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Service Support Glossary

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Please see below the list of Service Support glossary

Terms	Explanation	Description
A/E	Account Executive	Colt sales representative. Every customer has an A/E or agent assigned to them. They are the customer in contact for change requests, upgrading their services, buying new ones etc.
Access		A transmission line which uses a variety of technologies and physical media including copper lines and fibreoptic cables to deliver Colt services to customers.
AMN	Alarm Monitoring and Notification	A Customer First Initiative which looks at our current centralised system which collates alerts and alarms information. It maintains the history and updates customer with notifications.
AMN Plus		The enhanced version of AMN for the future. It pulls together our current systems and includes our future plans for customer first programmes.
API	Application Programme Interface	Sometimes referred to as the "middleware", the API forms the interface between the application and the resources in the device. It is the set of standard software functions an application can use.
Attenuation		Sometimes called loss, attenuation is a natural consequence of signal transmission over long distances. It refers to any reduction in the strength of a signal, expressed in decibels (dBs).
Availability		A measure of the reliability of a data network, usually expressed as a percentage of time that the network should be up and running.
B2B	Business to Business	Term commonly used to describe electronic commerce transactions between businesses, as opposed to those between businesses and other groups, such as business and individual consumers (B2C) or business and government (B2G).
Backbone		A phrase used to describe the core infrastructure of a network. At a local level, a backbone is a set of lines that local area networks connect to for a wide area network connection to span distances efficiently (e.g. between buildings). On a wider area network, a backbone is a set of paths that local or regional networks connect to for long-distance interconnection. The connection points are known as network nodes.
BCN	Billing Customer Number	A reference number assigned to each customer contract. Multiple BCNs (representing multiple contracts) may be held by a single customer OCN (Oracle Customer Number).
Bit		A basic unit of information used in computing and digital communications. A binary digit can have only one of two values - 0 or 1.
BPS	Bits per Second/	Basic unit of information storage and communication/Number of bits that are conveyed or processed per unit of time. Used to represent the two different states in a digital network using a binary counting system, i.e. 1 and 0.
Bridge		A device that connects two local-area networks (LANs), or two segments of the same LAN.
BW	Bandwidth	A range of frequencies that describe the maximum data transfer rate of a network or Internet connection. It measures how much data can be sent over a specific connection in a given time.
Byte		A digital data source made up of eight bits
Carrier		A telecom carrier is a company that is authorized by regulatory agencies to operate a telecommunications system. They are the organisation who have the rights to dig up the streets to put physical fibre in the ground.
CCP	Customer Contract Pack	A set of Colt-standard documents that form the terms and conditions of sale for Colt's services. The CCP includes the GTCs, Service Description, SLA, SSTs.
CCT	Circuit	Usually referring to a direct connection between the customer and COLT or two customers.
Cease		The term used when a customer or organisation would like to stop services immediately
Cloud UC	Cloud Unified Communications	A Colt Voice Service. Cloud based IP Telephony & Unified Communications as a service. Unified communications & collaboration is a term used to describe the integration of various communications methods with collaboration tools such as virtual white boards, real-time audio and video conferencing, and enhanced call control capabilities.
Colt IQ Network		Virtualising Colt's global Ethernet, Packet and Optical layered network. Allows customers to move connections around on the network and flex the bandwidth in line with demand.
Colt Online		Colt platform dedicated to customer self service. It provides a web-based portal that enables customers to view bills and trouble tickets. Every Colt Online customer is provided with an administrator account, where they can search and view any bill, ticket and order status through an account dashboard.
CoS	Class of Service	Method of prioritising types of data for Ethernet services so that one category of data is given priority over others. Colt's CoS feature provides customers with a way to differentiate the importance of their traffic and therefore to allocate explicit priority
CPE	Customer Premises Equipment	Equipment which is located on the customer's premises (physical location) rather than on the provider's premises or in between. Almost any end-user equipment can be called customer premise equipment and it can be owned by the customer or by the provider (telephone handsets, cable TV set-top boxes, and Digital Subscriber Line routers are examples).
CSC	Customer Service Centre	Team where customers can report a fault at any time speaking to a representative in their local language. Colt's CSC is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Dark Fibre		Dark fibre refers to fibre-optic cable not directly used by the company that put it in the ground. The dark strands can be leased to individuals or other companies that want to establish optical connections among their own locations.
DDoS	Distributed Denial of Service	A DDoS attack is an attempt to make an online service unavailable by overwhelming it with traffic from multiple sources. They target a wide variety of important resources, from banks to news websites, and present a major challenge to making sure people can publish and access important information.
DSLAM	Digital Subscriber Line Access Multiplexer	A network device, often located in telephone exchanges, that connects multiple customer digital subscriber line (DSL) interfaces to a high-speed digital communications channel using multiplexing techniques. This is where several channels simultaneously share the same frequency.
DT	Down Time	DT stands for Down Time. It is a time window where the service will go down. Usually it is for troubleshooting purposes. Often we need to do some test which will stop or change the traffic, resulting in service affecting exercise.
DWDM	Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing	A technology which combines and transmits multiple signals simultaneously at different wavelengths on the same fibre by using different infared wavelengths (colours) of laser light to carry different signals along optic fibre media.
E2E	End to End (customer)	This refers to the beginning and end points of a method or service. The end-to-end customer experience is an immersive journey through which consumers investigate and purchase products; and retailers cement relationships with post-sales support and informative emails, text messages, and other communications.
Ethernet		Colt's ethernet services create wide area/metropolitan area networks with LAN interface.
Ethernet Line		A Colt ethernet service. Responsible for physical passing data from one node to another (point to point).
EVPN	Ethernet Virtual Private Network	A model for Ethernet services delivery, by providing Ethernet multipoint services over MPLS networks. perators are now able to leverage their experience and the scalability characteristics inherent to IP VPNs for their Ethernet offerings.
EWSD	Electronic World Switch Digital	A widely-installed telephonic switch system developed by Siemens (performs switching for over 160 million lines in more than 100 countries).
FE	Field Engineer	FE is the term used for "Field Engineer"
Fibre Cable		A cable built around a glass core used to transfer high amounts of data.
Fibre-optic communication		A method of transmitting information from one place to another by sending pulses of light through an optical fiber.
Firewall		A system which protects networks from attacks or threats from the Internet; a security device configured to permit, deny or substitute data connections based on a pre-defined security policy.
GigaByte		A measurement for data storage capacity equal to 1000 Mega Bytes or 1,000,000,000 Bytes.
GTC	General Terms and Conditions	Standard legal terms under which customers place orders with Colt
Hub & Spoke		A Colt ethernet service. Point-to-Multipoint ethernet service connecting multiple locations to a single location.
IM	Incident Management	An IT service management discipline. The aim is to restore a normal service operation as quickly as possible and to minimize the impact on business operations.
IN	Intelligent Network	A Colt Voice Service. A managed portfolio of inbound voice services that provide our customerÂs callers with an improved user experience, whilst maximising the performance of the customerÂs call centre. Colt Voice On Demand means that customers enjoy a fully digital experience from order to cease through one centralized account across 13 countries.
Infrastructure		Basic physical and organizational structures needed for the operation of a network.
Interface		A network interface is a point of interconnection between a terminal and a network or between two networks. A physical interface is a device for joining electric circuits together.
IP	Internet Protocol	Set of rules governing the format of data sent over the Internet or other network.
IP Address	Internet Protocol Address	The unique numerical series assigned to each individual computer linked to the Internet. This allows the computers to talk to each other and packets of information to be delivered to the appropriate computer. Think of them as phone numbers or street addresses.
IP Guardian	Internet Protocol Guardian (Product)	A Colt IP service. To protect against DDoS attacks, Colt IP Guardian service is deployed at multiple strategic locations throughout Colt global network to ensure a continuous monitoring the customers access is protected against DDoS 24/7.
IPperf test		IPerf is a tool for active measurements of the maximum achievable bandwidth on IP networks.
IPVPN	Internet Protocol Virtual Private Network	An IP VPN utilizes multiprotocol label switching (MPLS) technology to prioritize internet traffic and avoid public gateway to increase security, making it a layer 2 service. An IP VPN is considered layer 2 of the OSI model, meaning it avoids public internet by traveling on a private connection to each remote site, so your vital company data remains secure.
ISDN	Integrated Services Digital Network	A telephone system network which integrates speech and data on the same lines.
ISO	International Organization for Standardization.	A set of international standards and certifications which help a company satisfy its customers, meet regulatory requirements and achieve continual improvement. ISO creates documents that provide requirements, specifications, guidelines or characteristics that can be used consistently to ensure that materials, products, processes and services are fit for their purpose.
ISP	Internet Service Provider	A company that provides individuals and other companies access to the Internet.
ITIL	Information Technology Infrastructure Library	Set of detailed practices which describes processes, procedures, tasks, and checklists which are not organization-specific, but can be applied by an organization for establishing integration with the organization's strategy, delivering value, and maintaining a minimum level of competency. It allows the organization to establish a baseline from which it can plan, implement, and measure.
IVR	Interactive Voice Response	An interactive technology that allows customers to access a companyÂs database via a telephone, touchtone, keypad or by speech recognition, after which they can service their own enquiries by following the instructions.
JSV	Joint Site Visit	JSV is the term used for "Joint Site Visit", a Colt Technician with a 3rd Party Provider Technician.
KPIs	Key Performance Indicators	A set of performance measures by which products and services are measured for their value to the organisation.
LAN	Local Area Network	A computer network that interconnects computers within a limited area such as a residence, school, laboratory, university etc. It has a span of approximately < 10km.
LAN Cable	Local Area Network Cable	LAN cables are a specific type of data cable used in computer networking. There are two different types of local area network cables. The first is a standard cable that connects a computer to a router or hub, and the second is called a crossover cable, connecting two computers together.
LDN	Long Distance Network	A network that provides connections between local exchanges in different geographic areas. Includes thousands of fibre-optic infrastructure which connects customers.
Loop Test		It is a test in which a signal is sent from a communications device and returned (looped back) to it as a way to determine whether the device is working right or as a way to pin down a failing node in a network.
MAC address	Media access control address	Also known as physical address, this is a unique identifier assigned to every network interface. It is used for communications and is made of 48 bits represented by 6 groups of 2 hexadecimal digits separated by colons (e.g. 01:23:45:67:89:AB).
MAN	Metropolitan Area Network	A computer network that interconnects metropolitan area networks better connect with local area networks. It has a span of approximately < 50km.
MEF	Metro Ethernet Forum	A global industry alliance that aims to accelerate the worldwide adoption of carrier class Ethernet networks and services. Colt holds a membership with the MEF.
MPLS	Multiprotocol Label Switching	The label for packets of data on an internet network. Every time a packet arrives at a router, the router has to Âthink throughÂ where to send the packet next, containing information based on destination, bandwidth, delay, and other metrics.
MTTR	Mean time to repair	Basic measure of the average time required to repair a failed component or device.
Multicast		A method of sending messages over computer networks. Multicast is group communication where data transmission is addressed to a group of destination computers simultaneously. Multicast can be one-to-many or many-to-many distribution.
NAP	Network Access Point	A major point where internet service providers can connect with one another.
NMS	Network Management System,	A network management system (NMS) is a set of hardware and/or software tools that allow an IT professional to supervise the individual components of a network within a larger network management framework.
NOC	Network Operations Center	The central place from which administrators supervise, monitor and maintain a telecommunications network. Large enterprises with large networks as well as large network service providers typically have a network operations center, a room containing visualizations of the network or networks that are being monitored.
Node		A connection point that can receive, create, store or send data along distributed network routes.
NTU	Network termination unit.	The last point of connection between the customer premise equipment to public switched telephone network (PSTN). It includes a device that connects the customer's data or telephone equipment to a carrier's line that comes into a building or an office.
OCN	Oracle Customer Number	A customer identification number
Off Net		The coverage for locations not available on the Colt network.
OLO	Other Licensed Operator	Another telecommunications carrier e.g. BT, Telecom Italia or virtual carriers.
On Demand		Business users are able to provision network connections and scale the bandwidth on those connections up and down in real time, while paying for only what the use and when they use it.
On Net		Coverage for locations that are available on the Colt network, meaning that the service that the customer receives is delivered entirely over fibre.
OOS	Out of service	When a system or piece of equipment is not available for use.
Optical		Available in Europe and Asia, the Colt Optical Portfolio provides the very highest levels of network performance by permitting transmission over longer distances and at higher bandwidths (data rates) than wire cables
Optical fibre		Optical fiber is used by many telecommunications companies to transmit telephone signals, Internet communication, and cable television signals.
OSI Layer 1		The Physical Layer. Manages putting data onto the network media and taking the data off.
OSI Layer 2		The Data Link Layer. Responsible for physical passing data from one node to another.
OSI Layer 3		The Network Layer. Routes data from one node to another.
OSI Layer 4		Responsible for end-to-end integrity of data transmission.
OSI Layer 5		The Session Layer. Responsible for establishing and maintaining communications channels.
OSI Layer 6		The Presentation Layer. Manages data representation conversions.
OSI Layer 7		The Application Layer. Program-to-program communication.
OSI Model	Open Systems Interconnection model	Conceptual model that characterizes and standardizes the communication functions of a telecommunication or computing system. It is implemented in sevhe willen layers. Control is passed from one layer to the next.
Packet		Networks that ship data around in small packets are called packet switched networks. On the Internet, the network breaks an e-mail message into smaller parts called "packets" which contains part of the body of your message.
PBX	Private Branch Exchange	PBX is a private branch exchange (telephone switching system within an enterprise) that switches calls between VoIP (voice over Internet Protocol or IP) and users on local lines while allowing all users to share a certain number of external phone lines.
PCAP Trace		Packet Capture or PCAP is an application programming interface (API) that captures live network packet data, PCAP is a valuable resource for file analysis and to monitor your network traffic.
Private VPN		A Colt ethernet service. Point to point ethernet service delivered on customer dedicated infrastructure.
Private Wave		A Colt optical service. A metro area service that utilises a Wave Division Multiplexing platform to deliver multiple services or service types efficiently over a single fibre pair on customer-dedicated infrastructure. It is available in any city where Colt has a fibre-optic metropolitan area network.
RAI	Remote Alarm Inducation	An alarm which occurs at the beginning of an outage.
RFO	Reason For Outage	Report that tells the customer why they experienced an outage. The RFO's can either be mailed or verbal to the customer. An RFO may say if there was no fault found.
SAN	Storage Area Network	Typically used to connect computer systems and their peripheral devices (disks and backup systems, for example). The advantage of this is that it allows many servers to share a common pool of storage which maximises utilisation and eases management.
SD WAN	Software-defined wide area network	This technology uses the public internet to access a customer site. It includes a white box server at the customer site which is able to self-configure and self-install, increasing agility and being able to manage and change their wide area network settings independently through Colt Online.
SDH	Synchronous Digital Hierarchy.	Standards that describe synchronous optical networking which can be defined as a method for communicating digital information using lasers or light-emitting diodes (LEDs) over optical fiber.
SDN	Software-defined networking	An umbrella term encompassing several kinds of network technology aimed at making the network as agile and flexible as the virtualized server and storage infrastructure of the modern data center.
SFP		SFPs are pluggable small optical module transceivers. They connect a single network device to a wide variety of fiber cable types and distances, by converting the serial electrical signals to serial optical signals and vice versa.
SIP/SIP Trunk	Session Initiation Protocol	A Colt Voice Service. A SIP trunk is a direct connection between your organization and an Internet telephony service provider. In addition to VoIP calls, SIP trunks can also carry instant messages, multimedia conferences, user presence information, Enhanced 9-1-1 emergency calls, and other real-time communications services.
SLA	Service Level Agreements	Legal contract stating the commitment between a service provider and a customer on the quality, availability and responsibilty of the two parties.
Spectrum		A Colt optical service. Allows customers to transport either ÂfriendlyÂ waves (wavelengths generated on Ciena equipment), or ÂforeignÂ/ÂalienÂ wave (wavelengths generated by another vendorÂs equipment. Customers are responsible for procurement, provision and management of transponder equipment.
SPOF	Single Point of Failure	The part of a system that, if it fails, will stop the entire system from working. SPOFs are undesirable in any system with a goal of high availability or reliability, be it a business practice, software application, or other industrial system.
T&Cs	Terms and Conditions	Rules which one must agree to abide by in order to use a service.
Traffic		A term referred to the amount of data in a network.
TS	Time Stamp	TS stands for s. When you have a voice issue you need to provide Time Stamps
TTTR	Target Time to Repair	The target length of time from when the fault is logged by Colt opening a trouble ticket either due to the customer reporting the fault or due to Colt detecting the fault until the time the fault is cleared.
TW	Time Window	TW stands for Time Window. It is a time slot where the service will go down. Usually it is for troubleshooting purposes. Often we need to do some test which will stop or change the traffic, resulting in a service affecting exercise.
UNI	User Network Interface	A dividing line between the responsibility of the service provider and the responsibility of the subscriber. In other words, it is the space where interactions between humans and machines occur.
Unicast		A method of sending messages over computer networks, where one device will send the message to exactly one destination device.
Uni-directional transmission		Single communications channel which is shared by all machines on the network
VLAN	Virtual LAN	A logical grouping of Ethernet ports that are separated from other groups. In this way, the traffic associated with different groups of users and/or devices is kept within discrete broadcast domains
VoD	Voice on Demand	An expanision of the On Demand portfolio. VoD portal provides voice services to any location making customers self-sufficient, by giving them the ability to view regulatory information and cease exisitng accounts if they wish.
Voice		A Colt Voice Service provides traditional telephone services. Helps customers transition to voice, over internet settings.
VoIP		Transmission technology for delivery of voice communications over IP networks such as the Internet or other packet-switched networks
VPN	Virtual Private Network	Making Internet connection more secure, helps you stay anonymous and helps you get around blocks and access censored sites. It is a service that you sign up for online for a small monthly charge. Typical VPNs fall under layer 3 and 4 of the OSI model, meaning they establish a connection through public internet and frequently use a public gateway to connect.
WAN	Wide Area Network	A network that goes (geographically) beyond a city in size. For example the Internet is a WAN.
Wave		A Colt optical service. This service enables high bandwidth network connections to be deployed quickly and easily over ColtÂs optical infrastructure so customers can leverage market opportunities and meet the challenge of the high bandwidth demand.
Wavelength		A wavelength is a measure of distance between two identical peaks (high points) or troughs (low points) in a wave -- a repeating pattern of traveling energy like light or sound.
WDN	Wave Division Multiplexing	Combining multiple signals on laser beams at various infared (IR) wavelengths for transmission along fiber optic media.