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diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 00000000..cc0504a3 --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,200 @@ +# nng - nanomsg-next-gen + +[](https://stand-with-ukraine.pp.ua) +[](https://github.com/nanomsg/nng/actions) +[](https://github.com/nanomsg/nng/actions) +[](https://github.com/nanomsg/nng/actions) +[](https://codecov.io/gh/nanomsg/nng) +[](https://discord.gg/Xnac6b9) +[](https://nng.nanomsg.org/man) +[](https://github.com/nanomsg/nng/blob/dev2.0/LICENSE.txt) +[](https://github.com/nanomsg/nng/releases) + +Please see [here](UKRAINE) for an important message for the people of Russia. + +> [!NOTE] > _THIS IS THE DEVELOPMENT BRANCH FOR NNG._ The content here is +> under development and may not be suitable for production use. +> Please use the [`stable`](https://github.com/nanomsg/nng/tree/stable) branch +> for the latest stable release. + +> [!NOTE] +> If you are looking for the legacy version of nanomsg, please +> see the [libnanomsg](https://github.com/nanomsg/nanomsg) repository. + +This project is a rewrite of the Scalability Protocols +library known as [nanomsg](https://github.com/nanomsg/nanomsg), +and adds significant new capabilities, while retaining +compatibility with the original. + +It may help to think of this as "nanomsg-next-generation". + +## NNG: Lightweight Messaging Library + +NNG, like its predecessors [nanomsg](http://nanomsg.org) (and to some extent +[ZeroMQ](http://zeromq.org/)), is a lightweight, broker-less library, +offering a simple API to solve common recurring messaging problems, +such as publish/subscribe, RPC-style request/reply, or service discovery. +The API frees the programmer from worrying about details like connection +management, retries, and other common considerations, so that they +can focus on the application instead of the plumbing. + +NNG is implemented in C, requiring only C99 and CMake to build. +It can be built as a shared or a static library, and is readily +embeddable. It is also designed to be easy to port to new platforms +if your platform is not already supported. + +## License + +NNG is licensed under a liberal, and commercial friendly, MIT license. +The goal to the license is to minimize friction in adoption, use, and +contribution. + +## Enhancements (Relative to nanomsg) + +Here are areas where this project improves on "nanomsg": + +- _Reliability_ + + NNG is designed for production use from the beginning. + Every error case is considered, and it is designed to avoid crashing except + in cases of gross developer error. + (Hopefully we don't have any of these in our own code.) + +- _Scalability_ + + NNG scales out to engage multiple cores using a bespoke asynchronous I/O + framework, using thread pools to spread load without exceeding typical + system limits. + +- _Maintainability_ + + NNG's architecture is designed to be modular and easily grasped by developers + unfamiliar with the code base. The code is also well documented. + +- _Extensibility_ + + Because it avoids ties to file descriptors, and avoids confusing interlocking + state machines, it is easier to add new protocols and transports to NNG. + This was demonstrated by the addition of the TLS and ZeroTier transports. + +- _Security_ + + NNG provides TLS (1.2 and optionally 1.3) and ZeroTier transports, offering + support for robust and industry standard authentication and encryption. + In addition, it is hardened to be resilient against malicious attackers, + with special consideration given to use in a hostile Internet. + +- _Usability_ + + NNG eschews slavish adherence parts of the more complex and less well + understood POSIX APIs, while adopting the semantics that are familiar and + useful. New APIs are intuitive, and the optional support for separating + protocol context and state from sockets makes creating concurrent + applications vastly simpler than previously possible. + +## Compatibility + +This project offers both wire compatibility and API compatibility, +so most nanomsg users can begin using NNG right away. + +Existing nanomsg and https://github.com/nanomsg/mangos[mangos] applications +can inter-operate with NNG applications automatically. + +That said, there are some areas where legacy nanomsg still offers +capabilities NNG lacks -- specifically enhanced observability with +statistics, and tunable prioritization of different destinations +are missing, but will be added in a future release. + +Additionally, some API capabilities that are useful for foreign +language bindings are not implemented yet. + +Some simple single threaded, synchronous applications may perform better under +legacy nanomsg than under NNG. (We believe that these applications are the +least commonly deployed, and least interesting from a performance perspective. +NNG's internal design is slightly less efficient in such scenarios, but it +greatly benefits when concurrency or when multiple sockets or network peers +are involved.) + +## Supported Platforms + +NNG supports Linux, macOS, Windows (Vista or better), illumos, Solaris, +FreeBSD, Android, and iOS. Most other POSIX platforms should work out of +the box but have not been tested. Very old versions of otherwise supported +platforms might not work. + +Officially, NNG only supports operating systems that are supported by +their vendors. For example, Windows versions 8.1 and lower are no longer +officially supported. + +## Requirements + +To build this project, you will need a C99 compatible compiler and +[CMake](http://www.cmake.org) version 3.15 or newer. + +We recommend using the [Ninja](https://ninja-build.org) build +system (pass `-G Ninja` to CMake) when you can. +(And not just because Ninja sounds like "NNG" -- it's also +blindingly fast and has made our lives as developers measurably better.) + +If you want to build with TLS support you will also need +[Mbed TLS](https://tls.mbed.org). +See the [build instructions](docs/BUILD_TLS.md) for details. + +## Quick Start + +With a Linux or UNIX environment: + +```sh +$ mkdir build +$ cd build +$ cmake -G Ninja .. +$ ninja +$ ninja test +$ ninja install +``` + +## API Documentation + +The API documentation is provided in Asciidoc format in the +`docs/man` subdirectory, and also +[online](https://nanomsg.github.io/nng). + +> [!NOTE] +> However, an effort to convert the documentation to Markdown using `mdbook` +> is underway. + +The [_nng_(7)](docs/man/nng.7.adoc) page provides a conceptual overview and links to +manuals for various patterns. +The [_libnng_(3)](docs/man/libnng.3.adoc) page is a good starting point for the API reference. + +You can also purchase a copy of the +[**NNG Reference Manual**](http://staysail.tech/books/nng_reference/index.html). +(It is published in both electronic and printed formats.) +Purchases of the book help fund continued development of NNG. + +## Example Programs + +Some demonstration programs have been created to help serve as examples. +These are located in the `demo` directory. + +## Legacy Compatibility + +A legacy `libnanomsg` compatible API is available, and while it offers +less capability than the modern NNG API, it may serve as a transition aid. +Please see [_nng_compat_(3)](docs/man/nng_compat.3compat.adoc) for details. + +## Commercial Support + +Commercial support for NNG is available. + +Please contact +[Staysail Systems, Inc.](mailto:info@staysail.tech) +to inquire further. + +## Commercial Sponsors + +The development of NNG has been made possible through the generous +sponsorship of +[Capitar IT Group BV](https://www.capitar.com) +and +[Staysail Systems, Inc.](http://staysail.tech). |