Windows Glossary “Windows Dictionary” (E)

EFI system partition
On Itanium-based computers, a portion on a GUID partition table (GPT) disk that is formatted with the FAT file system and contains the files necessary to start the computer. Every Itanium-based computer must have at least one GPT disk with an EFI system partition. The EFI system partition serves the same purpose as the system volume found on x86-based computers.

embedded object
Information created in another program that has been pasted inside your document. When information is embedded, you can edit the information in the new document using toolbars and menus from the original program.
To edit the embedded information, double-click it and the toolbars and menus from the program used to create the information appear. Embedded information is not linked to the original source. If you change information in one place, it is not updated in the other.

emulated local area network (ELAN)
A logical ATM network that emulates the services of an Ethernet or Token Ring LAN.

enable
To make a device functional. For example, if a device in your hardware configuration settings is enabled, the device is available for use when your computer uses that hardware configuration.

encapsulated PostScript (EPS) file
A file that prints at the highest possible resolution for your printer. An EPS file may print faster than other graphical representations. Some Windows-based and non-Windows-based graphical programs can import EPS files.

encrypted password
A password that is scrambled. Encrypted passwords are more secure than plaintext passwords, which are susceptible to network sniffers.

Encrypting File System (EFS)
A feature in this version of Windows that enables users to encrypt files and folders on an NTFS volume disk to keep them safe from access by intruders.

encryption
The process of disguising a message or data in such a way as to hide its substance.

enhanced small device interface (ESDI)
A standard that can be used with high-capacity hard disks, floppy disk drives, and tape drives to allow these devices to communicate with a computer at high speeds.

environment variable
A string consisting of environment information, such as a drive, path, or file name, associated with a symbolic name that can be used by Windows. You use System in Control Panel or the set command from the command prompt to define environment variables.

error detection
A technique for detecting when data is lost during transmission. This allows the software to recover lost data by notifying the transmitting computer that it needs to retransmit the data.

Ethernet
An IEEE 802.3 standard for contention networks. Ethernet uses a bus or star topology and relies on the form of access known as Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Detection (CSMA/DC) to regulate communication line traffic. Network nodes are linked by coaxial cable, fiber-optic cable, or by twisted-pair wiring. Data is transmitted in variable-length frames containing delivery and control information and up to 1,500 bytes of data. The Ethernet standard provides for baseband transmission at 10 megabits (10 million bits) per second.

event
Any significant occurrence in the system or an application that requires users to be notified or an entry to be added to a log.

Event Log service
A service that records events in the system, security, and application logs. The Event Log service is located in Event Viewer.

event logging
The process of recording an audit entry in the audit trail whenever certain events occur, such as services starting and stopping, or users logging on and off and accessing resources. You can use Event Viewer to review AppleTalk network integration events as well as Windows events.

Event Viewer
A component you can use to view and manage event logs, gather information about hardware and software problems, and monitor security events. Event Viewer maintains logs about program, security, and system events.

everyone category
In the Macintosh environment, one of the user categories to which you assign permissions for a folder. Permissions granted to everyone apply to all users who use the server, including guests.

expanded memory
Type of memory that can be added to IBM personal computers. The use of expanded memory is defined by the Expanded Memory Specification (EMS), which supports memory boards containing RAM that can be enabled or disabled by software.

expansion slot
A socket in a computer, designed to hold expansion boards and connect them to the system bus.

expire interval
For DNS, the number of seconds that DNS servers operating as secondary masters for a zone will use to determine if zone data should be expired when the zone is not refreshed and renewed.

explicit permissions
Permissions on an object that are automatically assigned when the object is created, or specifically assigned or changed by the owner of the object.

express message
For Message Queuing, a message that uses fewer resources and is faster than a recoverable message. However, because express messages are mapped to memory, they are lost if the computer storing them fails.

extended characters
Any of the 128 additional characters in the extended ASCII (8-bit) character set. These characters include those in several non-English languages, such as accent marks, and special symbols used for creating pictures.

extended memory
Memory beyond one megabyte in 80286, 80386, 80486, and Pentium computers.

extended partition
A type of partition that you can create only on basic master boot record (MBR) disks. Extended partitions are useful if you want to create more than four volumes on a basic MBR disk. Unlike primary partitions, you do not format an extended partition with a file system and then assign a drive letter to it. Instead, you create one or more logical drives within the extended partition. After you create a logical drive, you format it and assign it a drive letter. An MBR disk can have up to four primary partitions, or three primary partitions, one extended partition, and multiple logical drives.

Extensible Authentication Protocol (EAP)
An extension to the Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) that allows for arbitrary authentication mechanisms to be employed for the validation of a PPP connection.

Extensible Firmware Interface (EFI)
In computers with the Intel Itanium processor, the interface between a computer's firmware, hardware, and the operating system. The Extensible Firmware Interface (EFI) defines a new partition style called GUID partition table (GPT). EFI serves the same purpose for Itanium-based computers as the BIOS found in x86-based computers. However, it has expanded capabilities that provide a consistent way to start any compatible operating system and an easy way to add EFI drivers for new bootable devices without the need to update the computer's firmware.

Extensible Markup Language (XML)
A meta-markup language that provides a format for describing structured data. This facilitates more precise declarations of content and more meaningful search results across multiple platforms. In addition, XML will enable a new generation of Web-based data viewing and manipulation applications.

external network number
A 4-byte hexadecimal number used for addressing and routing purposes. The external network number is associated with physical network adapters and networks. To communicate with each other, all computers on the same network that use a specific frame type must have the same external network number. All external network numbers must be unique to the IPX internetwork.

extract
When you extract a file, an uncompressed copy of the file that is created in a folder you specify. The original file remains in the compressed folder.