Data center management

Terms related to data centers, including definitions about network operations centers (NOCs) and words and phrases about the storage, management and the transmission of data.

IT automation - IT automation is the use of instructions to create a repeated process that replaces an IT professional's manual work in data centers and cloud deployments.
IT incident management - IT incident management is an area of IT service management (ITSM) wherein IT teams return a service to normal as quickly as possible after a disruption with as little negative impact on the business as possible.
IT operations management (ITOM) - IT operations management (ITOM) is a strategic approach to managing an organization's information technology needs.
IT service delivery - IT service delivery is the way a corporation provides users access to IT services, such as applications, data storage and other business resources.
IT systems management - Systems management is the administration of the information technology (IT) systems in an enterprise network or data center.
ITIL (Information Technology Infrastructure Library) - ITIL (Information Technology Infrastructure Library) is a framework designed to standardize the selection, planning, delivery, maintenance and overall lifecycle of IT services within a business.
JAVA_HOME - JAVA_HOME is an operating system (OS) environment variable which can optionally be set after either the Java Development Kit (JDK) or the Java Runtime Environment (JRE) is installed.
Kubernetes - Kubernetes, also referred to as K8s for the number of letters between K and S, is an open source platform used to manage containerized applications across private, public and hybrid cloud environments.
LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) - Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, more commonly known as LEED, is an environmentally oriented building certification program run by the U.
liquid - A liquid is a type of matter with specific properties that make it less rigid than a solid but more rigid than a gas.
load shedding - Load shedding (loadshedding) is a way to distribute demand for electrical power across multiple power sources.
logical network - A logical network is a software-defined network topology or routing that is often different than the physical network.
LUN masking - LUN masking is an authorization mechanism used in storage area networks (SANs) to make LUNs available to some hosts but unavailable to other hosts.
mechanical refrigeration - Mechanical refrigeration, often referred to simply as refrigeration or air conditioning, is a process by which heat is removed from a location using a human-made heat exchange system.
microgrid - A microgrid is a small-scale power grid that can operate independently or collaboratively with other small power grids.
Microsoft Cloud Witness - Microsoft Cloud Witness is a quorum witness for Windows Server Failover Clustering (WSFC) that uses Microsoft Azure as the arbitration point.
Microsoft SCOM (System Center Operations Manager) - Microsoft SCOM (System Center Operations Manager) is a set of tools for infrastructure monitoring and application performance management.
Microsoft System Center Operations Manager Management Pack (Microsoft SCOM Management Pack) - A System Center Operations Manager (SCOM) Management Pack is a pre-fabricated rule set intended to extend and configure SCOM for specific services or applications.
Microsoft Windows PowerShell DSC (Desired State Configuration) - Desired State Configuration (DSC) is a feature in PowerShell 4.
moves, adds and changes (MAC) - Moves, adds and changes (MAC) refers to a set of tasks that IT teams regularly perform to keep computing equipment up to date and aligned with user and business requirements.
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+1 UPS - N+1, also called parallel redundancy, is a safeguard to ensure that an uninterruptible power supply (UPS)system is always available.
National Electrical Code (NEC) - National Electrical Code (NEC) is a set of regularly updated standards for the safe installation of electric wiring in the United States.
operational data store (ODS) - An operational data store (ODS) is a type of database that's often used as an interim logical area for a data warehouse.
operational technology (OT) - Operational technology (OT) is a category of hardware and software that monitors and controls how physical devices perform.
physical layer - The physical layer is the first and lowest layer of the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) communications model.
pizza box server - The term 'pizza box server' refers to the shape of a computer server enclosed in a rectangular and horizontally- arranged chassis and often installed in a rack with similar servers.
power cycling - Power cycling is the process of turning hardware off and then turning it on again.
power distribution unit (PDU) - A power distribution unit (PDU) is a device for controlling electrical power in a data center.
power factor correction (PFC) - Power factor correction (PFC) is the set of mechanisms built into a power supply circuit to raise the power factor (PF).
power usage effectiveness (PUE) - Power usage effectiveness (PUE) is a metric used to determine the energy efficiency of a data center.
process innovation - Process innovation refers to a change in an existing operation or product that creates significant value for an organization.
programmable logic controller (PLC) - A programmable logic controller (PLC) is a small, modular, solid-state computer with customized instructions for performing a particular task.
raised floor - A raised floor is a data center construction model in which a slightly higher floor is constructed above the building's original concrete slab floor, leaving the open space created between the two for wiring or cooling infrastructure.
relational database - A relational database is a collection of information that organizes data points with defined relationships for easy access.
remote display protocol - A remote display protocol is a special set of data transfer rules that makes it possible for a desktop hosted at one place to display on a client's screen at another location.
remote hands - Remote hands is the general name for a service colocation providers offer that enables customers to delegate IT management and maintenance tasks in a colocation facility to technicians hired by the provider.
RMM software (remote monitoring and management software) - RMM software (remote monitoring and management software) is a type of application that information technology (IT) service providers and departments use to maintain their clients' and business organizations' IT assets, infrastructure and systems.
root cause analysis - Root cause analysis (RCA) is a method for understanding the underlying cause of an observed or experienced incident.
screen scraping - Screen scraping is a data collection method used to gather information shown on a display to use for another purpose.
SDDC (software-defined data center) - An SDDC (software-defined data center) is a data storage facility in which networking, storage, CPU and security are virtualized and delivered as a service.
second-level address translation (SLAT) - Second-level address translation (SLAT) is a hardware virtualization technology that reduces hypervisor overhead.
Seebeck effect - The Seebeck effect is a phenomenon in which a temperature difference between two dissimilar electrical conductors or semiconductors produces a voltage difference between the two substances.
server hardware degradation - Server hardware degradation is the gradual breakdown of the physical parts of a server.
service discovery - Service discovery is the automatic detection of devices and offered services over a network.
single point of failure (SPOF) - A single point of failure (SPOF) is a potential risk posed by a flaw in the design, implementation or configuration of a circuit or system.
SMP (symmetric multiprocessing) - SMP (symmetric multiprocessing) is the processing of programs by multiple processors that share a common operating system and memory.
software asset management (SAM) - Software asset management (SAM) is the administration of processes, policies and procedures that support the procurement, deployment, use, maintenance and disposal of software applications within an organization.
software-defined storage (SDS) - Software-defined storage (SDS) is a computer program that manages data storage resources and functionality and has no dependencies on the underlying physical storage hardware.
solar constant - A solar constant is a measurement of the solar electromagnetic radiation available in a meter squared at Earth's distance from the sun.
solar power - Solar power is a renewable form of energy harvested from the sun for the purpose of producing electricity or thermal energy (heat).
specific gravity - Specific gravity, more formally known as relative density, is a measure of the density of a substance in comparison to the density of water.
standard temperature and pressure (STP) - Standard temperature and pressure (STP) refers to the nominal conditions in the atmosphere at sea level.
surge suppressor (surge protector) - A surge suppressor, sometimes optimistically called a surge protector, is a device inserted in the alternating current (AC) utility line and/or telephone line to prevent damage to electronic equipment from voltage spikes, or transients.
swap file (swap space or page file) - A swap file is a system file that creates temporary storage space on a solid-state drive or hard disk when the system runs low on memory.
syslog - Syslog is an IETF RFC 5424 standard protocol for computer logging and collection that is popular in Unix-like systems including servers, networking equipment and IoT devices.
tabletop exercise (TTX) - A tabletop exercise (TTX) is a disaster preparedness activity that takes participants through the process of dealing with a simulated disaster scenario.
thread - A thread is, fundamentally, a clear, well-defined theme, subject, topic or focus.
turbine - A turbine is a machine that plays a key role in transforming fluid or air energy into usable work or electricity.
two-phase commit (2PC) - Two-phase commit (2PC) is a standardized protocol that ensures atomicity, consistency, isolation and durability (ACID) of a transaction; it is an atomic commitment protocol for distributed systems.
unified computing system (UCS) - A unified computing system (UCS) is a converged data center architecture that integrates computing, networking and storage resources to increase efficiency and enable centralized management.
uninterruptible power supply (UPS) - An uninterruptible power supply (UPS) is a device that allows a computer to keep running for at least a short time when incoming power is interrupted.
utility computing - Utility computing is a service provisioning model where a provider makes computing resources, infrastructure management and technical services available to customers as they need them.
utility storage - Utility storage is a service model in which a provider makes storage capacity available to an individual, organization or business unit on a pay-per-use basis.
vendor lock-in - Vendor lock-in is a situation in which a customer using a product or service cannot easily transition to a competitor's product or service.
virtual desktop - A virtual desktop is a computer operating system that does not run directly on the endpoint hardware from which a user accesses it.
virtual LUN (virtual logical unit number) - A virtual LUN (virtual logical unit number) is a representation of a storage area that is not tied to any physical storage allocation.
virtual SAN appliance (VSA) - A virtual SAN appliance (VSA) is a software bundle that allows a storage manager to turn the unused storage capacity in his network's virtual servers into a storage area network (SAN).
virtualization sprawl (VM sprawl) - Virtualization sprawl is a phenomenon that occurs when the number of virtual machines (VMs) on a network reaches a point where administrators can no longer manage them effectively.
von Neumann bottleneck - The von Neumann bottleneck is a limitation on throughput caused by the standard personal computer architecture.
water cooling - Water cooling, also called liquid cooling, is a method used to lower the temperature of computer processor units (CPUs), and sometimes graphics processor units (GPUs).
watt - A watt (symbolized W) is the standard unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI).
What is a private cloud? - Private cloud is a type of cloud computing that delivers similar advantages to public cloud, including scalability and self-service, but through a proprietary architecture.
What is IT/OT convergence? Everything you need to know - IT/OT convergence is the integration of information technology (IT) systems with operational technology (OT) systems.
What is PaaS? Platform as a service definition and guide - Platform as a service (PaaS) is a cloud computing model where a third-party provider delivers hardware and software tools to users over the internet.
white box server - A white box server is a data center computer that is not manufactured by a well-known brand name vendor.
Windows Server 2012 (WS 2012) - Windows Server 2012, formerly codenamed Windows Server 8, is the latest version of Windows Server.
workload - In computing, a workload is typically any program or application that runs on a computer.
zero client - Zero client, also known as ultrathin client, is a server-based computing model in which the end user's computing device has no local storage.