MSP Terminology & Concepts
Overview
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.
Anti-triggers
This skill is a glossary. It shares its entire vocabulary — ticket, agent,
asset, seat, contract, SLA — with every vendor skill in this marketplace,
which is exactly why it gets loaded by mistake. It defines those words; it
cannot look any of them up.
- Any question about a real record — "how many seats does Acme have",
"what is the SLA on this ticket", "which agent is on that server" are
data questions. Load the vendor's skill:
pax8-subscriptions,
autotask-contracts, ninjaone-devices, and so on.
- What a term means inside one platform — vendor status values,
priority enums, and entity names are that vendor's own vocabulary and
frequently contradict the generic definition here. Use that vendor's
skill.
- How to act on the concept — triage practice is
shared-skills-ticket-triage; cross-tool investigation is
shared-skills-incident-correlation.
Core Platforms
PSA - Professional Services Automation
The central business management platform for MSPs. Handles:
- Ticketing and service desk
- CRM (companies, contacts)
- Contracts and billing
- Project management
- Time tracking
- Reporting
Examples: Autotask, ConnectWise Manage, HaloPSA, Syncro
RMM - Remote Monitoring and Management
Platform for monitoring and managing client IT infrastructure:
- Device monitoring
- Alerting and notifications
- Remote access
- Patch management
- Scripting and automation
Examples: Datto RMM, NinjaOne, ConnectWise Automate, Kaseya VSA
Documentation Platform
Centralized IT documentation:
- Passwords and credentials
- Network diagrams
- Configuration records
- SOPs and runbooks
Examples: IT Glue, Hudu, ConnectWise IT Boost
Service Terminology
Ticket Types
| 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 |
Service Levels
| 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 |
Ticket Workflow
| 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 |
Contract Types
| 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 |
Technical Terms
Infrastructure
| 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 |
Cloud Services
| 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 |
Security
| 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 |
Backup & Recovery
| 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 |
MSP Business Terms
Financial
| 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 |
Operations
| 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 |
Service Desk
| 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 |
Vendor-Specific Terms
Autotask/Kaseya
| Term |
Definition |
| Queue |
Ticket routing bucket |
| Resource |
Technician/user |
| Account |
Company/client |
| Contract |
Service agreement |
| Opportunity |
Sales prospect |
ConnectWise
| Term |
Definition |
| Board |
Ticket routing area |
| Member |
Technician/user |
| Company |
Client organization |
| Agreement |
Service contract |
| Opportunity |
Sales prospect |
Common Acronyms Quick Reference
| 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 |
Related Skills
- Vendor-specific terminology in respective plugin skills
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