The most important terms in software development and cloud DevOps

Learn the most essential terms in software development and cloud DevOps with our Intergalactic Glossary.

Have you ever heard terms like IaC or CI/CD? Unfortunately, understanding these terms might sometimes be quite confusing for someone who hasn't been swimming in the deep waters of coding. Luckily we have an essential glossary for you to know what we are talking about here in Montel Intergalactic. So check it out and find your inner Yoda.

A

Ansible

A way to define your infrastructure as code. (See IaC.)

Autoscaling

A method that creates more server resources on demand, scaling up when necessary and down when usage lowers.

AWS

Amazon Web Services, the largest cloud provider of the Big Three.

Azure

Microsoft Azure, another of the Big Three cloud providers.

B

Backlog

A set of planned project tasks, moved to be worked on and eventually closed. (See ticket.)

Bare metal

Running workloads directly on dedicated hardware without virtualization. (See virtualization.)

C

CI/CD

Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment automates building, testing, and deploying apps, ensuring stability.

Cluster

A group of servers working as a single system for high availability and parallel processing.

Container

A lightweight environment for running applications, isolated from others, akin to virtualization.

Container Image

A packaged environment for running an app, including necessary dependencies.

D

DBaaS

Database as a Service, outsourcing database management to a provider for easier scaling and backups.

Docker

The most popular containerization technology, often referred to as “dockerization.” (See container.)

E

Environment

Defines the settings and surroundings where code runs, affecting behavior like database addresses and access tokens.

F

Flutter

Flutter is an open-source UI software development kit. It is used to develop cross platform applications from a single codebase. It allows for a very fast and cost-efficient development of apps.

G

GCP

Google Cloud Platform, one of the Big Three cloud providers.

Git

A distributed version control system.

GitOps

Managing infrastructure through version-controlled code, where changes are mirrored to infrastructure.

H

Hetzner

A German cloud service provider.

I

Infrastructure

The servers, services, and tools required to run an application or service.

Instance

Another term for a server or node.

IaC

Infrastructure-as-code. Defining infrastructure in version-controlled code for easy duplication and tracking.

IaaS

Infrastrusture-as-a-service is a cloud computing model that provides on-demand access to computing resources such as servers, storage, networking, and virtualization.

K

Karvalakki

A Finnish term for a basic MVP. (See MVP.)

k0s, K3s

Streamlined versions of Kubernetes for edge computing and IoT.

Kubernetes, or k8s

Kubernetes is a popular open-source platform for managing application workloads on distributed nodes. Montel’s choice for scalable infrastructures.

L

Layout

The structure and design of a user interface.

M

Microservices (architecture)

An architecture style where services are split into smaller, independent components that communicate with each other.

Migration

Moving a project from one environment to another.

Multi & hybrid cloud

Using multiple cloud providers or environments in tandem.

MVP

Minimum Viable Product – the simplest version of a product that provides value.

N

Node

A server within a cluster. Also, Node.js, a JavaScript runtime for servers.

O

On-premise

Running infrastructure on physical servers in a controlled location. (See bare metal.)

P

Prototype

A basic, fast-built version of a solution to test its feasibility.

PWA

Progressive Web App, enhancing web services to behave like native apps on mobile devices.

R

Rancher

A web-based tool for managing multiple Kubernetes clusters.

Resource

Developer time and effort.

Repository (version control)

A version-controlled directory containing code and project files.

Runway

The amount of resources available to develop a startup.

S

SaaS

Software as a Service – selling software as a hosted service.

SLA

Service Level Agreement – the promised uptime for MontelCare client services.

Sandbox

A controlled environment where an app can run without affecting other systems.

Scope

Defines what is included in a project.

Sprint

A short, focused period of development work.

Server

A physical or virtual machine running applications.

T

Terraform

A tool for managing cloud infrastructure as code, saved in version control.

Ticket

A defined task or bug report, handled in tools like Jira or Gitlab.

U

UpCloud

A Finnish cloud provider with global data centers. Montel is their verified partner.

Use case

A specific scenario of how a user might use a service.

USP

Unique Selling Point – the features that make a product stand out.

User flow/path

A sequence of use cases defining the service experience.

User story

A narrative of what a user wants to accomplish within an app.

V

Virtualization

Running multiple virtual machines on a single physical server, sharing resources.

Volume

Persistent storage for data like databases or files.

Version control

Tracking changes in code or files to manage multiple contributors and maintain history.

W

White-labeling

Customizing a SaaS product for different brands.

Wireframe

A rough sketch of a UI layout.

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