John R. Corbin

eXternal Data Representation (XDR)

XDR is a standard for the description of data in a machine-independent format. This chapter covers XDR in detail and is provided to give you a complete reference to XDR. XDR is typically used to represent RPC arguments and results in a machine-independent format, although XDR has other uses as shown in the last section of this chapter. In depth knowledge of XDR is not required for RPC programming but can be useful. For an overview of XDR, it is recommended that you read the first two sections of this chapter.

Developing RPC-based Distributed Applications

The previous chapters have explained how to use the RPC Library and the rpcgen compiler. This chapter covers techniques you can use to design, implement, and test a distributed application. It also covers some of the issues associated with this process. An assumption of this chapter is that you are familiar with the design, implementation, and testing of software in general.

Additional RPC Library Features

The RPC Library provides users with several features in addition to those covered in Chapters 4 and 5. These features include asynchronous RPC, broadcast RPC, batch RPC, multiversion support for services, implementation of your own svc_run() routine, and routines to communicate with the portmapper. This chapter covers these features and provides examples demonstrating their use.

Low-Level RPC Programming

Low-level RPC programming refers to the lowest layer of the RPC programming interface. This layer gives you the most control over the RPC mechanism and is the most flexible layer. In particular it allows:

Future Directions of RPC Programming

Distributed computing is the wave of the future. More and more users are connecting their computers over networks. Small networks are being interconnected to form larger networks. Corporate-wide networks are now commonplace, as are campus-wide networks at universities. These networks are typically connected with outside networks to a global computer network.