opensource/coder
3
0
Fork 0
mirror of https://github.com/coder/coder.git synced 2026-09-24 15:04:27 +08:00
Code Issues Packages Projects Releases Wiki Activity
Files
79723db2d23b6b941e405a8d3c2200206e7e4cb4
coder/docs/reference/glossary.md
T
Nick Vigilante ee7e7ecb74 docs: add a glossary to the reference section (#27165) 
Adds a reference glossary at `docs/reference/glossary.md` that defines
the Coder-specific terms and product names readers encounter across the
docs, and registers it in `docs/manifest.json` under **Reference**.

The page prioritizes the term collisions around "agent": it
disambiguates Coder Agents (the AI product), the workspace agent (the
in-workspace daemon), and the `coder_agent` Terraform resource with an
`[!IMPORTANT]` callout and cross-referenced entries. Every definition
was checked against the current docs, and every internal link is a
relative path that resolves in-repo.

Decision log and verification notes

**Scope of this PR**

- Creates the glossary page (`docs/reference/glossary.md`) and its
manifest entry.
- Adds glossary drift-prevention guidance in response to review feedback
(see **Follow-up from review** below).
- Out of scope (tracked separately): `Glossary: ` cross-link callouts
across the docs IA, the search-ranking boost, the workspace-daemon
rename decision, and the automated glossary lint guard
([DOCS-604](https://linear.app/codercom/issue/DOCS-604)).

**Follow-up from review (@bpmct)**

Ben flagged the risk that terms get introduced, renamed, or deprecated
without the glossary keeping up. Addressed in commit c12dea4 by pointing
both humans and tooling at the glossary:

- `docs/.style/content-guidelines.md`: a canonical Structural rule to
update the glossary in the same change that introduces, renames, or
deprecates a product or feature name.
- `.claude/skills/doc-check/SKILL.md`: doc-check flags terminology
changes that need a glossary update.
- `.claude/skills/write-docs/SKILL.md`: authoring updates the glossary
in the same change, plus a pre-handoff checklist item.
- `docs/.style/style-guide/word-choice.md`: cross-links the glossary as
the fuller product-name registry.

The single source of truth is the content-guidelines rule; the skills
reference it rather than restate it. The automated lint guard is
deliberately split into
[DOCS-604](https://linear.app/codercom/issue/DOCS-604): it touches
CI/build config and depends on the planned `Coder.ProductTerms` Vale
rule, so keeping it out holds this PR to a doc-only footprint. The four
files above are Markdown-only additions, validated in CI (markdownlint,
emdash, Vale advisory) rather than re-run locally.

**Source**

- Migrated and expanded from a generated glossary draft, then reconciled
against the live docs.

**Corrections made vs. the draft**

- AI Gateway and Agent Firewall are gated by the **AI Governance
Add-On** (Coder v2.32+), not plain Premium. Confirmed in
`docs/ai-coder/ai-governance.md`.
- Coder Tasks is framed as deprecated (12-month ESR, removed from new
releases starting v2.37; Coder Agents is the long-term replacement), per
`docs/ai-coder/tasks.md`.
- "Formerly AI Bridge" and "formerly Agent Boundaries" confirmed via the
rebranding-migration and agent-firewall pages; Agent Firewall backends
are `nsjail` (default) and `landjail`.
- OpenTofu is described as a custom Terraform binary that works but is
not officially supported, per `docs/admin/integrations/opentofu.md`.
- Premium markers were taken from `docs/manifest.json` (`"state":
["premium"]`).

**Local validation** (glossary page)

- `markdownlint-cli2`: 0 errors.
- `scripts/check_emdash.sh`: clean.
- Vale (`Coder` package): 0 errors, 0 warnings, 0 suggestions.
- All 120 links checked; every relative link resolves in-repo.
- 103 terms; no duplicate sibling headings (MD024 `siblings_only`).

**Reviewer note**

- This is a first-pass migration. Per the docs authoring skill, each
entry deserves a final accuracy pass before the page leaves draft. Flag
any term you want reworded, split, merged, or dropped.

> This PR was created with AI assistance (Coder Agents).
2026-08-03 14:32:13 -04:00

603 lines
22 KiB
Markdown
Raw Blame History

# Glossary
This glossary defines the Coder-specific terms and product names you encounter across the documentation.
Each entry gives a short definition and, where it helps, links to the page that covers the term in depth.
> [!IMPORTANT]
> Several Coder terms share the word "agent" but mean different things:
>
> - [Coder Agents](#coder-agents) is the AI product for delegating development work to coding agents.
> - A [workspace agent](#workspace-agent) is the process that runs inside a workspace to provide SSH, port forwarding, the web terminal, and other services.
> - [`coder_agent`](#coder_agent) is the Terraform resource in a template that declares a workspace agent.
## A
### Agent API
The API a workspace agent uses to report logs, metrics, and activity.
Refer to the [Agent API reference](./agent-api/index.md).
### Agent Firewall
A process-level firewall that enforces domain and verb allowlists on AI agent processes inside a workspace and streams audit logs to `coderd`.
It was previously named Agent Boundaries and uses a sandbox backend, `nsjail` by default or `landjail`.
This feature requires the AI Governance Add-On.
Refer to [Agent Firewall](../ai-coder/agent-firewall/index.md).
### Agent Workspace Build
A metered workspace build performed on behalf of an AI agent.
Community and Premium deployments include 1,000 for proof-of-concept use, and the AI Governance Add-On expands the allowance.
Refer to [AI Governance](../ai-coder/ai-governance.md).
### AI Gateway
An LLM gateway in `coderd` that authenticates users, forwards traffic to providers such as OpenAI and Anthropic, audits prompts and tool invocations, and centralizes MCP administration.
It was previously named AI Bridge and runs the `aibridged` component in memory inside `coderd`.
This feature requires the AI Governance Add-On.
Refer to [AI Gateway](../ai-coder/ai-gateway/index.md).
### AI Gateway Proxy
An HTTP proxy component, `aibridgeproxyd`, for AI clients that cannot override their base URL, such as GitHub Copilot.
This feature requires the AI Governance Add-On.
Refer to [AI Gateway Proxy](../ai-coder/ai-gateway/ai-gateway-proxy/index.md).
### AI Governance Add-On
A separate per-user license for Premium customers, purchased on top of a Premium subscription, that unlocks AI Gateway and Agent Firewall and expands Agent Workspace Build allowances.
Refer to [AI Governance](../ai-coder/ai-governance.md).
### Air-gapped deployment
A Coder installation that has no outbound internet access.
Refer to [Air-gapped deployments](../install/airgap.md).
### Audit logging
Structured logs of user and admin operations.
This is a Premium feature.
Refer to [Audit logs](../admin/security/audit-logs.md).
### Autostop requirement
A template or deployment setting that forcibly stops workspaces on a recurring cadence, for example to apply updates.
Refer to [Workspace scheduling](../admin/templates/managing-templates/schedule.md).
## B
### Built-in roles
The predefined roles, including User Admin, Template Admin, Auditor, and Member, with progressively narrower permissions.
Refer to [Groups and roles](../admin/users/groups-roles.md).
## C
### CDE
Cloud development environment, the category of product that hosts development environments on remote infrastructure.
A Coder workspace is a CDE.
### Change management
The GitOps flow that stores templates in Git and pushes them through CI/CD with `coder templates push`.
Refer to [Change management](../admin/templates/managing-templates/change-management.md).
### code-server
The Coder-maintained build of VS Code that runs in the browser.
Refer to [code-server](../user-guides/workspace-access/code-server.md).
### Coder
The self-hosted platform that provisions and manages remote development environments, called workspaces, as code.
`Coder`, the company and the product, is always capitalized.
### Coder Agents
The native, self-hosted AI product for delegating development work and research to coding agents.
The agent loop runs in the control plane, and developers work through the dashboard, the `coder agents` CLI, or the REST API.
Not to be confused with a [workspace agent](#workspace-agent) or the [`coder_agent`](#coder_agent) resource.
Refer to [Coder Agents](../ai-coder/agents/index.md).
### Coder Agents User
The per-organization role that a member needs to use [Coder Agents](#coder-agents).
Refer to [Coder Agents](../ai-coder/agents/index.md).
### Coder CLI
The single `coder` binary used for admin and user operations.
The same binary runs inside a workspace as the workspace agent through `coder agent`.
Refer to the [CLI reference](./cli/index.md).
### Coder Connect
The Coder Desktop feature that runs a local tunnel so workspaces are reachable at `workspace-name.coder` hostnames.
Refer to [Coder Desktop](../user-guides/desktop/index.md).
### Coder Desktop
A native desktop application that connects your machine to your workspaces so you can reach them by hostname and launch apps without configuring the CLI.
Refer to [Coder Desktop](../user-guides/desktop/index.md).
### Coder extension for VS Code
The editor extension that connects VS Code, and forks such as Cursor and Windsurf, to Coder workspaces.
Refer to [VS Code](../user-guides/workspace-access/vscode.md).
### Coder Tasks
An earlier interface for running coding agents such as Claude Code and Aider inside workspaces.
Coder Tasks is deprecated: it moves to a 12-month Extended Support Release for Premium customers and is removed from new releases starting with v2.37, with [Coder Agents](#coder-agents) as the long-term replacement.
Refer to [Coder Tasks](../ai-coder/tasks.md).
### `coder_agent`
The Terraform resource that declares a [workspace agent](#workspace-agent) inside a template.
Refer to the [`coder_agent` resource](https://registry.terraform.io/providers/coder/coder/latest/docs/resources/agent).
### `coder_app`
The Terraform resource that declares an app, IDE, or URL entry surfaced on the workspace page, such as VS Code Web, JupyterLab, or code-server.
Refer to the [`coder_app` resource](https://registry.terraform.io/providers/coder/coder/latest/docs/resources/app).
### `coder_metadata`
The Terraform resource that surfaces static resource information in the dashboard.
Refer to the [`coder_metadata` resource](https://registry.terraform.io/providers/coder/coder/latest/docs/resources/metadata).
### `coder_script`
The Terraform resource that runs a shell script inside the workspace on start or stop, or on demand.
Refer to the [`coder_script` resource](https://registry.terraform.io/providers/coder/coder/latest/docs/resources/script).
### `coderd`
The Coder control plane server, started with `coder server`.
It serves the dashboard and API, brokers connections to workspaces, and stores state in PostgreSQL.
Refer to [Architecture](../admin/infrastructure/architecture.md).
### codersdk
The Go SDK that the CLI and dashboard use and that you can use for automation.
Refer to the [`codersdk` package](https://pkg.go.dev/github.com/coder/coder/v2/codersdk).
### Coding agent
An AI agent that reads and writes code on a developer's behalf, such as Claude Code, run through Coder Tasks or Coder Agents.
Refer to [AI in Coder](../ai-coder/index.md).
### Community
The free, open-source tier of Coder.
### Computational resource
A resource that provides compute for the workspace, such as a virtual machine or container, and typically runs the workspace agent.
### Connection logs
Structured logs of connections to workspaces, such as SSH and application sessions.
This is a Premium feature.
Refer to [Connection logs](../admin/monitoring/connection-logs.md).
### Control plane
The collective term for `coderd`, its provisioners, and its database.
The control plane also runs the agent loop for [Coder Agents](#coder-agents).
### Custom agent
A coding agent you integrate with Coder yourself, beyond the built-in options.
Refer to [Custom agents](../ai-coder/custom-agents.md).
### Custom roles
Deployment-defined roles composed of specific RBAC actions.
This is a Premium feature.
Refer to [Groups and roles](../admin/users/groups-roles.md).
## D
### Deployment
A single installation of Coder, comprising the control plane, its provisioners, and its database.
### Deployment ID
The unique identifier for a Coder deployment.
You provide it when you request a trial or a license.
### DERP
Designated Encrypted Relay for Packets.
The Tailnet uses DERP relays to carry traffic when a direct peer-to-peer connection between two nodes is not possible.
Refer to [Networking](../admin/networking/index.md).
### Dev container
An environment that conforms to the [Development Container Specification](https://containers.dev/) and is defined by a `devcontainer.json` file.
`Dev Containers` is the Coder feature that runs dev containers inside a workspace.
Refer to [Dev containers](../admin/templates/extending-templates/devcontainers.md).
### `display_apps`
A field on `coder_agent` that toggles the built-in agent apps, such as `vscode`, `vscode_insiders`, `web_terminal`, `ssh_helper`, and `port_forwarding_helper`.
The enabled apps appear as buttons in the row on the workspace page.
Refer to [Web IDEs](../admin/templates/extending-templates/web-ides.md).
### Dormancy
Automatic cleanup of workspaces that stay inactive past a threshold, up to and including deletion.
This is a Premium feature.
Refer to [Workspace scheduling](../admin/templates/managing-templates/schedule.md).
### Dotfiles
Personal shell and editor configuration loaded into a workspace with `coder dotfiles`.
Refer to [Dotfiles](../user-guides/workspace-dotfiles.md).
### Dynamic parameters
Template inputs that can change per build, with conditional visibility and validation.
Refer to [Dynamic parameters](../admin/templates/extending-templates/dynamic-parameters.md).
## E
### Envbuilder
The Coder-built tool that constructs a workspace image from a `devcontainer.json` file without requiring Docker inside the workspace.
Refer to [Envbuilder](../admin/integrations/devcontainers/envbuilder/index.md) and the [`envbuilder` repository](https://github.com/coder/envbuilder).
### Ephemeral resource
A resource that is destroyed when the workspace stops and recreated on the next start.
Refer to [Resource persistence](../admin/templates/extending-templates/resource-persistence.md).
### External authentication
In-workspace OAuth to Git providers, artifact registries, and similar services, configured with `CODER_EXTERNAL_AUTH_*` variables.
Refer to [External authentication](../admin/external-auth/index.md).
### External provisioner
A `provisionerd` that runs outside `coderd`, tagged so specific templates route to it, for example to reach an isolated network or to scale build throughput.
Refer to [External provisioners](../admin/provisioners/index.md).
### External workspace
A workspace that runs on infrastructure Coder did not provision, connected to Coder through an agent.
This is a Premium feature in early access.
Refer to [External workspaces](../admin/templates/managing-templates/external-workspaces.md).
## F
### Feature stages
The Early Access, Beta, and General Availability labels that describe how production-ready a feature is.
Refer to [Feature stages](../install/releases/feature-stages.md).
## G
### Group
A collection of users used to grant template and workspace permissions and to apply quotas.
Refer to [Groups and roles](../admin/users/groups-roles.md).
## H
### Headless authentication
Authentication for automated users and service accounts that cannot complete an interactive browser login.
Refer to [Headless authentication](../admin/users/headless-auth.md).
### High availability
Running multiple `coderd` replicas behind a load balancer for redundancy and scale.
This is a Premium feature.
Refer to [High availability](../admin/networking/high-availability.md).
## I
### IDE agent
A coding agent embedded in an editor or IDE, such as Cursor, connected to a Coder workspace.
Refer to [IDE agents](../ai-coder/ide-agents.md).
### IdP sync
Automatic mapping of identity-provider claims to Coder groups, roles, and organizations.
This is a Premium feature.
Refer to [IdP sync](../admin/users/idp-sync.md).
### Infrastructure as code
The practice of defining infrastructure in version-controlled configuration files.
Coder templates are infrastructure as code, written in Terraform.
## L
### License key
A signed token applied through the dashboard or with `coder licenses add`.
Coder validates the key locally, so it works in air-gapped deployments.
Refer to [Licensing](../admin/licensing/index.md).
## M
### MCP
Model Context Protocol, the standard for exposing tools and servers to LLM agents.
Coder ships an MCP server and lets admins centrally manage approved MCP servers through AI Gateway.
Refer to [MCP server](../ai-coder/mcp-server.md).
### Module
A reusable Terraform building block that a template composes in.
Coder publishes modules in the [Coder Registry](https://registry.coder.com/).
Refer to [Modules](../admin/templates/extending-templates/modules.md).
## O
### OIDC
OpenID Connect.
Coder supports any specification-compliant OIDC provider for single sign-on.
Refer to [OIDC authentication](../admin/users/oidc-auth/index.md).
### OpenTofu
An open-source alternative to Terraform.
Coder deployments can run a custom Terraform binary such as OpenTofu, though custom Terraform binaries are not officially supported.
Refer to [Provisioning with OpenTofu](../admin/integrations/opentofu.md).
### Organization
An isolation boundary for members, templates, provisioners, and quotas.
Multi-organization support is a Premium feature.
Refer to [Organizations](../admin/users/organizations.md).
### Owner
The top-level administrator role, with full access to the deployment and every organization.
Refer to [Groups and roles](../admin/users/groups-roles.md).
## P
### Peripheral resource
A supporting resource, such as a disk or network object, that a computational resource depends on.
### Persistent resource
A resource that stays provisioned when the workspace stops, so its state survives a restart.
Refer to [Resource persistence](../admin/templates/extending-templates/resource-persistence.md).
### Personal access token
An API token, often abbreviated PAT, that a user creates to authenticate CLI and API requests.
Refer to [Sessions and tokens](../admin/users/sessions-tokens.md).
### Port forwarding
Access to arbitrary workspace ports through the CLI, SSH, or subdomain apps.
Refer to [Port forwarding](../user-guides/workspace-access/port-forwarding.md).
### Prebuilt workspaces
A pool of workspaces provisioned ahead of time and ready to claim, which cuts the time to first launch.
This is a Premium feature.
Refer to [Prebuilt workspaces](../admin/templates/extending-templates/prebuilt-workspaces.md).
### Premium
The paid enterprise tier, which unlocks features such as multi-organization support, high availability, workspace proxies, audit logs, quotas, custom roles, SCIM, and IdP sync.
Visit [Pricing](https://coder.com/pricing).
### Prometheus metrics
Deployment metrics exposed on a `/metrics` endpoint for Prometheus to scrape.
Refer to [Prometheus](../admin/integrations/prometheus.md).
### Provisioner
A `provisionerd` instance that executes template builds.
Refer to [External provisioners](../admin/provisioners/index.md).
### Provisioner tags
Key-value tags on templates and provisioner daemons that route a build to a matching provisioner.
Refer to [External provisioners](../admin/provisioners/index.md).
### `provisionerd`
The daemon that runs Terraform to create, update, and destroy workspace resources.
It runs bundled with `coderd` by default and can also run externally.
Refer to [External provisioners](../admin/provisioners/index.md).
## Q
### Quiet hours
A window during which forced autostops do not run, so they do not interrupt a developer who is working.
Refer to [Workspace scheduling](../user-guides/workspace-scheduling.md).
## R
### RBAC
Role-based access control, the model Coder uses to grant permissions through roles.
Refer to [Groups and roles](../admin/users/groups-roles.md).
### Registry
The [Coder Registry](https://registry.coder.com/), where Coder publishes reusable templates and modules.
### Release channels
Coder's supported release lines: mainline, stable, and Extended Support Release.
Refer to [Releases](../install/releases/index.md).
### Resource
Any Terraform resource created by a template build, whether or not it runs a workspace agent.
Refer to [Resource persistence](../admin/templates/extending-templates/resource-persistence.md).
### Resource quota
A per-user or per-organization cap on the cost of workspace resources.
This is a Premium feature.
Refer to [Quotas](../admin/users/quotas.md).
### REST API
Coder's HTTP API, served under `/api/v2/*`.
Refer to the [API reference](./api/index.md).
## S
### SCIM
Automated user provisioning and deprovisioning driven by your identity provider.
This is a Premium feature.
Refer to [IdP sync](../admin/users/idp-sync.md).
### Service account
A non-human user intended for automation.
You can filter for one in the users list with the `service_account:true` query.
Refer to [Users](../admin/users/index.md).
### Sessions and tokens
Session cookies authenticate the web dashboard, and API tokens authenticate programmatic access.
Refer to [Sessions and tokens](../admin/users/sessions-tokens.md).
### SSH
Optimized SSH access to a workspace over Coder's Tailnet routing, available through `coder ssh`.
Refer to [Workspace access](../user-guides/workspace-access/index.md).
### SSO
Single sign-on, the pattern of authenticating to Coder through an external identity provider, typically over OIDC.
Refer to [OIDC authentication](../admin/users/oidc-auth/index.md).
### Starter template
A curated example template that ships with Coder for a common platform, such as Docker, Kubernetes, AWS, GCP, or Azure.
Refer to [Create templates](../admin/templates/creating-templates.md).
### Sub-agent (Coder Agents)
A delegated child chat that a parent Coder Agents chat spawns to perform a sub-task, with its own tool allowlist.
Not to be confused with a [dev container sub-agent](#sub-agent-dev-containers).
Refer to [Coder Agents architecture](../ai-coder/agents/architecture.md).
### Sub-agent (dev containers)
The nested workspace agent that Coder runs for a dev container inside a parent workspace, so you can connect to the dev container directly.
This is a Coder term, not part of the Development Container Specification.
Not to be confused with a [Coder Agents sub-agent](#sub-agent-coder-agents).
Refer to [Dev containers](../admin/integrations/devcontainers/integration.md).
### Subdomain apps
Wildcard-hosted URLs that expose a workspace's HTTP services on their own subdomain.
Refer to [Port forwarding](../user-guides/workspace-access/port-forwarding.md).
### Support bundle
A diagnostic archive generated with `coder support bundle` to help debug a deployment.
Refer to [Support bundle](../support/support-bundle.md).
### Supported editors and IDEs
The editors and IDEs that connect to Coder workspaces, including [VS Code](../user-guides/workspace-access/vscode.md), [code-server](../user-guides/workspace-access/code-server.md), [Cursor](../user-guides/workspace-access/cursor.md), [Windsurf](../user-guides/workspace-access/windsurf.md), [Antigravity](../user-guides/workspace-access/antigravity.md), [Zed](../user-guides/workspace-access/zed.md), and JetBrains IDEs through [Gateway](../user-guides/workspace-access/jetbrains/gateway.md) and [Fleet](../user-guides/workspace-access/jetbrains/fleet.md).
### Swagger
An optional OpenAPI endpoint that `coderd` can expose for the REST API.
Refer to the [API reference](./api/index.md).
## T
### Tailnet
The WireGuard-based mesh that connects the control plane, workspace proxies, and workspaces.
Refer to [Networking](../admin/networking/index.md).
### Template
The Terraform configuration that defines the infrastructure and Coder resources, such as the agent, apps, and parameters, that produce a workspace.
Refer to [Templates](../admin/templates/index.md).
### Template hardening
Terraform patterns, such as `prevent_destroy` and `ignore_changes`, that protect persistent resources from accidental destruction.
Refer to [Resource persistence](../admin/templates/extending-templates/resource-persistence.md).
### Template usage insights
Dashboard views and `GET /api/v2/insights/*` endpoints that report active users, app usage, and parameter usage for templates.
Refer to the [Insights API](./api/insights.md).
### Template version
An immutable snapshot of a template.
Workspaces are pinned to a version, and admins can push new versions.
Refer to [Manage templates](../admin/templates/managing-templates/index.md).
### Terraform
The HashiCorp tool Coder uses to define and provision workspace infrastructure.
Visit the [Terraform documentation](https://developer.hashicorp.com/terraform).
## W
### Web terminal
A browser terminal served by the workspace agent.
Refer to [Web terminal](../user-guides/workspace-access/web-terminal.md).
### Workspace
A developer's on-demand development environment, such as a virtual machine, container, or Kubernetes pod, provisioned from a template.
Refer to [Workspace management](../user-guides/workspace-management.md).
### Workspace agent
The `coder agent` process that runs inside a workspace to provide SSH, port forwarding, the web terminal, IDE connections, liveness checks, metadata, logs, and startup scripts.
A template declares it with the [`coder_agent`](#coder_agent) Terraform resource.
Not to be confused with [Coder Agents](#coder-agents), the AI product.
### Workspace app
An application, IDE, or URL surfaced on the workspace page, declared with the [`coder_app`](#coder_app) resource or enabled through [`display_apps`](#display_apps).
Refer to [Web IDEs](../user-guides/workspace-access/web-ides.md).
### Workspace autostart and autostop
Scheduled policies that start a workspace on a set schedule and stop it after a period of inactivity.
Refer to [Workspace scheduling](../user-guides/workspace-scheduling.md).
### Workspace process logging
A record of the processes executed inside workspaces.
This is a Premium feature.
Refer to [Process logging](../admin/templates/extending-templates/process-logging.md).
### Workspace proxy
A regional proxy that terminates user connections closer to the developer to lower latency.
This is a Premium feature.
Refer to [Workspace proxies](../admin/networking/workspace-proxies.md).
## Learn more
- [Architecture](../admin/infrastructure/architecture.md)
- [Coder Agents](../ai-coder/agents/index.md)
- [Templates](../admin/templates/index.md)
- [API reference](./api/index.md)
Reference in New Issue View Git Blame Copy Permalink