Communication is message-based.

No shared memory:

Each computer operates independently. Local OS:

Supports diverse platforms and technologies. Heterogeneous environment

Features
The system hides internal organization and complexities.

Provides uniform interfaces. To present Single-system image

Fair resource sharing.

Appears seamless to users. Benefits Performance improvement

Access remote resources seamlessly
Adding new computers is Easily expandable (printers, files, web pages). Cost-effectiveness: Sharing
hidden from users expensive resources.
Distributed System Characteristics Resource Accessibility
Failures in one component can be Continuous availability
covered by other components
Supported by middleware Recap on Distributed System Definition Challenges Security issues in resource sharing.
Hide differences in data representation &
Access Transparency resource access (enables interoperability)
Facilitates communication between CORBA(Common Object Request
applications on diverse platforms. Hide location of resource (can use
Broker Architecture) Location Transparency
resource without knowing its location)
Enables Java programs to Examples
Middleware bridges the
invoke methods remotely. RMI (Remote Method Invocation Hide possibility that a system may change
differences between diverse Migration Transparency
location of resource (no effect on access)
Used for exchanging structured systems, offering a uniform Types of Transparency
SOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol) interface. Hide the possibility that multiple copies of the
information in web services. Hides system complexities from Replication Transparency: resource exist (for reliability and/or availability)
Role of Middleware: users and applications.
Concurrency Transparency Hide the possibility that the resource
Communication across platforms and OS. Distribution Transparency may be shared concurrently
Functions
Enables interoperability and transparency. Failure Transparency Manages resource failures and recoveries.
Flexible growth in size,
A collection of independent computers
geography, and administration. Scalability Relocation Transparency
appearing to a users as a single Hide that resource may be moved during use
coherent system.
Goals of Distributed Systems Excessive transparency may reduce system
Redundancy ensures performance.
Fault Tolerance
availability despite failures. Distributed Systems Trade-offs:
Pros of Distributed Systems Overemphasis may obscure system behavior for
Resource sharing enhances Performance: users.
processing efficiency.

Diverse systems Interoperability Allows components on different

IDL (Interface Definition Language)
collaborate seamlessly. systems to communicate.
Examples
Simplifies user interaction Transparency Machine-readable descriptions for web
Ensures services follow WSDL (Web Services Description Language)
with complex systems. services.
standard rules, enabling
interoperability. CORBA Standard for enabling communication
across diverse platforms.
Openness

Communication between diverse OS/languages.

Benefits:

Portability and extensibility.

Size Scalability Handling more users or devices.

Supporting operations over

The system's ability to Geographic Scalability
Dimensions of Scalability larger physical areas.
Advanced software is handle growth efficiently
Complex Software Requirements
needed for coordination. Integrating multiple administrative
Scalability Administrative Scalability domains with varying policies.
: Network communication risks Security Concerns Cons of Distributed Systems
Use asynchronous communication
Ensures reliability but requires extra Hiding Communication Delays or prefetching.
Replication Costs
resources.
Techniques Distribution Divide services into smaller, Example: DNS namespace
Network Limitations manageable parts divided into zones.
Bandwidth, latency, and reliability issues.
Duplicate resources for load Example: CDNs replicating
Administrative Challenges Replication
balancing and availability. content close to users.
Conflicts in policies and
trust boundaries

Centralized components
become bottlenecks.

Challenges Network bandwidth and latency issues in geographically distributed systems.

Security concerns across

administrative domains.