Monolithic system

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Monolithic system can have different meanings in the contexts of computer software and hardware.

In software

A software system is called "monolithic" if it has a monolithic architecture, in which functionally distinguishable aspects (for example data input and output, data processing, error handling, and the user interface), are not architecturally separate components but are all interwoven.^{[citation needed]}

Mainframe computers used a monolithic architecture with considerable success. Monolithic architectures implemented on DOS and earlier Windows based PCs often worked poorly with multiple users^{[citation needed]}. This performance degradation is mainly due to poor mechanisms for record locking and file handling across local area networks.^{[citation needed]}

In hardware

An electronic hardware system, such as a multi-core processor, is called "monolithic" if its components are integrated together in a single integrated circuit. Note that such a system may consist of architecturally separate components – in a multi-core system, each core forms a separate component – as long as they are realized on a single die.

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