Glossary

accessibility

A factor in user interface design that seeks to provide equal access to computer software for everyone, including people with cognitive, hearing, physical, or visual disabilities.

ACID transaction

A sequence of operations that acts as a single logical unit of work. To be qualified as an ACID transaction, a transaction must have these four ACID properties: atomicity, consistency, isolation, and durability.

ActiveX

A set of technologies from Microsoft that provides tools for linking desktop applications to the World Wide Web. ActiveX is closely related to COM.

See also [COM]

actors

A representation of the role played by a person, thing, or software client that interacts with a system. In use case diagrams, actors are represented as stick-people figures.

archiving

Saving data by moving it out of the production stream and into offline storage.

assistive technology products

Specially designed products chosen specifically to accommodate users' disabilities.

associative entity

An entity needed to tie multiple kernel entities together.

asynchronous

A pattern in which one code flow can initiate a separate process that runs independently, without requiring the calling process to wait for its completion.

attribute

A characteristic that identifies an entity, resolves a relationship with another entity, or describes something about the entity.

auditing

The process of logging events that occur in a system; these events are of interest for security or application health reasons.

See also [logging]

authentication

The process of discovering and verifying the identity of a user by examining the user's credentials against some authority.

authorization

The process of determining whether a user is allowed to perform a requested action. Authorization occurs after authentication and uses information about the user's identity to determine the resources a user can access.

availability

The measure of the amount of time a system or component performs its specified function.

BCP (Bulk Copy Utility)

A command-prompt utility that copies SQL Server data to or from an operating system file in a user-specified format.

best practices

A phrase that defines common, industrywide recognition of the best way of doing something. The term implies common acceptance or a "seal of approval," albeit informally.

BizTalk Server

A Microsoft product for business-process automation and application integration within and between businesses. BizTalk Server 2000 provides a powerful Web-based development and execution environment that integrates loosely coupled, long-running business processes.

business data

Any information that an organization needs to function.

Business Logic Layer (BLL)

The middle tier of an n-tier application. The BLL typically houses the business rules and logic that drive the application.

See also [n-tier design]

business process

A set of work activities designed to produce a specific output for a particular customer or market.

business process analysis

An aid in understanding the way a business unit fulfills its mission.

business process reengineering

The process of studying current business practices and procedures to find methods for improving them.

business requirements

A description of the business purposes for developing a new software solution or enhancing an existing one.

Cab Project

A type of setup project commonly used with the deployment of ActiveX controls. Stores all code in one file, similar to a .zip file.

caching

The process of storing frequently used documents, images, Common Gateway Interface (CGI) or Active Server Pages (ASP) scripts, and Internet Server API (ISAPI) extension dynamic link libraries (DLLs) in memory to improve performance.

camel case

A coding standard that recommends capitalizing the first letter of every word except the first word (for example, returnOnInvestment).

See also [Pascal case]

cardinality

The number of instances of one entity that can or must be associated with each instance of another entity. For example, there can be "from 0 to many" instances of entity B associated with entity A.

change management

The process of getting all parties to approve changes to the scope and feature list that had been agreed on when the schedule and budget were first submitted. The goal is to avoid unintentional or unacknowledged scope changes.

characteristic entity

An entity that provides additional information for a respective kernel or an associative entity.

CHTML (Compact HTML)

A coding language used to format Web content for phones.

clustered Index

An index in which the logical order of the key values determines the physical order of the corresponding rows in a table.

See also [non-clustered index]

coexistence

The capability of pieces of the old system to be used while the new system is implemented.

COM (Component Object Model)

Microsoft's framework for supporting components that follow a binary interface standard.

COM Interop

A feature of the .NET Framework that allows .NET objects to interact with COM objects and vice versa.

Common Language Runtime

The engine at the core of .NET managed code execution. The Common Language Runtime supplies managed code with services such as cross-language integration, code access security, object lifetime management, and debugging and profiling support.

COMTI (COM Transaction Integrator)

Microsoft middleware that uses SNA Server (or Host Integration Server) for interacting between COM and IBM CICS transactions (mainframe).

conceptual design model

A model of the objects in a system and their interrelationships.

concurrency

Two or more people attempt to update the same data (same record), and at least one of the user's updates would be lost or overwritten. Caused when two (or more) users get a cached copy of a data record, and it goes out of date after the first user makes a change to the database. This creates a situation in which the second user's changes, if allowed, could overwrite the first user's changes.

constraint

A rule applied against data to reduce errors and improve integrity.

context diagram

Part of a data flow diagram that shows the system boundaries, the external entities that interact with the system, and the major information flows between external entities and the system.

critical success factors

Information needs and systems that are critical for business continuity.

CRM (Customer Relationship Management)

Generally refers to a program that provides integrated functionality for marketing, sales, customer support, and call center requirements.

Data Access Layer (DAL)

The back-end tier of an n-tier application. The DAL typically houses the data stores (database) and the code used to access the data stores.

See also [n-tier design]

data flow

Movement of data through a system.

data flow diagram

A way of representing a solution graphically by using a standard notation. Also known as a "DFD."

data migration

The process of translating data from one platform to another.

data modeling

The process of identifying, documenting, and implementing the data requirements for your application.

data protection

The process of providing data confidentiality and integrity.

data store

Any non-volatile repository for the storage of data.

data tampering

The deliberate destruction or manipulation of data.

data type

The coding scheme recognized by system software for representing organizational data.

database session

An ASP.NET mode that maintains session state in the database, usually for the benefit of Web farms that manage user state.

deliverable

As used throughout this book, a deliverable is the tangible output of a process or step within a project. For example, a deliverable of the design stage is usually a Word document, PowerPoint file, or database schema.

denial of service

A form of sabotage that makes applications unavailable to authorized users.

denormalization

Planned redundancy in the database schema (design) for the purpose of eliminating overhead and improving performance.

dependency

A circumstance in which one entity can't exist or has little meaning without at least one other entity in the database.

deployment

The process of distributing an application to internal and/or external users.

design pattern

A solution to a common design problem that becomes well known in the industry. Design patterns mitigate risk in code design, as they use proven solutions versus new, untested designs.

DMZ (demilitarized zone)

This term is used in complex multiple machine firewall setups, in which a computer is placed outside the firewall, but is still available for the internal (protected) network's use. The advantage of a DMZ computer is that it can use and receive data from the entire Internet; the disadvantage is that it might be vulnerable to attack from unknown parties.

DTS (Data Transformation Services)

SQL Server 2000 DTS is a set of graphical tools and programmable objects for extracting, transforming, and consolidating data from disparate sources into single or multiple destinations.

EAI (Enterprise Application Integration)

The plans, methods, and tools aimed at modernizing, consolidating, and coordinating computer applications in an enterprise.

education plan

A plan for teaching users about the new system.

encryption

Encoding data so that it cannot be breached (read or altered without being detected) while being transported across communication channels.

Enterprise Services

The name .NET gives to COM+ services made available as part of the .NET Framework.

Enterprise Templates

A feature of the Visual Studio .NET IDE that enables advanced developers to modify the .NET Integrated Development Environment (IDE), making less skilled programmers more productive. It basically covers three areas: adding to the environment to speed development, removing complex or distracting items from the IDE, and providing customized Help aimed at the developer.

entity

The basic division of data. In a logical design, entities are representative of tables in the physical database. Entities typically represent a person, place, object, event, or concept in the real world.

ER Model (Entity Relationship Model)

A graphical modeling format for displaying data objects and their relationships. Diagrams created with this modeling format are called "ER diagrams."

error handling

Techniques and code designed to respond gracefully to unexpected errors when they occur in a program.

extensibility

The degree to which an application can be enhanced in the future to meet changing requirements or goals.

external dependency

A tangible factor or event that is outside the project's direct control but that has a direct bearing on whether the project can be completed successfully.

external entity

When part of a data flow diagram, an external entity represents sources of data to the system or destinations of data from the system.

federated databases

SQL Server's capability to partition data into multiple instances running on different physical machines.

firewall

The software or hardware that protects any networked server from damage caused by users with malicious intent.

foreign key

An attribute used to tie or relate one entity to the primary key of another entity for the purpose of creating a dependency.

See also [dependency]

See also [primary key]

functional specifications

A document that states clearly, and in detail, what the new solution should be expected to do.

GAC (Global Assembly Cache)

A machinewide code cache that stores assemblies specifically installed to be shared by many applications on the computer. Applications deployed in the GAC must have a strong name.

See also [strong name]

gap analysis

The process of identifying and enumerating the differences between the current software supporting a business ("as is") and the desired software ("to be").

globalization

The process of designing and developing a software product that serves multiple cultures and locales, using their native languages, currency conventions, numeric conventions, time formatting, and date formatting.

GUI (graphical user interface)

The part of the application that interacts with the user, usually through a screen, keyboard, and/or mouse. Contains all the visual aspects of the application.

GXA (Microsoft Global XML Architecture)

An umbrella term for Microsoft's framework for building reliable, secure protocols for Web Services and applications. Encompasses the work around WS-Security, WS-Routing, and the WS-I organization.

horizontal market

A market that meets the needs for a broad spectrum of industries. For example, the production of computer hardware is a horizontal market.

See also [vertical market]

horizontal partitioning

A partitioning method that divides a database table based on rows.

See also [vertical partitioning]

identifier

An attribute that defines one unique element of an entity, similar to a primary key or clustered index.

Index Tuning Wizard

A SQL Server wizard that makes index specification recommendations from trace data.

integration

Implementing a means of communication between two applications or systems.

internal dependency

Any relationship between two or more activities that could have an impact on scheduling or completing these activities.

Interop

See [COM Interop]

IPSec (Internet Protocol Security)

A protocol for securing data communications during TCP/IP communications.

kernel entity

An entity that exists on its own; it doesn't define or provide descriptive information for other entities.

latency

The delay that occurs while data is processed or transmitted.

level-0 diagram

Part of a data flow diagram, this diagram shows a system's major processes, data flows, and data stores at a very high level of detail.

local area network (LAN)

A network, typically within a single building or campus, that resides behind a firewall, supposedly in a secure setting.

localization

The process of making a software product culturally appropriate for use in a different country/language. This should be done in a way that allows an application's code to be reused, independent of the user's language.

logging

The act of recording useful information, for purposes of security or troubleshooting, in a persistent data store, usually a text file, the Windows event log, or a database table.

See also [auditing]

maintainability

The measure of how easy it is to troubleshoot and/or repair an application after it is put into production.

Merge Module Project

A reusable deployment project that is included in Windows setup projects that produce Windows Installer (.msi) files.

Microsoft DirectX

A suite of APIs that enable you to develop extremely rich, multimedia-style graphics, video, 3D animation, and surround sound. Mostly used in games and kiosk applications.

MOM (Microsoft Operations Manager)

A Microsoft product that provides remote system and event monitoring as well as centralized event gathering and reporting. MOM has the capability to consume virtually any management interface, counter, or event to provide automatic triggered actions to promote a healthy system state.

MSF (Microsoft Solution Framework)

Microsoft's methodology, or approach, to solution design, construction, and deployment. It provides suggested processes and best practices for the entire project life cycle.

.msi file

A file created by .NET's deployment project that conforms to the Microsoft Windows Installer running on Windows client machines. .msi files are self-contained packages that hold the actual files making up the application as well as ordered instructions for the installation and any environmental setup tasks (such as Windows Registry entries).

needs assessment

A process that involves outlining accessibility requirements from the perspectives of employees, the organization's processes, and current technology.

.NET Remoting

See [Remoting]

Network Address Translation (NAT)

The process of hiding address information during TCP/IP communications.

non-clustered index

An index in which the logical order of the index is different from the physical, stored order of the rows on disk.

See also [clustered Index]

normal forms

See [normalization]

normalization

A set of rules to establish a system's data elements with the most efficient use of storage and the least amount of redundancy.

No-Touch Deployment

A feature used for deployment of .NET Windows Forms through the Internet, where no registration is required.

n-tier design

An industry term that basically defines all architectures larger than two-tier. An n-tier architecture commonly has a User Services Layer, a Business Services Layer, and a Data Services Layer, sometimes breaking these layers down even further.

OLE DB

An industry-standard initiative that integrates diverse data sources.

ORM (Object Role Modeling)

A conceptual modeling approach that pictures a system design as a set of objects that define roles and are based on known facts. ORM uses English-like statements that are fed into a Visio 2002 add-in to produce a database schema. Although ORM has been around for some time, it has only recently been embraced by the Visual Studio developer tools.

ORM facts

The known data about the system expressed in short English phrases.

Pascal case

A coding standard that recommends capitalizing the first letter of every word (for example, ReturnOnInvestment).

See also [camel case]

performance requirements

Requirement measurements that generally revolve around having acceptable response time.

persona

A fictional user profile created as an aid in user interface design. Using a persona enables the team to design based on a specific, yet typical, user of the solution.

policy

A policy defines the runtime rules governing communication and service behavior.

primary key

An attribute or a set of attributes whose values uniquely identify the rows in an entity.

See also [foreign key]

project dependency

An external service, library, or component that is referenced by the .NET project's configuration information. It could be another .NET assembly, a COM component, or any file required by a .NET project to run.

See also [dependency]

project sponsor

The initiator of a systems development project. This person usually has a major financial stake in the project and is responsible for the budget.

purging

The process of removing obsolete data.

QA (quality assurance) test

Usually, the final test before a product goes out to the user community.

RDBMS (relational database management system)

A system, such as SQL Server, that organizes data into related rows and columns.

relationship

The connection between two entities.

reliability

The capability of a component or service to perform its required function and be free from failure at a stated instant or over a stated period of time.

remote access user

A user who gains access to the network through remote access modems.

Remoting

A technology that can use binary serialization, SOAP serialization, or custom serialization to transfer objects between two .NET objects. Remoting works on top of either TCP or HTTP.

response time

The amount of time a user waits for a result after requesting an action.

rich-client application

A type of client/server software solution or service containing elements of both thick and thin client technology.

ring constraint

A rule put in place to either mandate or prevent cyclical situations.

risk

Anything that has the potential to block you from achieving a goal (or goals) you have set.

risk mitigation

A plan or strategy to eliminate or reduce the effect of a risk on the project's overall success.

ROI (return on investment)

The monetary benefits gained by implementing a solution (over its expected lifetime) divided by the costs of a solution (again, over its expected lifetime). The higher the ROI, the better the business case for going forward. In equation form, ROI looks like this:

benefits ÷ cost = ROI

RPC (Remote Procedure Call)

A call from a thread of one process (the client) to a thread of another process (the server) existing in a different address space, usually on another networked machine.

sandbox

A protected, limited area in computer memory where applications are allowed to run without risking damage to the system hosting them.

satellite assembly

A resource file used in globalization to deploy a resource file for each locale.

scalability

The capability to achieve an increase in system capacity by seamlessly upgrading additional hardware and software resources.

scaling out

Achieving scalability by using many machines to essentially work as one machine.

scaling up

Achieving scalability by using faster, better, or more expensive hardware.

scope

The reach or design objectives of a solution. When something is "in scope," it is expected to be included in the final delivered product.

screen scraping

An architecture that reads and/or writes to a hidden screen (user interface), either a mainframe character-based screen or a browser-based Web page, and then presents the information to the user in a different format or structure. Screen-scraping takes advantage of any existing logic behind the GUI being scraped and often eliminates the need to rewrite that functionality into the new solution. Screen scraping often includes code-driven navigation between screens being scraped.

sealing

Ensuring that something cannot be read without appropriate keys to unlock the encoding.

set-comparison constraints

A rule that specifies a subset, an equality, or an exclusion.

signing

Attaching a digital signature by using a certificate for the purposes of certifying that a particular file originates from a known source and that the file has not been tampered with during transit.

SMS Provider (System Management Service Provider)

A site system role that processes requests for data from the SMS site database. The SMS Provider can be installed only on a primary site server or the site database server. The goal is to install software in an unattended mode on multiple machines within a network.

SNMP (Simple Network Management Protocol)

A protocol designed for requesting, packaging, and sending management information over a network. SNMP provides a common set of rules for programmers writing network management programs.

SSL (Secure Sockets Layer)

A security protocol that ensures communications privacy over the Internet. The protocol allows client/server applications to communicate in a manner designed to prevent eavesdropping, tampering, or message forgery.

stakeholder

Anyone with an investment, usually monetary, in the project's success.

standalone user

A user who is not connected to a local area network (LAN).

state management

The concept of holding information specific to a particular user or application. Pieces of information such as a user's ID, an insurance claim number, a shopping cart's contents, or anything persisted in memory between method calls can be considered "state."

sticky session

A term applied to Web sessions that cannot be load-balanced between calls to the server. The requesting client must be sent to the same server machine on each request, for the duration of the session, to maintain session state. This somewhat limits the architecture's scalability and dynamic load-balancing options.

strong name

A name consisting of an assembly's identityits simple text name, version number, and culture information (if provided)that is strengthened by a public key and a digital signature generated for the assembly.

structured exception handling

Exception handling through the use of the Try-Catch-Finally code structure.

subtype constraint

A rule that establishes separate classes of entities under the same type.

support plan

The maintenance and upgrade plan for an application or solution.

synchronous

A pattern in which one piece of code must run to completion before the code that called it can continue.

system feature

A service that a system provides to fulfill one or more of the user's needs.

technical specifications

Detailed metrics or measures that define the technical constraints placed on an application. A response time requirement expressed in seconds (or milliseconds) or an uptime requirement expressed in hours or a percentage would be considered technical specifications.

test plan

A plan of action for testing a system's elements before deployment.

thick-client application

Describes a type of client/server software solution that requires all users to install and maintain a unique program on their computers to participate.

thin-client application

A type of client/server software solution or service that requires users to have only a browser and an Internet connection to participate. Also called "light client" or "clientless."

TLS (Transport Layer Security)

A security technology that ensures confidential data is transported securely.

tracing

Code built into the application specifically for aiding in troubleshooting. Trace code is designed to leave a "trail" of information that enables the developer to reconstruct the application's state just before the error. Calls to the Debug object run only in debug builds, but calls to the Trace object run in both debug and release builds.

unhandled exception

An exception that has "bubbled up," failing to be caught and logged.

Unicode

A character-encoding scheme that uses two bytes to represent every character in every language; an enhancement of the ASCII character set.

uniqueness constraint

A rule that identifies one and only one entity.

universal design

The process of making software as flexible as possible so that it can accommodate a wide range of users' needs.

usage scenario

A document that captures the system requirements in the users' business context and describes usage patterns in a narrative or story format.

use case

A description of a system's behavior from a user's standpoint; this description uses actions and reactions.

use case diagram

An illustration depicting the use cases and actors for a system.

User Services Layer (USL)

The front-end tier of an n-tier application. The USL typically houses the GUI, controls, and event handlers behind those controls.

See also [GUI (graphical user interface)]

See also [n-tier design]

value constraint

A rule that establishes valid entries for an attribute in the form of specific values.

versioning

The capability to create multiple copies of the same assembly and access each copy by version information.

vertical market

A market focused on the needs of a particular industry. For example, the health care industry would consider the production of pharmaceuticals as part of its vertical market.

See also [horizontal market]

vertical partitioning

A partitioning method that divides database tables based on columns.

See also [horizontal partitioning]

ViewState property

A property that stores the current data values that exist in the controls on a Web page. ASP.NET can detect when a form is requested for the first time versus when the form is posted (sent to the server), which enables you to program accordingly.

vision/scope document

A document that describes the business value of the proposed application, summarizes the actual business requirements, reviews the project's limitations and constraints, and describes the personnel required to take the project through the design phase.

Visual SourceSafe

A Microsoft product that serves as a code repository. SourceSafe has a "check-in, check-out" system, which helps prevent developers from overwriting each other's work. The contents are also versioned so that any piece of code or document can be "rolled back" to a previous version.

VPN (virtual private network)

A network in which encryption and authentication are used to facilitate private communication among approved hosts, even though these communications take place over a public network (such as the Internet). The use of encryption and authentication prevents unauthorized hosts from accessing resources on the VPN, even if the unauthorized hosts are on the same public network as the VPN.

WAP (Wireless Application Protocol)

The standard by which information can be delivered to wireless devices, such as cellphones. The WAP protocol runs on top of TCP/IP.

WDM (Windows Driver Model)

A common set of services that enables driver developers to write device drivers that are source-code compatible across all Windows operating systems.

Windows Installer

An application built into Windows 95 and later that gives users a way to install applications built for Windows.

WMI (Windows Management Instrumentation)

This Microsoft extension to the Distributed Management Task Force's Web-Based Enterprise Management (WBEM) initiative supplies a set of interfaces for accessing components that provide management capabilities to an enterprise.

WML (Wireless Markup Language)

Provides the syntax for creating "cards," screens of data displayed on mobile devices supporting the WAP protocol.

See also [WAP (Wireless Application Protocol)]

WQL (WMI Query Language)

A dialect of Structured Query Language (SQL) with extensions to support WMI event notification and other WMI-specific features.

See also [WMI (Windows Management Instrumentation)]

WSDL (Web Services Description Language)

An XML-based contract language for describing network services offered by a server.

WS-I (Web Service-Interoperability)

A cross-industry initiative (among Microsoft, IBM, and others) to promote interoperability and security for XML Web Services.

XML (Extensible Markup Language)

A standard for transmitting data in human-readable form that supports both ASCII and Unicode characters.

XML schema

See [XSD]

XML Web Services

A programming model that provides the capability to exchange messages in a scalable, loosely coupled, and platform-neutral environment, using standard protocols such as HTTP, XML, XSD, SOAP, and WSDL.

XSD (XML Schema Definition)

A language adopted by the W3C XML Schema Working Group for use in defining schemas. Schemas are useful for enforcing structure and/or constraining the types of data that can be used validly in other XML documents. XSD refers to the fully specified and currently recommended standard for use in authoring XML schemas.