KEY CONCEPTS RELATED TO Workload iam

Non-Human Identity Terms: A to Z Glossary

Looking for a straightforward rundown of non-human workload IAM-related terms, from the basic to the advanced? You’re in the right place. We’ve compiled a glossary that covers everything related to secure systems design, identity management, and data protection – from “A”ccess control to “Z”ero Trust.

Whether you’re looking to mature your workload IAM strategy or just need a quick reference or refresher, this glossary is here to make sure you have the precise terminology at your fingertips.

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Master Password

Identity types

A single, strong password used to encrypt and unlock the contents of a password manager or vault. The master password is typically the primary means of authentication and access control for the password manager, so it should be complex and carefully guarded.

MCP Client

AI/MCP Concepts

A software component embedded within the Host application that maintains a persistent connection to a single MCP Server. It handles the MCP protocol details, forwarding requests from the Host to the Server and relaying results back.

MCP Host

AI/MCP Concepts

The core AI application or user-facing agent that coordinates the entire workflow. It contains the LLM (the brain) and manages the user interface and the connected MCP Clients. (e.g., Claude Desktop, an AI-enhanced IDE).

MCP Server

AI/MCP Concepts

A lightweight, external program that acts as a standardized wrapper around a specific tool, service, or data source (e.g., a GitHub MCP Server or a PostgreSQL MCP Server). It exposes its capabilities in a structured format for any MCP Client to consume.

Model Context Protocol (MCP)

AI/MCP Concepts

An open standard designed to standardize how applications provide context (like tools, data, and memory) to Large Language Models, simplifying the development and integration of robust, scalable AI Agents.

Multi-Agent System (MAS)

AI/MCP Concepts

An architecture where multiple specialized AI Agents collaborate, communicate, and coordinate their actions to solve a complex problem that is beyond the scope of a single agent.

Multi-factor Authentication (MFA)

Security concepts

An authentication method that requires users to provide multiple forms of verification, such as passwords, biometrics, or tokens, to access sensitive resources. Some secrets managers support MFA to enhance security when accessing stored secrets.

No-code Auth

IAM concepts

Ability to allow developers to implement authentication and access controls without needing to write any code for managing secrets or credentials. This simplifies secure access to services by eliminating manual secrets management and enabling centralized access management using identity-based policies.

Non-human Identity

Identity types

A non-human identity refers to digital identities assigned to machines, applications, services, or other automated processes rather than individual users. These identities allow machines to authenticate and access resources securely, as in microservices or cloud applications.

OAuth (Open Authorization)

IAM concepts

An open standard for authorization that allows third-party applications to access resources on behalf of a user or service, often used to manage workload identity and access to APIs.