MIMIX uses several pairs of terms to refer to the role of a system within a particular context. These terms are not interchangeable.
Production system and backup system - These terms describe the role of a system relative to the way applications are used on that system.
A production system is the system currently running the production workload for the applications. In normal operations, the production system is the system on which the principal copy of the data and objects associated with the application exist.
A backup system is the system that is not currently running the production workload for the applications. In normal operations, the backup system is the system on which you maintain a copy of the data and objects associated with the application. These roles are not always associated with a specific system. For example, if you switch application processing to the backup system, the backup system temporarily becomes the production system.
Typically, for normal operations in basic two-system environment, replicated data flows from the system running the production workload to the backup system.
Source system and target system - These terms identify the direction in which an activity occurs between two participating systems.
A source system is the system from which MIMIX replication activity between two systems originates. In replication, the source system contains the journal entries. Information from the journal entries is either replicated to the target system or used to identify objects to be replicated to the target system.
A target system is the system on which MIMIX replication activity between two systems completes.
Management system and network system - These terms define the role of a system relative to how the products interact within a MIMIX installation. These roles remain associated with the system within the MIMIX installation to which they are defined. One system in the MIMIX installation is designated as the management system and the remaining one or more systems are designated as network systems.
A management system is the system in a MIMIX installation that is designated as the control point for all installations of the product within the MIMIX installation. The management system is the location from which work to be performed by the product is defined and maintained. Often the system defined as the management system also serves as the backup system during normal operations.
A network system is any system in a MIMIX installation that is not designated as the management system (control point) of that MIMIX installation. Work definitions are automatically distributed from the management system to a network system. Often a system defined as a network system also serves as the production system during normal operations.