CIW Network Vocab

	A	B
1	In-House	To offer services at a company's own facility instead of outsourcing the services to a third-party service provider.
2	Recovery Time Objective (RTO)	The length of time a system can be offline before the business is affected.
3	Unified Communications (UC)	A business trend that seeks to simplify and integrate all forms of communication. Also, a set of technologies that enable voice to be converted into text, and vice versa.
4	Byte	A measurement of memory needed to store one 8-bit character.
5	HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface)	A compact audio/video interface for transmitting uncompressed digital data.
6	Hexadecimal	A base-16 number system that allows large numbers to be displayed by fewer characters than if the number were displayed in the regular base-10 system. In hexadecimal, the number 10 is represented as the letter a. 15 is represented as f, and 16 is represented as 10.
7	Media	Any material that allows data to flow through it or be stored on it; includes hard and floppy disks, wire, cable, and fiber optics.
8	MPEG	A video compression standard.
9	Business Logic	The coding necessary to create relationships in the data stored in a database.
10	Data	Information being stored, usually in a database.
11	Structured Query Language (SQL)	A language used to create and maintain professional, high performance corporate databases.
12	Interface	A communication channel between two components.
13	Adapter	A device that provides connectivity between at least two systems.
14	Cable Modem	A device that allows computers to communicate over a network by modulating and demodulating the cable signal into a stream of data.
15	Coax	Short for coaxial cable. High-capacity two-wire (signal and ground) cable; inner wire is the primary conductor, and the metal sheath serves as the ground.
16	Transceiver	A device that transmits and receives digital or analog signals.
17	Application-Lever Gateway	A firewall component that inspects all packets addressed to a user-level application; uses proxies to control and filter traffic on a connection-by-connection basis. Also provides authentication.
18	Bottleneck	A point in the network communication at which information is processed more slowly. Also, any element (a hard drive, I/O card or network interface card) that slows network connectivity rates.
19	Cluster	A group of sectors used as the basic unit of data storage.
20	Plenum	Space between building floors; usually contains air and heating ducts, as well as communication and electrical wires.
21	Router	A device that routes packets between networks based on network-layer addresses; determines the best path across a network. Also used to connect separate LANs to form a WAN.
22	Switch	A device that connects either individual systems or multiple networks. A Layer 1 switch connects individual systems.
23	Attenuation	The weakening of a transmission signal as it travels farther from its source.
24	Hub	A device used to connect systems so that they can communicate with one another.
25	Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS)	A power supply that uses a battery to maintain power during a power outage.
26	Backbone	The highest level in the computer network hierarchy, to which smaller networks typically connect.
27	Carrier Sense Multiple Access/Collision Detection (CSMA/CD)	The LAN access method used by Ethernet. Checks for network access availability with a signal.
28	Client	An individual computer connected to a network. Also, a system or application (such as a Web browser or user agent) that requests a service from another computer (the server) and is used to access files or documents.
29	Layer 2 Switch	A device that forwards traffic based on MAC addresses.
30	Layer 3 Switch	A device that connects networks.
31	Legacy Model	A model that, because of its age, may not support modern technologies without manipulation or upgrades.
32	Media Access Control (MAC) address	The hardware address of a device connected to a network.
33	COM	Older PC serial ports are referred to as numbered COM (communication) ports. COM ports have a maximum transmission speed of roughly 115 Kbps.
34	LPT	Line printer port. PC parallel ports are referred to as numbered LPTs.
35	Trace	Thin conductive path on a circuit board, usually made of copper.
36	Network Interface Card (NIC)	A circuit board within a computer's central processing unit that serves as the interface enabling the computer to connect to a network.
37	Peripheral Port	A socket on a computer into which a peripheral device is connected.
38	Port	A logical opening in an operating system or protocol stack that allows the transfer of information. Not the same as a TCP or UDP port.
39	PS/2 Connector	The six-pin mini-DIN connectors introduced with the IBM PS/2.
40	Bus	An electronic pathway that conducts signals to connect the functional components of a computer.
41	Kernel	The essential part of an operating system; provides basic services; always resides in memory.
42	Motherboard	The main circuit board in a computer, on which the microprocessor, physical memory and support circuitry are located.
43	Active Partition	A logical partition that contains the files necessary to boot an operating system. This partition is read first at boot time. If no active partition exists, or if the operating system files are corrupted or missing, the computer will report error messages.
44	I/O Address	A memory location that allows resources to be allocated to a system device.
45	Interrupt Request (IRQ)	A hardware line over which devices can send interrupt signals to the processor.
46	Content Management System (CMS)	A server or series of servers that allows you to easily create, store and track all documents and information produced by an organization.
47	Restore Point	A snapshot of a computer's settings at a particular point in time. Also known as a system checkpoint.
48	Virtualization	A software technology that enables you to run multiple virtual operating systems and applications on a single physical computer.
49	Interoperability	The ability of one computer system to communicate with another; often refers to different operating systems working together.
50	Back End	A series of systems that fulfill requests made by a client. Back-end systems can include mainframes and servers containing information databases.
51	Front End	A client that acts as an interface to a collection of servers (for example, mainframes or PC-based servers). A web browser is a typical front-end client.
52	Graphical User Interface (GUI)	A program that provides visual navigation with menus and screen icons, and performs automated functions when users click command buttons.
53	Open Source	A peer-based development process describing organization and products that provide free source code to the development community at large with the goal of developing better products; includes Apache Web server and Linux.
54	Planned Maintenance	Scheduled preventative maintenance tasks that occur on a regular basis.
55	Presentation Responsibilities	The forms in which the data and business logic are presented on your screen. Presentation responsibilities include HTML forms, and application specific interfaces such as web browsers.
56	Preventative Maintenance	A program that helps avoid component failures by maintaining them properly at all times.
57	LAMP	An acronym for Linux, Apache, MySQL and PHP. The four technologies create an open-source Web development platform used by the largest social networking sites and cloud service providers.
58	XMLHttpRequest	An application programming interface (API) that is used to transfer XML and other text data between a Web server and browser.
59	Continuous Data Protection (CDP)	A backup technique that saves every change made to computer data; it allows data restores at any point in time.
60	Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol (PPTP)	A protocol that allows users and corporations to securely extend their networks over the Internet using remote access servers. Used to create VPNs.
61	Request for Comments (RFC)	A document published by the IETF that details information about standardized Internet protocols and those in various development stages.
62	Telnet	The Internet standard protocol for remote terminal connection service.
63	Tunneling Protocol	A protocol that encapsulates data packets into another packet.
64	Hacker	An unauthorized user who penetrates a host or network to access and manipulate data.
65	Identity Theft	Fraud committed in your name by someone else who has illicitly gained access to your personal information.
66	Illicit Server	An application that installs hidden services on systems. Illicit servers consist of "client" code and "server" code that enable the attacker to monitor and control the operation of the computer infected with the server code.
67	Internet Fraud	A scam or other deceptive practice committed via the Internet, usually for the purpose of monetary gain or identity theft.
68	Malware	Abbreviation for malicious software. Malware is software designed to harm computer systems.
69	Online Stalking	To pursue stealthily, harass and/ or prey upon another person using online venues such as chat rooms, e-mail, social networking sites, etc. The stalker may also meet the victim in an online venue and may gain his or her trust before perpetrating harassment activities.
70	Packet Sniffing	The use of protocol analyzer software to obtain sensitive information, such as user names and passwords.
71	Password Sniffing	A method of intercepting the transmission of a password during the authentication process. A sniffer is a program used to intercept passwords.
72	Replay Attack	An attack in which packets are obtained from the network or a network host, then reused.
73	Virus	A malicious program that replicates itself on computer systems, usually through executable software, and causes irreparable system damage.
74	Worm	A self-replicating program or algorithm that consumes system resources.
75	Cyberbullying	Willful harm inflicted on others through the use of information and communication technologies.
76	Account Lockout	A legitimate practice in which a user account is automatically disabled after a certain number of failed authentication attempts.
77	Authentication	The process of verifying the identity of a user who logs on to a system, or the integrity of transmitted data.
78	Dictionary Program	A program specifically written to break into a password-protected system. It has a relatively large list of common password names that it repeatedly uses to gain access.
79	Digital Certificate	A password-protected, encrypted data file containing message encryption, user identification and message text. Used to authenticate a program or a sender's public key, or to initiate SSL sessions. Must be signed by a certificate authority (CA) to be valid.
80	Digital Signature	An electronic stamp added to a message that uniquely identifies its source and verifies its contents at the time of the signature.
81	Encryption	A security technique designed to prevent access to information by converting it into a scrambled (unreadable) form of text.
82	IP Security (IPsec)	An authentication and encryption standard that provides security over the Internet. If functions at Layer 3 of the OSI/RM and can secure all packets transmitted over the network.
83	Kerberos	A proprietary key management scheme between unknown principals who want to communicate securely. Uses symmetric algorithms and acts as a trusted third party that knows the identities of the organizations asking to communicate, but does not reveal them.
84	Non-Repudiation	The security principle of providing proof that a transaction occurred between identified parties. Repudiation occurs when one party in a transaction denies that the transaction took place.
85	Password Generator	An algorithm that receives input from a random or pseudo-random number generator and automatically generates a password.
86	Password Manager	A software application you can use to store and manage multiple passwords.
87	Permission Bit	A file or directory attribute that determines access. Permission bits include read, write and execute permissions.
88	Signature Database	In an anti-virus program, a collection of viruses, worms and illicit applications that are listed as security threats.
89	X.509	The standard used by certificate authorities (CAs) for creating digital certificates.
90	Key	A variable value, such as a numeric code, that uses an algorithm to encrypt and decrypt data. Some applications encrypt and decrypt with the same key, whereas other applications use a pair of keys.
91	Cloud Service Provider	A company that provides applications and services (over the Internet) to individual or enterprise subscribers who would otherwise need to provide those applications and services on their own servers.
92	BitTorrent	A peer-to-peer file-sharing protocol used for distributing large amounts of data.
93	Hadoop	An open-source software platform that allows the storage, processing and analysis of massive amounts of unstructured data; used primarily for cloud applications.
94	Java Virtual Machine (JVM)	The artificial computer that runs Java programs and allows the same code to run on different platforms.
95	Servlet	A small Java application that runs on a server.
96	Print Queue	A mechanism that stores print requests until they are passed to a printing device.
97	Resource Conflict	A situation in which two or more devices share a configuration setting.
98	Direct Memory Access (DMA)	A process that allows devices to bypass controllers and directly access memory.
99	Root Directory	Topmost hard disk directory (folder)
100	Shell	A command-based interface that allows a user to issue commands.