The UBC Distributed Continuous Media File System: Internal Design of Server

This report describes the internal design of the UBC Distributed Continuous Media File Server as of April 1995. The most significant unique characteristic of this system is its approach to admission control which utilizes the time-varying requirements of the variable bit-rate data streams currently admitted into the system to properly allocate disk resources. The structure of the processes which implement the file server are described in detail as well as the communication between client processes and server processes. Each major client interface interaction is covered, as well as the detailed operation of the server in response to client requests. Buffer management considerations are introduced as they affect the admission control and disk operations. We conclude with the status of the implementation and plans for completion of the design and implementation. This document provides a snapshot of our design which has not yet been fully implemented and we expect to see significant evolution of the design as the implementation proceeds.