of this submission, the
Distribution System was chosen due to its importance and criticality in achieving organizational objectives.
It has also undergone 3 facelifts since 2005 mainly to meet increasing transaction volume and workflow
improvements.
Currently, TBS is embarking on building an internal OSS software development capability. Systems
Development Life Cycle (SDLC) will be utilized to ensure any future systems development will be done in
an organized and documented manner. The original SATTBS will eventually be replaced by a new in house
designed and developed, called Sistem Baitulmal Maju Kehadapan (BMK). It will still comprise the same
core systems but albeit a much improved, stable and scalable system.
MIGRATION FROM SATTBS TO BMK
Migration from SATTBS to BMK was inevitable due to the following :
One of the main reasons why OSS was chosen over proprietary systems was cost
advantage and freedom from restrictive licensing regimes. However, with several years
of experience working with a dedicated OSS vendor, TBS decided that it had to achieve
independence from external vendors especially in the area of design. Other factors
include project development simplification and general security especially related to
data and access to critical applications.
The dynamic nature of the organization’s growth requires a speedy solution to new
problems or user requests. Usage of a dedicated external vendor can hinder such
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situations as any amendments to existing projects requires new agreements, changes to
pricing especially when requests are outside current user requirement study (URS).
TBS would achieve real independence as envisioned under the Open Source spirit and
not be tied up to proprietary vendors (especially Open Source developers).
Sistem Agihan Online is a pioneer system that is being developed and will be fully integrated with Sistem
BMK. It is being designed internally and programming is outsourced to a vendor but all source codes will be
owned by TBS. Integration into Sistem BMK will be done by our own staff and can be accessed at
www.tbs.org.my/system/admin. This system is comprised of two sections :
External Services System
Internal Processing System
External Services System
This subsystem deal exclusively with services delivery to our customers who apply for our assistance.
Among its functions are :
Online data entry for applications
Evaluate the eligibility of online applications via our self assessment window
Online search of applicant’s results including processing stage.
Online customer feedback mechanism
Internal Processing System
The functions available to our staff who process these applications are as below:
Decisions are based on machine processed data and inherently faster and without bias
Document review is done online and complies to ISO processes
Quantum or amount of assistance is calculated automatically and remove any possibility
of abuse by users
Payments or distribution is made faster and more accurate
Although online applications are preferred, TBS continue to process applications manually for the benefit of
customers without access to internet at home.
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PRINCIPLE OBJECTIVES OF THE PROJECT
Among the objectives of this project are :
To ensure that applications for assistance are processed faster, more accurately and
efficiently.
Application for assistance can be made at any time, from anywhere at the convenience
of the customer.
All decisions are transparent and processing is automated and thus bias is avoided.
Reduces workload for processing staff and improves accuracy especially for repetitive
routine tasks.
Reduction in physical workload frees manpower to be reassigned to other core tasks
e.g. investigation & verification.
Directly paves the way towards a paperless environment.
WHO ARE THE KEY PARTNERS (DESCRIBE ROLE OF EACH PARTNER)
Bahagian Agihan, Tabung Baitulmal Sarawak. Provides direct input on process
requirements and real world scenarios.
Bahagian Teknologi, Tabung Baitulmal Sarawak. Provides project planning, execution
and monitoring of the project.
Syarikat Dimensi Baru Sdn Bhd. Provides systems design and develop the system
(programming portion).
WHAT ARE THE PRIMARY OSS TECHNOLOGIES? CHOOSE AND DESCRIBE
BRIEFLY.
Key OSS technologies utilized include :
WEBSERVER
C ENTOS
http://www.centos.org/
CentOS is an Enterprise-class Linux Distribution derived from sources freely provided to the
public by a prominent North American Enterprise Linux vendor. CentOS conforms fully with the
upstream vendors redistribution policy and aims to be 100% binary compatible. CentOS is
developed by a small but growing team of core developers. In turn, the core developers are
supported by an active user community including system administrators, network
administrators, enterprise users, managers, core Linux contributors and Linux enthusiasts from
around the world. Currently we are using version 5.4, the latest version of CentOS distribution.
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This distribution was chosen because of its excellent technical support and compatibality of
hardware drivers.
APACHE
http://www.apache.org/
The Apache HTTP Server, commonly referred to as Apache , is a web server software notable for
playing a key role in the initial growth of the World Wide Web. Apache is a freely available Web
server that is distributed under an "open source" license. This is used as a common engine for
running web based application servers.
PHP (H YPERTEXT P REPROCESSOR)
http://www.php.net/
This is a server-side HTML embedded scripting language. It provides web developers with a full
suite of tools for building dynamic websites. PHP is a widely-used general-purpose scripting
language that is especially suited for Web development and can be embedded into HTML.
Our PHP engine is at version 5.1.6 and our open source web based applications were also
developed under the PHP 5 coding environment.
DATABASE
MY SQL
http://www.mysql.com/
MySQL is a relational database management system (RDBMS) that runs as a server providing
multi-user access to a number of databases. We are currently running version 5.0.77 and have
chosen MySQL as it supports large data capacity, is a full-featured database management
system and its cross-platform support capability.
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WHAT ARE THE DESIGN SPECIFICATIONS
Sistem Agihan Online was developed using MySQL 5.0 dan PHP 5.0.
It is accessed via a Wide Area Network (WAN) for intra state connections and via local area network (LAN)
for intra office connections.
HARDWARE
Overview of the system:
Web-Client
Mozilla Firefox
Internet Explorer
HARDWARE
Quad Core Xeon
Pro X3323
250Gb
4Gb DDR2
SOFTWARE
Php
MySQL
CentOS
Apache
SOFTWARE
DATABASE
MySQL
http://www.mysql.com/
MySQL is a relational database management system (RDBMS) that runs as a server providing
multi-user access to a number of databases. We are currently running version 5.0.77
PHPMYADMIN
http://www.phpmyadmin.net/
phpMyAdmin is a free software tool written in PHP intended to handle the administration of
MySQL databases over the World Wide Web. phpMyAdmin supports a wide range of operations
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with MySQL. The most frequently used operations are supported by the user interface
(managing databases, tables, fields, relations, indexes, users, permissions, etc). Current version
used is 2.11.10 to handle a Graphical User Interface (GUI) database management.
WHY DID YOU CHOOSE OSS?
Software acquisition at low cost and independence from proprietary technology.
Freely modifiable Source code.
Robust Source Code that is suited to repel “malicious code” attacks.
Easier to use as resources are freely available on the internet.
HOW AND WHY DID OSS SOLVE THE PERCEIVED NEED/PROBLEM
Even with early exposure to OSS, TBS has limited expertise in software development.
OSS provides an excellent free platform to learn from an existing OSS community who
are willing to help solve problems, share information and tips and provide guidance.
Easy linkages to other Open Source software and ability to use software ‘blocks’ to
create even better solutions. This is achieved by the free nature OSS source codes.
A system built with OSS can cost relatively lower than its proprietary counterpart
basically due to the collaborative nature of its licensing scheme.
OSS is compatible with proprietary platform like Windows. This makes the process of
system development much easier.
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WHAT INNOVATION TOOK PLACE?
1.SHORTER WORKFLOW AND SPEEDIER PROCESSING .
Sistem Agihan Online (Before)
Sistem Agihan Online (After)
Start
Start
1.Applicant fills up Form & provides
supporting documents.
2.Staff checks and verify data in the
form and supporting documents .
1.Applicant enters data for eligibility
self assessment.
No
Eligible?
End.
Yes
No
Complete?
Yes
2.Applicant fills up an downloadable
form.
3.Staff computes eligibility based on
income.
3.Applicant prepares & submit
complete supporting documents.
4. Assistance amount decided based
on applicant’s location and IPT’s
location.
4.Staf reviews application manually.
No
5.Staff key in data into computer.
Complete?
Yes
B
A
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A
B
6.Ketua Unit/Cawangan makes a
decision.
5.Decision & Assistance amount
computed automatically.
7.Ketua Bahagian confirms decision.
6.Accounts Staf prepares cheque.
8.Staf checks all information.
9.Staf prepares listing & sends forms
Staf kemaskini
to Bahagian
Akaun for payment.
7.Filing.
End
10.Accounts Staf executes the
disbursement process.
11.Accounts Staf updates payment
into system.
12.Filing.
End
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2.EASIER RECORDING OF DATA.
Applicant records including income, dependents and other supporting data is directly recorded
into an online database. This results in speedier data retrieval compared to previous manual
computer and physical records. Payment (disbursement) processing can thus be processed
much faster when applicant and eligibility data are online.
EASIER AND FASTER APPLICATION PROCESSING STATUS
Applicants can check their application status online when their supporting documents have
been verified. They no longer need to call or TBS does not need to send letters to applicants.
TRANSPARENT AND ACCURATE DECISION & ASSISTANCE AMOUNT
Decisions on applications are made automatically based on data imputed by the applicants. This
results in speedier decisions and reduces the possibility of bias in processing. Quantum of
assistance are made based on a Distribution Guideline Table which is reviewed from time to
time. This reduces the possibility of human error and biasness when human intervention is kept
to a minimum.
FULLY INTEGRATED WITH TBS QUAITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (QMS)
All Quality Objectives under the ISO 9001 : 2008 certification (Bantuan Kemasukan ke IPT) of TBS
have been incorporated into the online workflow. This allows the sistem to automatically detect
any non conformance and drastically reduce the timeframe to provide a decision on applications
from 10 days to 1 day upon receipt of verified supporting documents. Customer feedback has
also been tagged to the online application thus ensuring fast and accurate feedback mechanism
for quality monitoring purposes.
5S FILING INTEGRATED INTO SYSTEM
With this system, all file numbering are synchronized for all TBS branches throughout Sarawak.
This will further enhance our award winning 5S implementation.
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IMPACT
ORGANISATION
Improved staff utilization where redeployment is possible without engaging extra
manpower.
Improved processing efficiency where work is compacted resulting in time savings and
greater accuracy.
Online processing results in marked reduction in usage of paper saving both money and
the environment.
Adherence to specified work processes especially in an ISO environment is greatly
enhanced due to automation.
CUSTOMER
Customer waiting time is greatly reduced where decisions are available in 1 day
compared to 10 days as specified under the ISO Quality Objective.
Customers can apply from any internet connection at any time at their convenience.
All applications are machine processed thereby ensuring transparency, accuracy and
free from any bias.
KEY EXPERIENCE
In the beginning, OSS development in TBS was an ad hoc affair where development was directed by
immediate needs at the time. The lack of a master plan caused headaches in the later years as problems
in data consistencies, dead menus and warped workflows forced TBS to explore better project
management skills that will ensure future systems development is well documented, traceable and
manageable. This will avoid unnecessary costs incurred in remedial work on databases, codes or
programming.
With increasing complexity and size of operational requirements, Systems Development Life Cycle
(SDLC) became our savior where system development became a well planned and executed affair. A
software development project would be clearly defined with clear goals and timelines. Definitions are
agreed upon and documentation is a given.
The phases of development under SDLC are as follows :
User Requirement Study (URS) – Contains flow charts and systems requirements.
Development – System development strictly based on the URS.
User Acceptance Test (UAT) – User testing of systems as per URS.
Fixing – Remedial process on errors found during UAT.
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Training – Training for system users.
Deploy – Installation to live server.
Monitoring – Operational monitoring.
CURRENT STATUS
The development of Sistem Agihan Online version 3.0 started in August 2009 and since then the system
has been deployed successfully with minor shortcoming that are currently being rectified. This system is
currently being utilized at all 8 branches throughout Sarawak including 3 liaison offices since 10 August
2010.
TESTIMONIAL
Affiliate
Encik Osman Immun,
Tabung Baitulmal Sarawak Cawangan Mukah
Encik Salim Bujang,
Tabung Baitulmal Sarawak Cawangan Bintulu
Puan Marini Juraibi,
Tabung Baitulmal Sarawak Cawangan Miri
Encik Ali Bin Mat
Tabung Baitulmal Sarawak Cawangan Sibu
Fadhli Zil Ikram Bin Barahim
Emilliana Rosnaida Bt Osman
Ramdan Bin Pomin
Norshahlawati Binti Draman
Designation
Mukah Head Branch
Contact
084-873634
Bintulu Head Branch
086-337217
Miri Head Branch
085-434528
Sibu Head Branch
084-214941
IPT applicant
IPT applicant
IPT applicant
IPT applicant
014-3939643
019-8137192
014-8724546
014-8837178
OTHERS
Application of OSS technologies in TBS has been carried over several years even before gaining
popularity among government circles. Among them are:
GATEWAY/FIREWALL
PFSENSE
http://www.pfsense.com/
pfSense is a free, open source customized distribution of FreeBSD tailored for use as a firewall
and router. In addition to being a powerful, flexible firewalling and routing platform, it includes
a long list of related features and a package system allowing further expandability without
adding bloat and potential security vulnerabilities to the base distribution.
We use this to control traffic especially rules for outgoing traffic and filtering secure ports. This
firewall is expected to secure our internal server/applications from malicious intrusions.
Currently we are using pfsense 1.2.3-RELEASE version.
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PROXY SERVER
L USCA CACHE
http://code.google.com/p/lusca-cache/
Lusca Cache is a free open source application that was developed under pfsense. Lusca is a
continuation of the Squid-2 development effort with a focus on providing stability and
performance whilst ongoing development occurs. Proxy is used to minimize the bandwidth
usage of internet connection or in other words, cache our internet connection to the server.
Example : a partially downloaded user file will be saved on the server to prevent double
download which will require more bandwidth.
SQUIDGUARD
http://www.squidguard.org/
SquidGuard is a URL redirector which is fast and it is free. Squidguard is used for filtering access
to an internet connection in order to assign which user have limited or restricted access to the
internet.
HAVP
http://www.server-side.de/
HAVP (HTTP Antivirus Proxy) is a proxy with a ClamAV anti-virus scanner. It does not cache or
filter content. This is what we use as our internet traffic scanner that monitors all internet
downloads.
VPN
PPTP (POINT- TO-POINT T UNNELING P ROTOCOL)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Point-to-Point_Tunneling_Protocol
A virtual private network (VPN) is a network that uses a public telecommunication
infrastructure, such as the Internet, to provide remote offices or individual users with secure
access to their organization's network. It aims to avoid an expensive system of owned or leased
lines that can be used by only one organisation. The goal of a VPN is to provide the organisation
with the same secure capabilities but at a much lower cost.
The Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol (PPTP) is a method for implementing virtual private
networks. PPTP uses a control channel over TCP and a GRE tunnel operating to encapsulate PPP
packets. The PPTP specification does not describe encryption or authentication features and
relies on the PPP protocol being tunneled to implement security functionality.
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DNS SERVER
IPCONFIG
http://www.ispconfig.org/
ISPConfig is a OpenSource ISP management and Hosting Control Panel. We just use the DNS
(Domain Name Server) function to manage our domain and subdomain. We are currently
running ISPConfig 3.0.1.3.
FILE/BACKUP SERVER
F REE NAS
http://www.freenas.org/
FreeNAS is an embedded open source NAS (Network-Attached Storage) distribution based on
FreeBSD, supporting the following protocols: CIFS (samba), FTP, NFS, TFTP, AFP, RSYNC, Unison,
iSCSI (initiator and target) and UPnP.
This server functions as a secondary backup where all backups will be transferred to this server
via ssh or ftp. DVD backups are output twice weekly for external storage.
EMAIL
ROUNDCUBE
http://www.roundcube.net/
Roundcube is a free and open source webmail software for the masses, written in PHP. It is also
a browser-based multilingual IMAP client which is user friendly and easy to use.
SHARE-screen shot
Please see the attachment.
RELEVANT URL
Applicants can surf www.tbs.org.my
Staff Login can be done at www.tbs.org.my/system.admin
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ATTACHMENT
WEBSITE – INTERFACE FOR APPLICANT
APPLICANT SELF-ASSESSMENT
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APPLICANT SELF ASSESSMENT (CONTINUE)
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ASSESSMENT RESULT
ONLINE FORM
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ONLINE FORM (CONTINUE)
BACK END - FIRST TIME CHECKING
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FIRST TIME CHECKING CONTINUE
BACK END -LISTING OF APPLICATIONS
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BACK END-PAYMENT PROCESS
APPLICATION CHECKING ONLIINE - BY APPLICANT
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RESULT AND CUSTOMER FEEDBACK ONLINE
CUSTOMER FEEDBACK ONLINE
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APPLICATION RESULT
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