Special Features:
APRIL 2003 GLOBUS TOOLKIT RELEASE
STATUS UPDATE
Contents:
- CURRENT RELEASES
- NEW FEATURES AVAILABLE NOW IN THE EXPERIMENTAL RELEASE
- NEW FEATURES CURRENTLY UNDER DEVELOPMENT
- UPCOMING RELEASES
Current Releases
The current stable version of the Globus Toolkit is 2.4, released April 28,
2003. No release updates are yet available. Download this version at
www.globus.org/toolkit/download/index.html. Be sure to read
the
release notes to review feature changes and additions.
Note: The Replica Location Service (RLS) described in last month's status
update is NOT included in the current 2.4 stable release due to licensing
issues. RLS will be included in a future stable release of the Globus
Toolkit.
The Globus Project thanks the many people who worked with us on this stable
Globus Toolkit release, including testing teams at IBM and HP, other software
development groups in the R&D community, and the European Grid Support
Centre.
The current experimental version of the Globus Toolkit is 2.5. The
experimental version is intended to allow interested parties to test and
experiment with new code prior to the code's appearance in a stable release.
The experimental version is available via remote CVS. See
www.globus.org/developer/howto/remote-cvs.html to learn how
to use the
Globus Toolkit CVS repository.
The Globus Toolkit 3.0 alpha 3 release is available at
www.globus.org/ogsa/releases/alpha/. This alpha release is
intended
for early testing and experimentation with OGSI-based Grid Services.
New Features Available Now In The Experimental Release
As we have just released the GT 2.4 stable release, there are currently no
new
features available in the 2.5 experimental release. Watch for new features in
the May 2003 status update.
New Features Currently Under Development
Globus Toolkit developers are currently working on the following new
features.
This work is in various states of completion and is not generally available
for testing or experimentation. When the items below are completed, the
resulting code will first appear in the Globus Toolkit experimental version,
and later will appear in a stable version.
Globus Toolkit 3.0 Development
Extensive Globus Toolkit 3.0 development is ongoing! The current alpha
release is being extended to include the full range of features anticipated
for the GT 3.0 beta and final releases. See
www.globus.org/ogsa/releases/alpha/ for more information about GT 3.0
features. Send questions or comments to Lisa Childers at childers@mcs.anl.gov.
Globus XIO Framework and Drivers
Globus XIO is an extensible I/O library for the Globus Toolkit. It provides
a simple API (open/close/read/write) to swappable I/O implementations. Our
intent is to re-implement the Globus I/O and GridFTP components using Globus
XIO, which will provide considerably greater flexibility for future
high-performance protocol development work. Send questions or comments to Bill
Allcock at allcock@mcs.anl.gov.
GridFTP Enhancements
This development effort includes a specific set of features required by
current users of the GridFTP protocol and tools. Notable improvements include:
a client API feature to detect specific server features, features to allow
clients to request specific transfer status information, features to provide
directory listings in standard formats, and improved firewall support. Send
questions or comments to Bill Allcock at allcock@mcs.anl.gov.
GRAM Fine-Grain Authorization Callout
This development effort adds the ability for a GT2 deployer to configure
callouts to perform fine-grain authorization checks on GRAM operations (job
invocation and job management). Send questions or comments to Sam Meder at meder@mcs.anl.gov.
Upcoming Releases
May 2003: Globus Toolkit 3.0 beta
The GT 3.0 beta release will contain all features that we expect to appear
in
the final GT3 release. (See below for details.) The beta release will be
provided early in order to give others the ability to test and experiment with
the final GT3 release while extensive integration and performance testing
activities are conducted by the Globus Project. See
www.globus.org/ogsa/releases/alpha/ for more information
about GT 3.0
features.
June/July 2003: Globus Toolkit 3.0
Globus Toolkit 3.0 will be the next stable release of the Globus Toolkit.
IT
WILL INCLUDE ALL OF THE FEATURES OF THE 2.4 STABLE RELEASE, plus an open
source implementation of OGSI, several OGSI-compliant services corresponding
to familiar GT2 services, and the ability to create new OGSI-compliant
services. See
www.globus.org/ogsa/releases/alpha/ for more
information
about GT 3.0 features. The GT 3.0 beta release described above will signal the
beginning of the 3.0 stable release rollout and the availability of new 3.0
features for early testing and experimentation.
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