RPC Socket API vs. RPC Overview

A collection of vocabulary flashcards related to the concepts and definitions surrounding RPC Socket API and Remote Procedure Calls.

Socket API

A low-level interface providing fine-grained control and communication-oriented functionalities, but not programmer friendly.

Remote Procedure Call (RPC)

A mechanism that allows functions to be invoked as if they were local, enabling function calls across different processes.

Interface Definition Language (IDL)

A language used to define the RPC calls and the data structures for parameters and return values.

Marshalling

The process of converting data into a byte stream for transmission over a network.

Unmarshalling

The process of converting a byte stream back into usable data.

Invocation Semantics

The behavior of how calls to functions are executed, especially in the context of reliability and handling failures in remote calls.

Idempotent Function

A function that produces the same output and does not change the system state when called multiple times with the same input.

Client Stub

A client-side library automatically generated by an RPC system, containing the function to be called.

Server Stub

A server-side library automatically generated by an RPC system that defines the function to be executed.

gRPC

A modern RPC system that uses IDL to define services and has built-in support for client-server communication.