Cloud Glossary: Letter G

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G

Gateway

A network device that serves as an entry point between two networks, often translating protocols and routing traffic.

GCE (Google Compute Engine)

Google Cloud's Infrastructure as a Service component that provides virtual machines running in Google's data centers.

GCP (Google Cloud Platform)

Google's suite of cloud computing services that provide infrastructure, platform, and software services.

GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation)

European Union regulation governing data protection and privacy for individuals within the EU and European Economic Area.

Geocoding

The process of converting addresses or place names into geographic coordinates for mapping and location services.

Geographic Distribution

Spreading resources, data, or services across multiple geographic locations for performance and resilience.

Geographic Redundancy

Maintaining duplicate systems or data in geographically separated locations to protect against regional disasters.

Geolocation

The identification of the real-world geographic location of an internet-connected device or user.

Ghost

Phantom or leftover resources that continue to exist and potentially incur costs after they're no longer needed.

Git

A distributed version control system for tracking changes in source code during software development.

GitHub

A cloud-based hosting service for Git repositories that provides collaboration features and CI/CD capabilities.

GitLab

A web-based DevOps lifecycle tool that provides Git repository management with integrated CI/CD capabilities.

GitOps

A set of practices for managing infrastructure and applications using Git repositories as the single source of truth.

GKE (Google Kubernetes Engine)

Google Cloud's managed Kubernetes service for deploying, managing, and scaling containerized applications.

Global

Services or resources that span multiple regions or are accessible worldwide, providing broad geographic coverage.

Global Load Balancer

A load balancing service that distributes traffic across multiple regions to improve performance and availability.

Governance

The framework of policies, procedures, and controls that guide how organizations manage their cloud resources.

GPU (Graphics Processing Unit)

Specialized processors designed for parallel processing, commonly used for machine learning and high-performance computing.

GPU Computing

Using graphics processing units for general-purpose computing tasks that benefit from parallel processing capabilities.

Graceful Degradation

The ability of a system to maintain partial functionality when some components fail or are unavailable.

Graceful Shutdown

The process of stopping a system or service in a controlled manner, allowing it to complete current operations.

Graph Database

A database that uses graph structures with nodes, edges, and properties to represent and store data relationships.

Green Computing

Environmentally sustainable computing practices that reduce energy consumption and environmental impact.

Grid Computing

A distributed computing model that uses networked computers to work together on complex computational tasks.

Group

A collection of users, resources, or policies managed together for administration, security, or organizational purposes.

GSuite (Google Workspace)

Google's suite of cloud-based productivity and collaboration tools including Gmail, Drive, and Docs.

Guest OS

The operating system running inside a virtual machine, separate from the host operating system.

GUI (Graphical User Interface)

A visual interface that allows users to interact with software through graphical elements like windows and buttons.

GUID (Globally Unique Identifier)

A unique reference number used as an identifier in computer software and cloud systems.

Garbage Collection

The automatic memory management process that reclaims memory occupied by objects that are no longer in use.

Gap Analysis

The process of comparing current state with desired future state to identify differences and required changes.

Gateway Load Balancer

A load balancer that operates at Layer 3 and 4, designed for deploying and scaling third-party network appliances.

Geo-blocking

Restricting access to content or services based on the user's geographic location.

Geo-redundancy

Data replication across geographically separated data centers to protect against regional disasters.

Geographic Failover

Automatically switching operations to a different geographic region when the primary region becomes unavailable.

Gigabyte (GB)

A unit of computer storage equal to approximately one billion bytes or 1,024 megabytes.

GitFlow

A branching model for Git that defines specific branch types and how they interact for release management.

Global Accelerator

A service that improves global application availability and performance using AWS's global network infrastructure.

Global Content Delivery

Distributing content across multiple geographic locations to reduce latency and improve user experience.

Global Database

A database that spans multiple regions to provide low-latency access and disaster recovery capabilities.

Global Network

A worldwide network infrastructure that connects data centers and regions for optimal performance.

Globally Distributed

Services or applications that operate across multiple continents or regions worldwide.

Golden Image

A pre-configured template or master image used as a standard base for creating new instances or deployments.

Gossip Protocol

A communication protocol where nodes periodically exchange state information with random peers for distributed consensus.

Government Cloud

Specialized cloud services designed to meet the strict security and compliance requirements of government agencies.

GPU Acceleration

Using graphics processing units to speed up computational tasks through parallel processing capabilities.

GPU Instance

Virtual machines equipped with graphics processing units for machine learning, AI, and high-performance computing workloads.

Graceful Restart

Restarting a service or system in a way that minimizes disruption to ongoing operations and user sessions.

Granular Control

Fine-grained control over system resources, permissions, or configurations allowing precise management.

Graph Analytics

Analysis techniques applied to graph-structured data to understand relationships and patterns between entities.

Graphical Interface

A visual user interface that uses graphics, icons, and visual indicators instead of text-based interfaces.

Green Field

A new project or deployment that starts from scratch without legacy constraints or existing infrastructure.

Grid Storage

A distributed storage system that aggregates storage resources across multiple nodes or locations.

Group Policy

A feature that provides centralized management and configuration of operating systems and applications.

Growth Planning

Strategic planning for scaling infrastructure and resources to accommodate future business growth and demand.

Guest Network

A separate network segment that provides internet access to visitors while isolating them from internal resources.

Guided Setup

Step-by-step configuration processes that help users set up services or systems with recommended best practices.

Garbage Collector

An automatic memory management system that reclaims memory used by objects that are no longer reachable.

Gateway API

A standardized API that provides a single entry point for accessing multiple backend services or microservices.

Geospatial Data

Data that has geographic or location components, used for mapping, navigation, and location-based services.

Git Repository

A data structure that stores metadata for a set of files and directories along with their version history.

Global State

The overall condition or configuration of a system that is shared across all components and users.

GPU Cluster

A group of interconnected systems with graphics processing units working together for parallel computing tasks.

Graph Processing

Computational methods for analyzing and manipulating graph-structured data to extract insights and patterns.

Green Energy

Renewable energy sources used to power data centers and cloud infrastructure for environmental sustainability.