In recent years, there have been significant advancements in distributed systems, yet programming them remains a challenge. While tools like Jepsen and Antithesis have improved the verification of correctness and fault tolerance, they only scratch the surface of fundamental concepts. Different architectures, such as external-distribution, static-location, and arbitrary-location, have their own pros and cons. The static-location model, in particular, allows for low-level control but lacks insight into how units are composed. A new native programming model for distributed systems, similar to Rust’s memory safety guarantees, is needed to address the complexities of distributed programming effectively. This shift would provide explicit control, fault tolerance guarantees, and semantics awareness without sacrificing performance.
https://www.shadaj.me/writing/distributed-programming-stalled