Power Programming with RPC

RPC, or remote procedure calling, is the ability to distribute parts of a program to other computers on a network. An RPC facility manages the exchange of data between computers to make remote execution tranparent to the user. Distributed applications based on RPC can utilize distributed network resources and increase significantly the computing power brought to bear on complex problems. An RPC facility is the fundamental element of a distributed computing environment. The book builds a working understanding of RPC programming through examples. Sun RPC, the de facto standard on UNIX systems, is covered in detail. Interprocess communication and other related UNIX programming topics are also covered. The standard-issue RPC documentation is difficult to understand and lacks real-world examples. There are, in addition, many techniques to learn. This book, written from a programmer's perspective, shows you what you can do with RPC and presents a framework for learning it. Contents include:

• Foundations of remote procedure calling; what it is, how it works, and which vendors support it.
• What RPC offers to application and product developers. How RPC fits into a distributed computing environment.
• ONC and DCE, a comparison of their similarities and differences.
• How to develop, debug, and deploy networked applications.
• Understanding the interprocess control (IPC) mechanisms on which RPC is based.
• Using remote procedure calling in parallel/distributed processing and scheduling.
• Using remote procedure calling with windowing systems.
• Examples of distributed applications using both single and multiple concurrent servers.

John Bloomer currently develops network multimedia and imaging applications for GE's Signal and Image Coding R&D group. He has experience designing VLSI chips and design automation tools and has developed hardware and software for graphics and signal processing systems. John often lectures on programming for distributed computing with a second O'Reilly book on DCE RPC underway.