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Glossary of Terms

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Active Directory - An advanced, hierarchical directory service. It is LDAP compliant and built on the Internet's Domain Naming System (DNS). Workgroups are given domain names, just like Web sites, and any LDAP-compliant client (Windows, Macintosh, Unix, etc.) can gain access to it.

Affiliate Account - Any person who must perform official university business, but is not entered in the HR database. These people include vendors, consultants, visiting faculty, and seminar attendees, among others.

Archive - To copy or move data onto a secondary disk or tape for backup or data retention purposes.

Attachment - A file that rides along with an e-mail message. The attached file can be of any type.

Author - Can create, read items and files. Can modify and delete own items and files.

Client- An application that runs on a personal computer or workstation and enables you to send, receive and organize e-mail . It's called a client because e-mail systems are based on a client-server architecture . Mail is sent from many clients to a central server, which re-routes the mail to its intended destination. (e.g. Outlook, Pegasus, Netscape, Apple Mail etc.)

CMS - (Conversational Monitor System) Software that provides interactive communications for IBM's VM operating system. It allows a user or programmer to launch an application from a terminal and interactively work with it.

Directory - A simulated file folder on disk. Programs and data for each application are typically kept in a separate directory (spreadsheets, word processing, etc.). Directories create the illusion of compartments, but are actually indexes to the files which may be scattered all over the disk. Unix and DOS use the term directory, while the Mac and Windows use the term "folder".

Display Name - This is the name that can be found in the Exchange address list, as well as the 'from:" field in your inbox

Distribution List - A distribution list is a collection of contacts  (contact: Person, inside or outside of your organization, about whom you can save several types of information, such as street and e-mail addresses, telephone and fax numbers, and Web page URLs.) . It provides an easy way to send messages to a group of people. For example, if you frequently send messages to the marketing team, you can create a distribution list called Marketing Team that contains the names of all members of the marketing team. A message sent to this distribution list goes to all recipients listed in the distribution list. Recipients see their own names and the names of all other recipients on the To line of the message instead of seeing the name of the distribution list. You can use distribution lists in messages, task requests, meeting requests, and other distribution lists.

DNS - (Domain Name System) The name resolution system that lets users locate computers on a Unix network or the Internet (TCP/IP network) by domain name. The DNS server maintains a database of domain names (host names) and their corresponding IP addresses.

Domain - A sub network made up of a group of clients and servers under the control of one security database.

Editor - (Outlook) - Can create, read, modify and delete all items and files.

E-Mail forwarding - When you forward your E-Mail from the Exchange server to another E-Mail account, the Exchange server simply passes the E-Mail on to the E-Mail account you chose. It does not put a copy of the E-Mail in your Inbox or anywhere else in your Exchange account. When you forward your E-Mail from Exchange, you lose many of the benefits of Exchange. The E-Mail cannot be backed up, it cannot be tracked, and if you accidentally delete the E-Mail it cannot be retrieved. For further risks of forwarding your e-mail please click here.

Exchange Server - Exchange Server is an Internet-compliant messaging system that runs under Windows and can Exchange email clients such as Outlook, Apple Mail, entourage, etc.

Exchange Account - A mailbox that is enabled on the Exchange server.

FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions.

Filter - Tool on most email clients that can be used to filter out mail messages that have a specific term or set of terms in which the user mail determine the purpose and or help filter mail.

Functional Account / Shared Mailbox - An email account that is accessed by more than one user.

Global Address List - The Exchange Global Address List (GAL) is a listing of all users on Exchange at the University of Connecticut. Within the GAL you can find a listing of users in each department.

IMAP - (Internet Message Access Protocol) A standard interface between an e-mail client program and the mail server. IMAP4 provides a message store that holds incoming e-mail until users log on and download it. Whereas POP3 downloads the entire message with attachments when mail is checked, IMAP4 can be configured to download only the headers, which display to/from addresses and subject. The user can then selectively download messages and attachments.

ISDN - (Integrated Services Digital Network) An international standard for switched, digital dial-up telephone service for voice and data.

ISP  - (Internet Service Provider) An organization that provides access to the Internet. Small ISPs provide service via modem and ISDN while the larger ones also offer private line hookups (T1, fractional T1, etc.). Customers are generally billed a fixed rate per month

LDAP - Lightweight Directory Access Protocol is an Internet protocol that email programs and Macintosh computers use to look up contact information from a server, such as global Address List (GAL).

Mac  - Short for Macintosh computer.

Mail Rules - Within the mail client you are able to define rules in order to sort, filter, or redirect mail when received.

MAPI - (Mail API) A programming interface from Microsoft that enables a client application to send to and receive mail from Exchange Server or a Microsoft Mail (MS Mail) messaging system. Microsoft applications such as Outlook, the Exchange client and Microsoft Schedule use MAPI.

MIME - (Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions) The most common method for transmitting non-text files via Internet e-mail.

NetId - Network Identifier at UConn. The management of a user's identity in an organization and what resources that person has access to.

Network - A system that transmits any combination of voice, video and/or data between users. The network includes the network operating system in the client and server machines, the cables connecting them and all supporting hardware in between such as bridges, routers and switches. In wireless systems, antennas and towers are also part of the network

OS - (Operating System)The master control program that runs the computer.

OWA - (Outlook Web Access) This is an Outlook interface that can access your Exchange mail from anywhere in the world.

Owner (Outlook) - Can create, read, modify, delete all items and files. Can create sub folders, change permissions.

Palm - A personal digital assistant (PDA) from PalmOne, Inc., Milpitas, CA.

Password - A secret word or code used to serve as a security measure against unauthorized access to data. However, the computer can only verify the legitimacy of the password, not the legitimacy of the user.

PC - (Personal Computer) Any laptop or desktop computer such as a Macintosh or Windows computer.

PDA - (Personal Digital Assistant) A handheld computer that serves as an organizer for personal information. (e.g. Palm Pilot, Axim, Pocket PC, Blackberry etc.) \

Personal Folder - Personal Folder files are normally saved on your computer and are used in Outlook to archive items from Exchange. You may hear Personal Folder files referred to as .pst files, as that is the file name extension used on this type of file.

Personal Name Address - An email address which forwards to a faculty or staff email account. Personal Name aliases assume the format firstname.lastname@uconn.edu.

POP - (Post Office Protocol 3) A standard interface between an e-mail client program and the mail server. POP3 provides a message store that holds incoming e-mail until users log on and download it.

Prohibit Receive - Once this limit is reached, Exchange will reject any new mail that arrives.

Prohibit Send - Once users reach this limit, users are prevented from sending new mail.

Public Folders - Public folder is a feature of Microsoft Exchange Server that provides an effective way to collect, organize, and share information with others in an organization. Typically, public folders are used by project teams or user groups to share information on a common area of interest.

Published E-mail Address - The e-mail address that is made public (business cards, the phonebook server, reply-to address)

Quota (e-mail size quota) - A size limit on users' Exchange accounts. Once exceeded, limits are imposed on the Exchange account, such as a 'Warning', 'Prohibit send', and 'Prohibit receive'.
Typical users on UConn's Exchange server have a quota set to 50 MB

Redirect - Diverting data from their normal destination to another.

Reviewer (Outlook) - Can read items and files.

Shared Mailbox - A single mailbox that can be accessed by two or more users. Used for departmental e-mail or students.

Spam - E-mail that is not requested. Spam is used to advertise products or to broadcast some political or social commentary.

Strong Password - A password that is hard to detect both by humans and by the computer. Two things make a password stronger: (1) a larger number of characters, and (2) mixing numeric digits, upper and lower case letters and special characters ($, #, etc.).

T1 - A 1.544 Mbps point-to-point dedicated, digital circuit provided by the telephone companies.

Tcp/Ip - Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol. A set of protocols used by the Internet and Networks to connect various device's such as Pc's, Mac's, and Printer's.

URL - (Uniform Resource Locator) The address that defines the route to a file on a Web server (HTTP server). URLs are typed into the browser to access Web pages and files, and URLs are embedded within the pages themselves as hypertext links.

Username -  The name you use to identify yourself when logging onto a computer system or online service.

Virus - Software used to infect a computer. After the virus code is written, it is buried within an existing program. Once that program is executed, the virus code is activated and attaches copies of itself to other programs in the system. Infected programs copy the virus to other programs. The effect of the virus may be a simple prank that pops up a message on screen out of the blue, or it may destroy programs and data right away or on a certain date. It can lay dormant and do its damage once a year. For example, the Michelangelo virus contaminates the machine on Michelangelo's birthday.

VM - A self-contained operating environment that behaves as if it is a separate computer . For example, Java applets run in a Java virtual machine (VM) that has no access to the host operating system . This design has two advantages:

The second advantage, however, has a downside. Because programs running in a VM are separate from the operating system, they cannot take advantage of special operating system features.

Warning (e-mail size limit)- The mailbox size at which users start to receive warning messages. Typical users on UConn's Exchange server have a quota set to 50 MB.

 

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Updated: 9/18/2006