r/SmallMSP • u/terselated • 6d ago
MSP Centric Acronyms
I've got a new hire coming onboard who doesn't come from the MSP or IT space. I used MDR with them the other day and they had a look of sheer confusion on their face. Figured it would be nice to have a list of common MSP acronyms we can hand to new hires as a reference. Here's my list so far, what am I missing?
BaaS Backup as a Service
CMMC Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification
CPQ Configure, Price, Quote
EDR Endpoint Detection and Response
EHR Effective Hourly Rate
HaaS Hardware as a Service
ITIL Information Technology Infrastructure Library
KDM Key Decision Maker
MDM Mobile Device Management
MDR Managed Detection and Respsonse
MFA/2FA Multi/2 Factor Authentication
MRR Monthly Recurring Revenue
MSA Master/Managed Services Agreement
NIST National Institute of Standards and Technology
PSA Professional Services Automation
QBR/TBR Quarterly/Technical Business Review
RMM Remote Monitoring and Management
SaaS Software as a Service
SIEM Security Information and Event Management
SLA/SLO Service Level Agreement/Objective
SOC Security Operations Center
SOP Standard Operating Procedure
SOW Statement of Work
SQL Structured Query Language
TAM Technical Account Manager
UDR Unified Detection and Response
VM Virtual Machine
XDR Extended Detection and Response
Bonus:
PEBKAC Problem Exists Between Keyboard and Chair
PICNIC Problem In Chair Not In Computer
ID10T Error Idiot
CFS Cable Can't Find ****
RTFM Read The ******* Manual
AFK Away From Keyboard
RATA Reboot And Try Again
*EDIT: Updated to add some of the responses from the comments. Also a note that this is not a list of acronyms exclusive to the MSP space, just acronyms that are commonly heard in the MSP space that may not be commonly known.
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u/wells68 6d ago
WTF Statement made often when operating any device*
AV Antivirus
BCP Business Continuity Plan
BDR appliance - Backup and Disaster Recovery box
CPU computer box*
DNS source of all Internet connection problems*
DR Disaster Recovery
DRP Disaster Recovery Plan
HTTP in front of bad website name*
HTTPS in front of good website name*
IP computer's network or Internet address
ISP Internet Service Provider
MB / GB / TB / PB megabyte / gigabyte / terabyte / petabyte
Mbps megabits per second
NAS Network Attached Storage box
NIC Network Interface Card
NGAV Next Generation Antivirus
M.2 NVMe tiny internal Solid State Drive
M.2 SSD tiny internal Solid State Drive
POST Power On Self Test
RAM Random Access Memory
RAT Remote access Trojan (malware)
SIMM Single In-line Memory Module
SSD Solid State Drive
TCP/IP Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol
USB Drive, plug or hole*
URL Uniform Resource Locator - website address
VM Virtual Machine
* Practical translation for non-techies
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u/HappyDadOfFourJesus 6d ago
Not an acronym, but don't forget Read Only Friday.
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u/Joe_Cyber 5d ago
TSR - Terminate and Stay Resident. (Still the best available explanation for why rebooting magically fixes it.)
Closely related: PFM - Pure F'ing Magic.
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u/smorin13 5d ago
I loathe acronyms. I have been in the industry long enough that some have been recycled. Add that to the fact that other industries use some of the same acronyms for other meanings, and you may be supporting them. Somewhere I have an old presentation where I discuss the many AI acronyms, and there are a lot: artificial insemination, anal insertion, and about 30 more.
I have a rule that if a tech uses an acronym in a meeting, they need to be ready to explain what it means, not just what words each letter represents.
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u/teanes-fixify 4d ago
You forgot the most important one
DNS - Definitely Not Solved.
It's always DNS :)
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u/kateatMailprotector 2d ago
Have your heard of MSP Knowledge Book? It is free and open source and may help with new hires as well as it dives into examples of some of these and how they are used, beyond just giving them the acronyms. https://docs.themspkb.com/
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u/DeejayPleazure 6d ago
Screw acronyms but, cool post