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  <section id="varnish-glossary">
<span id="glossary"></span><h1>Varnish Glossary<a class="headerlink" href="#varnish-glossary" title="Link to this heading">¶</a></h1>
<dl class="simple glossary">
<dt id="term-..">..<a class="headerlink" href="#term-.." title="Link to this term">¶</a></dt><dd><p>This file will be sorted automagically during formatting,
so we keep the source in subject order to make sure we
cover all bases.</p>
</dd>
<dt id="term-backend">backend<a class="headerlink" href="#term-backend" title="Link to this term">¶</a></dt><dd><p>The HTTP server varnishd is caching for.  This can be
any sort of device that handles HTTP requests, including, but
not limited to: a webserver, a CMS, a load-balancer
another varnishd, etc.</p>
</dd>
<dt id="term-backend-response">backend response<a class="headerlink" href="#term-backend-response" title="Link to this term">¶</a></dt><dd><p>The response specifically served from a backend to
varnishd. The backend response may be manipulated in
vcl_backend_response.</p>
</dd>
<dt id="term-body">body<a class="headerlink" href="#term-body" title="Link to this term">¶</a></dt><dd><p>The bytes that make up the contents of the object, varnishd
does not care if they are in HTML, XML, JPEG or even EBCDIC,
to varnishd they are just bytes.</p>
</dd>
<dt id="term-client">client<a class="headerlink" href="#term-client" title="Link to this term">¶</a></dt><dd><p>The program which sends varnishd an HTTP request, typically
a browser, but do not forget to think about spiders, robots
script-kiddies and criminals.</p>
</dd>
<dt id="term-header">header<a class="headerlink" href="#term-header" title="Link to this term">¶</a></dt><dd><p>An HTTP protocol header, like “Accept-Encoding:”.</p>
</dd>
<dt id="term-hit">hit<a class="headerlink" href="#term-hit" title="Link to this term">¶</a></dt><dd><p>An object Varnish delivers from cache.</p>
</dd>
<dt id="term-master-process">master (process)<a class="headerlink" href="#term-master-process" title="Link to this term">¶</a></dt><dd><p>One of the two processes in the varnishd program.
The master process is a manager/nanny process which handles
configuration, parameters, compilation of :term:VCL etc.
but it does never get near the actual HTTP traffic.</p>
</dd>
<dt id="term-miss">miss<a class="headerlink" href="#term-miss" title="Link to this term">¶</a></dt><dd><p>An object Varnish fetches from the backend before it is served
to the client.  The object may or may not be put in the cache,
that depends.</p>
</dd>
<dt id="term-object">object<a class="headerlink" href="#term-object" title="Link to this term">¶</a></dt><dd><p>The (possibly) cached version of a backend response. varnishd
receives a response from the backend and creates an object,
from which it may deliver cached responses to clients. If the
object is created as a result of a request which is passed, it
will not be stored for caching.</p>
</dd>
<dt id="term-pass">pass<a class="headerlink" href="#term-pass" title="Link to this term">¶</a></dt><dd><p>An object Varnish does not try to cache, but simply fetches
from the backend and hands to the client.</p>
</dd>
<dt id="term-pipe">pipe<a class="headerlink" href="#term-pipe" title="Link to this term">¶</a></dt><dd><p>Varnish just moves the bytes between client and backend, it
does not try to understand what they mean.</p>
</dd>
<dt id="term-request">request<a class="headerlink" href="#term-request" title="Link to this term">¶</a></dt><dd><p>What the client sends to varnishd and varnishd sends to the backend.</p>
</dd>
<dt id="term-response">response<a class="headerlink" href="#term-response" title="Link to this term">¶</a></dt><dd><p>What the backend returns to varnishd and varnishd returns to
the client.  When the response is stored in varnishd’s cache,
we call it an object.</p>
</dd>
<dt id="term-varnishd-NB-with-d">varnishd (NB: with ‘d’)<a class="headerlink" href="#term-varnishd-NB-with-d" title="Link to this term">¶</a></dt><dd><p>This is the actual Varnish cache program.  There is only
one program, but when you run it, you will get <em>two</em>
processes:  The “master” and the “worker” (or “child”).</p>
</dd>
<dt id="term-varnishhist">varnishhist<a class="headerlink" href="#term-varnishhist" title="Link to this term">¶</a></dt><dd><p>Eye-candy program showing response time histogram in 1980s
ASCII-art style.</p>
</dd>
<dt id="term-varnishlog">varnishlog<a class="headerlink" href="#term-varnishlog" title="Link to this term">¶</a></dt><dd><p>Program which presents varnish transaction log in native format.</p>
</dd>
<dt id="term-varnishncsa">varnishncsa<a class="headerlink" href="#term-varnishncsa" title="Link to this term">¶</a></dt><dd><p>Program which presents varnish transaction log in “NCSA” format.</p>
</dd>
<dt id="term-varnishstat">varnishstat<a class="headerlink" href="#term-varnishstat" title="Link to this term">¶</a></dt><dd><p>Program which presents varnish statistics counters.</p>
</dd>
<dt id="term-varnishtest">varnishtest<a class="headerlink" href="#term-varnishtest" title="Link to this term">¶</a></dt><dd><p>Program to test varnishd’s behaviour with, simulates backend
and client according to test-scripts.</p>
</dd>
<dt id="term-varnishtop">varnishtop<a class="headerlink" href="#term-varnishtop" title="Link to this term">¶</a></dt><dd><p>Program which gives real-time “top-X” list view of transaction log.</p>
</dd>
<dt id="term-VCL">VCL<a class="headerlink" href="#term-VCL" title="Link to this term">¶</a></dt><dd><p>Varnish Configuration Language, a small specialized language
for instructing Varnish how to behave.</p>
</dd>
<dt id="term-worker-process">worker (process)<a class="headerlink" href="#term-worker-process" title="Link to this term">¶</a></dt><dd><p>The worker process is started and configured by the master
process.  This is the process that does all the work you actually
want varnish to do.  If the worker dies, the master will try start
it again, to keep your website alive.</p>
</dd>
</dl>
</section>

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