1.

Explain the differences between mainframe and client-server

architecture.

Client–server model is a distributed application structure that partitions tasks or

workloads between the providers of a resource or service, called servers, and service
requesters, called clients. Often clients and servers communicate over a computer
network on separate hardware, but both client and server may reside in the same
system. A server host runs one or more server programs, which share their resources
with clients. A client usually does not share any of its resources, but it requests
content or service from a server. Clients, therefore, initiate communication sessions
with servers, which await incoming requests. Examples of computer applications
that use the client-server model are email, network printing, and the World Wide
Web.

The "client-server" characteristic describes the relationship of cooperating programs

in an application. The server component provides a function or service to one or
many clients, which initiate requests for such services. Servers are classified by the
services they provide. For example, a web server serves web pages and a file
server serves computer files
Whether a computer is a client, a server, or both, is determined by the nature of the
application that requires the service functions. For example, a single computer can
run web server and file server software at the same time to serve different data to
clients making different kinds of requests. Client software can also communicate
with server software within the same computer. Communication between servers,
such as to synchronize data, is sometimes called inter-server or server-to-
server communication.
A mainframe computer, informally called a mainframe or big iron, is
a computer used primarily by large organizations for critical applications, bulk data
processing (such as the census and industry and consumer statistics, enterprise
resource planning, and large-scale transaction processing). A mainframe computer is
larger and has more processing power than some other classes of computers, such
as minicomputers, servers, workstations, and personal computers. Most large-scale
computer-system architectures were established in the 1960s, but they continue to
evolve. Mainframe computers are often used as servers.
 The term mainframe derived from the large cabinet, called a main frame, that houses
the central processing unit and main memory of early computers. Later, the
term mainframe was used to distinguish high-end commercial computers from less
powerful machines.
Modern mainframe design is characterized less by raw computational speed and
more by:

 Redundant internal engineering resulting in high reliability and security

 Extensive input-output ("I/O") facilities with the ability to offload (bojh km
krna) to separate engines.
 Strict backward compatibility with older software
 High hardware and computational utilization rates through virtualization to
support massive throughput.
 Hot-swapping of hardware, such as processors and memory.
Their high stability and reliability enable these machines to run uninterrupted for
very long periods of time, with mean time between failures (MTBF) measured in
decades.
Mainframes have high availability, one of the primary reasons for their longevity,
since they are typically used in applications where downtime would be costly or
catastrophic. The term reliability, availability and serviceability (RAS) is a defining
characteristic of mainframe computers. Proper planning and implementation are
required to realize these features

2. What are the advantages of storing data in a relational database?

Benefits

The primary benefit of the relational database approach is the ability to create
meaningful information by joining the tables. Joining tables allows you to
understand the relationships between the data, or how the tables connect. SQL
includes the ability to count, add, group, and also combine queries. SQL can perform
basic math and subtotal functions and logical transformations. Analysts can order the
results by date, name, or any column.
Those features make the relational approach the single most popular query tool in
business today.

Relational databases have several advantages compared to other database formats:

Flexibility 

SQL has its a built-in language for creating tables called Data Definition Language
(DDL). DDL allows you to add new columns, add new tables, rename relations, and
make other changes even while the database is running and while queries are
happening. This allows you to change the schema or how you model data on the fly.

Reduced redundancy 

Relational databases eliminate data redundancy. The information for a single

customer appears in one place—a single entry in the customer table. The order table
only needs to store a link to the customer table. The practice of separating the data to
avoid redundancy is called normalization. Professional database designers make sure
the tables normalize during the design process.

Ease of backup and disaster recovery 

Relational databases are transactional—they guarantee the state of the entire system
is consistent at any moment. Most relational databases offer easy export and import
options, making backup and restore trivial. These exports can happen even while the
database is running, making restore on failure easy. Modern, cloud-based relational
databases can do continuous mirroring, making the loss of data on restore measured
in seconds or less. Most cloud-managed services allow you to create Read Replicas,
like in IBM Cloud Databases for PostgreSQL.

Examples of relational databases

Many database products implement the relational database model. They either use a
SQL database for processing or can at least process SQL statements for requests and
database updates. These databases range from small, desktop systems to massive
cloud-based systems. They can be either open source and internally supported, open
 source with commercial support, or commercial closed-source systems. Here are a
few of the more popular ones:

MySQL

MySQL is a common and easy to start a low-memory/disk/CPU database. It

supports all the basic SQL commands, along with transactions and Atomicity,
Consistency, Isolation, Durability (ACID) performance. MySQL is the most
common database integrated with WordPress sites.

PostgreSQL

PostgreSQL is also open source. It provides enterprise features such as security,

scalability, and support for more automation through a command-line interface, as
well as direct access over the web. PostgreSQL supports stored procedures, which is
a more complex programming language built on top of SQL.

3. .What are the three types of database relationships? Give an example of each

An entity relationship diagram (ERD) is a graphical representation reflecting the

database entities and the relationships among those entities. The ERD diagram is
most often used as the method for communicating between database designers and
end users when developing databases. In database terminology, a relationship is
called cardinality, and it indicates the number of occurrences (none, one, or many) of
an entity in relation to another entity. Listed below are the three types of
relationships in a RDBMS and an example ERD for each.

Relationship of higher degree

The degree of relationship can be defined as the number of occurrences in one entity
that is associated with the number of occurrences in another entity.

There is the three degree of relationship:

1. One-to-one (1:1)
2. One-to-many (1:M)
3. Many-to-many (M:N)
1. One-to-one

o In a one-to-one relationship, one occurrence of an entity relates to only one

occurrence in another entity.
o A one-to-one relationship rarely exists in practice.
o For example: if an employee is allocated a company car then that car can
only be driven by that employee.
o Therefore, employee and company car have a one-to-one relationship.

2. One-to-many

o In a one-to-many relationship, one occurrence in an entity relates to many

occurrences in another entity.
o For example: An employee works in one department, but a department has
many employees.
o Therefore, department and employee have a one-to-many relationship.

3. Many-to-many

o In a many-to-many relationship, many occurrences in an entity relate to

many occurrences in another entity.
o Same as a one-to-one relationship, the many-to-many relationship rarely
exists in practice.
o For example: At the same time, an employee can work on several projects,
and a project has a team of many employees.
o Therefore, employee and project have a many-to-many relationship.
Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of customizing ERP software

Disadvantages Of ERP Customization

ERP customization can create problems during implementation. Most executives
have read the horror stories of ERP failures largely attributed to over-customization
of the software. Customization is hard to manage, can break your implementation
budget, and can indicate a reluctance ( hichkichahat) to change inefficient processes
rather than taking the opportunity to review processes to see how features offered
out of the box by today’s ERP systems can be improved or even eliminated. Perhaps
most concerning, however, is that customization is sending your organization down
a path of relying less on proven, out-of-the-box functionality, which should be a big
concern for any CEO, CIO, or implementation project manager.
ERP customization can create problems after implementation. Upgrades become
more difficult since the code often needs to be rewritten to support newer versions of
the software, which often leads organizations to defer upgrades – sometimes
indefinitely (insufficiency ). When we look at trends of our newer clients, most are
looking to replace their old ERP systems largely because they’ve customized the
software so much that they can’t (or aren’t willing to) take advantage of newer
versions of the software because of the associated risks.
Advantages Of ERP Customization
As much of a no-brainer (rukawat na hona) that “no customization” might seem
given the above two points, there are advantages to customizing your ERP.
“Vanilla” ERP systems can create strategic disadvantages.  The main challenge with
ERP is that, no matter how good it is, it cannot address 100% of your organization’s
needs. ERP systems cannot do it all; therefore, they involve tradeoffs: flexibility
versus standardization, one single system for all functions/departments versus a best-
of-breed approach, and a host of other compromises. Once you add your
organization’s areas of competitive advantage to the mix, you suddenly have some
pretty compelling reasons to customize at least a handful of areas in your ERP
system.
 “Vanilla” ERP systems can create even more organizational change issues. Each and
every ERP implementation involves fairly significant organizational change
management issues, but these challenges are even further magnified when the
organization is making little to no change to the software to accommodate the
current realities of the business. A good rule of thumb is that only areas of
competitive advantage should be even considered for customization.
It’s Not Black And White, But Here’s A Game Changer
Unfortunately, there is no black-and-white answer to this issue, and there are very
compelling arguments to support both sides. At Archer Point, we find that most mid-
size to large organizations need at least a minor amount of customization to protect
areas of competitive advantage and mitigate change management risks. This, in and
of itself, isn’t a bad thing, provided those organizations are able to contain and
isolate the level of customization via effective project management and governance,
while effectively addressing change management issues.
If you’re considering a new ERP system, be sure to get a firm understanding of how
much customization it will require—and make sure the task of customizing is as
easy and cost-effective as possible. For example, Microsoft has made it significantly
easier to address the issue of customizing Dynamics 365 Business Central. With
Events and Extensions, tailoring Business Central to meet your specific needs is
much simpler and faster, making the decision of “to customize or not to customize”
much easier. Read more about Events and Extensions, and contact the ERP experts
at ArcherPoint to discuss your ERP needs.
4. List reasons a company would want to employ cloud computing for its ERP
system.

Even for companies already utilizing ERP, the conversation has shifted from the
initial benefits of the technology to whether a cloud-based system is an immediate
need. With this in mind then, what are the benefits of migrating to the cloud? 

1. Reduced Cost

Cloud-based ERP systems have a low implementation cost as opposed to the

traditional, hosted model.
There is no hardware setup, meaning the program can hit the ground running without
the business experiencing system down time. Server maintenance is eliminated,
meaning the IT department is also alleviated of a task. Software additions and
upgrades happen in the cloud without system-wide downtime. Going to the cloud
means a lot of saved work hours.

The lack of setup also means there is no initial balloon investment. Cloud ERPs run
on a flat-rate monthly fee with immediately operational software.

All of the costs we typically associate with system upgrades go out the window
when dealing with a cloud ERP.

2. Remote access

Employees can access cloud-based ERP platforms from remote locations with the
same ease as on-site staff.

If an employee is at a meeting or out of the office for a training day, they can still
give their boss an immediate answer about the quarterly report for example.

Staff can also benefit from having access to apps and updates as soon as they
connect. There is no VPN or slow remote portal technologies to slow them down.

Cloud-based ERP software is designed for today’s modern worker, allowing

employees to work comfortably from anywhere. The platform has mobile
functionality and user interfaces specifically made for smartphone and mobile
devices. Multinational corporations with remote geographic locations face no
problems accessing a cloud system.

The cloud also means universal access that isn’t limited by budget. There is no need
for the company to invest in special equipment or limit the number of users in the
system due to budget. Staff can access the cloud ERP from their personal devices or
from shared company devices with ease.

3. Business intelligence (BI) capabilities

Cloud-based ERPs are innovative because they easily integrate with other operations
that make the business run smoothly.
Extracting data is simple when Business Intelligence (BI) programs can connect
with the organized data storage and user activity records available through an ERP.

There are built in analytics features too. Administrators and board members can do
information drill-downs for critical decisions. They can also bring up real-time
graphics and reports during a board meeting. All information is provided in real time
without needing to wait on periodic system updates.

The level of access to data is higher, BI capabilities are transparent, and the accuracy
of cloud-based ERPs is therefore higher in comparison to traditional programs.

4. Heightened security

Last but not least, cloud-based ERPs are forward thinking when it comes to security.

Cyber security measures are centralized and flexible for stratified permissions
controls.

The cloud offers secure gateways for remote access, document management systems
that prevent the download of sensitive data, and on-site archival of sensitive
information to avoid it falling into the wrong hands.

Document retention is built into the cloud so that companies can be sure that they
are compliant with government standards in their industry.

Security measures prevent data loss and ensure proper authentication of user access
to the system as a whole. Companies also have the option to give authorisation
permissions to file managers and leave IT administrators out of the HR equation.

With reduced costs and increased flexibility and security, the cloud offers more
advanced capabilities than other ERP formats.

As your company moves forward with business management systems, these

capabilities can help you decide when it’s time to migrate to the cloud.