Management & Analytics Definitions

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  • B

    business impact analysis (BIA)

    A business impact analysis (BIA) is a systematic process to determine and evaluate the potential effects of an interruption to critical business operations as a result of a disaster, accident or emergency.

  • C

    cache

    A cache -- pronounced CASH -- is hardware or software that is used to store something, usually data, temporarily in a computing environment.

  • capacity management

    Capacity management is the broad term describing a variety of IT monitoring, administration and planning actions that ensure that a computing infrastructure has adequate resources to handle current data processing requirements, as well as the capacity to accommodate future loads.

  • Cloud Data Management Interface (CDMI)

    The Cloud Data Management Interface (CDMI) is an international standard that defines a functional interface that applications use to create, retrieve, update and delete data elements from cloud storage.

  • cold storage

    Cold storage is a computer system or mode of operation designed for the retention of inactive data.

  • content-addressed storage (CAS)

    Content-addressed storage (CAS) -- also called content-addressable storage -- is a method for storing fixed content as objects and providing fast access to that content.

  • What is continuous data protection (CDP)?

    Continuous data protection (CDP), also known as 'continuous backup,' is a backup and recovery storage system in which all the data in an enterprise is backed up whenever any change is made.

  • D

    data at rest

    Data at rest is a term that is sometimes used to refer to all data in computer storage while excluding data that is traversing a network or temporarily residing in computer memory to be read or updated.

  • data availability

    Data availability is a term used by computer storage manufacturers and storage service providers to describe how data should be available at a required level of performance in situations ranging from normal through disastrous.

  • data migration

    Data migration is the process of transferring data between data storage systems, data formats or computer systems.

  • disk mirroring (RAID 1)

    Disk mirroring, also known as RAID 1, is the replication of data across two or more disks.

  • What is direct-attached storage (DAS) and how does it work?

    Direct-attached storage (DAS) is a type of data storage that is attached directly to a computer without going through a network.

  • E

    enterprise storage

    Enterprise storage is a centralized repository for business information that provides common data management, protection and sharing functions through connections to computer systems.

  • exabyte (EB)

    An exabyte (EB) is a large unit of computer data storage, two to the sixtieth power bytes.

  • exbibyte (EiB)

    An exbibyte (EiB) is a unit that measures data capacity.

  • F

    failover

    Failover is a backup operational mode in which the functions of a system component are assumed by a secondary component when the primary becomes unavailable.

  • Fibre Channel switch (FC switch)

    A Fibre Channel (FC) switch is a networking device that's compatible with the FC protocol and designed for use in a dedicated storage area network (SAN).

  • G

    gibibyte (GiB)

    A gibibyte (GiB) is a unit of measure of capacity in computing.

  • H

    Hadoop as a service (HaaS)

    Hadoop as a service (HaaS), also known as Hadoop in the cloud, is a big data analytics framework that stores and analyzes data in the cloud using Hadoop.

  • hierarchical storage management (HSM)

    Hierarchical storage management (HSM) is policy-based management of data files that uses storage media economically and without the user being aware of when files are retrieved from storage.

  • How many bytes for...

    Data is often expressed in bytes, which are composed of eight binary digits.

  • I

    information lifecycle management (ILM)

    Information lifecycle management (ILM) is a comprehensive approach to managing an organization's data and associated metadata, starting with its creation and acquisition through when it becomes obsolete and is deleted.

  • L

    litigation hold (legal hold, preservation order or hold order)

    A litigation hold -- also known as legal hold, preservation order or hold order -- is an internal process that an organization undergoes to preserve all data that might relate to a legal action involving the organization.

  • M

    mebibyte (MiB)

    A mebibyte (MiB) is a unit of measurement used in computer data storage.

  • megabytes per second (MBps)

    Megabytes per second (MBps) is a unit of measurement for data transfer speed to and from a computer storage device.

  • mirror site

    A mirror site is a website or set of files on a computer server that has been copied to another computer server so that the site or files are available from more than one place.

  • MTTR (mean time to repair)

    MTTR (mean time to repair) is the average time required to fix a failed component or device and return it to production status.

  • N

    Network Data Management Protocol (NDMP)

    Network Data Management Protocol (NDMP) is an open protocol to control data backup and recovery communications between primary and secondary storage in a heterogeneous network environment.

  • non-volatile memory (NVM)

    Non-volatile memory (NVM) is a type of computer storage medium that retains data even in the absence of a power supply.

  • What is an NVDIMM (non-volatile dual in-line memory module)?

    An NVDIMM (non-volatile dual in-line memory module) is hybrid computer memory that retains data during a service outage.

  • P

    pebibyte (PiB)

    A pebibyte (PiB) is a unit of measure that describes data capacity.

  • persistent storage

    Persistent storage is any data storage device that retains data after power to that device is shut off.

  • petabyte

    A petabyte is a measure of memory or data storage capacity that is equal to 2 to the 50th power of bytes.

  • R

    RAID 10 (RAID 1+0)

    RAID 10, also known as RAID 1+0, is a RAID configuration that combines disk mirroring and disk striping to protect data.

  • RAM (random access memory)

    Random access memory (RAM) is the hardware in a computing device that provides temporary storage for the operating system (OS), software programs and any other data in current use so they're quickly available to the device's processor.

  • S

    SSD caching

    SSD caching, also known as 'flash caching' or 'flash memory caching,' is the temporary storage of frequently-accessed data on NAND flash memory chips in a solid-state drive (SSD) to improve the drive's input/output (I/O) performance and allow data requests to be met with improved speed.

  • SSD TRIM

    SSD TRIM is a command for the Advanced Technology Attachment (ATA) interface that enables an operating system (OS) to inform a NAND flash solid-state drive (SSD) which data blocks it can erase because they are no longer in use.

  • storage (computer storage)

    Data storage is the collective methods and technologies that capture and retain digital information on electromagnetic, optical or silicon-based storage media.

  • storage as a service (STaaS)

    Storage as a service (STaaS) is a managed service in which the provider supplies the customer with access to a data storage platform.

  • T

    tebibyte (TiB)

    A tebibyte (TiB) is a unit of measure used to describe computing capacity.

  • Terabyte (TB)

    A terabyte (TB) is a unit of digital data that is equal to about 1 trillion bytes.

  • W

    WORM (write once, read many)

    In computer media, write once, read many, or WORM, is a data storage technology that allows data to be written to a storage medium a single time and prevents the data from being erased or modified.

  • Y

    yobibyte (YiB)

    A yobibyte (YiB) is a unit of measure used to describe data capacity as part of the binary system of measuring computing and storage capacity.

  • yottabyte (YB)

    A yottabyte (YB) is a measure of theoretical storage capacity and data volumes equal to 2 to the 80th power bytes, or approximately a million trillion megabytes (MB).

  • Z

    zebibyte (ZiB)

    A zebibyte (ZiB) is a unit used to measure computing and storage capacity.

  • zettabyte

    A zettabyte is a unit of measurement used by technology professionals and the general public to describe a computer or other device's storage capacity.