Kevin Sheehan Uniq Professional Services PO Box 70 Paddington NSW 2021 Aust kevin@uniq com au

Abstract:  Since the inclusion of the Virtual Memory (VM) facilities in SunOS 4.0, the mmap() system call has provided a powerful and very efficient alternative to read() and write() to access regular files. Unfortunately, due to somewhat abstract and obscure documentation, developers have not been making great use of the interface. With in inclusion of the VM facilities in SVR4, it is time for developers to start using mmap() more often as the preferred interface. It is no longer a Sun-specific interface, and the benefits demonstrated on the Sun platform will almost certainly apply to applications used on other platforms. Mmap() provides many benefits. Ease of use is certainly one, but the major benefit of using mmap() is increased performance. This is partly due to the more efficient use of system resources, partly due to the fact the mmap() allows the application developer more control over use of resources, and also that the system can be given more information in how to deal with those resou...