Atomic Commit Protocol in Distributed System


In a distributed system, the atomic commit protocol is a protocol that ensures that a transaction is either committed or rolled back in its entirety, even if the system fails or some of the nodes fail or crash. This is important for maintaining the consistency and integrity of the data in the system.

There are several different algorithms that can be used to implement the atomic commit protocol, including the two-phase commit protocol and the three-phase commit protocol. The two-phase commit protocol is the most common and involves two phases: the prepare phase and the commit phase. In the prepare phase, the coordinator node sends a request to all of the participating nodes, asking them to prepare to commit the transaction.

Distributed Transactions

A distributed transaction is a type of transaction that involves multiple nodes or resources in a distributed system. It allows a group of transactions to be treated as a single unit of work, so that either all of the transactions are completed or none of them are. This is important for maintaining the consistency and integrity of the data in the system.

Distributed transactions can be implemented using the atomic commit protocol, which ensures that the transactions are either committed or rolled back in their entirety, even if the system fails or some of the nodes fail or crash. There are several different algorithms that can be used to implement the atomic commit protocol, including the two-phase commit protocol and the three-phase commit protocol.

Properties of the Distributed Transactions

There are several essential properties that a distributed transaction should have in order to ensure the consistency and integrity of the data in a distributed system −

  • Atomicity − This property ensures that a transaction is either completed in its entirety or not at all. This is important for maintaining the consistency of the data in the system.

  • Consistency − This property ensures that the data in the system is in a consistent state before and after the transaction is completed. This is important for maintaining the integrity of the data in the system.

  • Isolation − This property ensures that the effects of one transaction are not visible to other transactions until the transaction is completed. This is important for preventing problems such as lost updates or dirty reads.

  • Durability − This property ensures that the changes made by a transaction are permanent and are not lost if the system fails or crashes.

  • Serializability − This property ensures that the execution of multiple transactions results in the same state as if the transactions had been executed one at a time in some serial order. This is important for ensuring the consistency and integrity of the data in the system.

  • Coordination − This property ensures that the transaction coordinator is able to coordinate the execution of the transactions and ensure that they are either committed or rolled back in their entirety, even if the system fails or some of the nodes fail or crash.

Atomic Commit

Atomic commit is a property of a transaction that ensures that the transaction is either completed in its entirety or not at all. This is important for maintaining the consistency and integrity of the data in a distributed system.

There are several different techniques that can be used to implement atomic commit, including the use of a transaction coordinator and the use of the atomic commit protocol. The transaction coordinator is a node in the distributed system that is responsible for coordinating the execution of the transactions and ensuring that they are either committed or rolled back in their entirety. The atomic commit protocol is a protocol that ensures that a transaction is either committed or rolled back in its entirety, even if the system fails or some of the nodes fail or crash.

Ensuring atomic commit is important for maintaining the consistency and integrity of the data in a distributed system. Without atomic commit, it is possible for a transaction to be partially completed, which can result in data inconsistencies and integrity problems.

Distributed One-Phase Commit

The one-phase commit protocol is a type of atomic commit protocol that is used to ensure that a transaction is either committed or rolled back in its entirety in a distributed system. It is called a "one-phase" protocol because it only has one phase, in which the transaction coordinator sends a commit or rollback request to all of the participating nodes.

In the one-phase commit protocol, the transaction coordinator sends a commit request to all of the participating nodes, asking them to commit the transaction. If all of the nodes are able to commit the transaction successfully, the transaction is committed on all of the nodes and the protocol is completed. If any of the nodes are unable to commit the transaction, the coordinator sends a rollback request and the transaction is rolled back on all of the nodes.

Distributed Two-Phase Commit

The two-phase commit protocol is a type of atomic commit protocol that is used to ensure that a transaction is either committed or rolled back in its entirety in a distributed system. It is called a "two-phase" protocol because it has two phases: the prepare phase and the commit phase.

In the prepare phase, the transaction coordinator sends a request to all of the participating nodes, asking them to prepare to commit the transaction. If all of the nodes are able to prepare successfully, the coordinator sends a commit request in the commit phase, and the transaction is committed on all of the nodes. If any of the nodes are unable to prepare, the coordinator sends a rollback request and the transaction is rolled back on all of the nodes.

Distributed Three-Phase Commit

The three-phase commit protocol is a type of atomic commit protocol that is used to ensure that a transaction is either committed or rolled back in its entirety in a distributed system. It is called a "three-phase" protocol because it has three phases: the can commit phase, the prepare phase, and the commit phase.

In the can commit phase, the transaction coordinator sends a request to all of the participating nodes, asking them if they are able to commit the transaction. If all of the nodes are able to commit, the coordinator moves on to the prepare phase, in which it sends a request to all of the participating nodes, asking them to prepare to commit the transaction. If all of the nodes are able to prepare successfully, the coordinator sends a commit request in the commit phase, and the transaction is committed on all of the nodes. If any of the nodes are unable to commit or prepare, the coordinator sends a rollback request and the transaction is rolled back on all of the nodes.

Updated on: 06-Feb-2023

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