Articles Index
RAID Types - RAID 3 Definition
RAID 3 is a striped RAID level designed to provide a performance increase by storing sequential bytes of data across multiple disks. Unlike RAID 0, which also provides a speed increase, RAID 3 supplements the speed increase with the use of a parity bit to improve data integrity.
RAID 10 - RAID 10 Definition
RAID 10 is a nested RAID system created by combining RAID 1 and RAID 0. The combination is known as a stripe of mirrors. In this arrangement, data is striped much as it is in a RAID 0 array. The difference is that each member of the striped set has its data mirrored. This ensures that if any single drive in the RAID 10 array fails, the data isn't lost.
RAID 5 - RAID 5 Definition
RAID 5 is another striping RAID level, designed to increase the speed of disk reads and writes. RAID 5 is similar to RAID 3, in that it uses a parity bit to help ensure data integrity. However, unlike RAID 3, which uses a disk dedicated to storing the parity, RAID 5 distributes the parity to all drives in the array.
RAID 0: Striping Hard Drives
RAID 0 is one of the many RAID levels supported directly by OS X and the Mac. RAID 0 (Stripe) splits data equally among two or more disks that make up the RAID 0 striped set. RAID 0 is primarily used to increase the performance of a Mac’s storage system.
Data Bus
In computer parlance, a data bus is a group of electrical wires used to send information (data) back and forth between two or more components.
64-bit Architecture
64-bit refers to the number of bits that make up the structure of various parts of a processor’s architecture. These structures usually include the data bus, address bus, and internal registers.
Snow Leopard: OS X 10.6 Operating System for Macintosh Computers
Snow Leopard continues the Apple tradition of naming OS X versions after big cats. Snow Leopard, more formally known as OS X 10.6, is the sixth in the series of Unix-based operating systems from Apple.
Disk First Aid: Mac OS Disk Repair Utility
Disk First Aid is the name of a disk repair utility that was included or available for download with Mac OS 9.x or earlier. Disk First Aid was able to analyze and repair basic hard drive problems.
Mac Book Pro
Mac Book Pro is an often used but incorrect name for a line of Apple portable computers. The correct name for this product is MacBook Pro, with Mac and Book concatenated to produce the combined product name.
MacBook Pro
The MacBook Pro is Apple’s professional line of laptop Mac computers. First introduced in January of 2006, the MacBook Pro was the second computer from Apple to make the transition from the PowerPC processor to processors supplied by Intel.
iMac
The original iMac was an egg-shaped, all-in-one desktop Mac with a built-in color CRT display. The iMac was initially available only in a Bondi Blue case, but Apple quickly followed up with five additional fruity colors (lime, strawberry, blueberry, grape, and tangerine), and later added even more color options, including cases with Dalmatian and flower power patterns.
.Me
.Me is a top-level domain country code for Montenegro. It’s often confused with Apple’s MobileMe service.
.Mac
Originally known as iTools, .Mac was a collection of online services and software for Mac users.
JBOD Concatenation: Creating One Large Virtual Disk From Multiple Smaller Hard D
JBOD (Just a Bunch of Disks) is not a true RAID level, but it’s included as one of the RAID types supported by OS X and the Mac. JBOD is a term that covers many of the non-standard RAID types that many RAID controllers are capable of supporting. Apple’s Disk Utility can use one of the popular JBOD types, concatenation, to combine multiple hard drives into one larger virtual disk.
RAID 1: Mirroring Hard Drives
RAID 1 is one of the many RAID levels supported directly by OS X and the Mac. RAID 1 creates a mirror (an exact copy) of the data on a hard drive onto one or more additional disks. RAID 1 requires a minimum of two disks; additional disks in a RAID 1 set increase overall reliability by the power of the number of disks in the RAID 1 set.
eSATA
eSATA: External SATA, a special cable and connector used when SATA (Serial Advanced Technology Attachment) devices are housed in external enclosures.
XML
XML (eXtensible Markup Language), like HTML, is a language used to design and format web pages. XML, a subset of SGML (Standard Generalized Markup Language), offers more flexible formatting options than HTML does.
Worm
A worm is a form of malware, or malicious software. A worm is similar to a virus, but unlike a virus, it doesn't need any help from humans to spread. It can spread from computer to computer on its own volition.
Virus
A virus is a software program, usually designed to cause harm, that is installed and run without your knowledge.
Trojan Horse
A Trojan horse is a program, usually malicious, that attempts to trick you into installing it by pretending to be something else. If it's successful, the Trojan can then carry out whatever task it was designed to do, such as provide unauthorized access to, and control of, your computer.
Restore
In terms of computers and backup software, a restore is the process of recovering data from a backup, either manually or using backup software.
Optical Media
Optical media is a generic term that refers to any type of data storage media that uses light, usually in the form of a laser, to read and/or write data.
Relational Database
Desktop databases come in two basic types, relational and flat file. A relational database is made up of multiple tables. Each table contains sets of information that relates to other tables. A relational database allows you to use and edit a table independently of other tables in the database.
Software
Software includes any program that can be stored and used on a computer. The term usually refers to both applications and operating systems.
Malware
Malware, or malicious software, is any type of software that is designed to cause damage, disrupt activities, provide unauthorized access to a computer or network, or collect data about you without your knowledge.