Appeared in Proceedings of InterOp '94.

Netstation Architecture Multi-Gigabit Workstation Network Fabric

Gregory G. Finn and Paul Mockapetris
Information Sciences Institute
University of Southern California
Marina del Rey, CA 90292
finn@isi.edu
(310) 822-1511

Abstract:

Advances in multicomputer research have produced a sub-chip sized network interface. This fundamentally changes the scope of problems to which networking can be applied. It is now practical to re-architect a workstation around a wmulti-gigabit network fabric, eliminating the system bus by attaching major peripheral susystems to the network. This removes the restrictions on slot count and channel length associated with high-speed buses, while it produces an architecture with more attractive scaling characteristics.

Processors and peripherals interface to one another across the network logically, via protocols. The complex details of the physical-device interfaces remain hidden. This greatly enhances interoperability. Network access lets data flow across the network directly between processors, displays, cameras, disks, and so on. Cooperative computing, cluster processing, and conferencing applications are more naturally supported by this heterogeneous multicomputer architecture.

full PostScript paper

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