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Goal

To increase hands-on System Administration, Network Engineering, and Cybersecurity opportunities for students by 10 percent per year in the next year and the following 2 as measured by surveys of former, continuing, and new students; by efficiently exposing and training students in more advanced IT technologies than were available before. 

What will be done with my students

"A cyber range is a controlled, interactive technology environment where ... (students) ... can learn how to detect and mitigate cyber-attacks using the same kind of equipment they will have on the job." Citation: https://cybersecurityguide.org/resources/cyber-ranges/

We will create a "CCPS CyberRange" for students to practice networking, system administration, and security skills in an isolated environment without affecting the operations or security of Collier Schools Technology Department assets. To do this, we will use an Antsle Virtual Machine (VM) appliance to store virtual machines and networks for students to access as needed. For instance:

- Students can build a network of computers (including web, email, and file servers) and then try to hack each other's network.
- Students can experiment with virtual machine settings without damaging their school computers.
- Students can build a private cloud solution for various scenarios/imaginary clients.
- If successful, students from other schools and programs can join. Possibly making this a pilot program for the district.

More information about virtual machines is provided in the below narrative. 

Benefits to my students

Virtual Machines (VM's) are basically simulated computers that are run on a regular computer. Using VM's provide the following benefits:

- Cost savings: Multiple VM's can reuse the same hardware.
- Easy provisioning and increased productivity: Labs can be set up in a matter of minutes instead of hours. VM's can also be automated so students can access them if the teacher is out or busy with another student.
- Full isolation means more security: Mistakes by students on dedicated hardware can cause connectivity issues for other students, programs, and staff members. This does not happen on virtual machines isolated on a virtual network.
- Portability means that VMs can run old applications: Learning legacy technology helps students understand the new. Additionally, some of our older lab equipment is not compatible with the newer software CCPS provides. VM's can be utilized to extend the life of that lab equipment.

Currently, we are limited to using the resources of the standard CCPS workstation to run virtual machines (VM's). This limits students to running one VM at a time and requires each VM to be set up manually on each individual computer regularly requiring multiple troubleshooting steps.

With the Antsle device, all the VM's can be set up and reused as needed. Over 10 VM's can be run concurrently while allowing for a virtual network that can be "hacked" safely while maintaining the integrity of the CCPS network and the ethics of my students. 

Budget Narrative

The base unit of the Antsle One XD is $1599.
Upgrading to 32GB of RAM allows more virtual machines to run concurrently serving more students. Upgrading to a 500GB hard drive allows more virtual devices to be created which means additional unique experiences available for students. 

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