Advancing Storage and Information Technology
 
 

Online SNIA Dictionary

A glossary of storage networking, data, and information management terminology. To learn more about the SNIA Dictionary click here.

Select from the alphabetical list, search for terms and/or filter by context.

Zbit [Permalink]

[General] 

Shorthand for Zettabit.

ZBZByte [Permalink]

[General] 

Shorthand for Zettabyte.

Zebibit (Zibit) [Permalink]

[General] 

Shorthand for 1,180,591,620,717,411,303,424 (270) bits.

Binary notation is most commonly used for semiconductor memory sizes.

See also Zettabit.

Zebibyte (ZiB) [Permalink]

[General] 

Shorthand for 1,180,591,620,717,411,303,424 (270) bytes.

Binary notation is most commonly used for semiconductor memory sizes.

See also Zettabyte.

zero filling [Permalink]

[Data Security] 

The process of filling unused storage locations in an information system with the representation of the character denoting "0".

zero-day event [Permalink]

[Data Security] 

First release of malware exploiting a previously undisclosed vulnerability.

zeroing [Permalink]

[File System] 

The process of writing zeroes (0x00) to all the bytes in a block or an entire disk before delivering it for use, or upon its release from use.

Zeroing renders any data formerly stored on the block or device inaccessible except by forensic means such as magnetic force microscopy and other techniques that physically scan the storage media.

zeroization [Permalink]

[Data Security] 

The process of removing or eliminating keys from a cryptographic program or device to prevent their use in the event of capture.

The term stems from the original practice of overwriting the keys with zeroes; arbitrary bit patterns unrelated to the keys themselves are also sometimes used.

Zettabit (Zbit) [Permalink]

[General] 

Shorthand for 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 (1021) bits.

The SNIA uses the base 10 convention commonly found in I/O-related and scientific literature rather than the base 2 convention (1,180,591,620,717,411,303,424, i.e., 270) common in computer system and software literature.

See also Zebibit.

Zettabyte (ZB) [Permalink]

[General] 

Shorthand for 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 (1021) bytes.

The SNIA uses the base 10 convention commonly found in I/O-related and scientific literature rather than the base 2 convention (1,180,591,620,717,411,303,424, i.e., 270) common in computer system and software literature.

See also Zebibyte.

Zibit [Permalink]

[General] 

Shorthand for Zebibit.

ZiBZiByte [Permalink]

[General] 

Shorthand for Zebibyte.

zone [Permalink]

A collection of Fibre Channel N-Ports and/or NL-Ports (i.e., device ports) that are permitted to communicate with each other via the fabric.

Any two N-Ports and/or NL-Ports that are not members of at least one common zone are not permitted to communicate via the fabric. Zone membership may be specified by: 1) port location on a switch, (i.e., Domain-ID and port number); or, 2) the device's N-Port-Name; or, 3) the device's address identifier; or, 4) the device's Node_Name. Well-known addresses are implicitly included in every zone.

zone set [Permalink]

A set of zone definitions for a fabric.

Zones in a zone set may overlap (i.e., a port may be a member of more than one zone). Fabric management may support switching between zone sets to enforce different access restrictions (e.g., at different times of day).

zoning [Permalink]

A method of subdividing a storage area network into disjoint zones, or subsets of nodes on the network.

Storage area network nodes outside a zone–except those with well-known addresses–are invisible to nodes within the zone. Moreover, with switched SANs, traffic within each zone may be physically isolated from traffic outside the zone.