Very Important and Rare Computer Terms asked in Exams to Know.

 

• A

 



. AHCI:An interface specification that allows software to communicate with SATA devices such as host bus adapters, and enables advanced SATA features such as Native Command Queuing, native hot plugging, and power management. Advanced Host Controller Interface (AHCI).
 

. Array:An abstraction layer or collection of two or more disks used to manage RAID volumes existing on a same collection of disks. RAID arrays are not visible to the operating system.
 

. ATAPI device:A mass storage device with a parallel interface such as CD-ROM, CD-RW, DVD-ROM, Blu-ray Disc, and tape drives. Advanced Technology Attachment Packet Interface (ATAPI).
 

• D

 

. Disk:A hard or floppy disk. Also known as hard drive or hard disk drive.

• F

 

. Firmware:Permanent instructions and data programmed directly into the read-only memory (ROM) for controlling the operation of the computer. Firmware usually requires updates to fix defects or add features to the hardware.
 

• H

 

. Hot plug:Action to remove or insert a SATA disk when the system is powered on.
 

• I

 

. Increase volume size:Action to expand the data storage capacity of a volume by utilizing the available array space on a RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID 5, or RAID 10 volume.
 

. Initialize:Process of synchronizing all redundant data on a volume prior to creating a volume, verifying and repairing data, or changing volume type. Initialization is still required for non-redundant volumes such as RAID 0 to ensure that data is readable before starting the verification process.
 

. Intel® Rapid Recover Technology:Official name for Intel’s technology that allows the user to copy data from a master disk (source) to a recovery disk (destination) either continuously or on request.
 

. Intel® Rapid Storage Technology:Official name for Intel's Windows-based software to provide support for high-performance, fault-tolerant, and capacity SATA RAID arrays on select supported chipsets. Intel Rapid Storage Technology also provides support for Intel® Rapid Recover Technology, AHCI Native Command Queuing, and matrix RAID for two RAID volumes on a single array.
 

• M

 

. Master disk:The disk that is the designated source drive in a recovery volume.
 

. Migrating:Volume status indicative that data is being moved/transferred across selected storage devices due to a change request in the storage system configuration, such as changing volume type, creating a volume preserving existing data, increasing the volume capacity, or changing data strip size.

• N

 

. Native Command Queuing:Command protocol in SATA that allows multiple commands to be outstanding within a disk at the same time. The commands are dynamically reordered to increase disk performance.
 

. Normal:Volume, disk, and device status indicative that they are in a healthy state, functioning as expected, disks are properly connected, and data is fully accessible.

 

•O

 

. Offline:Disk status indicative that an array disk is locked (the volume status displays as locked), that the recovery volume is in on request update mode, or that your computer is running on battery and data updates to the recovery volume are not available.
 

. On request update mode:Update mode assigned to a recovery volume, where data on the master disk is copied to the recovery disk when the user requests it. Only changes since the last update process are saved to the recovery disk.
 

. Option ROM:
Firmware that is called by the system BIOS in order to communicate and provide support for a hardware device. For this product, the option ROM provides boot support for RAID volumes as well as a user interface for configuring and managing RAID volumes. Also known as OROM.
 

• P
 

. Port multiplier:
A device that allows multiple devices to communicate along a single SATA line in a similar manner to that of a USB hub.
 

. Port:An internal or external data connection of a computer (e.g., SATA controller) to which a peripheral device (e.g., SATA disk) can be attached.
 

• R
 

. RAID:Redundant Array of Independent/Inexpensive Disks is a technology used for computer data storage schemes that divide and/or replicate data among multiple disks. RAID can be designed to provide increased data reliability or increased I/O (input/output) performance, or both. A number of standard schemes have evolved which are referred to as levels or types. Intel® Rapid Storage Technology software supports RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID 5, and RAID 10 configurations (refer to each RAID type definition for more information).

 

. RAID 0:A RAID type or configuration where data is striped across multiple physical disks. Data is split into manageable blocks called strips across array members. Striping does not create data redundancy but improves read/write performance.

. RAID 1:A RAID type or configuration where data is mirrored across a second physical disk in the array. Mirroring is a key feature that ensures real-time data redundancy and increased fault tolerance. There is no striping.
 

. RAID 10:A RAID type or configuration that uses four disks to create a combination of RAID type 0 and 1. The data is striped across a two-disk array forming a RAID 0 component. Each of the disks in the RAID 0 array is mirrored by a disk in the RAID 1 array.
 

. RAID 5:A RAID type or configuration where data and parity are striped into manageable blocks called strips across three or more physical disks. This type is a preferred configuration as it combines efficiency, fault-tolerance, and data performance.
 

. Read-only:Recovery volume status indicative that the recovery or master disk files are accessed, allowing files on the disk to be read or copied, but not changed or saved.
 

. Rebuild:The process of restoring a recovery, RAID 1, RAID 5, and RAID 10 volume in the event that a volume disk has failed or is missing. If a spare disk is present and compatible, the application will automatically use it as a replacement for the failed disk. An automatic rebuild process will also occur if a RAID 1 member is removed and then reconnected, in order to re-establish the mirroring. This process does not apply to RAID 0 volumes.
 

. Recover data:The action of retrieving data in the event that a recovery volume has failed due to a missing or failed master disk. Data from the recovery disk is copied to a new or healthy master disk, restoring data redundancy. Selecting this option will overwrite all master disk data with data on the recovery disk.
 

. Recovery disk:The disk that is the designated destination drive in a recovery volume.
 

. Recovery volume:A two-disk redundant volume that includes a master disk (source) and a recovery disk (destination) and uses Intel® Rapid Recover Technology. This configuration provides flexibility of volume data updates and maximum data redundancy.
 

. Repair:The process of fixing verification errors and blocks with media errors found during the verification process. This feature is only available for volumes with a normal or at risk status. A RAID 0 cannot be repaired due to its non-redundant configuration.
 

. Reset disk to normal:Action to return a failed or at risk disk to a normal state. We recommend that you contact the manufacturer for more information to prevent potential data loss.
 

. Reset to available:Action to return a disk previously marked as a spare to an available state.
 

. Reset volume to normal:Action to return a failed volume where both array disks are present and normal to a normal state. This feature allows you to access and attempt a recovery of healthy volume data.
 

• S
 

 SATA:A successor to ATA and PATA, SATA is a computer bus technology primarily designed for transfer of data between storage devices such as hard drives or optical devices, and a computer. Benefits of this technology are: usage of high-speed serial cables, air cooling to work more efficiently, faster transfers, the ability to remove devices while operating (hot plugging), enables more reliable operation with tighter data integrity checks. Also known as Serial Advanced Technology Attachment or Serial ATA.

 

. SATA disk:A disk with an interface that transmits data using a serial protocol in order to communicate with the SATA controller.
 

. SATA transfer rate:Rate at which the SATA controller and SATA disk communicate with each other. Transfer rates are important when large contiguous blocks of data are being used, such as video and image files. Reported in gigabits/seconds (Gb/s).
 

. Size:Reports the total capacity of a physical device such as a SATA disk, a volume, or an array.
 

. Storage system:One or more physical disks or devices that act as a unit for data storage.
 

. System disk:A disk that contains system files required to start and run the operating system. By default, the Windows operating system files are in the WINDOWS folder, and the supporting files are in the WINDOWS\System32 folder.

. System volume:A volume that refers to the disk(s) volume that contains the hardware-specific files that are needed to start Windows, such as Ntldr, Boot.ini, and Ntdetect.com, as well as the Windows operating system files and supporting files. The system volume can be the same volume as the boot volume.
 

• U
 

. Unknown:Disk status indicative that its usage could not be determined, due to a possible incompatibility between this software version and the disk configuration, or a virus. Also a volume status indicative that the volume is in an unexpected state due to a configuration error. Data on the volume can no longer be accessed.
 

. Update mode:Type of update assigned to a recovery volume. The update mode can be set to continuous, where master disk changes are automatically saved to the recovery disk, or set to on request, where updates of the recovery disk can be requested immediately.
 

• V
 

. Verify:Action of scanning data to detect any types of data damage, disk read errors, and volume data inconsistencies. As an option, errors found can be corrected on redundant RAID volumes. This feature is only available for volumes with a normal or at risk status.
 

. Volume size:Amount of data that can be stored on a volume; reported in bytes (B) or %.
 

. Volume type:Configuration of a volume which determines how data is stored and managed to improve read/write performance, increase fault tolerance and/or storage capacity.
 

. Volume write-back cache:A cache memory used to enhance the read/write performance of a RAID volume by grouping multiple I/O requests into fewer requests and by writing from the cache to the volume at defined intervals.
 

. Volume:A fixed amount of space across a RAID array that is structured to emulate a single physical hard drive and appears as such to the operating system. Volumes have drive letters assigned to them and some volumes can span multiple hard disks.
 

• W
 

. Windows Disk Management*:Microsoft Windows* system utility for managing the disks and partitions or volumes that they contain. Disk Management allows the initialization of new disks, volume creation, and formatting. Most disk-related tasks can be performed using this system utility without shutting down or restarting the computer; most configuration changes take effect immediately.
 

. Write-back cache allocation:Size of the dynamic random access memory (DRAM) that is allocated for write-back caching on all volumes present on the system. The cache size is set to 16 megabytes (MB) by default.