Module 11

A collection of articles containing text, images, or video that give information about a network, product, or service.

An IT system used to track physical and digital assets; it may include end-user devices, network devices, IP addresses, software licenses, and related licenses.

Inventory tracking tags that help an organization track items such as equipment.

Data required when replacing an aged asset in an IT asset management system; might include information on suppliers, contract terms, previous purchase orders, invoices, and payment processing.

The first screen a user sees when opening an app. Also called a launch screen.

The processes for successfully bringing people forward to an end result or goal.

Part of a change plan that defines (1) the key components of change and how they will be addressed; (2) the people, skills, tasks, and activities required to carry out the change; (3) how the results of the change will be measured; and (4) when the change is complete.

A record of the activities needed to recover to the original state in the event a change must be aborted or has failed. Also called backout plan.

Software that controls a computer; controls how system resources are used and provides a user interface, a way of managing hardware and software, and ways to work with files.

An interface that uses graphics as opposed to a command-driven interface.

The most popular operating system for desktop and laptop computers, made by Microsoft.

The proprietary desktop operating system by Apple based on UNIX and used only on Apple computers; formerly called Mac OS X.

An OS based on UNIX that was created by Linus Torvalds of Finland. Basic versions of this OS are open source, and all the underlying programming instructions are freely distributed.

An OS by Google that is built on the opensource Chromium OS and used on Google Chromebooks. The OS looks and works much like the Chrome browser and relies heavily on web-based apps and storage.

The portion of an OS that is responsible for interacting with the hardware.

UEFI (Unified Extensible Firmware Interface) or BIOS (basic input/output system) firmware on the motherboard that is used to control essential devices before the OS is loaded.

Part of UEFI or BIOS firmware on the motherboard that is responsible for controlling the computer when it is first turned on. Startup BIOS/UEFI gives control to the OS once the OS is loaded.

Firmware used to change motherboard settings. For example, you can use it to enable or disable a device on the motherboard, change the date and time that is later passed to the OS, and select the order of boot devices for startup BIOS/UEFI to search when looking for an operating system to load.

A list of devices stored in firmware on the motherboard that BIOS/UEFI startup uses in the order listed to search for and load an operating system.

A table at the beginning of the hard drive that contains information about each partition on the drive. The partition table is contained in the Master Boot Record.For GPT drives, the partition table is stored in the GPT header and a backup of the table is stored at the end of the drive.

The separate divisions into which a hard disk can be divided (up to four are allowed per hard disk). 3 primary 1 extended. in windows a GPT drive can have up to 128.

On an MBR hard drive, the only partition that can contain more than one logical drive. In Windows, a hard drive can have only a single extended partition. Compare with primary partition.

on an MBR hard drive, a portion or all of a hard drive's extended partition that is treated by the operating system as though it were a physical drive or volume. Each logical drive is assigned a drive letter, such as drive F, and contains a file system. Compare with volume.

A method for partitioning hard drives that allows for drives of any size. For Windows, a drive that uses this method can have up to 128 partitions. The GPT partitioning system is required to use a Secure Boot with UEFI firmware.

Formatting performed by the Windows Format program (for example, FORMAT C:/S), the Windows installation program, or the Disk Management utility. The process creates the boot record, file system, and root directory on the volume or logical drive and makes the volume or drive bootable). Also called OS formatting or operating system formatting.

The process of installing a file system on a portion (volume) of a storage device, so that the volume can hold files and directories.

A container in a file system that can hold files and other subdirectories.

A directory or folder contained in another directory or folder. Also called a child directory or folder.

The main directory, at the top of the top-down hierarchical structure of subdirectories, created when a hard drive or disk is first formatted. In Linux, it's indicated by a forward slash. In Windows, it's indicated by a backward slash.

A drive and list of directories pointing to a file, such as C:\Windows\System32.

A portion of the file name that indicates how the file is organized or formatted, the type of content in the file, and what program uses the file. In command lines, the file extension follows the file name and is separated from it by a period—for example, in Msd.exe, exe is the file extension.

A folder that is used as a shortcut to space on another volume, which effectively increases the size of the folder to the size of the other volume. Also see mounted drive.

A file system that supports encryption, disk quotas, and file and folder compression; required for the volume that holds a Windows installation.

A file system suitable for low-capacity hard drives and other storage devices and supported by Windows, macOS, and Linux. 32 bit allocation table.

A 64-bit version of the file allocation table file system designed for use on large USB flash drives. A file system suitable for large external storage devices and compatible with Windows, macOS, and Linux.

Third Extended File System. Commonly used by Linux OS. The Linux file system that was the first to support journaling, which is a technique that tracks and stores changes to the hard drive and helps prevent file system corruption.

An improved version of the ext3 filesystem with an extended feature set and better performance.The current Linux file system, which replaced the ext3 file system.

In macOS, the default file system for SSDs that uses the GUID partitioning system; can also be used for magnetic hard drives.

Drivers that are not included in BIOS/UEFI or Windows and must come from the manufacturer.

A process used to install the OS on a new hard drive or overwrite the existing operating system and applications when installing the OS.

In the Windows setup program, the option used to overwrite the existing operating system and applications, producing a clean installation of the OS. The main advantage of a custom installation is that problems with the old OS are not carried forward.

When using an unformatted hard drive for a clean installation, this folder is created to store the previous Windows operating system settings and user profiles.

A nondestructive installation of Windows over an existing Windows installation in which personal files, apps, and Windows settings are kept; the process can repair the existing installation. Also called a repair upgrade or in-place upgrade.

Definition:A qualifying OS required by Microsoft in order to perform an in-place upgrade.

A partition on a hard drive that contains a recovery utility and installation files to recover the OS back to its factory state.

In Windows, one of the incremental updates for the OS that happen about every six months.

A visual display on a computer's screen that allows you to interact with your computer more easily by clicking graphical elements. An interface that uses graphics as opposed to a command-driven interface.