Windows Server Definitions

This glossary explains the meaning of key words and phrases that information technology (IT) and business professionals use when discussing Microsoft Windows Server and related software products. You can find additional definitions by visiting WhatIs.com or using the search box below.

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  • M

    Windows Admin Center

    Windows Admin Center (WAC), formerly Microsoft Project Honolulu, is a browser-based management tool from Microsoft that allows administrators to manage Windows servers and clusters from a centralized, graphical user interface.

  • Windows containers

    Windows containers provide abstracted, isolated, lightweight and portable operating environments for application development on a single system.

  • N

    NDIS (Network Driver Interface Specification)

    Network Driver Interface Specification (NDIS) is a Microsoft Windows specification for how communication protocol programs (such as TCP/IP) and network device drivers should communicate with each other.

  • NTFS (NT File System)

    NTFS, which stands for 'NT file system' and the 'New Technology File System,' is the file system that the Windows NT operating system (OS) uses for storing and retrieving files on hard disk drives (HDDs) and solid-state drives (SSDs).

  • O

    OAB (offline address book)

    An Offline Address Book is a downloaded copy of a Microsoft Outlook user's address list which allows the user access to email addresses when disconnected from Exchange Server.

  • Open Document Format (ODF)

    The Open Document Format (ODF) is a zip-compressed, Extensible Markup Language (XML)-based, open source file format for saving and exchanging text, spreadsheets, charts, graphics and presentations.

  • organizational unit (OU)

    An organizational unit (OU) can refer to different things depending on the context, such as an organizational group within a company that is intended to accomplish a specific business function.

  • Outlook Anywhere

    Microsoft Outlook Anywhere is a software feature that lets clients using Outlook 2010, Outlook 2007, or Outlook 2003 connect to the Microsoft Exchange server and access their email from outside the corporate domain without having to use a virtual private network (VPN).

  • P

    peer-to-peer network (P2P network)

    A peer-to-peer (P2P) network is a network in which each computer functions as a client or server for other computers in the network.

  • Preboot Execution Environment (PXE)

    The Preboot Execution Environment or PXE (commonly pronounced as pixie) is a client-server environment that enables network computers to boot over the network interface card (NIC), instead of from a CD-ROM or hard disk.

  • What is PowerShell and how to use it: The ultimate tutorial

    PowerShell is an object-oriented automation engine and scripting language with an interactive command-line shell that Microsoft developed to help IT professionals configure systems and automate administrative tasks.

  • R

    read-only

    Read-only is a file attribute which only allows a user to view a file, restricting any writing to the file.

  • remote code execution (RCE)

    Remote code execution (RCE) is when an attacker accesses a target computing device and makes changes remotely, no matter where the device is geographically located.

  • Remoting (PowerShell Remoting)

    PowerShell Remoting is a feature in PowerShell that lets admins run commands on remote systems.

  • Resilient File System (ReFS)

    A Resilient File System (ReFS) is a file system that Microsoft developed for use on a Windows operating system (OS) and is designed to overcome some of the limitations in the New Technology File System (NTFS).

  • restore point

    A system restore point is a backup copy of important Windows operating system (OS) files and settings that can be used to recover the system to an earlier point of time in the event of system failure or instability.

  • Resultant Set of Policy (RSoP)

    Resultant Set of Policy (RSoP) refers to all the group policies applied to a user and computer.

  • RSAT (Remote Server Administration Tools)

    RSAT (Remote Server Administration Tools) refers to a set of tools from Microsoft that enable IT administrators to remotely manage roles and features in Windows Server from a computer that is running Windows 11, Windows 10 or Windows 7 Service Pack 1.

  • S

    computer system

    A computer system consists of hardware components that have been carefully chosen so that they work well together and software components or programs that run in the computer.

  • service desk

    An IT service desk is a communications center that provides a single point of contact (SPOC) between a company, its customers, employees and business partners.

  • SharePoint Online

    Microsoft SharePoint Online is a collection of cloud- and web-based technologies that make it easy for organizations to store, share and manage digital information.

  • SMB 3.0 (Server Message Block 3.0)

    SMB 3 (Server Message Block 3.0) is a protocol that provides a way for a computer's client applications to read and write to files from a server in a computer network.

  • social computing

    Social computing is the collaborative and interactive nature of online behavior. Since the 1990s, computing has increasingly been assumed to be online; simultaneously, online behavior has become increasingly social.

  • 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.

  • System Insights

    System Insights is a feature that debuted in Windows Server 2019 that processes data and uses predictive analytics to warn administrators of potential issues with Windows Server deployments.

  • System Restore (Windows)

    System Restore is a Microsoft Windows utility designed to protect and revert the operating system (OS) to a previous state.

  • T

    TCPView

    TCPView is a Windows network monitoring utility that shows a graphical representation of all currently active TCP and UDP endpoints on a system.

  • transitive trust

    Transitive trust is a two-way relationship automatically created between parent and child domains in a Microsoft Active Directory forest.

  • U

    USB 3.0 (SuperSpeed USB)

    USB 3.0 is a Universal Serial Bus (USB) data transfer standard that is backwards compatible with USB 2.0 and USB 1.1 devices and is very commonly used for computer peripherals.

  • W

    What is wbadmin?

    Wbadmin is an elevated command prompt that allows administrators or backup operators to backup and restore an operating system (OS), volume, file, folder or application.

  • Windows

    Windows is Microsoft's flagship operating system (OS), the de facto standard for home and business computers.

  • Windows CE

    Windows CE is a version of Microsoft's Windows operating system (OS) that is designed for mobile and other space-constrained devices with small footprints.

  • Windows event log

    The Windows event log is a detailed record of system, security and application notifications stored by the Windows operating system that is used by administrators to diagnose system problems and predict future issues.

  • Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI)

    Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) is a set of specifications from Microsoft for consolidating the management of devices and applications in a network from Windows computing systems.

  • Windows NT

    Windows NT was a family of operating systems (OS) developed by Microsoft for personal computers and servers.

  • Windows Process Activation Service (WPAS)

    Windows Process Activation Service (WAS) is a tool for managing worker processes that contain applications that host Windows Communication Foundation (WCF) services. Worker processes handle requests that are sent to a Web Server for specific application pools. Each application pool sets boundaries for the applications it contains.

  • Windows Server 2012 (WS 2012)

    Windows Server 2012, formerly codenamed Windows Server 8, is the latest version of Windows Server.

  • Windows Server Client Access License (CAL)

    A Windows Server Client Access License (CAL) is a license that gives a user or device the right to access services, such as printing or access to a file share, from a server running the Windows Server operating system (OS).

  • Windows Server Failover Clustering (WSFC)

    Windows Server Failover Clustering (WSFC) enables several computers to host a service, and if one has a fault, the remaining computers automatically take over the hosting of the service.

  • Windows Server Update Services (WSUS)

    Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) is a Windows server role that can plan, manage and deploy updates, service packs, patches and hotfixes for Windows servers, client operating systems (OSes) and other Microsoft software.

  • Windows Sharepoint Services (WSS)

    Windows Sharepoint Services (WSS) is a portal-based platform for creating, managing and sharing documents and customized Web services. WSS is available as a free download included with every Windows Server license.

  • Windows Sysinternals

    Windows Sysinternals is a collection of 70 freeware utilities that Microsoft offers IT administrators and developers to help them monitor, manage, diagnose and troubleshoot Windows systems and their applications.

  • WinZip

    WinZip is a software product used to archive, compress and encrypt files in a variety of archive formats for more efficient storage and distribution.