Simplifying the Software Infrastructure of Computer and Communication Systems

这项研究计划涉及计算机和通信系统的软件基础设施。这样的软件基础设施的示例是操作系统内核、系统库、网络路由器中的转发引擎、命名和集合服务、传输协议等等。这些基础设施组件是所有IT系统的核心，因此，对于许多电子系统的性能，安全性和可靠性至关重要，这些电子系统对每个人和整个社会都有很大的影响。 这个研究项目的首要目标是研究从根本上更简单的方法来设计和实现软件基础设施。在操作系统和虚拟化领域，这主要涉及算法和数据结构，而在网络和分布式系统领域，通信协议是主要主题。具体来说，该研究旨在发现和揭示用于低级系统设计的简单和原子的底层模式。有了这些模式，就有可能使用基本构建块的简单和模块化组合来分解、重新设计和重建系统。这将导致更简单的系统，更容易分析，验证和教学。最终，它还将导致更好地绘制整体设计空间。 将调查的具体领域是一个新的操作系统内核，在其他设计思想，将与一个新的通信基板，可以有效地扩展到广域网的核心内通信集成。该方案的独特之处在于综合考虑了操作系统和网络两个方面的整体研究问题。研究结果将通过科学出版物和开放软件传播。由此产生的开源软件生态系统将对加拿大工业非常有益。

This research proposal concerns the software infrastructure of computer and communication systems. Examples of such software infrastructure are operating system kernels, system libraries, forwarding engines in network routers, naming and rendezvous services, transport protocols, and many more. These infrastructure components are at the heart of all IT systems and as such, are critically important for the performance, security, and reliability of the many electronic systems that strongly affect every individual and society at large. The overarching goal of this research project is to investigate radically simpler approaches to the design and implementation of software infrastructure. In the operating system and virtualization domain, this mostly concerns algorithms and data structures, while in the area of networks and distributed systems, communication protocols are the primary subject. Specifically, the research is aimed at finding and uncovering simple and atomic underlying patterns for the design of low-level systems. With these patterns, it will be possible to decompose, redesign, and rebuild systems using a simple and modular composition of basic building blocks. This will lead to simpler systems that are easier to analyze, verify, and also teach. Ultimately, it will also result in a better charting of the overall design space. The specific areas that will be investigated are a novel operating system kernel that, among other design ideas, will be integrated with a novel communication substrate that can efficiently scale from intra-core communication to wide-area networking. The unique proposition of this proposal is the integrated consideration of both operating systems and networking aspects of the overall research problem. The results will be disseminated through scientific publications and open software. The resulting open-source software ecosystem will be very beneficial to Canadian industry.