Distributed Databases: Master the Fundamentals for Advanced Database Systems

Question 1

What is a key advantage of using a distributed database system?

Accepted Answer

Increased scalability and performance

Answer

Enhanced data consistency

Answer

Reduced data repetition

Question 2

In distributed database management, which aspect presents a primary challenge?

Accepted Answer

Ensuring Data Consistency

Answer

Guaranteeing Data Availability

Answer

Enhancing Data Security

Answer

Optimizing Data Performance

Question 3

What are some of the challenges faced when managing a distributed database?

Accepted Answer

Ensuring data consistency across multiple nodes

Accepted Answer

Guaranteeing data availability despite network failures or node crashes

Accepted Answer

Protecting data from unauthorized access or attacks

Answer

Improving database performance by distributing data and queries across multiple nodes

Question 4

In the context of distributed databases, which data replication technique entails maintaining an identical copy of the database on every node?

Accepted Answer

Full replication

Answer

Partitioning

Answer

Load balancing

Answer

Selective replication

Question 5

In distributed database systems, what is the primary objective of data partitioning?

Accepted Answer

To enhance performance by segmenting the database into manageable, smaller units

Answer

To maintain data consistency across all nodes

Answer

To minimize the likelihood of data loss

Answer

To facilitate load balancing

Question 6

Which load balancing strategy assigns queries to nodes based on their prevailing workload?

Accepted Answer

Least-loaded

Answer

Round-robin

Answer

Random

Answer

Weighted round-robin

Question 7

In a distributed database system, what is the function of a commit protocol?

Accepted Answer

To ensure that updates are received by all nodes before being committed

Answer

To prevent deadlocks from occurring

Answer

To improve the availability of data

Answer

To detect and recover from node failures

Question 8

What is the fundamental distinction between synchronous and asynchronous replication?

Accepted Answer

Synchronous replication ensures immediate update delivery to all nodes, while asynchronous replication does not

Answer

Synchronous replication is more efficient than asynchronous replication

Answer

Asynchronous replication offers greater reliability than synchronous replication

Answer

Synchronous and asynchronous replication are essentially the same

Question 9

In a distributed database system, what is the purpose of a query optimizer?

Accepted Answer

To select the optimal execution plan for a given query

Answer

To uphold data consistency across all nodes

Answer

To manage concurrency effectively

Answer

To facilitate recovery from node failures

Question 10

Identify a primary challenge in managing distributed databases that poses significant implications for database administrators.

Accepted Answer

Ensuring data consistency across multiple database nodes

Answer

Optimizing data replication and load balancing strategies

Answer

Implementing distributed transactions effectively

Answer

Providing high availability and fault tolerance mechanisms

Question 11

What is a key advantage of horizontal data partitioning?

Accepted Answer

Improved query performance

Answer

Increased data security

Answer

Reduced storage costs

Answer

Simplified data management

Question 12

Which load balancing technique assigns resources based on real-time workload conditions?

Accepted Answer

Adaptive load balancing

Answer

Round-robin

Answer

Least connections

Answer

Weighted round-robin

Question 13

What is the primary purpose of a distributed database transaction coordinator?

Accepted Answer

To ensure atomicity and consistency of distributed transactions

Answer

To manage data partitioning and replication

Answer

To handle load balancing and failover

Answer

To provide security and access control

Question 14

What is the main function of a distributed data dictionary?

Accepted Answer

To store metadata about the location and structure of data

Answer

To manage data partitioning and replication

Answer

To ensure data consistency and integrity

Answer

To provide access control and security

Question 15

Which type of data fragmentation divides data into subsets based on a specific range of values?

Accepted Answer

Range

Answer

Horizontal

Answer

Vertical

Answer

Hash

Question 16

What is the primary benefit of using a two-phase commit protocol in distributed transactions?

Accepted Answer

Ensuring atomicity and durability

Answer

Improving performance

Answer

Reducing data inconsistency

Answer

Simplifying transaction management

Question 17

What is the main purpose of a distributed database middleware?

Accepted Answer

To provide an interface between applications and distributed data sources

Answer

To manage data replication and partitioning

Answer

To handle load balancing and failover

Answer

To ensure data consistency and integrity

Question 18

Explain the fundamental differences between range partitioning and hash partitioning techniques in distributed database systems. Discuss their respective benefits and drawbacks.

Accepted Answer

Range partitioning allocates data rows to partitions based on a defined value range, ensuring data locality for range queries. Hash partitioning, in contrast, distributes data rows based on the output of a hash function applied to the data, achieving load balancing and preventing hotspots.

Answer

Hash partitioning allocates data rows to partitions based on a defined value range, ensuring data locality for range queries. Range partitioning, in contrast, distributes data rows based on the output of a hash function applied to the data, achieving load balancing and preventing hotspots.

Answer

Both range partitioning and hash partitioning allocate data rows to partitions based on a defined value range, ensuring data locality for range queries.

Answer

Both range partitioning and hash partitioning allocate data rows to partitions based on the output of a hash function applied to the data, achieving load balancing and preventing hotspots.

Question 19

Which concepts are fundamental to concurrency control in distributed database systems?

Accepted Answer

Ensuring atomic and isolated execution of transactions

Accepted Answer

Maintaining data consistency across multiple copies

Accepted Answer

Preventing deadlocks and livelocks

Answer

Routing transactions to the appropriate database server

Question 20

What is the primary purpose of data replication in distributed database systems?

Accepted Answer

To improve data availability and fault tolerance

Answer

To reduce data access latency and improve performance

Answer

To enhance data security by storing copies in multiple locations

Answer

To facilitate data sharing among different applications and users

Question 21

What is the primary goal of load balancing in distributed database systems?

Accepted Answer

To optimize query execution performance by distributing the workload

Answer

To ensure data consistency by maintaining synchronized copies across nodes

Answer

To improve data availability by replicating data to multiple locations

Answer

To reduce network traffic by minimizing data transfers between nodes

Question 22

What is the primary purpose of a distributed query optimizer in distributed database systems?

Accepted Answer

To determine the most efficient execution plan for queries involving data distributed across multiple nodes

Answer

To ensure data consistency by coordinating updates and transactions

Answer

To manage data replication and partitioning strategies

Answer

To resolve data conflicts and prevent data inconsistencies

Question 23

What is the primary objective of load balancing in distributed database systems?

Accepted Answer

Distributing data evenly across multiple sites to enhance performance and scalability.

Answer

Reducing the overall costs associated with data replication.

Answer

Improving the security and integrity of the stored data.

Answer

Ensuring that data is consistently available across all sites.

Question 24

Which of the following is a central goal of distributed query optimization?

Accepted Answer

Minimizing the amount of data that needs to be transferred between sites, reducing network overhead.

Answer

Maximizing the availability of data by ensuring that it is accessible from multiple sites.

Answer

Enhancing data privacy by encrypting data during transmission and storage.

Answer

Simplifying database administration tasks by automating query optimization processes.

Question 25

What is the primary purpose of a distributed deadlock manager in a distributed database system?

Accepted Answer

To effectively detect and resolve deadlocks that occur across multiple interconnected sites.

Answer

To prevent deadlocks from occurring in the first place by implementing deadlock prevention mechanisms.

Answer

To roll back transactions that are involved in deadlocks, ensuring data integrity.

Answer

To identify the specific site that is responsible for causing a deadlock.

Question 26

Which of the following is a key technology used to connect and facilitate communication between sites in a distributed database system?

Accepted Answer

All of the above, as each technology plays a vital role in connecting and coordinating sites in a distributed database system.

Answer

Network protocols that establish communication channels and manage data transmission.

Answer

Data middleware that provides a layer of abstraction and simplifies data access and management.

Answer

Database gateways that act as intermediaries and translate data between different database systems.

Question 27

Distributed database systems face unique security challenges. Which of the following is a primary security concern in this context?

Accepted Answer

Managing increased access points and potential vulnerabilities

Answer

Ensuring data consistency across different locations

Answer

Handling data replication and synchronization efficiently

Answer

Optimizing query performance across distributed nodes

Question 28

Improved: What is the key benefit of implementing data replication in distributed database systems?

Accepted Answer

Enhanced data availability and improved reliability

Answer

Faster query response times and increased performance

Answer

Enhanced data security and reduced risk of data loss

Answer

Simplified database administration and reduced maintenance

Question 29

Improved: Which partitioning technique divides data into fragments based on predefined value ranges or intervals?

Accepted Answer

Range partitioning

Answer

Round-robin partitioning

Answer

List partitioning

Answer

Hash partitioning

Question 30

Improved: What is the primary responsibility of a transaction manager in a distributed database system?

Accepted Answer

Ensuring data consistency and integrity across multiple sites or nodes

Answer

Optimizing query performance and minimizing response times

Answer

Managing user access, authentication, and authorization

Question 31

Improved: Which of the following is a potential disadvantage or drawback of distributed database systems?

Accepted Answer

Increased complexity, higher overhead, and administrative challenges

Answer

Improved data security and reduced risk of data breaches

Answer

Faster query processing and improved performance

Question 32

Improved: What is the main objective of implementing load balancing in distributed database systems?

Accepted Answer

Distributing workloads evenly across multiple sites or nodes to optimize performance

Answer

Increasing data availability and improving reliability

Answer

Enhancing data consistency and reducing data inconsistencies

Question 33

Improved: What is the key difference between synchronous and asynchronous replication in distributed database systems?

Accepted Answer

Synchronous replication ensures immediate and real-time data consistency, while asynchronous replication allows for temporary data inconsistencies to improve performance

Answer

Synchronous replication is faster than asynchronous replication

Question 34

Improved: What is the primary goal in designing a distributed database system?

Accepted Answer

Optimizing performance, ensuring scalability, and maximizing fault tolerance

Answer

Minimizing data redundancy and improving storage efficiency

Answer

Simplifying database administration and reducing maintenance

Question 35

Which of the following is a significant challenge in managing distributed databases?

Accepted Answer

Maintaining data consistency across multiple nodes

Answer

Handling large data volumes

Answer

Optimizing query performance

Answer

Enhancing data security

Question 36

Which data replication technique guarantees that all database nodes have identical data copies?

Accepted Answer

Synchronous replication

Answer

Multi-master replication

Answer

Asynchronous replication

Answer

Semi-synchronous replication

Question 37

Which partitioning strategy is suitable for tables with a vast number of rows and relatively few columns?

Accepted Answer

Horizontal partitioning

Answer

Range partitioning

Answer

Vertical partitioning

Answer

Hash partitioning

Question 38

Which load balancing algorithm effectively considers both workload and node capabilities?

Accepted Answer

Dynamic load balancing

Answer

Random load balancing

Answer

Round-robin load balancing

Answer

Static load balancing

Question 39

Which primary advantage does a distributed database offer?

Accepted Answer

Improved data availability

Answer

Simplified database administration

Answer

Reduced data redundancy

Answer

Enhanced data security

Question 40

Which middleware component is responsible for facilitating communication between nodes in a distributed database?

Accepted Answer

Distributed transaction manager

Answer

Database server

Answer

Application server

Answer

Web server

Question 41

Which potential risk is associated with data partitioning in distributed databases?

Accepted Answer

Increased data inconsistency

Answer

Increased data redundancy

Answer

Reduced data availability

Answer

Decreased query performance

Question 42

Which architecture in distributed databases is known to enhance scalability?

Accepted Answer

Shared-nothing architecture

Answer

Shared-everything architecture

Answer

Shared-disk architecture

Answer

Partitioned architecture

Question 43

Which of the following is NOT a benefit of using a distributed database system?

Accepted Answer

Increased complexity in data management.

Answer

Enhanced fault tolerance.

Answer

Potential for reduced data latency.

Answer

Improved scalability and availability.

Question 44

A distributed database system that replicates data across multiple nodes is known as:

Accepted Answer

Replicated database.

Answer

Distributed file system.

Answer

Federated database.

Answer

Partitioned database.

Question 45

In a distributed database, data partitioning refers to:

Accepted Answer

Dividing data into smaller subsets stored on different nodes.

Answer

Balancing workloads across multiple servers.

Answer

Copying data to multiple nodes for redundancy.

Question 46

A distributed database architecture where each node has a complete copy of the entire dataset is called:

Accepted Answer

Full replication.

Answer

Horizontal partitioning.

Answer

Vertical partitioning.

Answer

Partial replication.

Question 47

Which of the following is a potential challenge associated with distributed database management?

Accepted Answer

Maintaining data consistency across multiple nodes.

Answer

Improved fault tolerance.

Answer

Increased data storage capacity.

Question 48

In a distributed database, the process of distributing queries across multiple nodes is known as:

Accepted Answer

Query processing.

Answer

Data partitioning.

Answer

Load balancing.

Answer

Data replication.

Question 49

Which of the following is a common technique for managing data distribution and query execution in a distributed database?

Accepted Answer

Distributed query processing.

Answer

Data deduplication.

Answer

Data encryption.

Answer

Data aggregation.

Question 50

The ACID properties (Atomicity, Consistency, Isolation, Durability) are crucial for ensuring:

Accepted Answer

Data integrity in transactions.

Answer

Data security and privacy.

Answer

Data availability and fault tolerance.

Question 51

Which of the following distributed database technologies is known for its ability to handle massive amounts of data and high write throughput?

Accepted Answer

NoSQL databases.

Answer

Relational databases.

Answer

Object-oriented databases.

Answer

Hierarchical databases.