Glossary · Automation software engineering and architecture
Remote procedure call (RPC)
Also known as: RPC
German: Entfernter Prozeduraufruf (RPC)
In distributed computing, a remote procedure call (RPC) is a communication mechanism that lets a program call a procedure in another process, usually on another computer, as if it were a local call, with the framework handling message transfer.
- Software engineering
In one sentence
A remote procedure call (RPC) lets a program invoke a procedure in another process or computer as if it were a local call.
Example
The MES calls the OPC UA method StartOrder on the line controller, passing the order number, and receives a result code in return.
How it applies
- Engineering: RPC frameworks such as gRPC, and OPC UA methods, generate client and server code from an interface definition. The call looks local, but network failures, Timeouts and partial execution must be handled explicitly.
- Design: Remote calls that may be retried should be idempotent, see Idempotency; otherwise a retry after a lost reply can execute an action twice.
- Documentation: Document each remote procedure like an API function: parameters, units, return codes, timeouts and whether calls can be repeated safely.
RPC vs. messaging
RPC follows the Request-response pattern and couples caller and callee in time. Messaging decouples them through queues or brokers; the sender does not wait.