A distributed algorithm for parameterized semaphore operations

In distributed environments, many mutual exclusion algorithms have been proposed. These algorithms only control mutually exclusive access to a single resource. Several extensions to these basic mutual exclusion algorithms have been proposed, including (1) multiple mutual exclusion algorithms; (2) counting semaphores and (3) k-out-of-M resource synchronization primitives. However, none of these algorithms are as powerful as parameterized semaphore operations. This paper presents a distributed implementation of parameterized semaphore operations. The operations are as powerful as the centralized implementation. The authors assume that the system consists of N nodes, which are connected by a fully connected reliable, FIFO network.<>