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1. to understand the state-of-the-art in operating system design and implementation,
2. to understand how operating systems research is done.
3. to investigate novel ideas in the area via small group research projects.

The topics that we cover will be driven by the interests of the class. Based on discussion during the first class meeting, topics that we will (likely) cover include (not necessarily in this order):

• Interprocess communication (client-server, various flavors of RPC, ...)
• Resource discovery, naming, and directory services
• Group communication
• Distributed synchronization (including distributed transactions)
• Scalable server design (including clusters)
• Distributed file systems
• Distributed object systems
• Distributed shared memory
• Support for wide-area services
• Support for mobile and disconnected services
• Fault tolerance

Textbook: Distributed Systems: Principles and Paradigms, Andrew S. Tanenbaum and Maarten van Steen, Prentice Hall, 2002

We will also read and discuss a significant number of papers from the research literature.

Prerequisites

Undergraduate systems course covering basic operating systems and networking concepts (e.g., CS 5460 and 5480 or equivalent) and/or consent of instructor. Enrollment is limited.

Course Structure

Class meetings will be a mix of lectures and discussions of assigned readings from the literature. Class participation is very important.

Grading

Grades will be based on a mix of homeworks (including paper evaluations), exams, projects, and in-class participation. The exact mix is in flux as the course is undergoing a significant update from previous offerings.

Homework:

The success of this class depends on a high degree of participation in the paper dicussions. Thus, most homeworks involve reading and criticizing research papers in advance of the class session in which they are discussed. Here are the rules: each discussion session will focus on one or two papers. By the start of class, for each papers to be discussed, you should prepare the first page of the paper evaluation form (postscript, HTML). Clearly, you may have changed your mind by the end of the class discussion; that's OK (and even expected). The second page of the evaluation form is used to evaluate the presentation and the quality of the discussion generated.

If you have access to LaTeX, you may prefer to fill out your evaluation directly in a copy of the source for the evaluation form.

The homeworks will be graded as follows: you start with 20 points on the homeworks. Each homework will be graded with a check (OK) or a minus (not acceptable). Each minus will deduct 2 (of the 20) homework points. Don't worry too much -- the grading will be very easy, particularly in the beginning of class. The homework for a paper is due at the start of class in which the paper is to be discussed, and late homeworks will not be accepted.

The homework summaries should reflect your understanding of the paper. It is not acceptable to turn in a summary if you have not made an honest effort to read the paper. But remember, this is a graduate class and grades don't (shouldn't) really matter (i.e., grades shouldn't be your primary or only motivator!). What matters is how much you learn about research in distributed systems and how much it excites you!