There are a number of general models for distributed computing that exist. A lot of the terms are used interchangeably, and there are lots of systems that seem to fall in-between these models or that combine them. Nevertheless I think it is useful to make distinctions and define the different models this way:
Client-Server, 3-tier, N-tier - The processing is distributed through the use of layers. There are layers for UI, for business logic, for data storage, etc. These are generally data-driven applications.
Clustered - A set of machines act as one. There are usually shared data stores and the multiple machines are effectively transparent. This is used for things like load-balancing or fault tolerance.
Peer-to-Peer - These systems are decentralized and used for applications like file sharing or instant messaging. In practice these systems need some centralization at least for user management.
Grid - These are systems where the processing is split up so that many machines can work in parallel. These are becoming the most popular because they are necessary for big data systems.
So when you think of distributed systems, there really seem to be 4 concepts: layers, unified, decentralized, and parallel.
Let me know if you think I'm missing something.
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