A Perspective on Distributed Computer Systems

• Published in: IEEE transactions on computers Vol. C-33; no. 12; pp. 1102 - 1115
• Main Author: STANKOVIC, J. A
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York, NY IEEE 01.12.1984; Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
• Subjects: Applied sciences; Communications subnet; computer networks; Computer science; control theory; systems; Computer systems and distributed systems. User interface; Computers; distributed computer systems; Distributed databases; distributed operating systems; distributed processing; Exact sciences and technology; File servers; File systems; Operating systems; Protocols; Real-time systems; Reliability; Software; Surveys; system software; Search problem; Distributed system; Computer network; Distributed database; Operating system
• ISSN: 0018-9340; 1557-9956
• DOI: 10.1109/TC.1984.1676389

Distributed computer systems have been the subject of a vast amount of research. Many prototype distributed computer systems have been built at university, industrial, commercial, and government research laboratories, and production systems of all sizes and types have proliferated. It is impossible to survey all distributed computing system research. Instead, this paper identifies six fundamental distributed computer system research issues, points out open research problems in these areas, and describes how these six issues and solutions to problems associated with them transect the communications subnet, the distributed operating system, and the distributed database areas. It is intended that this perspective on distributed computer system research serve as a form of survey, but more importantly to illustrate and encourage a better integration and exchange of ideas from various subareas of distributed computer system research.