PVM: A framework for parallel distributed computing

Abstract

The PVM system is a programming environment for the development and execution of large concurrent or parallel applications that consist of many interacting, but relatively independent, components. It is intended to operate on a collection of heterogeneous computing elements interconnected by one or more networks. The participating processors may be scalar machines, multiprocessors, or special‐purpose computers, enabling application components to execute on the architecture most appropriate to the algorithm. PVM provides a straightforward and general inferface that permits the description of various types of algorithms (and their interactions), while the underlying infrastructure permits the execution of applications on a virtual computing environment that supports multiple parallel computation models. PVM contains facilities for concurrent, sequential or conditional execution of application components, is portable to a variety of architectures, and supports certain forms of error detection and recovery.