MSP Terminology — independently scanned and version-tracked by SaferSkills.
SaferSkills independently audited MSP Terminology (Agent Skill) and scored it 100/100 (green). The audit ran 55 deterministic rules across Security, Supply Chain, Maintenance, Transparency, and Community; it found 0 high-severity and 0 lower-severity findings. The full rule-by-rule trace and per-finding evidence are below. Free, methodology-open.
Findings & checks · 0 flagged
Every scanned point with the score it earned and what moved between them.
First recorded scan — no prior version to compare against.
The primary manifest — the file an agent reads to learn what this artifact does.
Managed Service Providers (MSPs) use a specialized vocabulary that can be confusing for newcomers. This skill covers common terminology, acronyms, and concepts used across the MSP industry and its tooling ecosystem.
The central business management platform for MSPs. Handles:
Examples: Autotask, ConnectWise Manage, HaloPSA, Syncro
Platform for monitoring and managing client IT infrastructure:
Examples: Datto RMM, NinjaOne, ConnectWise Automate, Kaseya VSA
Centralized IT documentation:
Examples: IT Glue, Hudu, ConnectWise IT Boost
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Incident | Unplanned interruption to service |
| Service Request | Standard request from user |
| Problem | Root cause of multiple incidents |
| Change | Planned modification to infrastructure |
| Alert | Automated notification from monitoring |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| SLA | Service Level Agreement - contractual service guarantees |
| Response Time | Time to first technician acknowledgment |
| Resolution Time | Time to fully resolve the issue |
| MTTR | Mean Time To Repair/Resolve |
| MTTD | Mean Time To Detect |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Triage | Initial assessment and categorization |
| Escalation | Moving to higher-skill resource |
| Dispatch | Scheduling on-site visit |
| Resolution | Issue fixed, pending verification |
| Closure | Ticket completed and archived |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| MSA | Managed Services Agreement - ongoing monthly services |
| Block Hours | Prepaid hour bank for ad-hoc support |
| T&M | Time & Materials - pay-as-you-go billing |
| AYCE | All You Can Eat - unlimited support for fixed fee |
| Per-Device | Billing based on device count |
| Per-User | Billing based on user count |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| AD | Active Directory - Windows identity management |
| DC | Domain Controller - AD server |
| DNS | Domain Name System |
| DHCP | Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol |
| VPN | Virtual Private Network |
| VLAN | Virtual Local Area Network |
| NAS | Network Attached Storage |
| SAN | Storage Area Network |
| UPS | Uninterruptible Power Supply |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| M365 | Microsoft 365 (formerly Office 365) |
| Azure AD | Azure Active Directory (now Entra ID) |
| AWS | Amazon Web Services |
| GCP | Google Cloud Platform |
| SaaS | Software as a Service |
| IaaS | Infrastructure as a Service |
| PaaS | Platform as a Service |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| MFA | Multi-Factor Authentication |
| 2FA | Two-Factor Authentication |
| SSO | Single Sign-On |
| EDR | Endpoint Detection and Response |
| XDR | Extended Detection and Response |
| SIEM | Security Information and Event Management |
| SOC | Security Operations Center |
| MDR | Managed Detection and Response |
| PAM | Privileged Access Management |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| BDR | Backup and Disaster Recovery |
| BCDR | Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery |
| RPO | Recovery Point Objective - acceptable data loss |
| RTO | Recovery Time Objective - acceptable downtime |
| DR | Disaster Recovery |
| HA | High Availability |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| MRR | Monthly Recurring Revenue |
| ARR | Annual Recurring Revenue |
| ARPU | Average Revenue Per User |
| Gross Margin | Revenue minus direct costs |
| Utilization | Billable hours / available hours |
| Effective Rate | Revenue / hours worked |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| NOC | Network Operations Center |
| SOC | Security Operations Center |
| L1/L2/L3 | Support tier levels |
| POD | Team of technicians assigned to accounts |
| vCIO | Virtual Chief Information Officer |
| TAM | Technical Account Manager |
| QBR | Quarterly Business Review |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| FCR | First Call Resolution |
| AHT | Average Handle Time |
| CSAT | Customer Satisfaction Score |
| NPS | Net Promoter Score |
| Ticket Aging | Time ticket has been open |
| Backlog | Unresolved ticket count |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Queue | Ticket routing bucket |
| Resource | Technician/user |
| Account | Company/client |
| Contract | Service agreement |
| Opportunity | Sales prospect |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Board | Ticket routing area |
| Member | Technician/user |
| Company | Client organization |
| Agreement | Service contract |
| Opportunity | Sales prospect |
| Acronym | Full Term |
|---|---|
| AD | Active Directory |
| API | Application Programming Interface |
| BCDR | Business Continuity/Disaster Recovery |
| BDR | Backup Disaster Recovery |
| CI | Configuration Item |
| CMDB | Configuration Management Database |
| CRM | Customer Relationship Management |
| EDR | Endpoint Detection and Response |
| ERP | Enterprise Resource Planning |
| FCR | First Call Resolution |
| ITIL | IT Infrastructure Library |
| ITSM | IT Service Management |
| KPI | Key Performance Indicator |
| MFA | Multi-Factor Authentication |
| MRR | Monthly Recurring Revenue |
| MSA | Managed Services Agreement |
| MSP | Managed Service Provider |
| NOC | Network Operations Center |
| PSA | Professional Services Automation |
| QBR | Quarterly Business Review |
| RMM | Remote Monitoring and Management |
| RTO | Recovery Time Objective |
| RPO | Recovery Point Objective |
| SaaS | Software as a Service |
| SLA | Service Level Agreement |
| SMB | Small and Medium Business |
| SOC | Security Operations Center |
| T&M | Time and Materials |
| vCIO | Virtual CIO |
| VPN | Virtual Private Network |
~30 seconds. Free. No account. Every finding cites a rule and a line of evidence.