Networking and such

[Will Martin]

This discussion brings to mind the sort of environment I have long
maintained as what we should have (for an Army activity which used
UNIX-based workplace automation tools for our internal office automation
and support work) -- some sort of amorphous group of machines running
the same UNIX, where the user is not restricted or assigned to any
particular machine, and where all files are available to all machines.
The user connects (either via a local network command or some sort of
dialup or network connection) and gets put automatically on whichever
machine has the lowest load (either at that moment or over the past
arbitrary time period). He can login and be put in his login directory,
and has full access to the file structure (with whatever security is
appropriate). If one of this group of machines needs work, the users on
it can be transferred to others and that machine drops out of the group
-- the net effect on the user community is not some arcane error message
but instead merely longer response time, as the load is shared among
fewer machines.

I had hoped that the VAXCluster concept would someday work under UNIX
and provide something like this; now, I don't know, given the seeming
disinterest in ever getting VAXCluster to work for UNIX and also for the
government-related concern of vendor independence (we never know, when
we go out on a new procurement, just what we will end up getting, so we
cannot specify "VAX" for example; only performance equivalent to <some
specifications>).

Any gurus out there think this dream is ever likely to become reality?

Will Martin

UUCP/USENET: seismo!brl-smoke!wmartin  or  ARPA/MILNET: wmartin at almsa-1.ARPA