The performance of the CORBA dynamic invocation interface and dynamic skeleton interface over high-speed ATM networks

Abstract

The common object request broker architecture (CORBA) is intended to simplify the task of developing distributed applications. Although it is well-suited for conventional remote procedure call style applications, several limitations become evident when CORBA is used for a broader range of performance-sensitive applications running in heterogeneous environments over high-speed networks. This paper illustrates the performance limitations of existing CORBA implementations in terms of their support for the dynamic invocation interface (DII) and the dynamic skeleton interface (DSI). The results indicate that object request broker implementers must optimize both the DII and DSI significantly before CORBA will be suitable for performance-sensitive applications on high-speed networks. In addition, the CORBA 2.0 DII specification must be clarified in order to ensure application portability and optimal performance.