Editing Daemon (computing) (section)

==Terminology==
In the context of computing, the word is generally pronounced either as {{IPAc-en|ˈ|d|iː|m|ən}} {{respell|DEE|mən}} or {{IPAc-en|ˈ|d|eɪ|m|ən}} {{respell|DAY|mən}}.<ref name="jargon">{{Cite web|url=http://catb.org/~esr/jargon/html/D/daemon.html |title=daemon |author=Eric S. Raymond |author-link=Eric S. Raymond |access-date=2008-10-22 |work=[[Jargon File|The Jargon File]] }}</ref>

The term was coined by the programmers at [[Project MAC|MIT's Project MAC]]. According to [[Fernando J. Corbató]], who worked on [[MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory#Project MAC|Project MAC]] around 1963, his team was the first to use the term daemon, inspired by [[Maxwell's demon]], an imaginary agent in physics and [[thermodynamics]] that helped to sort molecules, stating, "We fancifully began to use the word daemon to describe background processes that worked tirelessly to perform system chores".<ref>{{Cite web|title=The Origin of the word Daemon|url=http://ei.cs.vt.edu/~history/Daemon.html}}</ref> [[Unix]] systems inherited this terminology. Maxwell's demon is consistent with Greek mythology's interpretation of a [[Daemon (mythology)|daemon]] as a supernatural being working in the background.

In the general sense, daemon is an older form of the word "demon", from the [[Greek language|Greek]] δαίμων. In the ''Unix System Administration Handbook'' [[Evi Nemeth]] states the following about daemons:<ref>{{Cite web|title=The BSD Daemon|url=http://www.freebsd.org/copyright/daemon.html|access-date=2008-11-15|publisher=Freebsd.org}}</ref>

{{bquote|
Many people equate the word "daemon" with the word "demon", implying some kind of [[satanism|satanic]] connection between UNIX and the [[underworld]]. This is an egregious misunderstanding. "Daemon" is actually a much older form of "demon"; daemons have no particular bias towards good or evil, but rather serve to help define a person's character or personality. The [[Ancient Greece|ancient Greeks]]' concept of a "personal daemon" was similar to the modern concept of a "guardian angel"—''eudaemonia'' is the state of being helped or protected by a kindly spirit. As a rule, UNIX systems seem to be infested with both daemons and demons.}}

Alternative terms include ''[[Windows service|service]]'' (used in Windows, from Windows NT onwards, and later also in Linux), ''started task'' (IBM [[z/OS]]),<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ibm.com/docs/en/zos-basic-skills?topic=glossary-zos-terms-abbreviations|title=Glossary of z/OS terms and abbreviations|website=IBM Documentation|date=31 January 2006 |publisher=[[IBM]]}}</ref> and ''ghost job'' (XDS [[Universal Time-Sharing System|UTS]]). Sometimes the more general term ''server'' or ''server process'' is used, particularly for daemons that operate as part of [[Client–server model|client-server systems]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=sshd: OpenSSH server process {{!}} SSH Academy |url=https://www.ssh.com/academy/ssh/sshd |access-date=2023-12-04 |website=www.ssh.com |language=en}}</ref> A daemon that connects to a computer network is a [[network service]].

After the term was adopted for computer use, it was incorrectly<ref name="jargon" /> rationalized as a [[backronym]] for '''d'''isk '''a'''nd '''e'''xecution '''mon'''itor.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.linfo.org/daemon.html|title=Daemon Definition|website=www.linfo.org}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://bookstack.kb.ucla.edu/books/macos-windows-and-linux/page/what-is-a-daemon |title=What is a daemon? |work=UCLA Knowledge Base}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.kayshav.com/ddinfo/daemon.html |title=Daemon |website=Kayshav.com}}</ref>