Distributed computing

Overview

Diagram illustrating distributed computing.

Distributed computing is a field of computer science that studies distributed systems. A distributed system is a model in which components located on networked computers communicate and coordinate their actions by passing messages. The components interact with each other in order to achieve a common goal.

Distributed computing is a form of parallel computing, but it is distinguished by the fact that the computers in a distributed system are autonomous and communicate over a network. This contrasts with parallel computing, where the processors are tightly coupled and share memory.

Characteristics

Distributed computing systems have several key characteristics:

• Concurrency of components: Multiple components can operate concurrently, which can lead to increased efficiency and performance.
• Lack of a global clock: Distributed systems do not have a single global clock, which can complicate synchronization.
• Independent failure of components: Components in a distributed system can fail independently, which requires robust fault-tolerance mechanisms.

Types of Distributed Systems

Distributed systems can be classified into several types based on their architecture and application:

• Client-server systems: In this model, clients request services and servers provide them. Examples include web servers and database servers.
• Peer-to-peer systems: In this model, each node can act as both a client and a server. Examples include file-sharing networks like BitTorrent.
• Grid computing: This involves a collection of distributed computing resources that are coordinated to solve a large problem.
• Cloud computing: This is a model where computing resources are provided as a service over the internet.

Applications

Distributed computing is used in a wide range of applications, including:

• Scientific computing: Distributed systems are used to solve complex scientific problems that require significant computational power.
• Data processing: Systems like Apache Hadoop and Apache Spark are used for processing large datasets across distributed clusters.
• Web services: Distributed computing underpins the architecture of modern web services, enabling scalability and reliability.

Challenges

Distributed computing presents several challenges, including:

• Network latency: Communication over a network introduces latency, which can affect performance.
• Security: Ensuring secure communication and data integrity in a distributed system is complex.
• Consistency: Maintaining consistency across distributed components can be difficult, especially in the presence of network partitions.

Related pages

• Parallel computing
• Cloud computing
• Grid computing
• Peer-to-peer
• Client-server model