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CNET343 Resit

The document outlines the examination details for the paper 'Distributed Systems' (CNET343R) scheduled for 2 September 2011. It includes instructions for candidates to answer any three of five questions, covering topics such as system integration, cloud computing, distributed IT systems, middleware, and client-server systems. Each question is designed to assess understanding of various aspects of distributed systems and their implementation challenges.

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4 views4 pages

CNET343 Resit

The document outlines the examination details for the paper 'Distributed Systems' (CNET343R) scheduled for 2 September 2011. It includes instructions for candidates to answer any three of five questions, covering topics such as system integration, cloud computing, distributed IT systems, middleware, and client-server systems. Each question is designed to assess understanding of various aspects of distributed systems and their implementation challenges.

Uploaded by

denandasiri12
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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MODULE CODE: CNET343R

TITLE OF PAPER: DISTRIBUTED SYSTEMS

TIME ALLOWED TWO HOURS

DATE 2 SEPTEMBER 2011

TIME 14:30 – 16:30

FACULTY SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

SCHOOL COMPUTING AND MATHEMATICS

ACADEMIC YEAR 2010/11

STAGE FINAL

INSTRUCTIONS TO CANDIDATES:

THIS IS A SEEN EXAM.

Answer any THREE of the FIVE available questions.

All questions carry equal marks.


Marks for parts of questions are shown where appropriate.

Candidates are not permitted to look at the examination paper until instructed
to do so.

RELEASE TO LIBRARY? YES Refer Exam

CNET343R 2010/11 Page 1 of 4


Q1. (a) An enterprise typically comprises of thousands of heterogeneous
applications. They are either inherited from a legacy system, acquired
from a third party vendor, developed in-house or a combination
thereof. In many cases, there is more than one application from
different departments addressing the same problem. These
heterogeneous applications need to be integrated in order to support
common information sharing across applications and to automate flow
of business processes. However, system integration is a very difficult
task. Describe the various reasons behind this.
(8 marks)

(b) There is no single standard approach that can address all integration
problems. Over time, there are several approaches to system
integration that have been developed and these approaches can be
classified into four categories. Provide a detailed description of these
four categories of approach. Include the advantages and
disadvantages of approaches in each category in your description.
(12 marks)

Q2. (a) What is meant by Cloud Computing? Describe its key characteristics
and architecture and how these relate to components such as software
and data as a service, web services, grid and utility computing. What
types of organisations are emerging as significant providers of Cloud
Computing? What benefits does Cloud Computing offer to business
customers?
(12 marks)

(b) What risks or problems may be encountered by a business


organisation through its use of Cloud Computing? Discuss the security
and political implications as well as reliability and performance issues.
What actions or policies should the organisation adopt to mitigate
these risks?
(8 marks)

(Over/…)

CNET343R 2010/11 Page 2 of 4


Q3. Distributed IT systems vary considerably in their degree of 'openness'. For
example, there are:

 Closed systems, dedicated to a single application and administered by


a single authority.
 Enterprise systems belonging to one organisation, but spanning
different applications, administered by different authorities and possibly
using a mixture of technologies.
 Extranets, spanning several autonomous organisations that are
cooperating in some common activity.
 Open systems, operating over the Internet, and available to anyone in
the World to participate (e.g. business-to-consumer e-commerce
systems).

In general, the more open the system, the more complex and demanding are
the requirements. For each of the above classes of distributed systems,
discuss:

What are the main problems that have to be overcome in implementing such
a system – particularly in areas such as resource discovery, naming and
control, security, compatibility, performance and reliability?

How can these problems be overcome? Identify commonly-used design


principles, technologies and implementation techniques.

(20 marks)

Q4. (a) What is middleware and what sorts of problems is it typically used to
overcome? Outline its typical method of operation. Identify the other
major subsystems with which typical middleware has to interact.
Describe the nature of each of these interfaces.
(10 marks)

(b) Distributed systems are often heterogeneous. Identify the major


types of incompatibility that can occur as a result and explain what
kinds of problems this can cause for the system developer. Discuss
how Java on the one hand and CORBA-based systems on the other
address these problems.
(10 marks)

(Over/…)

CNET343R 2010/11 Page 3 of 4


Q5. (a) What are meant by a thick-client distributed system and a thin-client
distributed system? Compare the two types of system, both for their
method of operation and their business advantages. Is it possible to
combine the benefits of both thick and thin clients? What are multi-tier
client-server systems and why are they used?
(10 marks)

(b) What factors are most likely to determine the reliability and
performance of client-server systems? For each factor, identify what
can be done to improve the reliability or performance.
(10 marks)

- END OF PAPER -

CNET343R 2010/11 Page 4 of 4

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