| MAN |
Metropolitan Area Network. |
| Media Access Time (MAT) |
The necessary
time to access the memory location for read/write operations. Also equivalent
to the reciprocal of Media Transfer Rate (MTR). |
| Mbps |
Megabits per second. |
| MB |
See Megabyte. |
| MBps |
Megabytes per second. |
| Megabyte (MB) |
A unit
of measurement equal to 1,000 kilobytes, or 1,000,000 bytes. (See also kilobyte.) |
| Media Transfer Rate (MTR) |
The number
of data transfers per second between the host controller and the storage
media. |
| MIA |
Media Interface Adapter. |
| Microsecond (µs) |
One millionth of a second (.000001 sec.). |
| Millisecond (ms) |
One thousandth
of a second (.001 sec.). |
| MF |
Multimode Fiber. |
| MRAM |
Stands
for magnetic random access memory. Rather than relying on electrons, which
can be lost, like dynamic random access memory (DRAM), MRAM stores data
in the spin of electrons. It can store as much memory as DRAM and it can
access it instantly, which means no waiting for computers to boot up. |
| MTBF |
Mean Time
Between Failure-Reliability rating indicating the failure rate expected
of a product expressed in power on hours (POH). Since manufacturers differ
in the ways they determine the MTBF, comparisons of products should always
take into account the MTBF calculation method. |
| NAS |
Network Attached Storage. |
| NDMP |
Network Data Management Protocol. |
| NIC |
Network Interconnect Card. |
| Node |
A Fibre Channel device that supports one or more ports. |
| Non-Volatile |
Property
of physical storage medium that retains data written to it for a subsequent
read operation through a power-on condition. An example of this is Flash
memory that stores data without need for device power. |
| OLTP |
Online
Transaction Processing is a system that processes transactions the instant
the computer receives them and updates master files immediately. OLTP is
essential for good financial record keeping and inventory tracking. |
| Parallel |
The simultaneous transmission of data bits over multiple lines. |
| Parity |
A data-error-checking
procedure where the number of 1s must always be the same-either even or
odd- for each group of bits submitted without error. Parity information
is saved and compared with each subsequent calculations of whether the number
is odd or even. |
| Passive copper |
A low-cost
copper Fibre Channel connection allowing distances up to 13 meters between
devices. |
| PCI |
Peripheral
Component Interconnect is a 32-bit local bus (data pathway) that is faster
than the ISA bus. Local buses are those that operate within a single system
(as opposed to a network bus, which connects multiple systems). |
| Peripheral |
A device
added to a system as an enhancement to the basic CPU, such as a disk drive,
tape drive or printer. |
| PIO (Programmed Input/Output) |
PIO is
the original operating mode for most disk drives. PIO uses the CPU to manage
the transfer of data from the drive to the memory. |
| Point-to-Point |
A dedicated Fibre Channel connection between two devices. |
| POST |
Power On Self Test. |
| PSU |
Power Supply Unit. |
