Comparative Study of DOS

and NOS

DISTRIBUTED SYSTEM
A distributed system is a collection of independent computers that appears to
its users as a single coherent system

Important characteristics of distributed systems

- Differences between the various computers and the ways in which they communicate
are hidden from users
- Users and applications can interact with a distributed system in a consistent and uniform
way, regardless of where and when interaction takes place

Goals of Distributed System

4 important goals that should be met to make building a distributed system worth
the effort they are
1) Easily connect Users to resources, hide the fact that resources are distributed
across a network, open, scalable

2) Transparency
A distributed system that is able to present itself to users and applications as if it
were only a single computer system is said to be transparent. Which hides whether
a Implementation i.e. software resource is in main memory or disk
Forms of Transparency in a Distributed System
Transparency

Description

Access

Hide differences in data representation and how a

resource is accessed

Location

Hide where a resource is located

Migration

Hide that a resource may move to another location

Relocation

Hide that a resource may be moved to another location

while in use

Replication

Hide that a resource may be shared by several

competitive users

Concurrency

Hide that a resource may be shared by several

competitive users

Failure

Hide the failure and recovery of a resource

Persistence

Hide whether a (software) resource is in memory or on

disk

3) Openness
An open distributed system is a system that offers services according to standard rules.
4) Scalability
Scalability of a system can be measured along at Least three different
dimensions
-First, a system can be scalable with respect to its size, we can easily add
more users and resources to the system.
-Second, a geographically scalable system users and resources may lie far
apart.
-Third, a system can be administratively scalable; it can still be easy to
manage even if it spans many independent administrative organizations.

Hardware Concepts
General Classification:
Multiprocessor a single address space among
the processors
Multicomputer each machine has its own
private memory.

OS can be developed for either type of

environment.
Bus Based or Switch Based Architecture
Of memory and processor.

Hardware Concepts
Basic organizations and memories in distributed
computer systems

1.6

Multiprocessors

1.7

A bus-based multiprocessor.

Multiprocessors

A crossbar switch

An omega switching network

Software Concepts
DOS (Distributed Operating Systems)
NOS (Network Operating Systems)
Middleware
System

Description

Main Goal

DOS

Tightly-coupled operating system for multiprocessors and homogeneous

multicomputers

Hide and manage

hardware
resources

NOS

Loosely-coupled operating system for

heterogeneous multicomputers (LAN and
WAN)

Offer local services

to remote clients

Middleware

Additional layer a top of NOS implementing Provide distribution

general-purpose services
transparency

Uniprocessor Operating
Systems

Separating applications from operating system

code through a microkernel
Can extend to multiple computers

Network Operating System

OS uses can be different (Windows or Linux)

Typical services: rlogin, rcp
Fairly primitive way to share files

NOS
A network operating system (NOS) is a computer
operating system that is designed primarily to support
workstation, personal computer, and, in some instances,
older terminal that are connected on a local area network
(LAN). Artisoft's LANtastic, Banyan VINES, Novell's
NetWare, and Microsoft's LAN Manager are examples of
network operating systems.
A network operating system provides printer sharing,
common file system and database sharing, application
sharing, and the ability to manage a network name
directory, security, and other housekeeping aspects of a
network.

 Example of Network Operating system :

1)Windows NT (2000,XP)
2) Ubuntu
3)Linux

Network Operating System

Can have one computer provide files transparently for others (NFS)
Systems,
network operating systems do not assume that the underlying
hardware is homogeneous

Distributed Operating Systems

But no longer have shared memory

Provide message passing
Can try to provide distributed shared memory
But tough to get acceptable performance

DOS
An OPERATING SYSTEM which manages a number of
computers and hardware devices which make up a
DISTRIBUTED SYSTEM. Such an operating system has
a number of functions: it manages the communication
between entities on the system
Example of Distributed Operating System :
Online Reservation Systems
Online banking

NOS

DOS

1) Most current operating systems are capable of using the

TCP/IP networking protocols. This means that one system
can appear on a network of the other and share resources
such as files, printers, and scanners using either wired or
wireless connections.
2) A network operating system (NOS) is a piece of software
that controls a network and its message (e.g. packet) traffic
and queues, controls access by multiple users to network
resources such as files, and provides for certain
administrative functions, including security.

1Distributed computing is a method of computer processing

in which different parts of a program run simultaneously on
two or more computers that are communicating with each
other over a network. Distributed computing is a type of
segmented or parallel computing.)
2) Distributed computing is a type of segmented or parallel
computing. But the latter term is most commonly used to
refer to processing in which different parts of a program run
simultaneously on two or more processors that are part of the
same computer.

3) Network OS follows 2 tier Client server architecture

3) Distributed OS follows n tier client/server architecture

4) A network operating system is most frequently used with

local area networks and wide area networks, but could also
have application to larger network systems.The upper 5
layers of the OSI Reference Model provide the foundation
upon which many network operating systems are based.

4) i)Tightly coupled (clustered) refers typically to a set of

highly integrated machines that run the same process in
parallel, subdividing the task in parts that are made
individually by each one, and then put back together to make
the final result.
ii)Peer-to-peer an architecture where there is no special
machine or machines that provide a service or manage the
network resources. Instead all responsibilities are uniformly
divided among all machines, known as peers. Peers can serve
both as clients and servers.

5) A Network OS is not the same as the networking tools

provided by some existing OSs, Windows XP for instance.
An NOS is an OS that has been specifically written to keep
networks running at optimal performance.

5) Distributed computing implements a kind of concurrency.

It interrelates tightly with concurrent programming so much
that they are sometimes not taught as distinct
subjects==>Multiprocessor systems,Multicore
systems,Computer clusters,Multicomputer systems,Grid
computing

Why Middleware ?
Distributed operating system is not intended to handle a
collection of independent computers, while network operating
system does not provide a view of a single coherent system
So an additional layer of software that is used in network
operating systems to more or less hide the heterogeneity of
the collection of underlying platforms but also to improve
distribution transparency

Distributed System as
Middleware

Middleware Models And Present

Technologies
1 )Remote

Procedure Calls (RPCs).

2 )CORBA
3 )Remote

Method Invocation (RMI).

4 )Enterprise

Java Beans (EJB).

5 )Component

Object Modeling & Distributed

Component Object Modeling (COM AND DCOM with .net )

6 )Web

Services And SOA (Service Oriented

Architecture)

References
1)Distributed Systems by Andrew Tanenbaum
2) Distributed Computing by Sunita Mahajan and Seema shah,Oxford Press
3 )Middleware and Enterprise Integration Technologies by G. SUDHA
SADASIVAM, RADHA SHANKARMANI

T HAN K
YOU