[Mpi-forum] Question about the semantics of MPI_Comm_disconnect

[Jeff Squyres (jsquyres)]

Rajeev --

Any insight on why it says "...complete *and matched*" (emphasis is mine)?

> MPI_COMM_DISCONNECT may be called only if all communication is complete and
> matched

The standard defines what matching means for point-to-point communications, but:

1. Does it define how an application is able to tell if a communication *has been matched* by the peer process?

2. What about non-point-to-point communication?  E.g., is there a definition for "match" for collective file IO?





On Nov 12, 2013, at 5:40 PM, Rajeev Thakur <thakur at mcs.anl.gov> wrote:

> Let's take this sequence
> 
> MPI_Isend
> MPI_Wait
> MPI_Comm_disconnect
> 
> After MPI_Wait returns, it doesn't mean that the data has gone over to the other side. It could be buffered locally. Comm_disconnect will ensure that it gets communicated to the other side. If the Wait wasn't called at all in the above sequence, it would be similar to calling MPI_Finalize without a Wait (i.e., incorrect).
> 
> Think of Comm_disconnect as "whatever connection was there between client and server is gone".
> 
> Rajeev
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> On Nov 12, 2013, at 4:27 PM, Nathan Hjelm <hjelmn at lanl.gov> wrote:
> 
>> On Tue, Nov 12, 2013 at 04:20:05PM -0600, Rajeev Thakur wrote:
>>> On Nov 12, 2013, at 4:08 PM, Nathan Hjelm <hjelmn at lanl.gov> wrote:
>>> 
>>>> That doesn't match with the wording on p 400 32-34:
>>>> 
>>>> "MPI_COMM_DISCONNECT has the same action as MPI_COMM_FREE, except that it
>>>> waits for pending communication to finish internally and enables the guarantee about the
>>>> behavior of disconnected processes."
>>> 
>>> The above sentence says that MPI_Comm_free does not wait for pending communication to complete, whereas MPI_Comm_disconnect does.  
>> 
>> That makes absolutely no sense if MPI_Wait/MPI_Test cannot be called after MPI_Comm_disconnect. If
>> neither of those functions can be called after MPI_Comm_disconnect then it would be better wording
>> that all communication MUST be complete before the call the MPI_Comm_disconnect without any
>> qualification that MPI_Comm_disconnect with wait until all communication is complete. There should
>> be no communication otherwise we have to allow MPI_Wait/MPI_Test after the call to MPI_Comm_disconnect.
>> You see why this is confusing/bad wording in the standard? As an implementor I can not tell what
>> was intended here.
>> 
>>>> Which suggests that some communication may not be finished when MPI_Comm_disconnect is called. Note
>>>> that is is safe to call MPI_Wait after MPI_Comm_disconnect but not after MPI_Finalize.
>>> 
>>> You cannot call MPI_Wait after MPI_Comm_disconnect. You can call it after MPI_Comm_free.
>> 
>> I don't see that anywhere in the description of MPI_Comm_disconnect. As far as I can tell the
>> code snippet I provided is 100% correct MPI code.
>> 
>> -Nathan
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-- 
Jeff Squyres
jsquyres at cisco.com
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