High-performance application-specific networking
Deborah A. Wallach, M. Frans Kaashoek · 1997
Experience with parallel and distributed systems has shown that different application domains require different communication models in order to perform efficiently and be programmed conveniently [37, 57, 60]. Unfortunately, programmers traditionally have had to choose between inflexible but efficient inkernel protocols and flexible but inefficient user-level protocols. This thesis presents application-specific safe handlers (ASHs), a new technique that provides a protected, efficient, and flexible communication interface. ASHs make user-level protocols more efficient and usable by enabling application-specific communication protocols to be dynamically yet safely downloaded into the kernel and tightly integrated with the communication system. ASHs eliminate kernel crossings and scheduling delays for common, time-critical events by decoupling network processing from application execution; they also provide the capability for eliminating extraneous data copying and integrating necessary data copying with other data