Glossary

AP

Sun Enterprise Alternate Pathing (AP) 2.0.1 enables Sun Enterprise 10000 server customers who run Solaris 2.5.1 11/97 on their domain(s) to use all of the features of the AP 2.1 release. AP 2.1 runs only on Solaris 2.6 5/98 domains and AP 2.2 runs only on Solaris 7 5/99 domains. AP 2.0.1 also includes integrated fixes for many bugs that were patched in AP 2.1

bpp

Bits per pixel.

category 5

The most common type of wiring used in LANs. It is approved for both voice and data (at up to 100Mhz). Also called cat 5.

CIDR

Common InterDomain Routing (CIDR) is a protocol which allows the assignment of Class C IP addresses in contiguous blocks.

client-server

A common way to describe network services and the user processes (programs) of those services.

composite video

Refers to a type of video signal in which all of the information is transmitted on the same wire.

DDC

This standard defines I²C-based communication protocol with various levels of complexity which operate over the DDC channel for the purpose of controlling the monitor and optional annex devices. Also, see EDID.

DHCP

Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol. DHCP is a means of distributing IP addresses and initial parameters to the appliances.

EDID

The EDID data format as a compact method to specify the capabilities of various types of monitors as well as integrated displays. This standard defines data formats to carry configuration information to allow optimum use of displays.

Ethernet

Physical and link-level communications mechanism defined by the IEEE 802.3 family of standards.

Ethernet address

The unique hardware address assigned to a computer system or interface board when it is manufactured. See MAC address.

Ethernet switch

A unit that redirects packets from input ports to output ports. Can be a component of the Sun Ray interconnect fabric.

failover

The process of transferring processes from a failed server to a functional server automatically.

fan out

Connections that radiate out from a hub or switch.

FTP

File Transfer Protocol. The name of the Internet protocol and the program used to transfer files between hosts.

hot desking

The ability for a user to remove a smart card, insert it in any other enterprise appliance connected to the same Sun Ray server, and have the user's session "follow" the user, thus allowing the user to have instantaneous access to the user's windowing environment and current applications from multiple appliances

hot key

A pre-defined key that causes something to appear on your screen. A hot key is used to bring up the Settings screen on the Sun Ray enterprise appliance.

hot-pluggable

A property of a hardware component that can be inserted into or removed from a system that is powered on. USB devices connected to Sun Ray appliances are hot-pluggable.

Interconnect fabric

All the cabling, switches, or hubs that connect Sun Ray server's network interface cards to the Sun Ray appliances.

internet

A collection of networks interconnected by a set of routers that enable them to function as a single, large virtual network.

Internet

(Note the capital "I") The largest internet in the world consisting of large national backbone nets (such as MILNET, NSFNET, and CREN) and a myriad of regional and local campus networks all over the world. It is a global collection of networks connecting a wide range of computers using a common protocol to communicate and share services.

intranet

Any network that provides similar services within an organization to those provided by the Internet outside it but which is not necessarily connected to the Internet.

IP address

A unique number that identifies each host or other hardware system on a network. An IP address is composed of four integers separated by periods. Each decimal integer must be in the range 0-255 (for example, 129.144.0.0).

IP address lease

The assignment of an IP address to a computer system for a specified length of time, rather than permanently. IP address leasing is managed by the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP). Sun Ray appliance IP addresses are leased.

LAN

Local area network. A group of computer systems in close proximity that can communicate with one another via some connecting hardware and software.

layer 2

The data link layer. In the OSI (Open Standards Interconnection) model, there are a total of seven layers. Layer 2 is concerned with procedures and protocols for operating the communication lines between networks as well as clients and servers. Layer 2 also has the ability to detect and correct message errors.

local host

The CPU or computer on which a software application is running.

local server

From the client's perspective, the most immediate server in the LAN.

login

The process of gaining access to a computer system.

login name

The name by which the computer system knows the user.

MAC address

Media Access Control. A MAC address is a 48-bit number programmed into each local area network interface card (NIC) at the time of manufacture. LAN packets contain destination and source MAC names and can be used by bridges to filter, process, and forward packets. 8:0:20:9e:51:cf is an example of a MAC address. See also Ethernet address.

mobility

For the purposes of the Sun Ray software, the property of a session that allows it to follow a user from one appliance to another within a work group. On the Sun Ray system, mobility requires the use of a smart card or other identifying mechanism.

modules

Authentication modules are used to implement various site-selectable authentication policies.

multiplexing

The process of transmitting multiple channels across one communications circuit.

namespace

A set of names in which a specified ID must be unique.

network

Technically, the hardware connecting various computer systems enabling them to communicate. Informally, the systems so connected.

network address

The IP address used to specify a network.

network interface

An access point to a computer system on a network. Each interface is associated with a physical device. However, a physical device can have multiple network interfaces.

network interface card

NIC. The hardware that links a workstation or server to a network device.

network latency

The time delay associated with moving information through a network. Interactive applications such as voice, video displays and multimedia applications are sensitive to these delays.

network mask

A number used by software to separate the local subnet address from the rest of a given Internet protocol address. An example of a network mask for a class C network is 255.255.255.0.

network protocol stack

A network suite of protocols, organized in a hierarchy of layers called a stack. TCP/IP is an example of a Sun Ray protocol stack.

OSD

On-screen display. The Sun Ray appliance uses small OSD icons to alert the user of potential start-up problems.

patch

A collection of files and directories that replace or update existing files and directories that prevent proper execution of the software on a computer system. The patch software is derived from a specified package format and can only be installed if the package it fixes is already present.

policies

Authentication Manager, using the selected authentication modules, decides what tokens are valid and which users have access.

port

(1) A location for passing data in and out of a computer system. (2) The abstraction used by Internet transport protocols to distinguish among multiple simultaneous connections to a single destination host.

root user

A user name that grants special privileges to the person who logs in with that ID.

server

A computer system that supplies computing services or resources to one or more clients.

service

For the purposes of the Sun Ray software, any application that can directly connect to the Sun Ray appliance. It can include audio, video, X servers, access to other machines, and device control of the appliance.

session

A group of services associated with a single user.

subnet

A working scheme that divides a single logical network into smaller physical networks to simplify routing.

token

In the Sun Ray system, a token must be presented by the user. It is required by the Authentication Manager to consider allowing a user to access the system. It consists of a type and an ID. If the user inserted a smart card, the smart card's type and ID are used as the token. If the user is not using a smart card, the enterprise appliance's built-in type (pseudo) and ID (the unit's Ethernet address) are supplied as the token.

thin client

Thin clients remotely access some resources of a computer server, such as compute power and large memory capacity. The Sun Ray appliances rely on the server for all computing power and storage.

time-out value

The maximum allowed time interval between communications from an appliance to the Authentication Manager.

TCP/IP

Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) is a networking protocol that provides communication across interconnected networks, between computers with diverse hardware architectures and operating systems.

URL

Uniform Resource Locator. A standard for writing a textual reference to an arbitrary piece of data in the World Wide Web (WWW). The syntax of a URL is protocol://host/localinfo where protocol specifies a protocol to use to fetch the object (like HTTP or FTP), host specifies the Internet name of the host on which to find it, and localinfo is a string (often a file name) passed to the protocol handler on the remote host.

user name

The name a computer system uses to identify a particular user. Under UNIX this is a text string of up to eight characters composed of letters (a-z and A-Z), digits (0-9), hyphens (-), and underscores (_) (for example, jpmorgan). The first character must be a letter.

virtual frame buffer

A region of memory on the Sun Ray server that contains the current state of a user's display.

work group

A collection of associated users who exist in near proximity to one another. A set of Sun Ray appliances that are connected to a Sun Ray server provides computing services to a work group.