Getting Started › Overview
Key Concepts and Terminology
This glossary covers the key terms and concepts you will encounter when using CloudM Continuity. Refer back to this page whenever you need a quick definition.
Core concepts
- Resilience Loop
- The three-phase cycle that CloudM Continuity follows: Sync (mirror data from M365 to Google Workspace), Failover (users switch to Google Workspace during an outage), and Recover (reverse sync data back to M365 after the outage). See How CloudM Continuity works.
- Hot standby
- A continuously synchronised Google Workspace environment that is always ready to use. Unlike a traditional backup that requires restoration, a hot standby is live and accessible immediately.
- Reverse Recovery Sync (future capability)
- A planned feature that will run after an M365 outage ends. It will identify emails sent and received in Google Workspace during the outage and migrate them back to Microsoft 365, ensuring no data is lost. This is not available at launch.
- Failover
- The act of switching from Microsoft 365 to Google Workspace during an outage. With CloudM Continuity, failover is manual (users log into Google Workspace) but requires no scripts or technical intervention.
Sync and data
- Initial sync
- The first sync for a user, where the last 30 days of mail data is migrated from Microsoft 365 to Google Workspace. This is a bulk operation that may take time depending on mailbox size.
- Delta sync
- An incremental sync that runs after the initial sync is complete. Delta syncs only transfer new or changed items since the last sync, keeping the Google Workspace mailbox up to date.
- Sync frequency
- How often delta syncs run for a given policy. Options are weekly, daily, or hourly, depending on your licence tier.
- Sync freshness
- A measure of how recent the synced data is. Shown on the dashboard as "last successful sync" (most recent sync across all users) and "oldest successful sync" (the user with the most outdated data).
- Data type
- The category of data being synchronised. At launch, CloudM Continuity supports Mail (email messages, folders, read states). Drive, Calendar, and Contacts are on the future roadmap.
- Sync pipeline
- The three-stage journey a user passes through: Waiting (queued), Initial Sync (bulk migration in progress), and Synced (initial migration complete, delta syncs running on schedule with delta indicators). Visible on the Continuity Dashboard.
Policies and configuration
- Sync policy
- A configuration that defines which users to sync, how often, and which data types to include. Policies use a user query to select users from your Microsoft 365 tenant and apply sync settings to them.
- User query
- A rule within a sync policy that determines which Microsoft 365 users are included. Queries can target users by department, group membership, or individual selection.
- Policy enable / disable
- An enabled policy actively syncs users on its configured schedule. A disabled policy pauses all sync operations for its users. Enabling and disabling a policy is logged as a distinct event in the audit trail.
- Unprotected users
- Users in your Microsoft 365 tenant who are not covered by any sync policy. The dashboard displays a warning when unprotected users are detected.
Connections and platform
- Source connection
- The connection to your Microsoft 365 tenant. This is configured by registering an Azure AD application with the required Microsoft Graph API permissions. See Connecting Microsoft 365.
- Destination connection
- The connection to your Google Workspace environment. This is configured by creating a GCP service account with domain-wide delegation. See Connecting Google Workspace.
- Connection status
- The status shown on the Connections page indicating whether CloudM Continuity has valid, working authentication credentials for both Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace. You can verify this using Test connection from the three-dot menu on the connection card.
Tenant and licensing
- Tenant
- Your organisation's isolated environment within CloudM Continuity. Each tenant has a name and description and contains your policies, connections, users, and configuration.
- Licence
- The entitlement that controls what your tenant can do. A licence defines your sync frequency tier (Basic, Standard, or Premium), user limit, and allowed data types. Licences are activated using a licence key in the format
BCSYNC-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX. - Licence tier
- The service level of your licence: Basic (weekly sync), Standard (daily sync), or Premium (hourly sync). See Sync frequency tiers.
- User limit
- The maximum number of users included in your licence. Sync continues for all users even if the limit is exceeded, but your organisation will be notified of the overage.
- Grace period
- A 7-day window after licence expiry during which sync operations continue with a warning. After the grace period ends, sync is paused until the licence is renewed.
Users and roles
- Admin user
- A person who logs into the CloudM Continuity platform to manage policies, connections, and settings. Not to be confused with the M365 or Google Workspace users whose data is being synced.
- Roles
- Admin users are assigned one of three roles: Super Admin (full access including user management), Admin (can manage policies and connections), or Viewer (read-only access to the dashboard and logs).
- Synced user
- A Microsoft 365 user whose mail data is being synchronised to Google Workspace by a sync policy. These users do not log into CloudM Continuity directly.
Monitoring and logging
- Continuity Dashboard
- The primary admin interface showing sync status, pipeline progress, freshness metrics, and failure counts.
- Audit logs
- A unified log of all system and user actions within your tenant. Includes events such as policy creation, user provisioning, sync completions, and admin sign-ins. Filterable by event type and time range.
- Sync status
- A per-user view showing detailed sync information including item counts, success/failure status, and timestamps for each sync session.