System Fundamentals
This implementation method involves running the old system and the new system at the same time, which is very low risk but comes with higher staffing and salary costs.
What is parallel running?
This abbreviation describes a network that is usually confined to one building, like a school or business, and uses wired protocols like Ethernet.
What is a LAN (Local Area Network)?
This type of memory is non-volatile and stores startup instructions like the BIOS.
What is ROM?
Unlike assembly or machine code, this category of programming language is designed to be more like human language and is generally portable from one computer to another.
What is a high-level language?
This is a collection of programs that control the execution of software applications, memory management, input/output control, and the user interface.
What is an Operating System (OS)?
This term describes an old technology or computer system that is often inherited when one company buys out another business.
What is a legacy system?
This type of network behaves like a private network but uses the public internet for communication, securing its traffic with encryption and a tunneling protocol.
What is a VPN (Virtual Private Network)?
This phase of the instruction cycle translates the instruction into a usable form.
What is the decode phase?
This term refers to the consistent grammar and structural rules of a programming language, which are necessary to ensure instructions are clear and unambiguous.
What is syntax?
This process involves moving data from an old system to a new one and can cause format issues.
What is data migration?
In this type of installation process, the transition from the old system to the new system happens overnight, which is sometimes referred to as "flicking the switch."
What is a direct changeover?
This type of program restricts data allowed into and out of a network based on a set of rules, frequently by blocking traffic on specific ports.
What is a firewall?
In a CPU block diagram, this bus is shown as a two-directional arrow because it transfers information both to and from memory.
What is the data bus?
This type of software translates high-level code into executable binary line-by-line while the program is running, making it highly portable but generally slower.
What is an interpreter?
This programming practice involves testing small chunks of a program on their own to verify they work properly.
What is Unit Testing?
This model provides software needs through a remotely hosted system managed by a third party, rather than requiring in-house hardware.
What is SaaS?
This is a private network (intranet) that has been opened up to provide limited access to a selection of trusted external users, such as suppliers or customers.
What is an extranet?
These are the smallest and fastest unit of memory in a computer system.
What are registers?
This low-level programming language uses simple mnemonics like ADD, SUB, and JMP, and is considered the simplest programming language intelligible by humans.
What is assembly language?
This machine acts as a middleman, brokering the communication between two other machines, and can be used by schools to intercept and check web page requests.
What is a proxy?
This type of software is custom-made, meaning it is tailored to an organization's specific needs rather than being bought off-the-shelf.
What is bespoke software?
In this network architecture, there is no central server and every computer is linked to every other computer, allowing for shared resources but decreasing security.
What is a Peer-to-Peer (P2P) network?
During the decode phase, the instruction carried by the Memory Data Register is copied here before it is translated for the ALU.
What is the IR (Instruction Register)?
In concurrent processing, this system-halting failure occurs when multiple processes are endlessly waiting on each other for resources, a scenario famously illustrated by the "Dining Philosophers" problem. (Also Valve's new 6v6 multiplayer hero shooter).
What is deadlock?
Represented by a number from 0 to 65536, this is a logical channel that allows computers to decide which application should handle data received over a network.
What is a port?