es and sales support processes as possible. Such systems are often tied to ordering and provisioning systems and processes. Serving equipment: A common term for the network gear that actually delivers a service to an end user location. Service delivery: The entire scope of people, systems and processes involved in fulfilling service requests of all kinds. Service validation: The process through which an IIC verifies that a customer is able to receive a specific service. Short messaging servers: Specialized servers that support short messaging services. Short messaging is a mobile service that allows users to send and receive limited text messages in near real-time. Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP): A common, semi-standard protocol generally used to manage many types of data communications equipment. SONET (Synchronous Optical Network): A standardized concept, architecture and optical networking technology set that utilizes self-healing rings to ensure network reliability. SONET is common in North America where a related technology, synchronous digital hierarchy (SDH) fulfills the same purpose in Europe and other parts of the world. Soft reset command: Refers to the ability to reset or reconfigure a network device using a remote and/or automated software command. Spaghetti architecture: Vernacular for the environment that results when multiple applications are integrated in a one-to-one fashion. The number of Glossary individual connections among the various applications makes a representative diagram look like spaghetti. T-1 circuit: A dedicated network path that supports 1.544 Mbps transmission rates. T-1 circuits can be configured in many ways to support voice, data, video or any combination thereof. T-3 circuit: A high-capacity circuit (approx. 45 Mbps) used for various purposes. T-3s sometimes work as voice trunks, carrying high volumes of voice traffic from switching center to switching center. They can be configured to carry voice, data or video traffic. T-3s can also be facility circuits, providin