Realtime Distribution of Granular Data Streams on a Network

A non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing instructions that when executed by one or more processors causes the one or more processors to perform a method for asynchronously processing real-time media streams under control of a media-processing application, the method comprising:

• configuring each of a plurality of hosts with at least one media-processing function process, respectively, the plurality of hosts together providing a plurality of media-processing function processes, each of the plurality of media-processing function processes configured to operate, under control of the media-processing application, to at least one of capture, process and/or output a media stream including a sequence of grains, where at least one of the plurality of media-processing function processes operates to at least one of capture from a real-time synchronous input stream and/or output to a real-time synchronous output stream, the plurality of hosts including at least a first host and a second host that are remote from one another,
• including in each of the plurality of hosts an asynchronous media fabric service configured to:
• create and delete shared memory pools, each of the shared memory pools associated with an identified media stream and used to allow the at least one media-processing function process running on the respective host direct access to the grains included in the identified media stream, with each of the grains included in the identified media stream being uniquely identified, and
• send and receive grains from other hosts;
• creating, by the one or more processors, a first instance of a first shared memory pool on the first host, the first shared memory pool configured to store grains of a first media stream, wherein a producer function process included in the at least one media-processing function process operating on the first host operates to produce grains that are written to the first instance of the first shared memory pool, wherein each of the grains is written in a respective local write operation;
• creating, by the one or more processors, a second instance of the first shared memory pool on the second host, wherein a consumer function process included in the at least one media-processing function process operating on the second host operates to consume grains that are retrieved from the second instance of the first shared memory pool;
• establishing, by the one or more processors, a grain transfer link for a transfer of grains between the first instance of the first shared memory pool and the second instance of the first shared memory pool;
• and
• wherein following a first local write operation of a first grain to the first instance of the first shared memory pool, the asynchronous media fabric service operating on the first host is notified by the producer function process that the first grain is available for transfer to the second instance of the first shared memory pool on the second host via the grain transfer link.