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194 Glossary
backup
A copy of a program or data file. As a precaution, you
should back up your computer's hard drive on a regular
basis. Before making a change to the configuration of
your computer, you should back up important start-up
files from your operating system.
baud rate
A measurement of data transmission speed. For
example, modems are designed to transmit data at one
or more specified baud rate(s) through the COM (serial)
port of a computer.
BGA
Abbreviation for Ball Grid Array, an IC package that
uses an array of solder balls, instead of pins, to connect
to a PC board.
binary
A base-2 numbering system that uses 0 and 1 to
represent information. The computer performs
operations based on the ordering and calculation of
these numbers.
BIOS
Acronym for basic input/output system. Your
computer's BIOS contains programs stored on a flash
memory chip. The BIOS controls the following:
• Communications between the microprocessor and
peripheral devices, such as the keyboard and the
video adapter
• Miscellaneous functions, such as system messages
bit
The smallest unit of information interpreted by your
computer.
BMC
Abbreviation for baseboard management controller,
which is a controller that provides the intelligence in
the IPMI structure.
boot routine
When you start your computer, it clears all memory,
initializes devices, and loads the operating system.
Unless the operating system fails to respond, you can
reboot (also called
warm boot
) your computer by
pressing <Ctrl><Alt><Del>; otherwise, you must
perform a cold boot by pressing the reset button or by
turning the computer off and then back on.
bootable diskette
You can start your computer from a diskette. To make
a bootable diskette, insert a diskette in the diskette
drive, type
sys a:
at the command line prompt, and
press <Enter>. Use this bootable diskette if your
computer does not boot from the hard drive.
bpi
Abbreviation for bits per inch.
bps
Abbreviation for bits per second.
BTU
Abbreviation for British thermal unit.
bus
An information pathway between the components of a
computer. Your computer contains an expansion bus
that allows the microprocessor to communicate with
controllers for all the various peripheral devices
connected to the computer. Your computer also
contains an address bus and a data bus for
communications between the microprocessor and RAM.
byte
Eight contiguous bits of information, the basic data
unit used by your computer.
C
Abbreviation for Celsius.
CA
Abbreviation for certificate authority.