Chapter 3. Scalability 39
3.2 Scalability concepts
By scalability we mean the ability of the hardware, software, or a distributed
system to deliver the same functionality and to obey the same service level
agreements (SLAs) as it is changed in size or volume. For example, the system
needs the ability to retain or improve performance levels when adding
processors, memory, and storage. A scalable system can efficiently adapt to its
workload, with larger or smaller networks performing tasks of varying complexity.
3.2.1 Scalability approaches
Scalability is a highly significant issue in electronic systems, databases, routers,
networking, and so on, and it implies performance. A system whose performance
improves after adding hardware, proportionally ...