Glossary

This glossary provides terms and definitions for the Sametime® software and products.

For other terms and definitions, see the IBM® Terminology website (opens in new window).

A

ad hoc conference

A call that was not arranged or scheduled in advance.

application sharing

A method of collaboration where a meeting participant shares a portion of his or her computer screen with other meeting participants. The region of the screen being shared is either a specific application, a region bounded by a resizable frame, or the entire desktop.

C

call intercept

A feature that prevents a call from being answered under certain conditions; for example, when the caller's phone number is invalid or unrecognized.

call merging

A feature that allows a user who is on a call to accept a second call and merge it into the first, converting the two separate calls into a multi-person conference.

cell

A group of WebSphere® Application Server nodes in a single administrative domain that is controlled by a deployment manager application.

chat transcript

A file that contains a copy of the typed messages between participants in a chat meeting.

clearinghouse

A central registry that connects users from multiple instant messaging communities.

click-to-conference

A feature that allows a user to select two or more contacts and then call them at the same time, initiating an audio conference.

cluster

A group of application servers that collaborate for the purposes of workload balancing and failover.

codec

A technology that compresses and decompresses data for the purpose of reducing the bandwidth required to send streaming data.

community

A group of users whose accounts are stored in the same user registry.

configuration profile

A WebSphere Application Server container for runtime configurations that administer a particular set of services; for example, the deployment manager configuration profile administers a cell.

D

demilitarized zone (DMZ)

A configuration that includes multiple firewalls to add layers of protection between a corporate intranet and a public network, such as the Internet.

deployment manager

A WebSphere Application Server configuration profile that manages the nodes and clusters within a cell.

dial plan

The set of dial strings (phone numbers), routes (connections), and rules (conditions) that enable one user to place a call (using a telephone or softphone) to another user.

dial string

A numbering scheme that establishes the format (expected number and pattern of characters) for a telephone number. The dial string specifies how to interpret character sequences dialed by the user, and how to convert those sequences into a telephone number for an outbound call.

display name

The name that an anonymous user (one who is not logged in and has not been authenticated) provides for display in the participants list of a chat or meeting.

DMZ

See demilitarized zone.

document sharing

A method of collaboration that allows all participants in an online meeting to view documents simultaneously.

drag-and-drop conference

A feature that allows a user to drag a name from the contacts list and drop it into an existing two-way call, converting the call into a multi-person conference.

E

eager zero

The process of filling an entire new disk block with zeroes prior to writing any data. The "eager zero" approach requires a longer setup time but improves runtime performance. See also lazy zero.

F

federation

The process by which a node agent application is created on a WebSphere Application Server node and then registered with the deployment manager for a particular cell. A federated node is always administered through its deployment manager.

frame rate

The frequency with which video frames are displayed on a monitor, measured in frames per second.

FULL ICE mode

The ICE mode in which the TURN Server considers all possible candidates, including those computers hosted behind a network address translator or a firewall, when gathering possible connection pairs for data transmission. FULL ICE mode is the default method by which clients access other clients.

H

home Sametime Community Server

The home Sametime Community Server is the server name that is entered in the Sametime server field in a user's Person document. A user's home Sametime Community Server saves the user's preferences and data. Each user connects to the home server for online presence (or awareness) and chat functionality.

I

ICE

See Interactive Connectivity Establishment.

instant share

A feature that enables a user to share all or part of the screen directly from a chat without having to open a meeting room.

Interactive Connectivity Establishment (ICE)

The method used by two clients to determine the best path for exchanging audio and video data through the TURN Server during a call. The ICE methodology is based on the STUN and TURN protocols.

K

keystore

In security, a file or a hardware cryptographic card where identities and private keys are stored, for authentication and encryption purposes. Some keystores also contain trusted or public keys. See also keytool.

keytool

A utility used for creating SSL encryption keys and managing the keystores where they are maintained. See also keystore.

L

lazy zero

The process of filling only the currently required section of a new disk block with zeroes prior to writing data. The "lazy zero" approach does not require any additional setup time, but results in slower runtime performance. See also eager zero.

LITE ICE mode

The ICE mode in which the TURN Server considers only candidates from a specific IP address when gathering possible connection pairs for data transmission.

M

MCU

See multipoint control unit.

meeting room center

A feature that provides information about stored meeting rooms, such as owners, managers, room settings, and usage statistics.

mixer

See multipoint control unit.

multipoint control unit (MCU)

A device that connects callers to an audio or video conference.

N

NAT

See Network Address Translator.

Network Address Translator (NAT)

A network protocol that allows multiple computers to connect to the Internet from what the public sees as the same source IP address, even though each computer has its own IP address behind the NAT.

node agent

An administrative agent that manages all application servers on a node and represents the node in the management cell.

O

offboard

Pertaining to a chip or other hardware component that is physically separate from, or not installed on, a computer. For example, a memory card is offboard memory for a computer.

onboard

Pertaining to a component that is physically attached to, or installed on, a computer. For example, a computer's internal storage disk is onboard memory.

online meeting center

The database template that users access to reserve online meetings or to attend online meetings.

P

park slot

A phone number that is reserved in a dial plan for storing or "parking" calls that are put on hold.

passcode

A numeric string used as a password.

PBX

See private branch exchange.

poll

A feature that allows a meeting moderator to send a question to the meeting participants. The moderator can view the results of the poll and show the results to everyone else in the meeting.

polling

A feature that allows the meeting moderator to send a question to the meeting participants. The moderator can view the results of the poll and show the results to everyone else in the meeting.

private branch exchange (PBX)

A switching system located on a customer's premises that consolidates the number of inside lines (extensions) into a smaller number of outside lines (trunks). Many PBXs also provide advanced voice and data communications features.

PSTN

See public switched telephone network.

public switched telephone network (PSTN)

The traditional international telephone system based on copper wires carrying analog voice data.

Q

QoS

See quality of service.

quality of service (QoS)

Any operation that allows traffic priorities to be designated. Through quality of service, different traffic throughout a network can be classified and administered.

R

Real-Time Streaming Protocol (RTSP)

A set of rules for establishing media sessions and providing display controls such as pause, fast forward, and reverse.

Real-Time Transport Protocol (RTP)

A protocol that provides end-to-end network transport functions suitable for applications transmitting real-time data, such as audio, video or simulation data, over multicast or unicast network services.

recorded meeting

A file containing the stored audio and video transcript of a meeting, which users can access later to see and hear the meeting.

reverse proxy server

An application that intercepts communications from clients and verifies that the data satisfies security requirements before passing it on to the Community Server.

RTP

See Real-Time Transport Protocol.

RTSP

See Real-Time Streaming Protocol.

S

SAN

See storage area network.

SDP

See Session Description Protocol.

secure chat

A chat that is encrypted. See also secure meeting.

secure meeting

An online meeting that is encrypted. See also secure chat.

Secure Real-Time Transport Protocol (SRTP)

An encrypted version of the RTP packet format used for delivering audio and video data securely over the Internet.

Secure Sockets Layer (SSL)

A security protocol that provides communication privacy. With SSL, client/server applications can communicate in a way that is designed to prevent eavesdropping, tampering, and message forgery.

server farm

A group of networked servers.

Session Description Protocol (SDP)

A set of rules that define the characteristics of the media streams that will be exchanged in an audio or video session.

Session Traversal Utilities for NAT

A protocol that generates a public address for a client that is hosted behind a network address translator (NAT) or a firewall, enabling the client to receive data from clients outside the NAT or firewall.

single sign-on (SSO)

An authentication process in which a user can access more than one system or application by entering a single user ID and password.

SIP-based calling

An advanced form of Voice over IP calling that supports conferencing (multiple people can speak) and multicast sessions (one person speaks, many listen) in addition to traditional two-party phone calls.

SIP URI

An address that is formatted like an email address but directs a SIP-based call to a particular computer's softphone or to a video-conferencing device.

softphone

A software program that enables Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) calls on a computer.

SRTP

See Secure Real-Time Transport Protocol.

SSL

See Secure Sockets Layer.

SSO

See single sign-on.

storage area network (SAN)

A dedicated storage network tailored to a specific environment, combining servers, systems, storage products, networking products, software, and services.

T

TCSPI

See Telephony Control Service Provider Interface.

telephony

The hardware and software technology that supports computer-based phone calls.

Telephony Control Service Provider Interface (TCSPI)

A public interface for integrating telephony services from multiple vendors.

thick disk

A provisioning format that requires an application to reserve a finite amount of data-storage space before attempting to save any information.

thin disk

A provisioning format that allows an application to dynamically request data-storage space only when it is attempting to save information.

TLS

See Transport Layer Security.

Transport Layer Security (TLS)

A set of encryption rules that uses verified certificates and encryption keys to secure communications over the Internet. TLS is an update to the SSL protocol.

Traversal Using Relay around NAT (TURN)

A protocol that allows a computer that resides behind a network address translator or a firewall to receive incoming data over TCP or UDP connections.

TURN

See Traversal Using Relay around NAT.

V

Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP)

A set of rules for routing two-way voice conversations over an IP-based network such as the Internet.

VoIP

See Voice over Internet Protocol.