Reliable Distributed Systems

An understanding of the techniques used to make distributed computing systems and networks reliable, fault-tolerant and secure will be crucial to those who design and deploy the next generation of mission-critical applications and Web Services. Reliable Distributed Systems reviews and describes the key concepts, principles and applications of modern distributed computing systems and architectures. This self-contained book consists of five parts. The first covers introductory material, including the basic architecture of the Internet, simple protocols such as RPC and TCP, object oriented architectures, operating systems enhance-ments for high performance, and reliability issues. The second covers the Web, with a focus on Web Services technologies, Microsoft’s .NET and the Java Enterprise Edition. The last three parts look at a number of reliability and fault-tolerance issues and techniques, with an emphasis on replication applied in Web Services settings. Topics and features: * Explains fault-tolerance in clear, readily understood terms with concrete examples drawn from real-world settings * A practical focus aimed at building "mission-critical" networked applications that keep working even when things go wrong * Includes modern topics, such as Corba, Web Services, XML, .NET, J2EE, group communication, transactions, peer-to-peer systems, time-critical protocols, scalability and security * Thorough coverage of fundamental mechanisms, with an emphasis on the idea of "consistent behavior" in systems that replicate critical components for availability * Reviews more than 25 major research efforts, placing them in context with pointers to sources * Includes 80 problems ranging from simple tests of understanding to challenging protocol and systems design topics suitable for semester-long projects * Web-based materials for instructors, including a comprehensive slide set, available at: http://www.cs.cornell.edu/ken/book With its well-focused approach and clarity of presentation, this new text is an excellent resource for both advanced students and practitioners in computer science, computer networks and distributed systems. Anyone seeking a solid background in distributed computing and Web Services architectures will find the book an essential and practical learning tool.

Beyond its central premise, the book can be read through the connected lenses of Nonfiction. Those themes offer useful points of attention as the characters, ideas, or world develop, especially where the book complicates the expectations of its primary category.