TOPSYS for programming distributed multiprocessor computing environments

An overview is given of the TOPSYS (tools for parallel systems) environment as an example of an integrated tool environment supporting distributed multiprocessor computing environments consisting of distributed multiprocessors and networks of workstations. The system so far consists of the following components: the MMK message passing multithreaded programming model provided as a programming library; the distributed and parallel debugger DETOP; the performance analyzer PATOP; the visualization tool VISTOP for animation of thread interaction; an application transparent dynamic load balancing component; and the software package ALLOCCUBE for managing the space-sharing multiuser access to distributed memory multiprocessors in a network-based environment. The most important feature of the TOPSYS environment is its location transparency. This means that all the tools provide their services independent of the location of processes in the distributed multiprocessor. The architecture and the functionality of the MMK and the TOPSYS tool environment are described.<
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