What are the advantages to a distributed system?

There are several advantages to using a distributed system, such as speed, better communications, decreased costs and lower risk of single-point failures. A distributed system is a collection of interrelated databases from a variety of geographical locations that are connected by a computer network.

Distributed systems have been around since the 1960s, and by the 1980s there were enormous advances in the technology, making it easy to store and share information from one single source. The advantages of a distributed system far outweigh the disadvantages, making them a popular choice for businesses, small or large.

1. More affordable

Compared to adding a new mainframe to the network, adding a new workstation is much more affordable and offers more performance for the money.

2. Improved communications

Communications are easier to manage since local sites are closer to customer operations.

3. Reduced risk of single-point failure

The risk of a single-point failure is minimized due to the processing/data being distributed. If one workstation goes down, the processing and data transfer can easily be picked up by another workstation.

4. Easy growth

As the data and processing needs increase with the business, new workstations can be easily added to accommodate the growth with little to no disruption of the system.

5. Processor independence

Specific processors can be used to handle different user requests.