Groups Principles of Operation

  • Group Server
    A single group server coordinates all the members of a group. One group server can coordinate several different groups.
  • Group Members
    Each group has a unique group name, which identifies its members to the group server.
  • Interactions within a Group
    The join call establishes communication between a member and the group server. After the join call returns successfully, the group library continues exchanging heartbeats with the server. (Heartbeats and other group protocols are not visible to your program code.)
  • Side Effects of Groups
    Group protocol traffic consumes network bandwidth. With fewer than 10 members, using the default activation interval, expect only minimal impact on message latency. More members or a smaller activation interval can increase the impact.
Related concepts
Related reference