Kami : an anarchic approach to distributed computing

This thesis presents a distributed computing system, Kami, which provides support for applications running in an environment of heterogeneous workstations linked together by a high speed network. It enables users to easily create distributed applications by providing a backbone infrastructure of localized daemons which operate in a peer-to-peer networking environment, providing support for software distribution, network communication, and data streaming suitable for use by coarse grained distributed applications. As a collective entity, kami daemons, each individually run on a single machine, form a cooperating anarchy of processes. These support their applications using adaptive algorithms with no form of centralized control. Instead of attempting to provide a controlled environment, this thesis assumes a heterogeneous and uncontrolled environment, and presents a model for distributed computation that is completely decentralized and uses multicast communication between workstations to form an ecology of co-operating processes, which actively attempt to maintain an equilibrium between the demands of their users and the capabilities of the workstations on which they are running.

Department dc:contributor.department

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Architecture. Program In Media Arts and Sciences.

Grantor dc:publisher

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Year dc:date.issued

2000

Author dc:creator

• Mallett, Jacky, 1963-

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• V. Michael Bove, Jr.

• Architecture. Program In Media Arts and Sciences.

Statement dc:rights

• M.I.T. theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission.

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/61847

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/61847