Technical data

NetworkTimeProtocol(NTP)
The protocol that ensures accurate local timekeeping with reference to radio and
atomic clocks located on the Internet; capable of synchronizing distributed clocks
within milliseconds over long time periods.
NFS
See Network File System.
NFS client
The software that requests remote file services from an NFS server. Client system
users access files that physically reside on an NFS server system.
NFS server
ThesoftwarethatprovidesremotefileservicestoNFSclients.
NFS server (OpenVMS server)
A computer system that offers services to NFS clients within an Internet
environment; can be a single host, a whole OpenVMS Cluster system, or members
of an OpenVMS Cluster system.
NIS
See Network Information Service.
nobody
A UNIX convention used when file ownership is not known; maps to an account
with a UID and GID of -2.
node
(1) A system on a network; also referred to as a host. (2) One member in an
OpenVMS Cluster system.
node address
The required unique numeric identification of a specific node in the network.
node name
The alphanumeric identification associated with the node address for one-to-one
mapping.
nonadjacent nodes
Nodes without direct lines between them; can communicate only if intermediate
systems forward the data along the path between the source and the destination.
nonauthoritative answer
A name server’s answer is nonauthoritative when the server answer comes from
its own cache.
nontransparent task
A form of device-dependent I/O that uses system services for network-specific
functions; can initiate and complete a logical link connection, exchange messages
between two tasks, and terminate the communication process. Application that
has direct access to network-specific information and operations, such as optional
user data on connects and disconnects and interrupt messages, to monitor the
communications process; can receive and process multiple inbound connection
requests.
normalization
The estimation of the change in a counter value over a specified time period.
Glossary–30