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.
  • 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.
  • Nutanix - Nutanix is a private and hybrid cloud software provider.
  • 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.
  • plenum - In building construction, a plenum (pronounced PLEH-nuhm, from Latin meaning full) is a separate space provided for air circulation for heating, ventilation and air conditioning (sometimes referred to as HVAC).
  • 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.
  • raceway - A raceway, sometimes referred to as a raceway system, is an enclosed conduit that forms a physical pathway for electrical wiring.
  • 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.
  • RDBMS (relational database management system) - A relational database management system (RDBMS) is a collection of programs and capabilities that enable IT teams and others to create, update, administer and otherwise interact with a relational database.
  • relational database - A relational database is a type of database that organizes data points with defined relationships for easy access.
  • 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.
  • scalability - In information technology, scalability (frequently spelled 'scaleability') has two uses: for a computer application to function with change in size and volume, and to take advantage of a rescale.
  • screen scraping - Screen scraping is a data collection method used to gather information shown on a display to use for another purpose.
  • 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 pane of glass - A single pane of glass is a management console that presents data from multiple sources in a unified display.
  • 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 software program that manages data storage resources and functionality and has no dependencies on the underlying physical storage hardware.
  • 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.
  • supervisor call (SVC) - In computers, especially IBM mainframes, a supervisor call (SVC) instruction is a processor instruction that directs the processor to pass control of the computer to the operating system's supervisor program.
  • 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.
  • technological convergence - Technological convergence is a term that describes bringing previously unrelated technologies together, often in a single device.
  • 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.
  • twisted pair - Twisted pair is the ordinary copper wire that connects home and business computers to a telephone company.
  • 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.
  • 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.
  • Vblock (VCE Vblock) - Vblock (VCE Vblock) is a family of converged infrastructure (CI) systems from Dell EMC that integrate advanced compute, network and storage technologies from three industry leaders: VMware, Cisco and Dell EMC.
  • 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.
  • VMware backup - VMware backup is the copying of data on a virtual machine (VM) in a VMware environment to prevent data loss.
  • 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 are availability zones? - Availability zones (AZs) are isolated or separated data centers located within specific regions in which public cloud services originate and operate.
  • What are metered services and how do they work? - Metered services (also called pay-per-use and consumption-based pricing) are any type of payment structure in which a customer has access to potentially unlimited resources but only pays for what they use.
  • What is a data center administrator (DCA)? - A data center administrator (DCA) is an experienced IT professional who is responsible for overseeing data center operations.
  • What is a data fabric? - A data fabric is an architecture and software offering a unified collection of data assets, databases and database architectures within an enterprise.
  • What is a data lake? - A data lake is a storage repository that holds a vast amount of raw data in its native format until it is needed for analytics applications.
  • What is a green data center? - A green data center is a repository for the storage, processing, management and dissemination of data in which the physical space and the mechanical and electrical subsystems are designed to maximize energy efficiency and minimize the environmental impact.
  • What is a headless server? - A headless server is a computer without a local interface to interact with.
  • What is a northbound interface/southbound interface? - A northbound interface (NBI) is an application programming interface (API) or protocol that allows a lower-level network component to communicate with a higher-level or more central component; conversely, a southbound interface (SBI) allows a higher-level component to send commands to lower-level network components.
  • What is a private cloud? Definition and examples - Private cloud is a type of cloud computing that delivers advantages similar to public cloud, including scalability and self-service, but through a proprietary architecture.
  • What is a software-defined data center (SDDC)? - A software-defined data center (SDDC) is a server management concept in which all infrastructure elements -- networking, storage and compute -- are virtualized and delivered as a service.
  • What is an automatic transfer switch? - An automatic transfer switch (ATS) is a device that automatically transfers a power supply from its primary source to a backup source when it senses a failure or outage in the primary source.
  • What is an ESG score? - An ESG score is a way to assign a quantitative metric, such as a numerical score or letter rating, to the environmental, social and governance (ESG) efforts or an organization.
  • What is an 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.
  • What is AWS Lambda? - AWS Lambda is an event-driven cloud computing service from Amazon Web Services (AWS) that allows developers to run code without having to provision, administer, or manage compute resources.
  • What is big data analytics? - Big data analytics is the process of examining big data to uncover information -- such as hidden patterns, correlations, market trends and customer preferences -- that can help organizations make informed business decisions.
  • What is cloud computing? Types, examples and benefits - Cloud computing is a general term for the on-demand delivery of hosted computing and IT services over the internet with pay-as-you-go pricing.
  • What is continuous modeling (data center continuous modeling)? - Continuous modeling is an approach to data center management that supplements infrastructure management (DCIM) tools with engineering simulation tools.
  • What is data center infrastructure management (DCIM)? - Data center infrastructure management (DCIM) is the convergence of IT infrastructure, operations and building facilities functions within an organization.
  • What is data management as a service (DMaaS)? - Data management as a service (DMaaS) is a type of cloud service that provides enterprises with centralized storage for disparate data sources.
  • What is data profiling? - Data profiling refers to the process of examining, analyzing, reviewing and summarizing data sets to gain insight into the quality of data.
  • What is data transformation? Definition, types and benefits - Data transformation is the process of converting data from one format -- such as a database file, Extensible Markup Language document or Excel spreadsheet -- into another.
  • What is distributed computing? - Distributed computing is a model in which components of a software system are shared among multiple computers or nodes.
  • What is green computing? - Green computing, also known as sustainable computing, is the use of computers and other computing devices and equipment in energy-efficient and eco-friendly ways.
  • What is hardware as a service (HaaS)? - Hardware as a service (HaaS) is a procurement model that's similar to leasing or licensing.
  • What is high availability (HA)? Definition and guide - High availability (HA) is the ability of a system to operate continuously for a designated period of time even if components within the system fail.
  • What is hot spot/cold spot? - A hot spot/cold spot is an undesirable, tightly focused local temperature variation that often occurs when data center equipment is improperly cooled.
  • What is infrastructure (IT infrastructure)? - Infrastructure is the foundation or framework that supports a system or organization.
  • What is ISO 50001 (International Organization for Standardization 50001)? - ISO 50001 (International Organization for Standardization 50001) is a voluntary standard for designing, implementing and maintaining an energy management system.
  • What is IT automation? A complete guide for IT teams - IT automation is the use of instructions to create a clear, consistent and repeatable process that replaces an IT professional's manual work in data centers and cloud deployments.
  • 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 ITIL? A guide to the IT 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.
  • What is National Electrical Code (NEC)? - National Electrical Code (NEC) is a set of regularly updated standards for the safe installation of electric wiring in the Americas.
  • 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.
  • What is replatforming and how does it work? - Replatforming is the process of migrating an application or system from one platform to another.
  • What is root cause analysis? - Root cause analysis (RCA) is a method for understanding the underlying cause of an observed or experienced incident.
  • What is SCADA (supervisory control and data acquisition)? - SCADA (supervisory control and data acquisition) is a category of industrial control systems (ICS) that remotely gathers data in real time from industrial processes in order to supervise and control equipment and conditions.
  • What is system software? - System software is a type of computer program designed to run a computer's hardware and application programs.
  • What is 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.
  • What is VSAM (Virtual Storage Access Method)? - Virtual Storage Access Method (VSAM) is an access method for IBM's mainframe operating system, MVS, now called z/OS.
  • white box server - A white box server is a data center computer that is not manufactured by a well-known name-brand 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.