2/16/24, 7:56 PM What is a Distributed System?

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What is a Distributed System?

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Distributed System is a collection of autonomous computer systems

that are physically separated but are connected by a centralized
computer network that is equipped with distributed system software.
The autonomous computers will communicate among each system by
sharing resources and files and performing the tasks assigned to them.

Types of Distributed Systems:

There are many models and architectures of distributed systems in use

today.

Client-server systems, the most traditional and simple type of

distributed system, involve a multitude of networked computers
that interact with a central server for data storage, processing or
other common goal.
Peer-to-peer networks distribute workloads among hundreds or
thousands of computers all running the same software.
Cell phone networks are an advanced distributed system, sharing
workloads among handsets, switching systems and internet-based
devices.

So, The most common forms of distributed systems today operate over
the internet, handing off workloads to dozens of cloud-based virtual
server instances that are created as needed, and then terminated
when the task is complete.

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Example of Distributed System:

Any Social Media can have its Centralized Computer Network as its
Headquarters and computer systems that can be accessed by any user
and using their services will be the Autonomous Systems in the
Distributed System Architecture.

Distributed System Software: This Software enables computers to

coordinate their activities and to share the resources such as
Hardware, Software, Data, etc.
Database: It is used to store the processed data that are processed
by each Node/System of the Distributed systems that are connected
to the Centralized network.

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As we can see that each Autonomous System has a common

Application that can have its own data that is shared by the
Centralized Database System.
To Transfer the Data to Autonomous Systems, Centralized System
should be having a Middleware Service and should be connected to
a Network.
Middleware Services enable some services which are not present in
the local systems or centralized system default by acting as an
interface between the Centralized System and the local systems. By
using components of Middleware Services systems communicate
and manage data.
The Data which is been transferred through the database will be
divided into segments or modules and shared with Autonomous
systems for processing.
The Data will be processed and then will be transferred to the
Centralized system through the network and will be stored in the
database.

Characteristics of Distributed System:

Resource Sharing: It is the ability to use any Hardware, Software,

or Data anywhere in the System.

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Openness: It is concerned with Extensions and improvements in the

system (i.e., How openly the software is developed and shared with
others)
Concurrency: It is naturally present in Distributed Systems, that
deal with the same activity or functionality that can be performed
by separate users who are in remote locations. Every local system
has its independent Operating Systems and Resources.
Scalability: It increases the scale of the system as a number of
processors communicate with more users by accommodating to
improve the responsiveness of the system.
Fault tolerance: It cares about the reliability of the system if there is
a failure in Hardware or Software, the system continues to operate
properly without degrading the performance the system.
Transparency: It hides the complexity of the Distributed Systems to
the Users and Application programs as there should be privacy in
every system.
Heterogeneity: Networks, computer hardware, operating systems,
programming languages, and developer implementations can all
vary and differ among dispersed system components.

Advantages of Distributed System:

Applications in Distributed Systems are Inherently Distributed

Applications.
Information in Distributed Systems is shared among geographically
distributed users.
Resource Sharing (Autonomous systems can share resources from
remote locations).
It has a better price performance ratio and flexibility.
It has shorter response time and higher throughput.
It has higher reliability and availability against component failure.
It has extensibility so that systems can be extended in more remote
locations and also incremental growth.

Disadvantages of Distributed System:

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Relevant Software for Distributed systems does not exist currently.

Security possess a problem due to easy access to data as the
resources are shared to multiple systems.
Networking Saturation may cause a hurdle in data transfer i.e., if
there is a lag in the network then the user will face a problem
accessing data.
In comparison to a single user system, the database associated with
distributed systems is much more complex and challenging to
manage.
If every node in a distributed system tries to send data at once, the
network may become overloaded.

Applications Area of Distributed System:

Finance and Commerce: Amazon, eBay, Online Banking, E-

Commerce websites.
Information Society: Search Engines, Wikipedia, Social Networking,
Cloud Computing.
Cloud Technologies: AWS, Salesforce, Microsoft Azure, SAP.
Entertainment: Online Gaming, Music, youtube.
Healthcare: Online patient records, Health Informatics.
Education: E-learning.
Transport and logistics: GPS, Google Maps.
Environment Management: Sensor technologies.

Challenges of Distributed Systems:

While distributed systems offer many advantages, they also present

some challenges that must be addressed. These challenges include:

Network latency: The communication network in a distributed

system can introduce latency, which can affect the performance of
the system.
Distributed coordination: Distributed systems require coordination
among the nodes, which can be challenging due to the distributed
nature of the system.

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Security: Distributed systems are more vulnerable to security

threats than centralized systems due to the distributed nature of the
system.
Data consistency: Maintaining data consistency across multiple
nodes in a distributed system can be challenging.

Conclusion:
Distributed systems are becoming increasingly popular due to their
high availability, scalability, and fault tolerance. However, they also
present some challenges that must be addressed. By understanding
the characteristics and challenges of distributed systems, developers
can design and implement effective distributed systems that meet the
needs of their users.

Note: This article is a part of “Analysis of Monolithic and

Distributed Systems”

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