Distributed systems are a pillar of modern computing. They are constantly evolving. Multiple computers work together as if they were one.

Cluster computing is gaining ground. It uses multiple interconnected machines. It offers more power and fault tolerance. It seems that its use will grow over time.

It's great for big data. The data keeps growing. The clusters analyze them better. They are also useful in AI and machine learning.

Grid computing is another interesting thing. It takes advantage of geographically dispersed resources. Organizations can collaborate on complex projects. In disasters, it mobilizes global resources quickly.

These systems have advantages. Scalability, fault tolerance, better performance. But not everything is perfect. There are coordination and complexity challenges.

There are several types. Client-server, P2P, distributed databases. Each one has its purpose.

The key features are many. Concurrency, scalability, fault tolerance. Also heterogeneity and transparency. It is not entirely clear how they all interact.

How does it work? It divides tasks into subtasks. It distributes them among nodes. The nodes communicate and cooperate.

In summary, they are independent computers working together. They provide benefits in performance and reliability. Their design seeks fault tolerance and high availability. They distribute the load among nodes. It is surprising how much they have advanced.