Question

Your customer wants to develop a system for stock information where dealers can access information about companies and evaluate various investment scenarios using a simulation system. Each dealer uses this simulation in a different way, according to his or her experience and the type of stocks in question. Suggest a client-server architecture for this system that shows where functionality is located. Justify the client-server system model that you have chosen.

Short answer

A two-tier client-server architecture is recommended: clients manage the UI, while servers handle data and simulations for efficiency and scalability.

Step-by-step solution

Identify System Requirements

The system should allow dealers to access stock information and conduct various investment simulations. Each dealer may have different preferences in how they analyze and simulate stock scenarios based on their experience and the type of stocks.

Define Client-Server Model

A two-tier client-server model is suitable for this system. It involves a client application for the user interface and a server for handling databases, simulations, and other backend processes.

Assign Functionality to Client

The client side should handle the user interface, input collection from dealers, and display the results of simulations. It should be designed to support tailored interfaces for different types of simulations as desired by the user.

Assign Functionality to Server

The server should manage the data storage, stock information database, and simulation computation. All heavy computation and data processing should be performed here to ensure efficient handling of requests and resource management.

Justify the Architecture Choice

The two-tier client-server architecture separates the user interface from backend processing, making it easier to manage and scale. The client focuses on user interactions while the server handles complex computations, data management, and any concurrent processes, which is ideal given the dynamic and resource-intensive nature of stock simulations.

Key concepts

System Requirements

When developing a stock information system, understanding the system requirements is critical. The system needs to cater to a diverse set of users like stock dealers, who rely on accessing up-to-date information about various companies. Moreover, they require tools to simulate different investment scenarios based on this information. Given the unique preferences of each dealer, the system must offer customization in analysis and simulation approaches. This entails creating an adaptable and robust framework capable of handling a myriad of investment strategies and stock types. Regular updates, swift data retrieval, and efficient handling of complex computations are also essential features that should be integral to the design of such a system.

Two-Tier Model

A two-tier model is a simplified form of the client-server architecture, perfect for applications like the stock information system. This architecture consists of two main components:

• Client: Acts as the interface for users, in this case, the stock dealers.
• Server: Handles the backend processing, including databases and computations.

This model streamlines communication between the clients and the server, making the data flow seamless. The logic and data management are kept at the server level, while the client focuses solely on the user interface. This separation ensures that each component performs its distinctive tasks efficiently, enhancing overall system performance. By centralizing the backend processes, it becomes easier to manage updates and scale the system according to growing demands.

Functionality Assignment

Assigning functionality appropriately between the client and server is crucial for efficient operation of a two-tier client-server system. On the client side, the focus is on delivering an intuitive and responsive user interface. This interface is tasked with gathering input from users and displaying results in a clear manner. It caters to personalized needs, as different types of simulations might be preferred by different dealers. On the server side, the backend workload is managed, which includes storing and updating stock information, performing extensive computation required for various stock simulations, and managing database queries. By keeping heavy processing tasks on the server, the client application remains lightweight and responsive, ensuring a smooth user experience.

Stock Simulation Systems

Stock simulation systems provide stock dealers with platforms to model potential investment outcomes before actual investing takes place. These systems depend heavily on real-time data and complex computational algorithms to derive accurate investment scenarios. One of the hallmarks of a good stock simulation system is its ability to adapt to the diverse methodologies used by different dealers. This includes simulating potential changes in stock prices, market conditions, and other financial variables. In addition, these systems are invaluable for risk assessment and decision support, helping dealers gain insights into how different strategies might perform under variable market conditions. Effective simulation systems provide both predictive analytics and visual representations to aid in interpreting simulation results.