RCE

Fraunhofer Institute for Algorithms and Scientific Computing SCAI

Remote Component Environment

The Remote Component Environment (RCE) is an all-purpose distributed platform for the integration of applications. Applications that are integrated into RCE have access to generalpurpose software components such as a workflow engine, a privilege management, or a standardized interface to external compute and storage resources (e.g. Grid or compute clusters). By providing a unified environment with ready-to-use existing components RCE hides complexity and enables developers to concentrate on their application-specific logic.

    Remote Component Environment

Product description

RCE is designed as a component-based system. It is build upon Equinox, an OSGi implementation, and the Eclipse Rich Client Platform. OSGi is a specifi cation of a dynamic, modular platform that has been widely adopted within the Java software industry. The Eclipse Rich Client Platform builds the strong foundation of RCE that provides a substantial runtime environment, a graphical programming interface, and many already existing components. Thus, RCE was not build from scratch, but developed relying on a mature existing code base.

RCE can run in a distributed heterogeneous environment of Windows and UNIX systems. On every participating resource one instance of RCE is installed. These instances may have different characteristics due to the RCE components installed and the applications integrated (e.g. application server, data base server, or client with graphical user interface). RCE is designed in a way that its distribution is transparent to both users and developers of integrated applications.

Components

Among the software components that are provided by RCE are the following:

  • The communication component provides uniform access to distributed RCE instances. As of now, the communication protocols RMI and SOAP are implemented.
  • The privilege management allows the allocation of permissions at application and data level. The authentication is certifi cate-based and allows for single sign-on within the RCE context.
  • The workflow engine couples integrated applications to executable workfl ows within the distributed system.
  • The data management allows storing data sets within the distributed system in persistent and version-controlled form.
  • A unified Grid interface provides access to heterogeneous Grid resources and High Performance Computing systems.
  • With the Web Service Interface other systems as web portals have access to RCE and the integrated applications.
  • The Graphical User Interface is optional and consists of elements from the Eclipse Rich Client Platform plus a Logging Browser, Notification Browser, Application Browser, Data Explorer, Project Explorer and a Framework to compose Excel-like tables and trees.

SCAI Projects

The following SCAI projects use RCE:

Modelisar: Modelica – AUTOSAR Interoperability to support Vehicle Functional Mock-up

PartnerGrid: Cooperative Grid-solutions for industrial applications

The project PartnerGrid develops a collaboration platform for the co-operation of companies on the basis of D-Grid.

BEinGRID: Business Experiments in Grid

The main objective of BEinGRID is to foster the adoption of the so-called Next Generation Grid technologies by the realization of several business experiments and the creation of a toolset repository of Grid middleware upper layers. Fraunhofer SCAI developed an easy access for ship building engineers to grid resources via RCE.

SESIS: Ship Design and Simulation System

SESIS is an integrated environment for the naval engieer, basing on a modern service oriented software architecture integrating traditional development methods.

Offers

RCE is developed in context of SESIS in collaboration with the Institute of Simulation and Software Technology (SISTEC) of the Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt e.V. (DLR). Further development in this cooperation is going on.

License

RCE is available under the Eclipse Public License (EPL) as 'Open Source'. For proprietary use RCE is provided under a commercial license. On request we generate an individual offer about training, maintenance, support, and integration of applications through our developer team.

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