Archictecture and performance of Java-based distributed object models: CORBA vs RMI

This paper presents a comprehensive comparison of the architectural differe nces and similarities of the two most popular Java-based distributed object models: RMI and CORBA. Performance and timing issues related to the CORBA and RMI architectures are also considered. The following aspects are studie d for client server applications, on Sun UltraSparcs under Solaris 2.5.1 an d Pentium II under Windows NT 4.0: response time for method invocation with out parameters as well as with variable number of parameters; response time for applet clients, and response time for variable number of clients reque sting the same service. The goal is to provide a reference framework that s upports the selection of either mechanism for the development of web-based distributed real-time applications: chat programs, interactive games, share d boards, etc.