In a multinode data processing system, the messages to be transmitted from node
to node, per the request of an application program, are stored in a queue on one
of the nodes. Acknowledgment of the receipt of the messages is used to control
transmission of messages at future times by adjusting the maximum number of allowable
messages to be sent from the queue and also by adjusting the time interval that
the system waits before retransmitting unacknowledged messages. This permits the
use of so-called "unreliable" messaging protocols and relieves application programs
and programmers from the burden of employing more complicated protocols.
