Understanding Distributed Systems

Play an AI-generated podcast conversation about this lesson

What is a common misconception regarding scalability, fault tolerance, and security in distributed systems?

They are all easy to manage (correct)

They are all well-founded

They are all difficult to make more robust

They are all properly understood

What skills do we need to develop in order to judge misconceptions in distributed systems?

Skills for developing complex systems

Skills for ignoring misconceptions

Skills for readily understanding distributed systems (correct)

Skills for avoiding distributed systems

Which aspect of distributed systems involves ensuring authorized access to resources?

Security (correct)

Consistency and replication

Process organization

Communication facilities

What is necessary for distributed systems to keep running in the presence of partial failures?

Fault tolerance mechanisms Signup and view all the answers

Which design goal is essential when studying distributed systems?

Setting clear goals and objectives Signup and view all the answers

What is the main goal of the overall design mentioned in the text?

To support sharing of resources Signup and view all the answers

Which concept refers to the phenomenon of hiding the physical distribution of processes and resources in a distributed system?

Transparency Signup and view all the answers

What is meant by the statement 'The network is the computer'?

The integration of network and computing resources Signup and view all the answers

What is an example of a shared service mentioned in the text?

Peer-to-peer assisted multimedia streaming Signup and view all the answers

Which design goal focuses on concealing the distributed nature of processes and resources in a system?

Distribution transparency Signup and view all the answers

What does distribution transparency aim to hide in a distributed system?

The physical distribution of resources across computers Signup and view all the answers

What does the term 'Reliability' refer to in the context of system design?

Probability that a component has been functioning correctly for a specific period Signup and view all the answers

Which metric is defined as the average time until a component fails?

MTTF Signup and view all the answers

What is the definition of 'MTTR' in the context of system maintainability?

Average time needed to repair a component Signup and view all the answers

How is 'Availability' defined in terms of system design?

Readiness for immediate usage Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following is a traditional metric used to assess system reliability?

Mean Time Between Failures (MTBF) Signup and view all the answers

What is the main purpose of Distribution Transparency?

Hide differences in data representation and how an object is accessed Signup and view all the answers

Which aspect of transparency involves hiding that an object may be moved to another location while in use?

Migration Signup and view all the answers

Why is full distribution transparency considered impractical?

It is impossible to hide all failures of networks and nodes Signup and view all the answers

What makes achieving full transparency costly in terms of system performance?

Keeping replicas up-to-date with the master Signup and view all the answers

Which scenario would benefit from exposing distribution rather than hiding it?

Making use of location-based services like finding nearby friends Signup and view all the answers

What is the aim of Distribution Transparency in relation to concurrency?

To hide that an object may be shared by several users Signup and view all the answers

What is the main difference between a decentralized system and a distributed system?

Decentralized systems always have processes and resources spread across multiple computers, while distributed systems do not. Signup and view all the answers

What distinguishes centralized solutions from decentralized solutions in terms of scalability?

Centralized solutions do not scale, while decentralized solutions do. Signup and view all the answers

Why is it important to differentiate between logically and physically centralized systems?

Logically centralized systems have a single point of failure, while physically centralized systems do not. Signup and view all the answers

When does a decentralized system become a distributed system?

When adding any links greater than zero between nodes in the system. Signup and view all the answers

Which view on realizing distributed systems involves connecting existing networked computer systems into a larger system?

Integrative view Signup and view all the answers

What is the root of the Domain Name System (DNS) known for?

It is known for being logically centralized but physically distributed across several organizations. Signup and view all the answers