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Glossary 265
PCI
Peripheral Component Interconnect. A standard for
expansion cards developed by Intel Corporation. PCI
is a local bus that supports 32- and 64-bit data paths,
providing a high-speed data path between the
microprocessor and devices such as video, drives,
network, and so on. PCI devices are PnP-compliant.
PET
Platform event trap. A platform event is an alarm or
specified condition that originates directly from a
computer’s BIOS or hardware components such as
the microprocessor or a chip. The event occurs
independently of the OS or system management
software and hardware. The platform event trap is a
format used for communicating a platform event in
an SNMP environment.
PGA
Pin grid array. A type of socket for a computer chip.
The PGA socket has all its pins lined up in even rows,
as opposed to the SPGA socket, which has its rows
staggered.
Pipeline Processing
A method of processing in which a task is performed
in stages: the output of one stage is input to the next
stage.This method speeds up processing by allowing
several parts of multiple tasks to be run
simultaneously.
PIO
Programmed input/output. A method of moving data
between devices in a computer in which all data
passes through the microprocessor. The most recent
ATA/IDE standard specifies higher data transfer
rates, mode 3 at 11.1 MBps and mode 4 at 16.6 MBps.
A recent alternative to PIO is DMA.
Plug and Play
Often referred to as Plug-n-Play or PnP. A technology
that can automatically configure devices at start-up
to use or share certain IRQs. For this to work properly
the computer’s BIOS and OS must both support PnP,
and all devices being configured must also be PnP-
compliant. PCI devices are PnP-compliant.
PME
Power management event. An event that causes a
computer to be remotely started, such as Remote
Wake Up (WOL) or WOR.
PnP
See Plug and Play.
Port
A socket or plug on your computer that allows you to
attach an external device by connecting its cable. See
also Parallel Port and Serial Port.
POST
Power-on self-test. Diagnostic programs, loaded
automatically by the BIOS during start-up, that
perform basic tests on the major computer
components, such as RAM, the hard drives, the
keyboard, video, and so on. If there are no problems
during the POST, the computer continues the start-
up and loads the OS.
Product ID
Also referred to as Product Key. See COA.
Product Key
Also referred to as Product ID. See COA.
PS/2
Personal System/2. A mini-DIN connector on your
computer that is typically used to connect keyboard
or mouse cable connectors.
PXE
Pre-boot eXecution Environment. A standard of WfM
that allows networked computers that do not have an
OS to be configured and started remotely. PXE
benefits include:
• The client computer does not necessarily need its
own OS or even a hard drive.