The Global System Variables manager is part of the administration portion of the ACTIVE Content Manager. It contains a number of system settings that affect how your sites collect and process information, and how users will interact with your site. Each of these "settings" is known as a variable because they can vary from system to system. The use of Variables means you have control over these settings and can change them as required. The settings are global in that they affect all sites within your ACM installation (although many can also be controlled at the site level so that you can customize the settings on a site-by-site basis).
When you first receive your ACTIVE Content Manager, the Global System Variables (GSV) are configured with default settings. These are a basic starting point that allow your system to operate. You can change all of the default settings through the GSV to suit your organization's needs. If you are unsure of any of the settings in the GSV, consult the context sensitive help topics 
within the GSV manager, or contact your system support representatives.