Disconnected operation for heterogeneous servers: A practical approach

Abstract

This paper describes an implementation of a client caching system which supports disconnected and partially connected modes of operation while preserving the traditional role of client caching (improved response time) in the fully connected mode. The system is designed to facilitate various server-dependent verification protocols. The need for the heterogeneous server support stems from the fact that the mobile user is likely to access various network services, transfer data between them and use the data in the local unit application programs. The unique feature of this project is its implementation which does not require modification of the native system's kernel source code. The paper shows that an installable file system is a viable mechanism for providing such file system extensions without source code modifications. The results of our preliminary experiments indicate efficiency of the design and the feasibility of the implementation mechanism used.