Treffer: Performance Characteristics of a Java Object Request Broker

The efficiency of the Common Object Request Broker Architecture (CORBA) for the transfer of large files over a network is of particular interest to the Imagery Management and Dissemination Group (IMAD). The IMAD group will be using Java and CORBA for such transfers. This report studies the performance of a Java Object Request Broker (ORB) for the transfer of large files over such networks. This performance analysis is done using the Visigenics ORB Visibroker and involves the measurement of throughput and latency. These measurements are then compared with the results obtained when using socket to socket connections. The results show that the throughput of an ORB for large file transfer approaches that of sockets on low bandwidth networks. However on high bandwidth networks the throughput using the ORB is significantly less than that using sockets. It is also shown that the latency incurred by the ORB is much greater than that incurred using sockets.