1.1 Glossary

This document uses the following terms:

after event: An event whose handler runs only after the action that raised the event is complete. Unlike a before event, an after event handler cannot cancel the action that caused the event. See also before event.

assembly: A collection of one or more files that is versioned and deployed as a unit. An assembly is the primary building block of a .NET Framework application. All managed types and resources are contained within an assembly and are marked either as accessible only within the assembly or as accessible from code in other assemblies. Assemblies also play a key role in security. The code access security system uses information about an assembly to determine the set of permissions that is granted to code in the assembly.

audit log: A collection of data about successful and failed operations on objects for which auditing is enabled on a server.

base view: An XML-based schema that defines the data and rendering fields that can be used in a list view. Every list view is derived from a specific base view.

before event: A synchronous event whose handler runs completely before the action that raised the event is finalized. Unlike an after event, a before event handler can cancel the action that caused the event, before that action or related actions are complete. See also after event.

Boolean: An operation or expression that can be evaluated only as either true or false.

cascading style sheet (CSS): An extension to HTML that enables authors and users of HTML documents to attach style sheets to those documents, as described in [CSS-LEVEL1] and [CSS-LEVEL2]. A style sheet includes typographical information about the appearance of a page, including the font for text on the page.

class name: The name that is used to refer to a class module that provides an implementation of a behavior.

composite field index: An index that uses more than one column in a table to index data.

computed field: A field that can perform data manipulation and display functions by using the contents of other fields.

content type: A named and uniquely identifiable collection of settings and fields that store metadata for individual items in a SharePoint list. One or more content types can be associated with a list, which restricts the contents to items of those types.

content type group: A named category of content types that is used to organize content types of a similar purpose.

control template: A fragment of HTML and ASP.NET markup that customizes and extends the functionality of an ASP.NET control.

current user: The user who is authenticated during processing operations on a front-end web server or a back-end database server.

discussion board: A list in which users can read, post, and reply to messages from other users who are members of the same discussion board.

document: An object in a content database such as a file, folder, list (1), or site. Each object is identified by a URI.

Document Information Panel: A pane that displays property information about a Word document, Excel workbook, or PowerPoint presentation that is stored in a library on a SharePoint site. The pane hosts a custom InfoPath form.

document library: A type of list that is a container for documents and folders.

document property: A name/value pair that serves as metadata for a document.

document template: A file that serves as the basis for new documents.

event handler: A software routine that executes in response to an event.

event receiver: A structured modular component that enables built-in or user-defined managed code classes to act upon objects, such as list items, lists (1), or content types, when specific triggering actions occur.

feature: A package of SharePoint elements that can be activated or deactivated for a specific feature scope.

field: An element or attribute in a data source that can contain data.

field definition: The definition of a field in the Collaborative Application Markup Language (CAML).

field internal name: A string that uniquely identifies a field in a content type or a SharePoint list.

file extension: The sequence of characters in a file's name between the end of the file's name and the last "." character. Vendors of applications choose such sequences for the applications to uniquely identify files that were created by those applications. This allows file management software to determine which application are to be used to open a file.

FilterDescriptor: A type of MetadataObject that describes a normalized way of gathering input from users. A FilterDescriptor is defined by its type and the Method that contains it.

Finder: A type of MethodInstance that can be called to return a collection of zero or more EntityInstances of a specific Entity. Finder input is defined by the FilterDescriptors that are contained in the Method that contains the Finder.

font: An object that defines the graphic design, or formatting, of a collection of numbers, symbols, and letters. A font specifies the style (such as bold and strikeout), size, family (a typeface such as Times New Roman), and other qualities to describe how the collection is drawn.

form: A structured document with controls and spaces that are reserved for entering and displaying information. Forms can contain special coding for actions such as submitting and querying data.

form template: A file or set of files that defines the data structure, appearance, and behavior of a form.

friendly name: A name for a user or object that can be read and understood easily by a human.

front-end web server: A server that hosts webpages, performs processing tasks, and accepts requests from protocol clients and sends them to the appropriate back-end server for further processing.

fully qualified class name: A class name that includes namespace information. Use of a fully qualified class name ensures that the class name is treated as unique.

globally unique identifier (GUID): A term used interchangeably with universally unique identifier (UUID) in Microsoft protocol technical documents (TDs). Interchanging the usage of these terms does not imply or require a specific algorithm or mechanism to generate the value. Specifically, the use of this term does not imply or require that the algorithms described in [RFC4122] or [C706] must be used for generating the GUID. See also universally unique identifier (UUID).

group: A named collection of users who share similar access permissions or roles.

item: A unit of content that can be indexed and searched by a search application.

item identifier: An integer that uniquely identifies an item in a SharePoint list.

list: (1) A container within a SharePoint site that stores list items. A list has a customizable schema that is composed of one or more fields.

(2) An organization of a region of cells into a tabular structure in a workbook.

list form: A page that enables users to create, view, or edit an item in a list.

list item: An individual entry within a SharePoint list. Each list item has a schema that maps to fields in the list that contains the item, depending on the content type of the item.

list template: An XML-based definition of list settings, including fields and views, and optionally list items. List templates are stored in .stp files in the content database.

lookup field: A field of the Lookup type that enables users to select an item from another data source.

major version: An iteration of a software component, document, or list item that is ready for a larger group to see, or has changed significantly from the previous major version. For an item on a SharePoint site, the minor version is always "0" (zero) for a major version.

mobile device: A small computing device that is easily portable and can be used in various environments.

moderated list: See moderated object.

paged view: A view that supports one or more visual pages. A paged view is used to break large sets of data into smaller sets for increased performance and manageability.

policy: A set of rules that governs all interactions with an object such as a document or item.

policy feature: A type of rule that can be used within a policy to govern interactions with an object such as a document or item.

publishing level: An integer that is assigned to a document to indicate the publishing status of that version of the document.

query: A formalized instruction to a data source to either extract data or perform a specified action. A query can be in the form of a query expression, a method-based query, or a combination of the two. The data source can be in different forms, such as a relational database, XML document, or in-memory object. See also search query.

record: A group of related fields, which are sometimes referred to as columns, of information that are treated as a unit. Also referred to as row.

recurrence exception: A deviation from the recurrence pattern for a recurring event, such as a meeting.

resource folder: A folder that contains images, templates, and other resource files for a content type.

retention action: An action that occurs on an object, such as a document or site, in response to an event defined by a retention formula in a larger retention policy. Examples of retention actions are delete, move to a different location, and delete previous versions.

retention formula: A logical equation or function that is used to calculate when a retention action occurs on an object, such as a document or content type, as defined by a larger retention policy that applies to that object.

retention schedule: A sequence of stages that defines the retention lifecycle of an object such as a document, list item, list, content type, or site. Each stage consists of an event/action pair that specifies what action to perform on an object before or after that stage.      

retention stage: One of a sequence of phases in a retention policy that defines the retention lifecycle of an object such as a document, list item, list, content type, or site. Each stage consists of an event/action pair that specifies what action to perform on an object before or after that stage.

RSS item: An item element in an RSS feed, as described in [RSS2.0].

security scope: A tree structure of objects in which every object has the same security settings as the root.

server-relative URL: A relative URL that does not specify a scheme or host, and assumes a base URI of the root of the host, as described in [RFC3986].

site: A group of related pages and data within a SharePoint site collection. The structure and content of a site is based on a site definition. Also referred to as SharePoint site and web site.

site collection: A set of websites that are in the same content database, have the same owner, and share administration settings. A site collection can be identified by a GUID or the URL of the top-level site for the site collection. Each site collection contains a top-level site, can contain one or more subsites, and can have a shared navigational structure.

strong name: A name that consists of the simple text name, version number, and culture information of an assembly, strengthened by a public key and a digital signature that is generated over the assembly.

survey list: A list that is preconfigured and optimized for conducting surveys and compiling survey results into graphical views.

toolbar: A row, column, or block of controls that represent tasks or commands within an application. A toolbar can be either a menu toolbar, which provides access to menu commands, or a basic toolbar, which contains buttons that provide shortcuts to tasks that are frequently accessed from menus.

top-level site: The first site in a site collection. All other sites within a site collection are child sites of the top-level site. The URL of the top-level site is also the URL of the site collection.

Uniform Resource Locator (URL): A string of characters in a standardized format that identifies a document or resource on the World Wide Web. The format is as specified in [RFC1738].

Uniform Resource Name (URN): A string that identifies a persistent Internet resource, as described in [RFC2141]. A URN can provide a mechanism for locating and retrieving a schema file that defines a specific namespace. Although a URL can provide similar functionality, a URN can refer to more than one URL and is not location-dependent.

view: See form view (Microsoft InfoPath), list view (SharePoint Products and Technologies), or View (Microsoft Business Connectivity Services).

Web Part: A reusable component that contains or generates web-based content such as XML, HTML, and scripting code. It has a standard property schema and displays that content in a cohesive unit on a webpage. See also Web Parts Page.

Web Part zone: A structured HTML section of a Web Parts Page that contains zero or more Web Parts and can be configured to control the organization and format of those Web Parts.

workflow: An automation of business processes that passes business documents and tasks automatically from one user to another for action, according to a defined sequence.

XML namespace prefix: An abbreviated form of an XML namespace, as described in [XML].

MAY, SHOULD, MUST, SHOULD NOT, MUST NOT: These terms (in all caps) are used as defined in [RFC2119]. All statements of optional behavior use either MAY, SHOULD, or SHOULD NOT.