Users Guide

Glossary 187
Glossary
The following list defines technical terms, abbreviations, and acronyms used
in your system documents.
attribute
As it relates to an attribute is a piece of information related to a component.
Attributes can be combined to form groups. If an attribute is defined as read-write,
it may be defined by a management application.
beep code
A diagnostic message in the form of a pattern of beeps from your system's speaker.
For example, one beep, followed by a second beep, and then a burst of three beeps
is beep code 1-1-3.
BIOS
Acronym for basic input/output system. Your system'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
BMC
Abbreviation for baseboard management controller, which is a controller that
provides the intelligence in the IPMI structure.
boot routine
When you start your system, 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 system by pressing <Ctrl><Alt><Del>;
otherwise, you must perform a cold boot by pressing the reset button or by turning
the system off and then back on.
bootable diskette
You can start your system 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 system will not boot from the hard drive.