Design considerations for distributed applications

Probably the hardest part about developing a distributed application is determining where to start. There are multiple hardware and software platforms to understand, network traffic implications, and numerous tools and technologies to consider. One question, however, transcends the importance of what platform to pick or what tool to use: that is, how do you design it? This paper represents the results of two years of work with customers regarding this question. The paper explores some of the implications of working in a distributed environment, reviews some rules for data and function placement, and introduces a methodology for distributed application design.