Stream: general

Topic: Nanoprocess in other platforms

Matias Funder (Dec 01 2020 at 07:30):

Are any other platforms (Node etc.) working towards nanoprocesses to fully isolate imported modules?

Radu Matei (Dec 01 2020 at 17:43):

@Matias Funder Not sure if you know about this, but while Node.js doesn't have the concept of a nanoprocess, you can start an isolated WASI instance (the API is experimental, and follows the current WASI spec - https://nodejs.org/api/wasi.html)

Matias Funder (Dec 01 2020 at 17:52):

Radu M said:

Matias Funder Not sure if you know about this but while Node.js doesn't have the concept of a nanoprocess, you can start an isolated WASI instance (the API is experimental, and follows the current WASI spec - https://nodejs.org/api/wasi.html)

I'm familiar with V8 isolates and Node Worker Threads, but it is not clear to me whether Node makes any effort to enable the isolated importation of modules (i.e. npm modules). It is possible to run code in isolation, but it does not appear to be designed or intended for being used to import or working with modules. The challenge is obviously how to interface "nanoprocess" modules when they share nothing, and I was wondering if there were any examples of platforms working towards such ideas? @Lin Clark

Lin Clark (Dec 01 2020 at 18:54):

@Matias Funder It's a bit premature for the Node community to dive into that because there are a few pieces that need to be in place for the nanoprocess model to work—module linking, interface types, and WASI.

For IT and module linking, it makes the most sense to have the support in the engine. V8 is actively working on interface types, so Node will get that support once they're done. I don't know what their current plans are around module linking, but I could see them potentially tackling that work on the same timeline.

Once all that is in place, there are quite a few people in the Node community who I know are excited to start applying the model

Matias Funder (Dec 01 2020 at 20:43):

Is that V8 support for interface types across JS instances (JS-JS), or specifically for JS-Wasm, Wasm-Wasm, or all of them? Where can I read more about their work and intentions?
Is the nanoprocess model an industry adopted term? Are there any other terms I might search for in my literature review?

Matias Funder (Dec 02 2020 at 00:51):

@Lin Clark

Last updated: Dec 23 2024 at 12:05 UTC