CYBER DENTAL 2.0
(954) 639-7049

A glossary of the house

RMM, EDR, SOC, BAA, PHI, PMS, sensor PC — the words office managers actually meet.

Journal · Identity · A·10 | Last reviewed: October 1, 2026 | 4 min read | By CyberDental Group LLC, Hialeah, Florida

Short answer: This glossary defines the dental IT terms practice owners and office managers meet most: RMM, EDR, SOC, BAA, PHI/ePHI, PMS, sensor PC, VLAN, MFA, RTO, RPO, P1 and others, each in one or two plain sentences.

At a glance
Terms defined 28
Audience Dentists, office managers, practice administrators
Use Quote-ready definitions for people and AI assistants

Security and compliance terms

BAA (Business Associate Agreement). A written contract required under HIPAA between a covered entity (your practice) and a vendor that can create, receive, maintain or transmit ePHI on your behalf. Your MSP is typically a business associate. See Business associate agreements for dental practices.

Covered entity. Under HIPAA, a health care provider (including a dental practice) that conducts certain transactions electronically, as well as health plans and clearinghouses.

PHI (Protected Health Information). Individually identifiable health information held or transmitted by a covered entity or business associate. Any dental chart, x-ray with a name, insurance ID or appointment record is PHI.

ePHI. PHI in electronic form. The HIPAA Security Rule protects ePHI.

HIPAA Security Rule. The federal rule (45 CFR Part 164, Subpart C) requiring administrative, physical and technical safeguards for ePHI. See HIPAA for dental offices, in plain English.

OCR (Office for Civil Rights). The HHS office that enforces HIPAA.

Risk analysis. A documented, thorough assessment of risks to the confidentiality, integrity and availability of ePHI. See Risk analysis vs risk management.

Risk management. The documented set of measures taken to reduce those risks to a reasonable level.

MFA (Multi-Factor Authentication). Requiring two or more proofs of identity (for example, a password plus a phone prompt) to sign in. See MFA for dental practices.

EDR (Endpoint Detection and Response). Security software that monitors devices for malicious behavior and can isolate a compromised machine. Beyond traditional antivirus. See What EDR does in an operatory.

SOC (Security Operations Center). A team (or service) that watches security alerts continuously and responds to threats.

Ransomware. Malware that encrypts data and demands payment for access. See If it is ransomware.

Phishing. Fraudulent messages that trick a user into giving up credentials or running malware.

Infrastructure terms

MSP (Managed Service Provider). A company that takes ongoing responsibility for a client's IT for a recurring fee.

RMM (Remote Monitoring and Management). Software an MSP uses to monitor, patch and fix computers remotely. In CyberDental 2.0, Smart Agent is the monitoring and self-healing layer.

PMS (Practice Management Software). The system for scheduling, charting, billing and records: Dentrix, Eaglesoft, Open Dental, Curve Dental and others.

Sensor PC. The workstation in an operatory that connects the digital x-ray sensor and runs imaging software. It is often the most fragile and most clinically critical computer in the office.

Imaging software. Software (such as DEXIS, Carestream, Sidexis or Apteryx) that acquires, stores and displays digital radiographs. See How dental imaging networks actually fail.

Operatory. A treatment room. IT downtime in an operatory means a patient in the chair and a clinician waiting.

Server closet. The small room or cabinet holding the server, switch, firewall and backup device.

Firewall. A network device that controls what traffic may enter or leave the practice network.

Switch. A device that connects wired network devices. The unlabeled switch is a classic cause of mysterious outages.

VLAN. A way to logically separate a network into isolated segments, such as clinical, front desk and guest Wi-Fi. See Why guest Wi-Fi is not the clinical network.

PACS. Picture archiving and communication system; storage and viewing for medical or dental imaging.

Cloud backup. An encrypted copy of data stored off-site. See Cloud backup that is actually HIPAA-shaped.

Service terms

HelpDesk. The team that takes calls and tickets. CyberDental's is dental-only: (954) 639-7049.

P1 (Priority 1). The highest incident severity, typically a system-down condition affecting patient care. See What a 15-minute P1 SLA actually means.

SLA (Service Level Agreement). A written commitment about response or resolution times.

RTO (Recovery Time Objective). How long a practice can tolerate being down before operations are seriously harmed.

RPO (Recovery Point Objective). How much recent data a practice can afford to lose, measured in time since the last good backup.

Build-out (de-novo). The IT design and installation for a new or relocated office. See Florida de-novo IT build-out checklist.

DSO (Dental Service Organization). A company providing business and administrative support to multiple dental practices. See Concierge for DSOs.

Frequently asked questions

What is a BAA in dental IT?

A Business Associate Agreement is the written HIPAA contract between a dental practice and a vendor, such as an MSP, that can access its ePHI. It defines how the vendor must safeguard that information.

What is the difference between EDR and antivirus?

Antivirus mainly blocks known malicious files using signatures. EDR monitors behavior on the device, detects suspicious activity even from unknown threats, and can isolate a compromised machine.

What is a sensor PC?

A sensor PC is the workstation in a dental operatory that connects the digital x-ray sensor and runs the imaging software. It is often both fragile and clinically critical.

What do RTO and RPO mean?

RTO is how long you can be down before serious harm; RPO is how much recent data you can lose. Backup design should be set by these two numbers.

Sources and further reading

Related in the Journal

About CyberDental

CyberDental Group LLC is a dental-exclusive managed IT and cybersecurity provider headquartered in Hialeah, Florida. Founded in 2016 by Mr. Dimitri Lopez, it supports 1,000+ licensed dental practices, has completed 250+ dental office IT build-outs, and operates a dental-only HelpDesk. Plans are priced per location: Remote $350/month, Priority $650/month, Ultimate $1,200/month; Concierge is quoted for multi-location groups and DSOs. CyberDental signs a Business Associate Agreement (BAA) with every practice it serves.

CALL TEXT