Compiling on multiple machines at once
 

Usually, developing a program is done using only one machine, and compiling and testing on a regular basis is easy. Now, however, I'm modifying a routing protocol, which requires me to use multiple machines to test the implementation. This approach is new to me, and I could need some advice.

The most obvious way is to use something like ftp to copy the source code to all the machines, and then manually compile them (using for example ssh to log onto every machine). But this approach seems unnecessary hard. I could try and write a server application (i Java or something) that every machine was to run, and this server would receive the source code from a client (the machine I'd do the actual implementation on) and compile it.

There has to be smarter ways of doing this, I'm sure. Does anybody have any good pointers as for how this can be done?

"Now, however, I'm modifying a routing protocol, which requires me to use multiple machines to test the implementation. . . Does anybody have any good pointers as for how this can be done?"

gcc has the ability to compile code for a different architecture than the machine where the compile is done. Look in man gcc for the various options which describe to gcc what the target cpu and target operating system will be. You can do all of the compiles on your development machine then transfer the binaries to the various target machines for testing.

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Steve Stites

Thanks for the reply.

I'll try and just transfer the binaries to the other machines.

Does there exist free software for automated distributing of the binaries, and running them? I could, of course, transfer the binaries, and then have an open ssh-connection to every machine in which I run the binaries, but there has got to be a smarter way of doing this. I can't imagine the guys at Cisco doing this manually. :)

A friend of mine gave me a tips on how to solve the probglem - installing ssh-keys and making a script. I'm going for that soultion.

Thanks anyway.