DIS System Architecture & Design 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: In a distributed digital imaging pipeline, which architecture pattern best supports horizontal scaling when processing large volumes of high-resolution images?
- Monolithic single-server deployment
- Message queue-based microservices with stateless workers (Correct answer)
- Shared file system with lock-based access
- Single-threaded sequential processing engine
Correct answer: Message queue-based microservices with stateless workers
Message queue-based microservices allow stateless workers to be added dynamically, enabling horizontal scaling without bottlenecks.
Question 2: Which color space is most appropriate as an interchange format between different imaging devices in a cross-platform digital imaging system?
- Adobe RGB (1998)
- sRGB (Correct answer)
- ProPhoto RGB
- CMYK
Correct answer: sRGB
sRGB is the standard interchange color space for digital imaging systems because it is device-independent and universally supported.
Question 3: A digital imaging system must store 50,000 RAW files from a 45-megapixel camera. Each uncompressed file is approximately 90MB. What is the minimum raw storage capacity required?
- 2.25 TB
- 4.5 TB (Correct answer)
- 450 GB
- 9 TB
Correct answer: 4.5 TB
50,000 files × 90 MB = 4,500,000 MB = 4.5 TB of raw storage capacity needed.
Question 4: What is the primary purpose of an ICC profile embedded in a digital image file?
- To compress the image data for faster transmission
- To define the mapping between device-specific color values and a device-independent color space (Correct answer)
- To encrypt the image metadata for copyright protection
- To specify the image resolution for print output
Correct answer: To define the mapping between device-specific color values and a device-independent color space
An ICC profile defines how a device's color values map to a standard device-independent color space, ensuring accurate color reproduction across devices.
Question 5: In a content delivery architecture for digital images, which caching strategy minimizes origin server load while ensuring users always receive the most current version of frequently updated images?
- Cache-forever with manual purge on update
- No caching (always fetch from origin)
- Cache with short TTL and stale-while-revalidate (Correct answer)
- Client-side browser cache only
Correct answer: Cache with short TTL and stale-while-revalidate
Short TTL with stale-while-revalidate serves cached content immediately while refreshing in the background, balancing freshness and performance.
Question 6: Which RAID configuration provides both redundancy and improved read performance for a digital asset management system with read-heavy workloads?
- RAID 0
- RAID 1
- RAID 5 (Correct answer)
- RAID 6
Correct answer: RAID 5
RAID 5 uses striping with distributed parity, providing fault tolerance (single drive failure) and improved read performance across multiple disks.
Question 7: A digital imaging system must support simultaneous access by 200 editors to a central image repository. Which network topology is most appropriate for minimizing latency and avoiding single points of failure?
- Bus topology with shared coaxial cable
- Star topology with a single unmanaged switch
- Spine-leaf network topology with redundant links (Correct answer)
- Ring topology with token passing
Correct answer: Spine-leaf network topology with redundant links
Spine-leaf topology provides predictable low latency, high bandwidth, and no single point of failure, making it ideal for high-concurrency imaging workloads.
DIS System Architecture & Design 2
In a distributed digital imaging pipeline, which architecture pattern best supports horizontal scaling when processing large volumes of high-resolution images?