| Word |
Description |
| Backup |
A backup is a complete digital copy of a file, data, database, system, or server. This digital file contains all of the information which is in the original. Backup usually refers to the hardware (disk or tape) on which the copy is located and the actual software file that contains the information from the original source. Sometimes the digital file alone is referred to as the backup, but never the hardware alone. |
| Backup Data |
Backup data is the business-critical information you would like to have in the event of a disaster. This is the data that should be protected by a backup program and/or disaster recovery software.
To determine which data should be backed up, decide which systems, programs and data you will need to keep your business going following a server failure, power outage or other type of disaster. You may find that you need to have access to *all* systems, programs and data. If this is the case, you’ll need to find a solution which will give you access to your business-critical systems and information in the shortest time possible. |
| Backup Encryption |
Backup encryption is an important step in protecting your data. When completing a backup of all of the servers, systems and data in your enterprise, you want to ensure that an outside party cannot access the information should it inadvertently fall into the wrong hands.
Backup encryption involves translating the data on the backup into an unbreakable software code which ensures that sensitive information cannot be interpreted by an outside party. The only way to interpret the data is to have the proper software to decode it and the proper access (through password protection).
Backup encryption has become extremely critical as more and more data backup archives are compromised. There have been numerous stories in the past several years detailing situations when critical information has passed into the wrong hands. Backup encryption provides an additional level of protection in the event of theft or other unintentional data loss. |
| Backup Image |
Is a backup type were all of the information that has been backed up is contained in a single file. This file is usually restored in its entirety, or in ShadowProtect case can also be mounted to restore individual files and folders. |
| Backup Software |
Back up Software is a computer program used to perform a complete back up of a file, data, database, system or server. The back up software enables you to make an exact duplicate of everything contained on the original source. This software must also be used to perform a recovery of the data or system in the event of a disaster. |
| Bare Metal Restore |
Is a technique in the field of data recovery and restoration where the backed up data is available in a form which allows one to restore a computer system from "bare metal", i.e. without any requirements as to previously installed software or operating system. All ShadowProtect Backup Images can be restored 'Bare Metal' without needing specific settings before or during the backup procedure. |
| Base Image |
Full Backup or Base Image is a Backup Image created with ShadowProtect that contains all of the data that existed on a given volume at the time the backup occurred. Incrementals and Differential backups are based on the data contained in the Full/Base Backup Image. |
| BCD |
Boot Configuration Data (BCD) is a firmware-independent database for boot-time configuration data. It replaces the boot.ini that was used by NTLDR, and is used by Microsoft's new Windows Boot Manager. |
| BIOS |
The BIOS is boot firmware, designed to be the first code run by a PC when powered on. The initial function of the BIOS is to identify, test, and initialize system devices such as the video display card, hard disk, floppy disk and other hardware. The BIOS prepares the machine for a known state, so that software stored on compatible media can be loaded, executed, and given control of the PC. This process is known as booting, or booting up, which is short for bootstrapping. |
| Bit |
In computing and telecommunications a bit is a basic unit of information storage and communication; it is the maximum amount of information that can be stored by a device or other physical system that can normally exist in only two distinct states. These states are often interpreted (especially in the storage of numerical data) as the binary digits 0 and 1. They may be interpreted also as logical values, either "true" or "false"; or two settings of a flag or switch, either "on" or "off". |
| Block |
In computing (specifically data transmission and data storage), a block is a sequence of bytes or bits, having a nominal length (a block size). Data thus structured are said to be blocked. The process of putting data into blocks is called blocking. Blocking is used to facilitate the handling of the data-stream by the computer program receiving the data. Blocked data are normally read a whole block at a time. Blocking is almost universally employed when storing data to 9-track magnetic tape, to rotating media such as floppy disks, hard disks, optical discs and to flash memory.
Most file systems are based on a block device, which is a level of abstraction for the hardware responsible for storing and retrieving specified blocks of data, though the block size in file systems may be a multiple of the physical block size. In classical file systems, a single block may only contain a part of a single file. This leads to space inefficiency due to internal fragmentation, since file lengths are often not multiples of block size, and thus the last block of files will remain partially empty. This will create slack space, which averages half a block per file. Some newer file systems attempt to solve this through techniques called block suballocation and tail merging. |
| Blue Screen |
The Blue Screen of Death (also known as a stop error, BSoD, bluescreen, or Blue Screen of Doom) is a colloquialism used for the error screen displayed by some operating systems, most notably Microsoft Windows, after encountering a critical system error which can cause the system to shut down to prevent damage. |
| BMR |
Is a technique in the field of data recovery and restoration where the backed up data is available in a form which allows one to restore a computer system from "bare metal", i.e. without any requirements as to previously installed software or operating system. All ShadowProtect Backup Images can be restored 'Bare Metal' without needing specific settings before or during the backup procedure. |
| Boot.INI |
contains configuration options for a boot menu. |
| BSOD |
The Blue Screen of Death (also known as a stop error, BSoD, bluescreen, or Blue Screen of Doom) is a colloquialism used for the error screen displayed by some operating systems, most notably Microsoft Windows, after encountering a critical system error which can cause the system to shut down to prevent damage. |
| Checksum |
A Checksum or hash sum is a fixed-size datum computed from an arbitrary block of digital data for the purpose of detecting accidental errors that may have been introduced during its transmission or storage. The integrity of the data can be checked at any later time by recomputing the checksum and comparing it with the stored one. If the checksums do not match, the data was certainly altered (either intentionally or unintentionally). |
| CHKDSK |
CHKDSK (short for Checkdisk) is a command on computers running DOS, OS/2 and Microsoft Windows operating systems that displays the file system integrity status of hard disks and floppy disk and can fix logical file system errors. It is similar to the fsck command in Unix.
On computers running NT-based versions of Windows, CHKDSK can also check the disk surface for physical errors or bad sectors, a task previously done by SCANDISK. This version of CHKDSK can also handle some physical errors and recover data that is still readable. |
| Clone |
The result of a cloning process, a clone is an exact copy of given volume or partition. ShadowProtect first creates a Backup Image that clones can then be created from. |
| Cloning |
is the process of copying the contents of one computer hard disk to another disk or to an "image" file (Sometimes referred to as Ghost Imaging). With ShadowProtect, the contents of the first disk are written to an image file as an intermediate step, and the second disk is loaded with the contents of the image. |
| Compression |
data compression or source coding is the process of encoding information using fewer bits (or other information-bearing units) than an unencoded representation would use through use of specific encoding schemes.
Compression is useful because it helps reduce the consumption of expensive resources, such as hard disk space or transmission bandwidth. |
| Continuous Data Protection |
Continuous data protection (CDP), also called continuous backup, refers to a backup system which automatically saves data every time it is changed. Basically, every version of all data is saved. This allows an IT administrator or an end user to restore data back to any specific point in time in its history.
CDP is different from a traditional backup tool, which can only restore to the point when the backup was taken. Since CDP saves every change, every transaction that ever takes place in an enterprise, you can restore to a clean version of a document before a virus infected the file, no matter how long it takes to discover the corruption. |
| Continuous Incrementals |
After an initial full backup, only incremental backups are created. These incrementals are then managed by StorageCraft ImageManager for consolidation and verification. |
| Device Driver |
A Device Driver or Software Driver is a computer program allowing higher-level computer programs to interact with a hardware device.
A driver typically communicates with the device through the computer bus or communications subsystem to which the hardware is connected. When a calling program invokes a routine in the driver, the driver issues commands to the device. Once the device sends data back to the driver, the driver may invoke routines in the original calling program. Drivers are hardware-dependent and operating-system-specific. They usually provide the interrupt handling required for any necessary asynchronous time-dependent hardware interface. |
| Differential |
A cumulative backup of all changes made since the last full or normal backup, i.e., the differences since the last full backup. The advantage to this is the quicker recovery time, requiring only a full backup and the latest differential backup to restore the system. The disadvantage is that for each day elapsed since the last full backup, more data needs to be backed up, especially if a significant proportion of the data has been changed. |
| Disk |
Is any storage device that can be used on a computer such as a Floppy, CD-ROM, Hard Drive, Thumb Drive, etc. When 'Disk' is used by itself it is usually referring to removable storage. |
| Disk Signature |
This is a 32-bit value that is intended to uniquely identify the disk medium (as opposed to the disk unit — the two not necessarily being the same for removable hard disks).
The disk signature was introduced by Windows NT version 3.5, but is now used by several operating systems, including the Linux kernel version 2.6 and later. Linux uses the NT disk signature at boot time to determine the location of the boot volume. |
| Domain Controller |
Domain Controller (DC) is a server that responds to security authentication requests (logging in, checking permissions, etc.) within the Windows Server domain. |
| Driver |
A Device Driver or Software Driver is a computer program allowing higher-level computer programs to interact with a hardware device.
A driver typically communicates with the device through the computer bus or communications subsystem to which the hardware is connected. When a calling program invokes a routine in the driver, the driver issues commands to the device. Once the device sends data back to the driver, the driver may invoke routines in the original calling program. Drivers are hardware-dependent and operating-system-specific. They usually provide the interrupt handling required for any necessary asynchronous time-dependent hardware interface. |
| Encryption |
Is the process of transforming information (referred to as plaintext) using an algorithm (called cipher) to make it unreadable to anyone except those possessing special knowledge, usually referred to as a key. The result of the process is encrypted information (in cryptography, referred to as ciphertext). In many contexts, the word encryption also implicitly refers to the reverse process, decryption (e.g. “software for encryption” can typically also perform decryption), to make the encrypted information readable again (i.e. to make it unencrypted). |
| FAT32 |
Is a computer file system architecture now widely used on most computer systems and most memory cards, such as those used with digital cameras. The FAT file system is relatively straightforward technically and is supported by virtually all existing operating systems for personal computers. This makes it a useful format for solid-state memory cards and a convenient way to share data between operating systems. The maximum possible size for a file on a FAT32 volume is 4 GB minus 1 byte (232−1 bytes). Video applications, large databases, and some other software easily exceed this limit. Larger files require another formatting type such as NTFS. |
| Full Backup |
Full Backup or Base Image is a Backup Image created with ShadowProtect that contains all of the data that existed on a given volume at the time the backup occurred. Incrementals and Differential backups are based on the data contained in the Full/Base Backup Image. |
| Hard Disk |
Also referred to as a Hard Disk Drive or HDD. A Hard Drive is permanent storage that is usually internal to the computer, but can also be used in external containers and attached through USB, Firewire, and eSata ports as well as through the Network. |
| Hard Drive |
Also referred to as a Hard Disk Drive or HDD. A Hard Drive is permanent storage that is usually internal to the computer, but can also be used in external containers and attached through USB, Firewire, and eSata ports as well as through the Network. |
| Hardware Independent Restore |
(HIR) Restoring a backup image to different machine than the one the backup image originated on. |
| Hash |
A Checksum or Hash Sum is a fixed-size datum computed from an arbitrary block of digital data for the purpose of detecting accidental errors that may have been introduced during its transmission or storage. The integrity of the data can be checked at any later time by recomputing the checksum and comparing it with the stored one. If the checksums do not match, the data was certainly altered (either intentionally or unintentionally). |
| HDD |
Also referred to as a Hard Disk Drive or HDD. A Hard Drive is permanent storage that is usually internal to the computer, but can also be used in external containers and attached through USB, Firewire, and eSata ports as well as through the Network. |
| Hexadecimal |
In mathematics and computer science, hexadecimal (also base-16, hexa, or hex) is a numeral system with a radix, or base, of 16. It uses sixteen distinct symbols, most often the symbols 0–9 to represent values zero to nine, and A, B, C, D, E, F (or a through f) to represent values ten to fifteen.
Its primary use is as a human-friendly representation of binary coded values, so it is often used in digital electronics and computer engineering.
Examples: 00 = 0, FF = 256. 0F = 15, etc. |
| Hidden Disk Track |
Part of the MBR (Master Boot Record) that contains additional boot information especially in the case of Disk Encryption or when using a custom boot loader. In almost every situation it is a good idea to restore the Hidden Disk Track. |
| HIR |
(Hardware Independent Restore) Restoring a backup image to different machine than the one the backup image originated on. |
| IDE |
Integrated Drive Electronics (IDE)or ATA/ATAPI is an interface standard for the connection of storage devices such as hard disks, solid-state drives, and CD-ROM drives in computers. IDE is slower than and is quickly being replaced by the SATA inferface. |
| ImageManager |
StorageCraft's product designed to consolidate backups that are created using the Continuous Incremental Schedule and/or schedule backup verification on existing Backup Images. |
| Incremental |
A "normal" incremental backup will only back up files that have been changed since the last backup of any type. This provides the quickest means of backup, since it only makes copies of files that have not yet been backed up. For instance, following a full backup on Friday, Monday’s tape will contain only those files changed since Friday. Tuesday’s tape contains only those files changed since Monday, and so on. The downside to this is that in order to perform a full restore, one needs to restore the last full backup first, followed by each of the subsequent incremental backups to the present day in the correct order. Should any one of these backup copies be damaged (particularly the full backup), the restore will be incomplete. |
| Internet Explorer |
Windows Internet Explorer (formerly Microsoft Internet Explorer; abbreviated to MSIE or, more commonly, IE), is a series of graphical web browsers developed by Microsoft and included as part of the Microsoft Windows line of operating systems starting in 1995. |
| IP Address |
An Internet Protocol (IP) address is a numerical identification and logical address that is assigned to devices participating in a computer network utilizing the Internet Protocol for communication between its nodes.[1] Although IP addresses are stored as binary numbers, they are usually displayed in human-readable notations, such as 208.77.188.166 (for IPv4), and 2001:db8:0:1234:0:567:1:1 (for IPv6). The role of the IP address has been characterized as follows: "A name indicates what we seek. An address indicates where it is. A route indicates how to get there. |
| Keyfile |
Is a file on a computer which contains encryption or license keys. |
| Maintenance |
Purchasing the annual maintenance agreement ensures that you will receive all updates and new versions that are released within the next year. It is strongly recommended, as new versions often contain valuable new features and bug fixes. The regular update price, should you decline the maintenance, is one-half the normal price, so the maintenance is really a great deal. |
| Master Boot Record |
A master boot record (MBR), or partition sector, is the 512-byte boot sector that is the first sector ("LBA Sector 0") of a partitioned data storage device such as a hard disk. (The boot sector of a non-partitioned device is a Volume Boot Record. These are usually different, although it is possible to create a record that acts as both; it is called a multi boot record.) The MBR may be used for one or more of the following:
* Holding a disk's primary partition table.[2]
* Bootstrapping operating systems, after the computer's BIOS passes execution to machine code instructions contained within the MBR.
* Uniquely identifying individual disk media, with a 32-bit disk signature; even though it may never be used by the machine the disk is running on. |
| MBR |
A master boot record (MBR), or partition sector, is the 512-byte boot sector that is the first sector ("LBA Sector 0") of a partitioned data storage device such as a hard disk. (The boot sector of a non-partitioned device is a Volume Boot Record. These are usually different, although it is possible to create a record that acts as both; it is called a multi boot record.) The MBR may be used for one or more of the following:
* Holding a disk's primary partition table.
* Bootstrapping operating systems, after the computer's BIOS passes execution to machine code instructions contained within the MBR.
* Uniquely identifying individual disk media, with a 32-bit disk signature; even though it may never be used by the machine the disk is running on. |
| MD5 |
Is a widely used cryptographic hash function with a 128-bit hash value. As an Internet standard (RFC 1321), MD5 has been employed in a wide variety of security applications, and is also commonly used to check the integrity of files. For example, file servers often provide a pre-computed MD5 checksum for the files, so that a user can compare the Checksum of the downloaded file to it. |
| Mirroring |
or RAID1 is the replication of logical disk volumes onto separate physical hard disks in real time to ensure continuous availability. A mirrored volume is a complete logical representation of separate volume copies. The idea is if one Hard Disk Drive in the mirror fails, it can be replaced and the mirror rebuilt without data loss. |
| Mount |
Is the process of making a file system ready for use by the operating system, typically by reading certain index data structures from storage into memory ahead of time. The term recalls a period in the history of computing when an operator had to physically place (mount) a magnetic tape or hard disk on a spindle before using it. ShadowProtect has the ability to mount a Backup Image and make it's contents available to the user without needing to restore the entire image. |
| Mounting |
Is the process of making a file system ready for use by the operating system, typically by reading certain index data structures from storage into memory ahead of time. The term recalls a period in the history of computing when an operator had to physically place (mount) a magnetic tape or hard disk on a spindle before using it. ShadowProtect has the ability to mount a Backup Image and make it's contents available to the user without needing to restore the entire image. |
| NAS |
A NAS Device is essentially a self-contained computer connected to a network, with the sole purpose of supplying file-based data storage services to other devices on the network. The operating system and other software on the NAS unit provide the functionality of data storage, file systems, and access to files, and the management of these functionalities. |
| Network Share |
a Shared Resource or Network Share is a device or piece of information on a computer that can be remotely accessed from another computer, typically via a local area network or an enterprise Intranet, as if it were a resource in the local machine. With ShadowProtect a Network Share is a drive or folder that is shared on one computer so that it can be accessed by another computer on the same network. |
| NTFS |
NTFS is the standard file system of Windows NT, including its later versions Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2008, Windows Vista, and Windows 7.[4]
NTFS supersedes the FAT file system as the preferred file system for Microsoft’s Windows operating systems. NTFS has several improvements over FAT and HPFS (High Performance File System) such as improved support for metadata and the use of advanced data structures to improve performance, reliability, and disk space utilization, plus additional extensions such as security access control lists (ACL) and file system journaling. |
| NTLDR |
Is the boot loader for all releases of Microsoft's Windows NT operating system up to and including Windows XP and Windows Server 2003. NTLDR is typically run from the primary hard disk drive, but it can also run from portable storage devices such as a CD-ROM, USB flash drive, or floppy disk. NTLDR can also load a non NT-based operating system given the appropriate boot sector in a file. |
| Off-site Backup |
A copy (or copies) of a backed-up data set which have been transferred to an alternate location for safe keeping, either via network / internet transfer or via hardware being physically carried off of the premises (i.e. on a removable hard disk). |
| Partition |
Is the act or practice of dividing the storage space of a hard disk drive into separate data areas known as partitions. A partition editor program can be used to create, delete or modify these partitions. Once a disk is divided into several partitions, directories and files of different categories may be stored in different partitions. |
| RAID |
Is used as an umbrella term for computer data storage schemes that can divide and replicate data among multiple hard disk drives. The different schemes/architectures are named by the word RAID followed by a number, as in RAID 0, RAID 1, etc. RAID's various designs involve two key design goals: increase data reliability or increase input/output performance. When multiple physical disks are set up to use RAID technology, they are said to be in a RAID array. This array distributes data across multiple disks, but the array is seen by the computer user and operating system as one single disk. RAID can be set up to serve several different purposes. |
| RAID Controller |
is a Storage Controller that specifically deals with RAID Arrays. |
| Recovery |
Recovery is the activity of retrieving the data and systems that were backed up. Restoring systems and data can take as little as a few minutes or many hours. |
| Recovery Console |
The Recovery Console is a feature of the Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 operating systems. It provides the means for administrators to perform a limited range of tasks using a command line interface. Its primary function is to enable administrators to recover from situations where Windows does not boot as far as presenting its graphical user interface. |
| Recovery Environment |
ShadowProtect's Recovery Environment boot from the ShadowProtect CD and runs on two different WinPE Operating Systems. These two different OS Environments allow us to provide support for nearly every Windows machine. Booting from the Recovery CD is essential for restoring an Operating System. |
| Registry |
The Windows Registry is a database that stores settings and options for Microsoft Windows operating systems. It contains information and settings for hardware, operating system software, most non-operating system software, and per-user settings. The registry also provides a window into the operation of the kernel, exposing run-time information such as performance counters and currently active hardware. |
| Registry Key |
Registry Keys are similar to folders - in addition to values, each key can contain subkeys, which may contain further subkeys, and so on. Keys are referenced with a syntax similar to Windows' path names, using backslashes to indicate levels of hierarchy. |
| Retention Policy |
Is a process of deleting older data in order to make room for newer data. In the case with ShadowProtect, older Backup Sets (1 Full + Associated Incrementals) in order to make room for newer backup sets. Doing this allows the user to keep a designated number of backup sets without running out of hard drive space. |
| SAN |
A Storage Area Network (SAN) is an architecture to attach remote computer storage devices (such as disk arrays, tape libraries, and optical jukeboxes) to servers in such a way that the devices appear as locally attached to the operating system. Although the cost and complexity of SANs are dropping, they are uncommon outside larger enterprises. |
| SAS |
Serial Attached SCSI (SAS) moves data to and from computer storage devices such as hard drives and tape drives. SAS depends on a point-to-point serial protocol that replaces the parallel SCSI bus technology that first appeared in the mid 1980s in data centers and workstations, and it uses the standard SCSI command set. |
| SATA |
The serial ATA, or SATA computer bus, is a storage-interface for connecting host bus adapters to mass storage devices such as hard disk drives and optical drives. The SATA host adapter is integrated into almost all modern consumer laptop computers and desktop motherboards. |
| Semaphore |
A semaphore in simple terms is much like a signal on a train track that signals to the train that the track ahead is clear. If the track ahead is being used then a red light is given. When the track is clear a green light is given. Sometimes another device on the system will interfere with the signal and report that the track is in use when it really is not. |
| ShadowProtect |
StorageCraft's backup and disaster recovery product that utilizes Microsoft's VSS to create an Image/Sector based backup image that can be restored to the same or different hardware. |
| Snapshot |
A snapshot is a digital representation of a set of data at a particular moment in time. When a ShadowProtect backup is triggered, the first thing that happens is a 'snaphot' of the volume being backed up, which is then used to create an actual backup file. |
| Software Driver |
A Device Driver or Software Driver is a computer program allowing higher-level computer programs to interact with a hardware device.
A driver typically communicates with the device through the computer bus or communications subsystem to which the hardware is connected. When a calling program invokes a routine in the driver, the driver issues commands to the device. Once the device sends data back to the driver, the driver may invoke routines in the original calling program. Drivers are hardware-dependent and operating-system-specific. They usually provide the interrupt handling required for any necessary asynchronous time-dependent hardware interface. |
| Source |
In the case of backing up, it is the volume that contains the data to be shadow copied, or in other words, Backed Up. In the case of a restore, it is the volume that contains the backup image that will be restore to a selected volume. |
| Source Volume |
The volume that contains the data to be shadow copied, or in other words, Backed Up. |
| Storage Controller |
or "Hard Disk Controller" is the circuit which allows the CPU to communicate with a hard disk, floppy disk or other kind of disk drive. The Storage Controller requires a driver in order to function properly. Also see RAID Controller. |
| Storage Volume |
The Storage Volume or Backup Destination is the volume that holds the shadow copy storage files (ShadowProtect Backup Images) for the system copy-on-write software provider. |
| Synthetic Incremental |
Is a form of an incremental backup that is possible when there is a separate computer that manages the backups. The backup server takes a typical incremental backup of the system in question and combines this data with the previous backups to generate a new synthetic backup. This new synthetic backup is indistinguishable from a normal full backup and shares all the advantages, such as faster restore times. |
| System BCD |
Boot Configuration Data (BCD) is a firmware-independent database for boot-time configuration data. It replaces the boot.ini that was used by NTLDR, and is used by Microsoft's new Windows Boot Manager. |
| System Recovery |
Due to government regulations, most companies have extensive data backup protocols in place. However, your backup tapes won’t be able to get your business up and running in the event of a disaster – either major or minor.
Take a simple server crash, for example. After fixing your server, you still have hours of work ahead as you reload your server operating system and service packs, load your backup software and then load your backup tape. All the while, you’re crossing your fingers, hoping that your tape backup is actually recoverable.
An easier way to recover your system is by using Real-Time Recovery software, such as StorageCraft ShadowProtect. Real-time Recovery means that your server system—and your users—are back up and running in a matter of minutes, not hours and hours.
Instead of loading your OS and service packs, when restoring your server from bare metal, you load the recovery CD, restore your system and selected files from your ShadowProtect archive, and you’re back in business. A typical server restore takes about 10 minutes to complete. |
| USB |
Universal Serial Bus (USB) is a serial bus standard to connect devices to a host computer. USB was designed to allow many peripherals to be connected using a single standardized interface socket and to improve plug and play capabilities by allowing hot swapping; that is, by allowing devices to be connected and disconnected without rebooting the computer or turning off the device. Other convenient features include providing power to low-consumption devices, eliminating the need for an external power supply; and allowing many devices to be used without requiring manufacturer-specific device drivers to be installed.
USB is intended to replace many varieties of serial and parallel ports. USB can connect computer peripherals such as mice, keyboards, PDAs, gamepads and joysticks, scanners, digital cameras, printers, personal media players, flash drives, and external hard drives. |
| Verification |
Is the process of checking that a product, service, or system meets specifications and that it fulfills its intended purpose. In the case with ShadowProtect, Verification is the process of checking the integrity of a Backup Image to ensure that the Backup File is good and that the backup itself is not corrupted. This does not mean that the Backup does not contain corrupted information. If corruption exists on the image being backed-up that data corruption can still be passed on to the data contained in the Backup Image. |
| Virtual Machine |
Virtual machines are separated into two major categories, based on their use and degree of correspondence to any real machine. A system virtual machine provides a complete system platform which supports the execution of a complete operating system (OS). In contrast, a process virtual machine is designed to run a single program, which means that it supports a single process. An essential characteristic of a virtual machine is that the software running inside is limited to the resources and abstractions provided by the virtual machine—it cannot break out of its virtual world. |
| Volume |
Is a Partition that has been formatted with a File System and either does/can contain files. |
| Volume Shadow Copy Service |
A service that coordinates various components to create consistent shadow copies of one or more volumes. |
| VSS |
VSS is an acronym for Microsoft's Volume Shadow Copy Service. The Volume Shadow Copy Service is the framework provided by Microsoft that allows backup products such as ShadowProtect to get safe snapshots of data, even if it is currently in use by the system. VSS is a feature introduced with Windows Server 2003 and is in all releases of Microsoft Windows thereafter, that allows taking manual or automatic backup copies or snapshots of a file or folder or a specific volume at a specific point in time. |
| VSS Incremental |
Is an Incremental Backup were VSS sends a stop signal to various VSS Writers on the system which in essence causes different database products to pause long enough for a VSS Snapshot to be taken. The VSS snapshot is then used to create the backup. For additional information refer to the How VSS Works KB Article. |
| VSS Provider |
A component that creates and maintains the shadow copies. Examples are the system provider included with the operating system and the hardware providers included with storage arrays. |
| VSS Requestor |
An application that requests that a volume shadow copy be taken. ShadowProtect is an example. |
| VSS Writer |
Application-specific software that acts to ensure that application data is ready for shadow copy creation. Typically, this is a database application like SQL Server or Exchange Server, or a system service like Active Directory. |
| Windows Explorer |
Windows Explorer is a file manager application that is included with releases of the Microsoft Windows operating system from Windows 95 onwards. It provides a graphical user interface for accessing the file systems. It is also the component of the operating system that presents the user interface on the monitor and enables the user to control the computer. It is sometimes referred to as the Windows Shell, or simply “Explorer”. |
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