# parallel_doc

# General documentation for the parallel package for Octave

The info version of this document is accessible, after package installation, from the Octave commandline with `parallel_doc()`.

This documentation applies to version 4.0.1 of the parallel package.

The package contains functions for explicit local parallel execution and functions for parallel execution over a cluster of machines, possibly combined with local parallel execution at each machine of the cluster.

Earlier versions of the package used Octave sessions directly generated by the `fork` system call. Since this causes problems, the current version uses newly started Octave sessions, even for local parallel execution. With Octave versions before 5.1, this may introduce limitations, see Limitations of high- and medium-level functions.

The server for cluster execution is installed at GNU/Linux, but not at some other operating systems, e.g. not at Windows or macOS. The client functions for cluster execution should be installed at all systems, though.