The Interprocess Communication Programmer's Guide (32650-90019)
is written for the experienced MPE/iX programmer. It is a guide to the
Interprocess Communication (IPC) features of the MPE/iX operating
system, describing what these features are and illustrating
how to use them to make your programs more powerful.
This manual forms part of the MPE/iX Programmer's Series
documentation. This series consists of the MPE/iX
Intrinsics Reference Manual (32650-90028) and a set
of task-oriented user's guides. Before reading the Interprocess
Communication Programmer's Guide you should know
the information contained in two of these manuals:
The Process Management Programmer's Guide (32650-90023) explains the concept of "process" on MPE/iX and describes the process handling commands and intrinsics available. Read this manual if you are unfamiliar with MPE/iX process handling features.
The Accessing Files Programmer's Guide (32650-90017) discusses the MPE/iX file system and the types of files supported on MPE/iX. Read this manual if you are planning to use the file system features to perform IPC.
Organization of This Manual
Interprocess Communication contains the following chapters:
- Chapter 1
What Is Interprocess Communication? defines Interprocess Communication (IPC) and describes the advantages of using it.
- Chapter 2
IPC Using Job Control Words and Other Variables discusses the use of predefined and user-defined variables (including Job Control Words) in performing IPC.
- Chapter 3
IPC Using File System Intrinsics discusses how to perform IPC using features of the MPE/iX file system, especially intrinsics.
- Chapter 4
Special Cases of IPC explains how to use file system IPC in certain complex situations, or when special features are necessary.
- Chapter 5
NOWAIT I/O describes the NOWAIT I/O feature of the file system and the intrinsics you use to set it up.
- Chapter 6
Software Interrupts discusses the use of another file system feature, software interrupts, and how to write, initialize, and disarm them.
- Chapter 7
IPC Using the MAIL Facility describes the MAIL facility, used in some systems to perform interprocess communication.
- Appendix A
Features of Intrinsics for Message Files provides additional information about certain intrinsics used with message files in performing IPC.
- Appendix B
Sample Programs: WAIT I/O illustrates the use of message files and WAIT I/O to perform interprocess communication.
- Appendix C
Sample Programs: NOWAIT I/O provides examples showing the use of NOWAIT I/O in interprocess communication.
- Appendix D
Sample Programs: Software Interrupts contains two sets of programs (one set in SPL and one in Pascal) showing the use of software interrupts in IPC.
How to Use This Manual
If you are unfamiliar with the concept of IPC, or the types
of situations in which using it can be helpful, read
Chapter 1. Chapter 2 will be helpful if you want
to perform simple IPC within a single job or session.
Chapters 3 through 6, and the Appendixes,
treat the features of the MPE/iX file system that you can
use to perform IPC across job or session boundaries.
Refer to Chapter 7 if the MAIL facility is already in
use on your system; this feature is not recommended if
you are creating new programs or applications on MPE/iX.
