IT operations

Terms related to the processes and services implemented and managed by an organization’s information technology (IT) department. Topics covered include systems management, configuration management, API management and DevOps, as well as real-time performance monitoring and management.

event stream processing (ESP) - Event stream processing (ESP) is a software programming technique designed to process a continuous stream of device data and take action on it in real time.
event-driven architecture (EDA) - An event-driven architecture (EDA) is a framework that orchestrates behavior around the production, detection and consumption of events as well as the responses they evoke.
failover cluster - In computing, a failover cluster refers to a group of independent servers that work together to maintain high availability of applications and services.
fair and reasonable price - A fair and reasonable price is the price point for a good or service that is fair to both parties involved in the transaction.
fan-out - In digital circuitry, fan-out is a measure of the maximum number of digital inputs that the output of a single logic gate can feed without disrupting the circuitry's operations.
Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) - Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) is the body of laws that govern the U.
feedback loop - A feedback loop is the part of a system in which some portion (or all) of the system's output is used as input for future operations.
fiat money (fiat currency) - A fiat money is a type of currency that is declared legal tender by a government but has no intrinsic or fixed value and is not backed by any tangible asset, such as gold or silver.
fiscal year - A fiscal year is the twelve-month period that an organization uses for budgeting, forecasting and reporting.
friendly name - A friendly name is a term used to refer to a device, application file, certificate or other IT asset instead of its technical name.
fully qualified domain name (FQDN) - A fully qualified domain name (FQDN) is the complete address of an internet host or computer.
functional requirements - Functional requirements are the desired operations of a program, or system as defined in software development and systems engineering.
Gartner - Gartner is an IT research firm and consultancy, formerly known as Gartner Group.
Git - Git is an open source distributed version control system that is available for free under the GNU General Public License version 2.
GitOps - GitOps is an operational framework that applies DevOps practices, such as continuous integration/continuous delivery (CI/CD) and version control, to infrastructure automation.
global catalog (Active Directory) - A global catalog is a data storage source containing partial representations of objects found in a multi-domain Active Directory Domain Services forest.
globalization - Globalization is the process by which ideas, knowledge, information, goods and services spread around the world.
golden image - A golden image is a template for a virtual machine, virtual desktop, server or hard disk drive.
Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE) - Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE) is a managed Kubernetes service for containers and container clusters running on Google Cloud infrastructure.
green IT (green information technology) - Green IT (green information technology) is the practice of creating and using environmentally sustainable computing resources.
green networking - Green networking is the practice of selecting energy-efficient networking technologies and products and minimizing resource use whenever possible.
Group Policy Management Console (GPMC) - Group Policy Management Console (GPMC) is a Microsoft Management Console snap-in that provides a graphical user interface that enables Active Directory (AD) administrators to manage Group Policy Objects (GPOs) from one console.
guest operating system (guest OS) - A guest operating system is the operating system installed on either a virtual machine (VM) or partitioned disk.
HashiCorp - HashiCorp is a software company that provides a suite of modular DevOps infrastructure provisioning and management products.
hexadecimal - Hexadecimal is a numbering system with base 16.
holistic (holistic technology) - Holistic technology is an approach to IT management that considers the infrastructure as a whole instead of as a collection of individual systems.
hot swap - A hot swap describes the act of removing components from or plugging them into a computer system while the power remains switched on.
hot/cold aisle - The hot and cold aisles in the data center are part of an energy-efficient layout for server racks and other computing equipment.
hyperautomation - Hyperautomation is a framework and a set of advanced technologies for scaling automation in the enterprise.
hyperconverged appliance (HCI appliance) - A hyperconverged appliance (HCI appliance) is a hardware device that provides multiple data center management technologies within a single box.
HyperGrid - HyperGrid is a cloud computing provider that offers Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS) and application management services.
IBM Roadrunner - Roadrunner was a supercomputer developed by IBM at the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico.
ICT (information and communications technology or technologies) - ICT, or information and communications technology (or technologies), is the infrastructure and components that enable modern computing.
immutable infrastructure - Immutable infrastructure is an approach to managing services and software deployments on IT resources wherein components are replaced rather than changed.
information asset - An information asset is a collection of knowledge or data that is organized, managed and valuable.
infrastructure as code (IaC) - Infrastructure as code, also referred to as IaC, is an IT practice that codifies and manages underlying IT infrastructure as software.
inkjet printer - An inkjet printer is a computer peripheral that produces hard copies of a text document or photo by spraying droplets of ink onto paper.
insourcing - Insourcing is a business practice in which work that would otherwise have been contracted out is performed in house.
intellectual property (IP) - Intellectual property (IP) is a term for any intangible asset that is the product of someone's mind.
intellectual property core (IP core) - An intellectual property core (IP core) is a functional block of logic or data used to make a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) or application-specific integrated circuit for a product.
interrupt request (IRQ) - An interrupt request (IRQ) is a signal sent to a computer's processor to momentarily stop (interrupt) its operations.
inventory turns (inventory turnover) - Inventory turns, also referred to as inventory turnover and inventory turnover ratio, are a popular measurement used in inventory management to assess operational and supply chain efficiency.
invitation to tender (ITT) - An invitation to tender (ITT) is a formal document that is issued by a company or an organization inviting suppliers or contractors to submit a bid for a project or service.
IP PBX (private branch exchange) - An IP PBX is a private branch exchange (telephone switching system within an enterprise) that switches calls between VoIP (voice over Internet Protocol or IP) users on local lines while allowing all users to share a certain number of external phone lines.
ISV (independent software vendor) - An ISV (independent software vendor) makes and sells software products that run on one or more computer hardware or operating system (OS) platforms.
IT asset disposition (ITAD) - IT asset disposition (ITAD) is an industry term and practice built around reusing, recycling, repairing or disposing of unwanted IT equipment in a safe and environmentally responsible way.
IT asset management (ITAM) - IT asset management (ITAM) is a set of business practices that combines financial, inventory and contractual functions to optimize spending and support lifecycle management and strategic decision-making within the IT environment.
IT audit (information technology audit) - An IT audit is the examination and evaluation of an organization's information technology, operations and controls.
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 budget - IT budget is the amount of money spent on an organization's information technology systems and services.
IT controls - An IT control is a procedure or policy that provides a reasonable assurance that the information technology (IT) used by an organization operates as intended, that data is reliable and that the organization is in compliance with applicable laws and regulations.
IT cost structure - IT cost structure refers to the relationship between different types of expenditures within a larger IT budget.
IT incident management - IT incident management is a component of IT service management (ITSM) that aims to rapidly restore services to normal following an incident while minimizing adverse effects on the business.
IT innovation - IT (information technology) innovation in an enterprise is about using technology in new ways, where the result is a more efficient organization and an improved alignment between technology initiatives and business goals.
IT modernization - IT modernization is the process of updating an organization's information technology infrastructure, practices and systems to keep up with emerging technologies.
IT monitoring - IT monitoring is a process that gathers metrics on the operations of an IT environment.
IT operations (IT ops) - The term IT operations (IT ops) describes the many processes and services an IT department manages and maintains within an organization.
IT operations management (ITOM) - IT operations management (ITOM) is a strategic approach to managing an organization's information technology needs.
IT organization (information technology organization) - An IT organization (information technology organization) is the department within a company that's charged with establishing, monitoring and maintaining information technology systems and services.
IT performance management - IT performance management is the supervision of an organization's IT infrastructure to ensure key performance indicators, service levels and budgets comply with the organization's goals.
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 service management (ITSM) - IT service management (ITSM) is a general term that describes a strategic approach to design, deliver, manage and improve the way businesses use IT.
IT strategy (information technology strategy) - IT strategy (information technology strategy) is a comprehensive plan that outlines how technology should be used to meet IT and business goals.
IT4IT - IT4IT is a reference architecture for information technology (IT) management.
ITIL V3 - ITIL V3 is the third version of the Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL), a globally recognized collection of best practices for managing IT and for implementing IT service management (ITSM) practices.
jitter buffer - In voice over IP (VoIP), a jitter buffer is a shared data area where voice packets can be collected, stored, and sent to the voice processor in evenly spaced intervals.
job scheduler - A job scheduler is a computer program that enables an enterprise to schedule and, in some cases, monitor computer 'batch' jobs (units of work).
keylogger (keystroke logger or system monitor) - A keylogger, sometimes called a keystroke logger, is a type of surveillance technology used to monitor and record each keystroke on a specific device, such as a computer or smartphone.
kill switch - A kill switch in an IT context is a mechanism used to shut down or disable a device or program.
Knative - Knative is an open source project based on the Kubernetes platform for building, deploying and managing serverless workloads that can run in the cloud, on premises or in a third-party data center.
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.
Kubernetes node - A Kubernetes node is a logical collection of IT resources that runs workloads for one or more containers in a Kubernetes cluster.
Kubernetes operator - A Kubernetes operator is a method for application packaging and deployment that extends Kubernetes' capabilities to manage more complex, stateful workloads.
Kubernetes pod - Kubernetes pods are the smallest deployable computing units in Kubernetes, an open source system for container scheduling, orchestration and management.
Kubernetes scheduler - The Kubernetes scheduler is a component of the open source Kubernetes container orchestration platform that controls performance, capacity and availability through policies and topology awareness.
laser - A laser is a coherent and focused beam of photons; coherent, in this context, means that it is all one wavelength, unlike ordinary light which showers on us in many wavelengths.
LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) - LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) is a type of flat panel display which uses liquid crystals in its primary form of operation.
ledger database - A ledger database is somewhat modern and commonly refers to a type of database that uses cryptographic techniques, including blockchain, to secure data and enable an immutable ledger.
legacy system (legacy application) - A legacy system is any outdated computing system, hardware or software that is still in use.
letter of intent (LOI) - A letter of intent (LOI) is a written, nonbinding document that outlines an agreement in principle between two or more parties before a legal agreement is finalized.
lift and shift - Lift and shift is a strategy for moving an application or operation from one environment to another without stopping to redesign the app's or operation's workflow.
limitation of liability clause - A limitation of liability clause is the section in a service-level agreement (SLA) that specifies the amounts and types of damages that each party will be obliged to provide to the other in particular circumstances.
Linkerd - Linkerd is an open source network proxy installed as a service mesh for Kubernetes.
Linux Secure Boot - Linux Secure Boot is a Hyper-V feature that Microsoft introduced in Windows 10 and Windows Server 2016.
lithium polymer battery (LiPo) - A lithium polymer battery is a rechargeable battery with a polymer electrolyte instead of a liquid electrolyte.
load balancing - Load balancing is a technique used to distribute network traffic across a pool of servers known as a server farm.
LOB (line of business) - An LOB (line-of-business) application is one of the set of critical computer applications that are vital to running an enterprise, such as accounting, supply chain management, and resource planning applications.
Local Group Policy Editor - Local Group Policy Editor is a Microsoft Management Console (MMC) snap-in that provides a user interface for managing local Group Policy settings on a Windows computer.
localization - Localization is the process of adapting and customizing a product to meet the needs of a specific market, as identified by its language, culture, expectations, local standards and legal requirements.
log file - A log file, or simply a log, in a computing context is the automatically produced and timestamped documentation of events relevant to a particular system.
logical partition (LPAR) - A logical partition (LPAR) is a subset of a computer's processor, memory and I/O resources that behaves much like a physical server.
loose coupling - Loose coupling is an approach to interconnecting the components in a system, network or software application so that those components, also called elements, depend on each other to the least extent practicable.
magnetic stripe reader (magstripe reader) - A magnetic stripe reader, also called a magstripe reader, is a hardware device that reads the information encoded in the magnetic stripe located on the back of a plastic badge.
managed service provider (MSP) - A managed service provider (MSP) is a third-party company that remotely manages a customer's information technology (IT) infrastructure and end-user systems.
mean time to detect (MTTD) - Mean time to detect (MTTD) is a measure of how long a problem exists in an IT deployment before the appropriate parties become aware of it.
mean time to innocence - Mean time to innocence is the average elapsed time between when a system problem is detected and any given team's ability to say the team or part of its system is not the root cause of the problem.
megahertz (MHz) - Megahertz (MHz) is a unit multiplier that represents one million hertz (106 Hz).
memorandum of understanding (MOU) - A memorandum of understanding (MOU) is a formal agreement that outlines plans for a common line of action between two or more parties.
memristor - A memristor is an electrical component that limits or regulates the flow of electrical current in a circuit and remembers the amount of charge that has previously flowed through it.
metal-oxide semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET) - The metal-oxide semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET, pronounced MAWS-feht) is the most common type of field-effect transistor (FET).