PhilNITS FE key terms

The operating system function that decides which ready process or thread receives processor time next, aiming to balance response time, throughput, and fairness among competing tasks.

A preemptive scheduling method that gives each ready process a fixed time slice in rotation, so no single task monopolizes the processor and interactive response stays reasonably even.

A situation where two or more processes each hold a resource and wait forever for a resource held by another, so none can proceed without external intervention.

A synchronization variable with an integer value and atomic wait and signal operations, used to control access to shared resources or to coordinate the ordering of concurrent processes.

A fault in concurrent software where the result depends on the unpredictable timing of interleaved accesses to shared data, producing intermittent and hard-to-reproduce errors.

A technique that gives each process an address space larger than physical memory, using page tables and disk backing to translate virtual addresses into real ones on demand.

A memory management scheme dividing logical and physical memory into equal fixed-size blocks called pages and frames, eliminating external fragmentation at the cost of page-table overhead.

A small, fast memory between the processor and main memory that holds recently used data and instructions, exploiting locality of reference to reduce average access time.

The stepwise design process of organizing tables and keys to remove redundancy and update anomalies, typically progressing through first, second, and third normal forms.

A column or minimal set of columns whose values uniquely identify each row of a table and which may not contain null values.

An operation combining rows from two or more tables based on a related column, typically a foreign key, with inner, outer, and cross variants producing different result sets.

Four guarantees for reliable transactions: atomicity, consistency, isolation, and durability, ensuring that partial or conflicting updates never leave the database in an invalid state.

A distributed transaction protocol with a prepare phase and a commit phase, coordinated by one node, ensuring all participating sites either commit together or abort together.

The layered protocol suite underlying the Internet, combining the connection-oriented, reliable Transmission Control Protocol with the addressing and routing Internet Protocol.

A 32-bit pattern that separates the network portion of an IPv4 address from the host portion, letting devices decide whether a destination is local or must be routed.

The distributed hierarchical naming system that resolves human-readable domain names into IP addresses through recursive and authoritative name servers.

A stateless request-response application protocol in which a client sends methods such as GET or POST to a server, which returns a status code and content.

An encryption scheme using a mathematically related key pair, where the public key encrypts or verifies and the private key decrypts or signs, removing the need to share secrets.

A value computed from a message with a sender's private key, allowing any recipient to verify both the origin and the integrity of the data using the matching public key.

A one-way computation mapping arbitrary input to a fixed-length digest, designed so that small input changes alter the output and finding collisions is impractical.

A search algorithm on sorted data that repeatedly halves the interval by comparing the target with the middle element, running in logarithmic time.

The study of how the time and memory an algorithm needs grow with input size, usually expressed with big-O notation for the worst case.

Two abstract data structures: a stack inserts and removes at one end in last-in-first-out order, while a queue removes at the opposite end in first-in-first-out order.

A structural modeling diagram showing classes, their attributes and operations, and relationships such as association, inheritance, aggregation, and composition with their multiplicities.

A behavioral UML diagram depicting actors outside the system and the use cases they perform, clarifying functional scope and the boundary of the system under design.

A sequential software development process moving through requirements, design, implementation, testing, and maintenance in fixed order, with each phase largely completed before the next begins.

An iterative, incremental approach that delivers working software in short cycles, welcomes changing requirements, and relies on close collaboration with customers and self-organizing teams.

A named, reusable solution to a recurring software design problem, described by its intent, structure, and consequences rather than by concrete code.

A strategic planning framework that maps internal strengths and weaknesses against external opportunities and threats, helping a firm match its capabilities to its environment.

An industry analysis model assessing competitive intensity through rivalry among existing firms, threat of new entrants, threat of substitutes, and bargaining power of buyers and suppliers.

A model dividing a firm's activities into primary and support processes, used to identify where cost or differentiation advantage can be created for customers.

A performance management framework that measures a company across financial, customer, internal process, and learning perspectives, linking day-to-day work to long-term strategy.

A key performance indicator: a quantified measure chosen to track progress toward a specific business objective, ideally specific, measurable, and tied to accountable owners.

Return on investment, calculated as net benefit divided by cost and usually expressed as a percentage, used to compare the attractiveness of competing projects or investments.

Net present value: the sum of a project's future cash flows discounted to today at a chosen rate, minus the initial investment; a positive value suggests the project adds value.

A widely adopted framework of best practices for IT service management, organized around service strategy, design, transition, operation, and continual improvement.

A service level agreement: a formal contract between a provider and a customer defining measurable service targets such as availability, response time, and remedies for shortfalls.

The IT service management process that restores normal service operation as quickly as possible after a disruption, while minimizing business impact and recording the event for later problem analysis.

A document formally authorizing a project, naming the project manager, and stating objectives, scope, key stakeholders, and high-level constraints before detailed planning starts.

A work breakdown structure: a hierarchical decomposition of project scope into manageable deliverables and work packages, forming the basis for estimating cost, schedule, and responsibility.

A scheduling technique that identifies the longest chain of dependent tasks in a project network, whose total duration sets the shortest possible completion time.

A project control technique comparing planned value, earned value, and actual cost to measure schedule and cost performance and forecast the final budget outcome.