Abstract
The ALIEN architecture exposes all node-resident features to modification by a module loader, with the exception of the loader itself. As a structuring principle, ALIEN divides its loadable portions into a privileged loader-initiated Core Switchlet and an unprivileged collection of libraries which use the Core Switchlet and are loaded by it. The loader, Core Switchlet and libraries comprise the network-resident functionality of ALIEN.
We make three claims. First, by dint of a library for Active Packets written in Caml, ALIEN is the first system to support both Active Packets and Active Extensions. Second, by use of language features such as module thinning, ALIEN can provide multiuser security within a single address space. Third, by isolating only a small set of functions with privilege, the system achieves security, flexibility and good performance, with a measured throughput of about 60 Mbps when used for LAN bridging.
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© 1999 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
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Alexander, D.S., Smith, J.M. (1999). The Architecture of ALIEN. In: Covaci, S. (eds) Active Networks. IWAN 1999. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 1653. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-48507-0_1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-48507-0_1
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