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Revision 1.118 by root, Thu Jun 30 09:31:58 2011 UTC vs.
Revision 1.142 by root, Fri Mar 23 13:44:01 2012 UTC

35 # destroy a port again 35 # destroy a port again
36 kil $port; # "normal" kill 36 kil $port; # "normal" kill
37 kil $port, my_error => "everything is broken"; # error kill 37 kil $port, my_error => "everything is broken"; # error kill
38 38
39 # monitoring 39 # monitoring
40 mon $localport, $cb->(@msg) # callback is invoked on death 40 mon $port, $cb->(@msg) # callback is invoked on death
41 mon $localport, $otherport # kill otherport on abnormal death 41 mon $port, $localport # kill localport on abnormal death
42 mon $localport, $otherport, @msg # send message on death 42 mon $port, $localport, @msg # send message on death
43 43
44 # temporarily execute code in port context 44 # temporarily execute code in port context
45 peval $port, sub { die "kill the port!" }; 45 peval $port, sub { die "kill the port!" };
46 46
47 # execute callbacks in $SELF port context 47 # execute callbacks in $SELF port context
48 my $timer = AE::timer 1, 0, psub { 48 my $timer = AE::timer 1, 0, psub {
49 die "kill the port, delayed"; 49 die "kill the port, delayed";
50 }; 50 };
51 51
52=head1 CURRENT STATUS
53
54 bin/aemp - stable.
55 AnyEvent::MP - stable API, should work.
56 AnyEvent::MP::Intro - explains most concepts.
57 AnyEvent::MP::Kernel - mostly stable API.
58 AnyEvent::MP::Global - stable API.
59
60=head1 DESCRIPTION 52=head1 DESCRIPTION
61 53
62This module (-family) implements a simple message passing framework. 54This module (-family) implements a simple message passing framework.
63 55
64Despite its simplicity, you can securely message other processes running 56Despite its simplicity, you can securely message other processes running
78 70
79Ports allow you to register C<rcv> handlers that can match all or just 71Ports allow you to register C<rcv> handlers that can match all or just
80some messages. Messages send to ports will not be queued, regardless of 72some messages. Messages send to ports will not be queued, regardless of
81anything was listening for them or not. 73anything was listening for them or not.
82 74
75Ports are represented by (printable) strings called "port IDs".
76
83=item port ID - C<nodeid#portname> 77=item port ID - C<nodeid#portname>
84 78
85A port ID is the concatenation of a node ID, a hash-mark (C<#>) as 79A port ID is the concatenation of a node ID, a hash-mark (C<#>)
86separator, and a port name (a printable string of unspecified format). 80as separator, and a port name (a printable string of unspecified
81format created by AnyEvent::MP).
87 82
88=item node 83=item node
89 84
90A node is a single process containing at least one port - the node port, 85A node is a single process containing at least one port - the node port,
91which enables nodes to manage each other remotely, and to create new 86which enables nodes to manage each other remotely, and to create new
92ports. 87ports.
93 88
94Nodes are either public (have one or more listening ports) or private 89Nodes are either public (have one or more listening ports) or private
95(no listening ports). Private nodes cannot talk to other private nodes 90(no listening ports). Private nodes cannot talk to other private nodes
96currently. 91currently, but all nodes can talk to public nodes.
92
93Nodes is represented by (printable) strings called "node IDs".
97 94
98=item node ID - C<[A-Za-z0-9_\-.:]*> 95=item node ID - C<[A-Za-z0-9_\-.:]*>
99 96
100A node ID is a string that uniquely identifies the node within a 97A node ID is a string that uniquely identifies the node within a
101network. Depending on the configuration used, node IDs can look like a 98network. Depending on the configuration used, node IDs can look like a
102hostname, a hostname and a port, or a random string. AnyEvent::MP itself 99hostname, a hostname and a port, or a random string. AnyEvent::MP itself
103doesn't interpret node IDs in any way. 100doesn't interpret node IDs in any way except to uniquely identify a node.
104 101
105=item binds - C<ip:port> 102=item binds - C<ip:port>
106 103
107Nodes can only talk to each other by creating some kind of connection to 104Nodes can only talk to each other by creating some kind of connection to
108each other. To do this, nodes should listen on one or more local transport 105each other. To do this, nodes should listen on one or more local transport
106endpoints - binds.
107
109endpoints - binds. Currently, only standard C<ip:port> specifications can 108Currently, only standard C<ip:port> specifications can be used, which
110be used, which specify TCP ports to listen on. 109specify TCP ports to listen on. So a bind is basically just a tcp socket
110in listening mode thta accepts conenctions form other nodes.
111 111
112=item seed nodes 112=item seed nodes
113 113
114When a node starts, it knows nothing about the network. To teach the node 114When a node starts, it knows nothing about the network it is in - it
115about the network it first has to contact some other node within the 115needs to connect to at least one other node that is already in the
116network. This node is called a seed. 116network. These other nodes are called "seed nodes".
117 117
118Apart from the fact that other nodes know them as seed nodes and they have 118Seed nodes themselves are not special - they are seed nodes only because
119to have fixed listening addresses, seed nodes are perfectly normal nodes - 119some other node I<uses> them as such, but any node can be used as seed
120any node can function as a seed node for others. 120node for other nodes, and eahc node cna use a different set of seed nodes.
121 121
122In addition to discovering the network, seed nodes are also used to 122In addition to discovering the network, seed nodes are also used to
123maintain the network and to connect nodes that otherwise would have 123maintain the network - all nodes using the same seed node form are part of
124trouble connecting. They form the backbone of an AnyEvent::MP network. 124the same network. If a network is split into multiple subnets because e.g.
125the network link between the parts goes down, then using the same seed
126nodes for all nodes ensures that eventually the subnets get merged again.
125 127
126Seed nodes are expected to be long-running, and at least one seed node 128Seed nodes are expected to be long-running, and at least one seed node
127should always be available. They should also be relatively responsive - a 129should always be available. They should also be relatively responsive - a
128seed node that blocks for long periods will slow down everybody else. 130seed node that blocks for long periods will slow down everybody else.
129 131
132For small networks, it's best if every node uses the same set of seed
133nodes. For large networks, it can be useful to specify "regional" seed
134nodes for most nodes in an area, and use all seed nodes as seed nodes for
135each other. What's important is that all seed nodes connections form a
136complete graph, so that the network cannot split into separate subnets
137forever.
138
139Seed nodes are represented by seed IDs.
140
130=item seeds - C<host:port> 141=item seed IDs - C<host:port>
131 142
132Seeds are transport endpoint(s) (usually a hostname/IP address and a 143Seed IDs are transport endpoint(s) (usually a hostname/IP address and a
133TCP port) of nodes that should be used as seed nodes. 144TCP port) of nodes that should be used as seed nodes.
134 145
135The nodes listening on those endpoints are expected to be long-running, 146=item global nodes
136and at least one of those should always be available. When nodes run out 147
137of connections (e.g. due to a network error), they try to re-establish 148An AEMP network needs a discovery service - nodes need to know how to
138connections to some seednodes again to join the network. 149connect to other nodes they only know by name. In addition, AEMP offers a
150distributed "group database", which maps group names to a list of strings
151- for example, to register worker ports.
152
153A network needs at least one global node to work, and allows every node to
154be a global node.
155
156Any node that loads the L<AnyEvent::MP::Global> module becomes a global
157node and tries to keep connections to all other nodes. So while it can
158make sense to make every node "global" in small networks, it usually makes
159sense to only make seed nodes into global nodes in large networks (nodes
160keep connections to seed nodes and global nodes, so makign them the same
161reduces overhead).
139 162
140=back 163=back
141 164
142=head1 VARIABLES/FUNCTIONS 165=head1 VARIABLES/FUNCTIONS
143 166
145 168
146=cut 169=cut
147 170
148package AnyEvent::MP; 171package AnyEvent::MP;
149 172
173use AnyEvent::MP::Config ();
150use AnyEvent::MP::Kernel; 174use AnyEvent::MP::Kernel;
175use AnyEvent::MP::Kernel qw(%NODE %PORT %PORT_DATA $UNIQ $RUNIQ $ID);
151 176
152use common::sense; 177use common::sense;
153 178
154use Carp (); 179use Carp ();
155 180
156use AE (); 181use AnyEvent ();
182use Guard ();
157 183
158use base "Exporter"; 184use base "Exporter";
159 185
160our $VERSION = '1.30'; 186our $VERSION = $AnyEvent::MP::Config::VERSION;
161 187
162our @EXPORT = qw( 188our @EXPORT = qw(
163 NODE $NODE *SELF node_of after 189 NODE $NODE *SELF node_of after
164 configure 190 configure
165 snd rcv mon mon_guard kil psub peval spawn cal 191 snd rcv mon mon_guard kil psub peval spawn cal
166 port 192 port
193 db_set db_del db_reg
194 db_mon db_family db_keys db_values
167); 195);
168 196
169our $SELF; 197our $SELF;
170 198
171sub _self_die() { 199sub _self_die() {
191Before a node can talk to other nodes on the network (i.e. enter 219Before a node can talk to other nodes on the network (i.e. enter
192"distributed mode") it has to configure itself - the minimum a node needs 220"distributed mode") it has to configure itself - the minimum a node needs
193to know is its own name, and optionally it should know the addresses of 221to know is its own name, and optionally it should know the addresses of
194some other nodes in the network to discover other nodes. 222some other nodes in the network to discover other nodes.
195 223
196The key/value pairs are basically the same ones as documented for the
197F<aemp> command line utility (sans the set/del prefix).
198
199This function configures a node - it must be called exactly once (or 224This function configures a node - it must be called exactly once (or
200never) before calling other AnyEvent::MP functions. 225never) before calling other AnyEvent::MP functions.
226
227The key/value pairs are basically the same ones as documented for the
228F<aemp> command line utility (sans the set/del prefix), with these additions:
229
230=over 4
231
232=item norc => $boolean (default false)
233
234If true, then the rc file (e.g. F<~/.perl-anyevent-mp>) will I<not>
235be consulted - all configuraiton options must be specified in the
236C<configure> call.
237
238=item force => $boolean (default false)
239
240IF true, then the values specified in the C<configure> will take
241precedence over any values configured via the rc file. The default is for
242the rc file to override any options specified in the program.
243
244=back
201 245
202=over 4 246=over 4
203 247
204=item step 1, gathering configuration from profiles 248=item step 1, gathering configuration from profiles
205 249
219That means that the values specified in the profile have highest priority 263That means that the values specified in the profile have highest priority
220and the values specified directly via C<configure> have lowest priority, 264and the values specified directly via C<configure> have lowest priority,
221and can only be used to specify defaults. 265and can only be used to specify defaults.
222 266
223If the profile specifies a node ID, then this will become the node ID of 267If the profile specifies a node ID, then this will become the node ID of
224this process. If not, then the profile name will be used as node ID. The 268this process. If not, then the profile name will be used as node ID, with
225special node ID of C<anon/> will be replaced by a random node ID. 269a unique randoms tring (C</%u>) appended.
270
271The node ID can contain some C<%> sequences that are expanded: C<%n>
272is expanded to the local nodename, C<%u> is replaced by a random
273strign to make the node unique. For example, the F<aemp> commandline
274utility uses C<aemp/%n/%u> as nodename, which might expand to
275C<aemp/cerebro/ZQDGSIkRhEZQDGSIkRhE>.
226 276
227=item step 2, bind listener sockets 277=item step 2, bind listener sockets
228 278
229The next step is to look up the binds in the profile, followed by binding 279The next step is to look up the binds in the profile, followed by binding
230aemp protocol listeners on all binds specified (it is possible and valid 280aemp protocol listeners on all binds specified (it is possible and valid
236used, meaning the node will bind on a dynamically-assigned port on every 286used, meaning the node will bind on a dynamically-assigned port on every
237local IP address it finds. 287local IP address it finds.
238 288
239=item step 3, connect to seed nodes 289=item step 3, connect to seed nodes
240 290
241As the last step, the seeds list from the profile is passed to the 291As the last step, the seed ID list from the profile is passed to the
242L<AnyEvent::MP::Global> module, which will then use it to keep 292L<AnyEvent::MP::Global> module, which will then use it to keep
243connectivity with at least one node at any point in time. 293connectivity with at least one node at any point in time.
244 294
245=back 295=back
246 296
247Example: become a distributed node using the local node name as profile. 297Example: become a distributed node using the local node name as profile.
248This should be the most common form of invocation for "daemon"-type nodes. 298This should be the most common form of invocation for "daemon"-type nodes.
249 299
250 configure 300 configure
251 301
252Example: become an anonymous node. This form is often used for commandline 302Example: become a semi-anonymous node. This form is often used for
253clients. 303commandline clients.
254 304
255 configure nodeid => "anon/"; 305 configure nodeid => "myscript/%n/%u";
256 306
257Example: configure a node using a profile called seed, which si suitable 307Example: configure a node using a profile called seed, which is suitable
258for a seed node as it binds on all local addresses on a fixed port (4040, 308for a seed node as it binds on all local addresses on a fixed port (4040,
259customary for aemp). 309customary for aemp).
260 310
261 # use the aemp commandline utility 311 # use the aemp commandline utility
262 # aemp profile seed nodeid anon/ binds '*:4040' 312 # aemp profile seed binds '*:4040'
263 313
264 # then use it 314 # then use it
265 configure profile => "seed"; 315 configure profile => "seed";
266 316
267 # or simply use aemp from the shell again: 317 # or simply use aemp from the shell again:
332 382
333=cut 383=cut
334 384
335sub rcv($@); 385sub rcv($@);
336 386
337sub _kilme { 387my $KILME = sub {
338 die "received message on port without callback"; 388 (my $tag = substr $_[0], 0, 30) =~ s/([\x20-\x7e])/./g;
339} 389 kil $SELF, unhandled_message => "no callback found for message '$tag'";
390};
340 391
341sub port(;&) { 392sub port(;&) {
342 my $id = "$UNIQ." . $ID++; 393 my $id = $UNIQ . ++$ID;
343 my $port = "$NODE#$id"; 394 my $port = "$NODE#$id";
344 395
345 rcv $port, shift || \&_kilme; 396 rcv $port, shift || $KILME;
346 397
347 $port 398 $port
348} 399}
349 400
350=item rcv $local_port, $callback->(@msg) 401=item rcv $local_port, $callback->(@msg)
355 406
356The global C<$SELF> (exported by this module) contains C<$port> while 407The global C<$SELF> (exported by this module) contains C<$port> while
357executing the callback. Runtime errors during callback execution will 408executing the callback. Runtime errors during callback execution will
358result in the port being C<kil>ed. 409result in the port being C<kil>ed.
359 410
360The default callback received all messages not matched by a more specific 411The default callback receives all messages not matched by a more specific
361C<tag> match. 412C<tag> match.
362 413
363=item rcv $local_port, tag => $callback->(@msg_without_tag), ... 414=item rcv $local_port, tag => $callback->(@msg_without_tag), ...
364 415
365Register (or replace) callbacks to be called on messages starting with the 416Register (or replace) callbacks to be called on messages starting with the
529 $res 580 $res
530 } 581 }
531 } 582 }
532} 583}
533 584
585=item $guard = mon $port, $rcvport # kill $rcvport when $port dies
586
587=item $guard = mon $port # kill $SELF when $port dies
588
534=item $guard = mon $port, $cb->(@reason) # call $cb when $port dies 589=item $guard = mon $port, $cb->(@reason) # call $cb when $port dies
535
536=item $guard = mon $port, $rcvport # kill $rcvport when $port dies
537
538=item $guard = mon $port # kill $SELF when $port dies
539 590
540=item $guard = mon $port, $rcvport, @msg # send a message when $port dies 591=item $guard = mon $port, $rcvport, @msg # send a message when $port dies
541 592
542Monitor the given port and do something when the port is killed or 593Monitor the given port and do something when the port is killed or
543messages to it were lost, and optionally return a guard that can be used 594messages to it were lost, and optionally return a guard that can be used
544to stop monitoring again. 595to stop monitoring again.
545 596
597The first two forms distinguish between "normal" and "abnormal" kil's:
598
599In the first form (another port given), if the C<$port> is C<kil>'ed with
600a non-empty reason, the other port (C<$rcvport>) will be kil'ed with the
601same reason. That is, on "normal" kil's nothing happens, while under all
602other conditions, the other port is killed with the same reason.
603
604The second form (kill self) is the same as the first form, except that
605C<$rvport> defaults to C<$SELF>.
606
607The remaining forms don't distinguish between "normal" and "abnormal" kil's
608- it's up to the callback or receiver to check whether the C<@reason> is
609empty and act accordingly.
610
546In the first form (callback), the callback is simply called with any 611In the third form (callback), the callback is simply called with any
547number of C<@reason> elements (no @reason means that the port was deleted 612number of C<@reason> elements (empty @reason means that the port was deleted
548"normally"). Note also that I<< the callback B<must> never die >>, so use 613"normally"). Note also that I<< the callback B<must> never die >>, so use
549C<eval> if unsure. 614C<eval> if unsure.
550 615
551In the second form (another port given), the other port (C<$rcvport>)
552will be C<kil>'ed with C<@reason>, if a @reason was specified, i.e. on
553"normal" kils nothing happens, while under all other conditions, the other
554port is killed with the same reason.
555
556The third form (kill self) is the same as the second form, except that
557C<$rvport> defaults to C<$SELF>.
558
559In the last form (message), a message of the form C<@msg, @reason> will be 616In the last form (message), a message of the form C<$rcvport, @msg,
560C<snd>. 617@reason> will be C<snd>.
561 618
562Monitoring-actions are one-shot: once messages are lost (and a monitoring 619Monitoring-actions are one-shot: once messages are lost (and a monitoring
563alert was raised), they are removed and will not trigger again. 620alert was raised), they are removed and will not trigger again, even if it
621turns out that the port is still alive.
564 622
565As a rule of thumb, monitoring requests should always monitor a port from 623As a rule of thumb, monitoring requests should always monitor a remote
566a local port (or callback). The reason is that kill messages might get 624port locally (using a local C<$rcvport> or a callback). The reason is that
567lost, just like any other message. Another less obvious reason is that 625kill messages might get lost, just like any other message. Another less
568even monitoring requests can get lost (for example, when the connection 626obvious reason is that even monitoring requests can get lost (for example,
569to the other node goes down permanently). When monitoring a port locally 627when the connection to the other node goes down permanently). When
570these problems do not exist. 628monitoring a port locally these problems do not exist.
571 629
572C<mon> effectively guarantees that, in the absence of hardware failures, 630C<mon> effectively guarantees that, in the absence of hardware failures,
573after starting the monitor, either all messages sent to the port will 631after starting the monitor, either all messages sent to the port will
574arrive, or the monitoring action will be invoked after possible message 632arrive, or the monitoring action will be invoked after possible message
575loss has been detected. No messages will be lost "in between" (after 633loss has been detected. No messages will be lost "in between" (after
620 } 678 }
621 679
622 $node->monitor ($port, $cb); 680 $node->monitor ($port, $cb);
623 681
624 defined wantarray 682 defined wantarray
625 and ($cb += 0, AnyEvent::Util::guard { $node->unmonitor ($port, $cb) }) 683 and ($cb += 0, Guard::guard { $node->unmonitor ($port, $cb) })
626} 684}
627 685
628=item $guard = mon_guard $port, $ref, $ref... 686=item $guard = mon_guard $port, $ref, $ref...
629 687
630Monitors the given C<$port> and keeps the passed references. When the port 688Monitors the given C<$port> and keeps the passed references. When the port
666will be reported as reason C<< die => $@ >>. 724will be reported as reason C<< die => $@ >>.
667 725
668Transport/communication errors are reported as C<< transport_error => 726Transport/communication errors are reported as C<< transport_error =>
669$message >>. 727$message >>.
670 728
671=cut 729Common idioms:
730
731 # silently remove yourself, do not kill linked ports
732 kil $SELF;
733
734 # report a failure in some detail
735 kil $SELF, failure_mode_1 => "it failed with too high temperature";
736
737 # do not waste much time with killing, just die when something goes wrong
738 open my $fh, "<file"
739 or die "file: $!";
672 740
673=item $port = spawn $node, $initfunc[, @initdata] 741=item $port = spawn $node, $initfunc[, @initdata]
674 742
675Creates a port on the node C<$node> (which can also be a port ID, in which 743Creates a port on the node C<$node> (which can also be a port ID, in which
676case it's the node where that port resides). 744case it's the node where that port resides).
734} 802}
735 803
736sub spawn(@) { 804sub spawn(@) {
737 my ($nodeid, undef) = split /#/, shift, 2; 805 my ($nodeid, undef) = split /#/, shift, 2;
738 806
739 my $id = "$RUNIQ." . $ID++; 807 my $id = $RUNIQ . ++$ID;
740 808
741 $_[0] =~ /::/ 809 $_[0] =~ /::/
742 or Carp::croak "spawn init function must be a fully-qualified name, caught"; 810 or Carp::croak "spawn init function must be a fully-qualified name, caught";
743 811
744 snd_to_func $nodeid, "AnyEvent::MP::_spawn" => $id, @_; 812 snd_to_func $nodeid, "AnyEvent::MP::_spawn" => $id, @_;
745 813
746 "$nodeid#$id" 814 "$nodeid#$id"
747} 815}
816
748 817
749=item after $timeout, @msg 818=item after $timeout, @msg
750 819
751=item after $timeout, $callback 820=item after $timeout, $callback
752 821
767 ref $action[0] 836 ref $action[0]
768 ? $action[0]() 837 ? $action[0]()
769 : snd @action; 838 : snd @action;
770 }; 839 };
771} 840}
841
842#=item $cb2 = timeout $seconds, $cb[, @args]
772 843
773=item cal $port, @msg, $callback[, $timeout] 844=item cal $port, @msg, $callback[, $timeout]
774 845
775A simple form of RPC - sends a message to the given C<$port> with the 846A simple form of RPC - sends a message to the given C<$port> with the
776given contents (C<@msg>), but adds a reply port to the message. 847given contents (C<@msg>), but adds a reply port to the message.
822 $port 893 $port
823} 894}
824 895
825=back 896=back
826 897
898=head1 DISTRIBUTED DATABASE
899
900AnyEvent::MP comes with a simple distributed database. The database will
901be mirrored asynchronously on all global nodes. Other nodes bind to one
902of the global nodes for their needs. Every node has a "local database"
903which contains all the values that are set locally. All local databases
904are merged together to form the global database, which can be queried.
905
906The database structure is that of a two-level hash - the database hash
907contains hashes which contain values, similarly to a perl hash of hashes,
908i.e.:
909
910 $DATABASE{$family}{$subkey} = $value
911
912The top level hash key is called "family", and the second-level hash key
913is called "subkey" or simply "key".
914
915The family must be alphanumeric, i.e. start with a letter and consist
916of letters, digits, underscores and colons (C<[A-Za-z][A-Za-z0-9_:]*>,
917pretty much like Perl module names.
918
919As the family namespace is global, it is recommended to prefix family names
920with the name of the application or module using it.
921
922The subkeys must be non-empty strings, with no further restrictions.
923
924The values should preferably be strings, but other perl scalars should
925work as well (such as C<undef>, arrays and hashes).
926
927Every database entry is owned by one node - adding the same family/subkey
928combination on multiple nodes will not cause discomfort for AnyEvent::MP,
929but the result might be nondeterministic, i.e. the key might have
930different values on different nodes.
931
932Different subkeys in the same family can be owned by different nodes
933without problems, and in fact, this is the common method to create worker
934pools. For example, a worker port for image scaling might do this:
935
936 db_set my_image_scalers => $port;
937
938And clients looking for an image scaler will want to get the
939C<my_image_scalers> keys from time to time:
940
941 db_keys my_image_scalers => sub {
942 @ports = @{ $_[0] };
943 };
944
945Or better yet, they want to monitor the database family, so they always
946have a reasonable up-to-date copy:
947
948 db_mon my_image_scalers => sub {
949 @ports = keys %{ $_[0] };
950 };
951
952In general, you can set or delete single subkeys, but query and monitor
953whole families only.
954
955If you feel the need to monitor or query a single subkey, try giving it
956it's own family.
957
958=over
959
960=item $guard = db_set $family => $subkey [=> $value]
961
962Sets (or replaces) a key to the database - if C<$value> is omitted,
963C<undef> is used instead.
964
965When called in non-void context, C<db_set> returns a guard that
966automatically calls C<db_del> when it is destroyed.
967
968=item db_del $family => $subkey...
969
970Deletes one or more subkeys from the database family.
971
972=item $guard = db_reg $family => $port => $value
973
974=item $guard = db_reg $family => $port
975
976=item $guard = db_reg $family
977
978Registers a port in the given family and optionally returns a guard to
979remove it.
980
981This function basically does the same as:
982
983 db_set $family => $port => $value
984
985Except that the port is monitored and automatically removed from the
986database family when it is kil'ed.
987
988If C<$value> is missing, C<undef> is used. If C<$port> is missing, then
989C<$SELF> is used.
990
991This function is most useful to register a port in some port group (which
992is just another name for a database family), and have it removed when the
993port is gone. This works best when the port is a local port.
994
995=cut
996
997sub db_reg($$;$) {
998 my $family = shift;
999 my $port = @_ ? shift : $SELF;
1000
1001 my $clr = sub { db_del $family => $port };
1002 mon $port, $clr;
1003
1004 db_set $family => $port => $_[0];
1005
1006 defined wantarray
1007 and &Guard::guard ($clr)
1008}
1009
1010=item db_family $family => $cb->(\%familyhash)
1011
1012Queries the named database C<$family> and call the callback with the
1013family represented as a hash. You can keep and freely modify the hash.
1014
1015=item db_keys $family => $cb->(\@keys)
1016
1017Same as C<db_family>, except it only queries the family I<subkeys> and passes
1018them as array reference to the callback.
1019
1020=item db_values $family => $cb->(\@values)
1021
1022Same as C<db_family>, except it only queries the family I<values> and passes them
1023as array reference to the callback.
1024
1025=item $guard = db_mon $family => $cb->($familyhash, \@added, \@changed, \@deleted)
1026
1027Creates a monitor on the given database family. Each time a key is set
1028or or is deleted the callback is called with a hash containing the
1029database family and three lists of added, changed and deleted subkeys,
1030respectively. If no keys have changed then the array reference might be
1031C<undef> or even missing.
1032
1033If not called in void context, a guard object is returned that, when
1034destroyed, stops the monitor.
1035
1036The family hash reference and the key arrays belong to AnyEvent::MP and
1037B<must not be modified or stored> by the callback. When in doubt, make a
1038copy.
1039
1040As soon as possible after the monitoring starts, the callback will be
1041called with the intiial contents of the family, even if it is empty,
1042i.e. there will always be a timely call to the callback with the current
1043contents.
1044
1045It is possible that the callback is called with a change event even though
1046the subkey is already present and the value has not changed.
1047
1048The monitoring stops when the guard object is destroyed.
1049
1050Example: on every change to the family "mygroup", print out all keys.
1051
1052 my $guard = db_mon mygroup => sub {
1053 my ($family, $a, $c, $d) = @_;
1054 print "mygroup members: ", (join " ", keys %$family), "\n";
1055 };
1056
1057Exmaple: wait until the family "My::Module::workers" is non-empty.
1058
1059 my $guard; $guard = db_mon My::Module::workers => sub {
1060 my ($family, $a, $c, $d) = @_;
1061 return unless %$family;
1062 undef $guard;
1063 print "My::Module::workers now nonempty\n";
1064 };
1065
1066Example: print all changes to the family "AnyRvent::Fantasy::Module".
1067
1068 my $guard = db_mon AnyRvent::Fantasy::Module => sub {
1069 my ($family, $a, $c, $d) = @_;
1070
1071 print "+$_=$family->{$_}\n" for @$a;
1072 print "*$_=$family->{$_}\n" for @$c;
1073 print "-$_=$family->{$_}\n" for @$d;
1074 };
1075
1076=cut
1077
1078=back
1079
827=head1 AnyEvent::MP vs. Distributed Erlang 1080=head1 AnyEvent::MP vs. Distributed Erlang
828 1081
829AnyEvent::MP got lots of its ideas from distributed Erlang (Erlang node 1082AnyEvent::MP got lots of its ideas from distributed Erlang (Erlang node
830== aemp node, Erlang process == aemp port), so many of the documents and 1083== aemp node, Erlang process == aemp port), so many of the documents and
831programming techniques employed by Erlang apply to AnyEvent::MP. Here is a 1084programming techniques employed by Erlang apply to AnyEvent::MP. Here is a
862ports being the special case/exception, where transport errors cannot 1115ports being the special case/exception, where transport errors cannot
863occur. 1116occur.
864 1117
865=item * Erlang uses processes and a mailbox, AEMP does not queue. 1118=item * Erlang uses processes and a mailbox, AEMP does not queue.
866 1119
867Erlang uses processes that selectively receive messages, and therefore 1120Erlang uses processes that selectively receive messages out of order, and
868needs a queue. AEMP is event based, queuing messages would serve no 1121therefore needs a queue. AEMP is event based, queuing messages would serve
869useful purpose. For the same reason the pattern-matching abilities of 1122no useful purpose. For the same reason the pattern-matching abilities
870AnyEvent::MP are more limited, as there is little need to be able to 1123of AnyEvent::MP are more limited, as there is little need to be able to
871filter messages without dequeuing them. 1124filter messages without dequeuing them.
872 1125
873(But see L<Coro::MP> for a more Erlang-like process model on top of AEMP). 1126This is not a philosophical difference, but simply stems from AnyEvent::MP
1127being event-based, while Erlang is process-based.
1128
1129You cna have a look at L<Coro::MP> for a more Erlang-like process model on
1130top of AEMP and Coro threads.
874 1131
875=item * Erlang sends are synchronous, AEMP sends are asynchronous. 1132=item * Erlang sends are synchronous, AEMP sends are asynchronous.
876 1133
877Sending messages in Erlang is synchronous and blocks the process (and 1134Sending messages in Erlang is synchronous and blocks the process until
1135a conenction has been established and the message sent (and so does not
878so does not need a queue that can overflow). AEMP sends are immediate, 1136need a queue that can overflow). AEMP sends return immediately, connection
879connection establishment is handled in the background. 1137establishment is handled in the background.
880 1138
881=item * Erlang suffers from silent message loss, AEMP does not. 1139=item * Erlang suffers from silent message loss, AEMP does not.
882 1140
883Erlang implements few guarantees on messages delivery - messages can get 1141Erlang implements few guarantees on messages delivery - messages can get
884lost without any of the processes realising it (i.e. you send messages a, 1142lost without any of the processes realising it (i.e. you send messages a,
887AEMP guarantees (modulo hardware errors) correct ordering, and the 1145AEMP guarantees (modulo hardware errors) correct ordering, and the
888guarantee that after one message is lost, all following ones sent to the 1146guarantee that after one message is lost, all following ones sent to the
889same port are lost as well, until monitoring raises an error, so there are 1147same port are lost as well, until monitoring raises an error, so there are
890no silent "holes" in the message sequence. 1148no silent "holes" in the message sequence.
891 1149
1150If you want your software to be very reliable, you have to cope with
1151corrupted and even out-of-order messages in both Erlang and AEMP. AEMP
1152simply tries to work better in common error cases, such as when a network
1153link goes down.
1154
892=item * Erlang can send messages to the wrong port, AEMP does not. 1155=item * Erlang can send messages to the wrong port, AEMP does not.
893 1156
894In Erlang it is quite likely that a node that restarts reuses a process ID 1157In Erlang it is quite likely that a node that restarts reuses an Erlang
895known to other nodes for a completely different process, causing messages 1158process ID known to other nodes for a completely different process,
896destined for that process to end up in an unrelated process. 1159causing messages destined for that process to end up in an unrelated
1160process.
897 1161
898AEMP never reuses port IDs, so old messages or old port IDs floating 1162AEMP does not reuse port IDs, so old messages or old port IDs floating
899around in the network will not be sent to an unrelated port. 1163around in the network will not be sent to an unrelated port.
900 1164
901=item * Erlang uses unprotected connections, AEMP uses secure 1165=item * Erlang uses unprotected connections, AEMP uses secure
902authentication and can use TLS. 1166authentication and can use TLS.
903 1167
906 1170
907=item * The AEMP protocol is optimised for both text-based and binary 1171=item * The AEMP protocol is optimised for both text-based and binary
908communications. 1172communications.
909 1173
910The AEMP protocol, unlike the Erlang protocol, supports both programming 1174The AEMP protocol, unlike the Erlang protocol, supports both programming
911language independent text-only protocols (good for debugging) and binary, 1175language independent text-only protocols (good for debugging), and binary,
912language-specific serialisers (e.g. Storable). By default, unless TLS is 1176language-specific serialisers (e.g. Storable). By default, unless TLS is
913used, the protocol is actually completely text-based. 1177used, the protocol is actually completely text-based.
914 1178
915It has also been carefully designed to be implementable in other languages 1179It has also been carefully designed to be implementable in other languages
916with a minimum of work while gracefully degrading functionality to make the 1180with a minimum of work while gracefully degrading functionality to make the
917protocol simple. 1181protocol simple.
918 1182
919=item * AEMP has more flexible monitoring options than Erlang. 1183=item * AEMP has more flexible monitoring options than Erlang.
920 1184
921In Erlang, you can chose to receive I<all> exit signals as messages 1185In Erlang, you can chose to receive I<all> exit signals as messages or
922or I<none>, there is no in-between, so monitoring single processes is 1186I<none>, there is no in-between, so monitoring single Erlang processes is
923difficult to implement. Monitoring in AEMP is more flexible than in 1187difficult to implement.
924Erlang, as one can choose between automatic kill, exit message or callback 1188
925on a per-process basis. 1189Monitoring in AEMP is more flexible than in Erlang, as one can choose
1190between automatic kill, exit message or callback on a per-port basis.
926 1191
927=item * Erlang tries to hide remote/local connections, AEMP does not. 1192=item * Erlang tries to hide remote/local connections, AEMP does not.
928 1193
929Monitoring in Erlang is not an indicator of process death/crashes, in the 1194Monitoring in Erlang is not an indicator of process death/crashes, in the
930same way as linking is (except linking is unreliable in Erlang). 1195same way as linking is (except linking is unreliable in Erlang).
973Keeping your messages simple, concentrating on data structures rather than 1238Keeping your messages simple, concentrating on data structures rather than
974objects, will keep your messages clean, tidy and efficient. 1239objects, will keep your messages clean, tidy and efficient.
975 1240
976=back 1241=back
977 1242
1243=head1 PORTING FROM AnyEvent::MP VERSION 1.X
1244
1245AEMP version 2 has a few major incompatible changes compared to version 1:
1246
1247=over 4
1248
1249=item AnyEvent::MP::Global no longer has group management functions.
1250
1251At least not officially - the grp_* functions are still exported and might
1252work, but they will be removed in some later release.
1253
1254AnyEvent::MP now comes with a distributed database that is more
1255powerful. Its database families map closely to port groups, but the API
1256has changed (the functions are also now exported by AnyEvent::MP). Here is
1257a rough porting guide:
1258
1259 grp_reg $group, $port # old
1260 db_reg $group, $port # new
1261
1262 $list = grp_get $group # old
1263 db_keys $group, sub { my $list = shift } # new
1264
1265 grp_mon $group, $cb->(\@ports, $add, $del) # old
1266 db_mon $group, $cb->(\%ports, $add, $change, $del) # new
1267
1268C<grp_reg> is a no-brainer (just replace by C<db_reg>), but C<grp_get> is
1269no longer instant, because the local node might not have a copy of the
1270group. You can either modify your code to allow for a callback, or use
1271C<db_mon> to keep an updated copy of the group:
1272
1273 my $local_group_copy;
1274 db_mon $group => sub { $local_group_copy = $_[0] };
1275
1276 # now "keys %$local_group_copy" always returns the most up-to-date
1277 # list of ports in the group.
1278
1279C<grp_mon> can be replaced by C<db_mon> with minor changes - C<db_mon>
1280passes a hash as first argument, and an extra C<$chg> argument that can be
1281ignored:
1282
1283 db_mon $group => sub {
1284 my ($ports, $add, $chg, $lde) = @_;
1285 $ports = [keys %$ports];
1286
1287 # now $ports, $add and $del are the same as
1288 # were originally passed by grp_mon.
1289 ...
1290 };
1291
1292=item Nodes not longer connect to all other nodes.
1293
1294In AEMP 1.x, every node automatically loads the L<AnyEvent::MP::Global>
1295module, which in turn would create connections to all other nodes in the
1296network (helped by the seed nodes).
1297
1298In version 2.x, global nodes still connect to all other global nodes, but
1299other nodes don't - now every node either is a global node itself, or
1300attaches itself to another global node.
1301
1302If a node isn't a global node itself, then it attaches itself to one
1303of its seed nodes. If that seed node isn't a global node yet, it will
1304automatically be upgraded to a global node.
1305
1306So in many cases, nothing needs to be changed - one just has to make sure
1307that all seed nodes are meshed together with the other seed nodes (as with
1308AEMP 1.x), and other nodes specify them as seed nodes. This is most easily
1309achieved by specifying the same set of seed nodes for all nodes in the
1310network.
1311
1312Not opening a connection to every other node is usually an advantage,
1313except when you need the lower latency of an already established
1314connection. To ensure a node establishes a connection to another node,
1315you can monitor the node port (C<mon $node, ...>), which will attempt to
1316create the connection (and notify you when the connection fails).
1317
1318=item Listener-less nodes (nodes without binds) are gone.
1319
1320And are not coming back, at least not in their old form. If no C<binds>
1321are specified for a node, AnyEvent::MP assumes a default of C<*:*>.
1322
1323There are vague plans to implement some form of routing domains, which
1324might or might not bring back listener-less nodes, but don't count on it.
1325
1326The fact that most connections are now optional somewhat mitigates this,
1327as a node can be effectively unreachable from the outside without any
1328problems, as long as it isn't a global node and only reaches out to other
1329nodes (as opposed to being contacted from other nodes).
1330
1331=item $AnyEvent::MP::Kernel::WARN has gone.
1332
1333AnyEvent has acquired a logging framework (L<AnyEvent::Log>), and AEMP now
1334uses this, and so should your programs.
1335
1336Every module now documents what kinds of messages it generates, with
1337AnyEvent::MP acting as a catch all.
1338
1339On the positive side, this means that instead of setting
1340C<PERL_ANYEVENT_MP_WARNLEVEL>, you can get away by setting C<AE_VERBOSE> -
1341much less to type.
1342
1343=back
1344
1345=head1 LOGGING
1346
1347AnyEvent::MP does not normally log anything by itself, but sinc eit is the
1348root of the contetx hierarchy for AnyEvent::MP modules, it will receive
1349all log messages by submodules.
1350
978=head1 SEE ALSO 1351=head1 SEE ALSO
979 1352
980L<AnyEvent::MP::Intro> - a gentle introduction. 1353L<AnyEvent::MP::Intro> - a gentle introduction.
981 1354
982L<AnyEvent::MP::Kernel> - more, lower-level, stuff. 1355L<AnyEvent::MP::Kernel> - more, lower-level, stuff.

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