Wisdom: the foundation of a scalable parallel operating system
Kevin A. Murray · 1990
There is a demand for ever more powerful computing facilities, and for the ability to improve the power of those that are already owned, without the need to replace machines. This thesis examines a method of meeting these demands by the development of a scalable computing facility - one that can be built from as many processors as needed, and which can have more added whenever there is a need to increase the power available. The approach taken is to provide a scalable operating system, called Wisdom, that will run on a scalable architecture, a network of point to point connected processors. This thesis details the issues in, requirements of, and problems with building such an operating system. The lessons of research in the field of distributed operating systems, and other specialist work in appropriate areas are used to develop a model which provides the necessary support for a usable scalable system. The model so derived consists of three degrees of transparency: interconnection tran...