Question

Prompt: The sharing of resources is a major benefit that can be realized by using a distributed system. Write a paper on how a company can benefit from the sharing of resources through a distributed system. What are some applications that can be shared among a department or a company?

Guidelines for Submission: Short papers should be formatted to be a double-spaced Word document with 12-point Times New Roman font, 1-inch margins, and APA format. Page length requirements: 1–2 pages, not including title page and references.

Answer 1

DISTRIBUTED SYSTEMS

• It is a collection of independent computers that appears to its users as a single coherent system.
• It consists of multiple computers that do not share memory.
• Each Computer has its own memory and runs its own operating system.
• The computers can communicate with each other through a communication network.

Advantages of distributed systems over traditional time-sharing systems

• Much better price/performance ratio.
• Resource sharing.
• Enhanced performance -- tasks can be executed concurrently; load distribution to reduce response time.
• Higher reliability -- data replication.
• Easier modular expansion -- hardware and software resources can be easily added without replacing existing resources.

how a company can benefit from the sharing of resources through a distributed system ?​

Introduction
Quite often, large organizations use client-to-server and peer-to-peer networks to have a centralized location of company data that needs to be accessed by employees. Each department of the company has different files that they need to access and networks can be set up accordingly. Small networks including two to eight computers use peer-to-peer systems while large networks use client-to-server systems. There are advantages and disadvantages to both types of networks which gives each their place within the industry.

Peer-to-Peer Network
Imagine a small company with 10 employees. They don't yet have the cash, or need, to spend money on a distributed network with all the bells and whistles because the cost will be far too high to expect a return any time soon. Therefore, a peer-to-peer network, or a shared folder, that sits on the desktop of 8 computers will work well in small companies. It will be inexpensive for the business owner, simple to understand and very effective. Unfortunately, there will be less security features and less storage capacity, but those features come with a high cost and there's little need for either when only 8 people are accessing the network.

Peer-to-peer networks aren't only used in small businesses. They're also used in large companies to share resources between smaller departments. A company such as GE has an extravagant client-to-server network in place, but might also have a separate peer-to-peer networks in place for a group of 8 quality employees. They can share commonly accessed quality data sheets without cluttering the large network throughout all GE departments. Also, management teams, accounting departments, sales teams and others have smaller networks with more specific data that applies to their positions within the company.

Client-to-Server Network
However, if a company wants to upgrade from peer-to-peer to client-to-server there will be a much higher cost involved. Higher costs are due to security features, storage capacity, programmers, design teams, speed and continuous support once it's implemented. Client-to-server databases hold personal information, credit card numbers, social security numbers and passwords that the company needs to protect against thieves and hackers. The company isn't only worried about external hackers, because hundreds of employees also have access to the customer and employee information. For that reason, many networks segregate portions of the system to each department. For instance, the inventory control team doesn't need access to the accounting portion of the database, nor do the shipping employees need access to sales figures. Segregating the system into multiple parts increases the speed of each smaller section and un-clutters the amount of icons each department sifts through each day.

Client-to-server networks may sound like an easy decision for large companies but it's not as easy as it seems. All of the advantages mentioned in the previous paragraph come at a high expense to the company. Network congestion, speed, storage, high costs and dependability are all factors to consider and understand before signing up. Upgrades and alterations to the system will need to be addressed on a daily basis because, for every day that goes by, the system is another day older and another day behind their competition. Technology is upgrading so fast that programmers knowingly create databases that can be upgraded when new technology comes on the market.

Conclusion
In conclusion, a business should choose the network that best fits their needs today, and in the future. If they have growth strategies in place they can determine how much to spend on sharing their resources with each employee. However, a piece of advice to small business owners is to use what you paid for to the fullest extent! One can't simply expect the system to turn on and start spitting dollars at the owner. The owner should create a budget for the peer-to-peer system and compare it to the client-to-server budget, then develop a strategy that will create a return on investment for each before purchasing it.

Resources that can be shared among a department or a company :

Some examples of shareable resources are computer programs, data, storage devices, and printers.
E.g. shared file access (also known as disk sharing and folder sharing), shared printer access, shared scanner access, etc.
The shared resource is called a shared disk, shared folder or shared document.