Communication Software for Distributed Application Programs

The Task Remote Asynchronous Message Exchange Layer (Tramel) software reduces the costs of distributing application programs across computer networks, including the Internet. Tramel implements robust, reliable, simple, highly portable interprocess communication, such that distributed application programs can tolerate extreme deterioration of communication links and elements of such a program can be stopped, moved to other computers (including computers with different operating systems), and restarted, all while the program is running and without alteration of any source code or configuration file. Because Tramel is based on asynchronous message passing, it can tolerate extremely low link performance without sacrificing transaction concurrency or relying on a multithreading system. Tramel manages network connections for an application program, shielding the program from such details as processor architectures, operating systems, and communication protocols. At the same time, Tramel affords monitoring capabilities that can keep application-program elements informed of the current configuration of the program. Tramel can be executed on any of a variety of computers running the UNIX, VxWorks, or Windows NT operating system.