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Revision 1.83 by root, Tue Sep 8 01:38:16 2009 UTC

4 4
5=head1 SYNOPSIS 5=head1 SYNOPSIS
6 6
7 use AnyEvent::MP; 7 use AnyEvent::MP;
8 8
9 $NODE # contains this node's noderef 9 $NODE # contains this node's node ID
10 NODE # returns this node's noderef 10 NODE # returns this node's node ID
11 NODE $port # returns the noderef of the port
12 11
12 $SELF # receiving/own port id in rcv callbacks
13
14 # initialise the node so it can send/receive messages
15 configure;
16
17 # ports are message destinations
18
19 # sending messages
13 snd $port, type => data...; 20 snd $port, type => data...;
21 snd $port, @msg;
22 snd @msg_with_first_element_being_a_port;
14 23
15 $SELF # receiving/own port id in rcv callbacks 24 # creating/using ports, the simple way
25 my $simple_port = port { my @msg = @_ };
16 26
17 rcv $port, smartmatch => $cb->($port, @msg); 27 # creating/using ports, tagged message matching
18 28 my $port = port;
19 # examples:
20 rcv $port2, ping => sub { snd $_[0], "pong"; 0 }; 29 rcv $port, ping => sub { snd $_[0], "pong" };
21 rcv $port1, pong => sub { warn "pong received\n" }; 30 rcv $port, pong => sub { warn "pong received\n" };
22 snd $port2, ping => $port1;
23 31
24 # more, smarter, matches (_any_ is exported by this module) 32 # create a port on another node
25 rcv $port, [child_died => $pid] => sub { ... 33 my $port = spawn $node, $initfunc, @initdata;
26 rcv $port, [_any_, _any_, 3] => sub { .. $_[2] is 3 34
35 # monitoring
36 mon $port, $cb->(@msg) # callback is invoked on death
37 mon $port, $otherport # kill otherport on abnormal death
38 mon $port, $otherport, @msg # send message on death
39
40=head1 CURRENT STATUS
41
42 bin/aemp - stable.
43 AnyEvent::MP - stable API, should work.
44 AnyEvent::MP::Intro - explains most concepts.
45 AnyEvent::MP::Kernel - mostly stable.
46 AnyEvent::MP::Global - stable but incomplete, protocol not yet final.
47
48stay tuned.
27 49
28=head1 DESCRIPTION 50=head1 DESCRIPTION
29 51
30This module (-family) implements a simple message passing framework. 52This module (-family) implements a simple message passing framework.
31 53
32Despite its simplicity, you can securely message other processes running 54Despite its simplicity, you can securely message other processes running
33on the same or other hosts. 55on the same or other hosts, and you can supervise entities remotely.
34 56
35At the moment, this module family is severly brokena nd underdocumented, 57For an introduction to this module family, see the L<AnyEvent::MP::Intro>
36so do not use. This was uploaded mainly to reserve the CPAN namespace - 58manual page and the examples under F<eg/>.
37stay tuned!
38 59
39=head1 CONCEPTS 60=head1 CONCEPTS
40 61
41=over 4 62=over 4
42 63
43=item port 64=item port
44 65
45A port is something you can send messages to with the C<snd> function, and 66Not to be confused with a TCP port, a "port" is something you can send
46you can register C<rcv> handlers with. All C<rcv> handlers will receive 67messages to (with the C<snd> function).
47messages they match, messages will not be queued.
48 68
69Ports allow you to register C<rcv> handlers that can match all or just
70some messages. Messages send to ports will not be queued, regardless of
71anything was listening for them or not.
72
49=item port id - C<noderef#portname> 73=item port ID - C<nodeid#portname>
50 74
51A port id is always the noderef, a hash-mark (C<#>) as separator, followed 75A port ID is the concatenation of a node ID, a hash-mark (C<#>) as
52by a port name (a printable string of unspecified format). 76separator, and a port name (a printable string of unspecified format).
53 77
54=item node 78=item node
55 79
56A node is a single process containing at least one port - the node 80A node is a single process containing at least one port - the node port,
57port. You can send messages to node ports to let them create new ports, 81which enables nodes to manage each other remotely, and to create new
58among other things. 82ports.
59 83
60Initially, nodes are either private (single-process only) or hidden 84Nodes are either public (have one or more listening ports) or private
61(connected to a master node only). Only when they epxlicitly "become 85(no listening ports). Private nodes cannot talk to other private nodes
62public" can you send them messages from unrelated other nodes. 86currently.
63 87
64=item noderef - C<host:port,host:port...>, C<id@noderef>, C<id> 88=item node ID - C<[a-za-Z0-9_\-.:]+>
65 89
66A noderef is a string that either uniquely identifies a given node (for 90A node ID is a string that uniquely identifies the node within a
67private and hidden nodes), or contains a recipe on how to reach a given 91network. Depending on the configuration used, node IDs can look like a
68node (for public nodes). 92hostname, a hostname and a port, or a random string. AnyEvent::MP itself
93doesn't interpret node IDs in any way.
94
95=item binds - C<ip:port>
96
97Nodes can only talk to each other by creating some kind of connection to
98each other. To do this, nodes should listen on one or more local transport
99endpoints - binds. Currently, only standard C<ip:port> specifications can
100be used, which specify TCP ports to listen on.
101
102=item seed nodes
103
104When a node starts, it knows nothing about the network. To teach the node
105about the network it first has to contact some other node within the
106network. This node is called a seed.
107
108Apart from the fact that other nodes know them as seed nodes and they have
109to have fixed listening addresses, seed nodes are perfectly normal nodes -
110any node can function as a seed node for others.
111
112In addition to discovering the network, seed nodes are also used to
113maintain the network and to connect nodes that otherwise would have
114trouble connecting. They form the backbone of the AnyEvent::MP network.
115
116Seed nodes are expected to be long-running, and at least one seed node
117should always be available.
118
119=item seeds - C<host:port>
120
121Seeds are transport endpoint(s) (usually a hostname/IP address and a
122TCP port) of nodes thta should be used as seed nodes.
123
124The nodes listening on those endpoints are expected to be long-running,
125and at least one of those should always be available. When nodes run out
126of connections (e.g. due to a network error), they try to re-establish
127connections to some seednodes again to join the network.
69 128
70=back 129=back
71 130
72=head1 VARIABLES/FUNCTIONS 131=head1 VARIABLES/FUNCTIONS
73 132
75 134
76=cut 135=cut
77 136
78package AnyEvent::MP; 137package AnyEvent::MP;
79 138
80use AnyEvent::MP::Base; 139use AnyEvent::MP::Kernel;
81 140
82use common::sense; 141use common::sense;
83 142
84use Carp (); 143use Carp ();
85 144
86use AE (); 145use AE ();
87 146
88use base "Exporter"; 147use base "Exporter";
89 148
90our $VERSION = '0.02'; 149our $VERSION = $AnyEvent::MP::Kernel::VERSION;
150
91our @EXPORT = qw( 151our @EXPORT = qw(
92 NODE $NODE *SELF node_of _any_ 152 NODE $NODE *SELF node_of after
93 become_slave become_public 153 configure
94 snd rcv mon kil reg psub 154 snd rcv mon mon_guard kil reg psub spawn
95 port 155 port
96); 156);
97 157
98our $SELF; 158our $SELF;
99 159
103 kil $SELF, die => $msg; 163 kil $SELF, die => $msg;
104} 164}
105 165
106=item $thisnode = NODE / $NODE 166=item $thisnode = NODE / $NODE
107 167
108The C<NODE> function returns, and the C<$NODE> variable contains 168The C<NODE> function returns, and the C<$NODE> variable contains, the node
109the noderef of the local node. The value is initialised by a call 169ID of the node running in the current process. This value is initialised by
110to C<become_public> or C<become_slave>, after which all local port 170a call to C<configure>.
111identifiers become invalid.
112 171
113=item $noderef = node_of $portid 172=item $nodeid = node_of $port
114 173
115Extracts and returns the noderef from a portid or a noderef. 174Extracts and returns the node ID from a port ID or a node ID.
175
176=item configure $profile, key => value...
177
178=item configure key => value...
179
180Before a node can talk to other nodes on the network (i.e. enter
181"distributed mode") it has to configure itself - the minimum a node needs
182to know is its own name, and optionally it should know the addresses of
183some other nodes in the network to discover other nodes.
184
185This function configures a node - it must be called exactly once (or
186never) before calling other AnyEvent::MP functions.
187
188=over 4
189
190=item step 1, gathering configuration from profiles
191
192The function first looks up a profile in the aemp configuration (see the
193L<aemp> commandline utility). The profile name can be specified via the
194named C<profile> parameter or can simply be the first parameter). If it is
195missing, then the nodename (F<uname -n>) will be used as profile name.
196
197The profile data is then gathered as follows:
198
199First, all remaining key => value pairs (all of which are conveniently
200undocumented at the moment) will be interpreted as configuration
201data. Then they will be overwritten by any values specified in the global
202default configuration (see the F<aemp> utility), then the chain of
203profiles chosen by the profile name (and any C<parent> attributes).
204
205That means that the values specified in the profile have highest priority
206and the values specified directly via C<configure> have lowest priority,
207and can only be used to specify defaults.
208
209If the profile specifies a node ID, then this will become the node ID of
210this process. If not, then the profile name will be used as node ID. The
211special node ID of C<anon/> will be replaced by a random node ID.
212
213=item step 2, bind listener sockets
214
215The next step is to look up the binds in the profile, followed by binding
216aemp protocol listeners on all binds specified (it is possible and valid
217to have no binds, meaning that the node cannot be contacted form the
218outside. This means the node cannot talk to other nodes that also have no
219binds, but it can still talk to all "normal" nodes).
220
221If the profile does not specify a binds list, then a default of C<*> is
222used, meaning the node will bind on a dynamically-assigned port on every
223local IP address it finds.
224
225=item step 3, connect to seed nodes
226
227As the last step, the seeds list from the profile is passed to the
228L<AnyEvent::MP::Global> module, which will then use it to keep
229connectivity with at least one node at any point in time.
230
231=back
232
233Example: become a distributed node using the locla node name as profile.
234This should be the most common form of invocation for "daemon"-type nodes.
235
236 configure
237
238Example: become an anonymous node. This form is often used for commandline
239clients.
240
241 configure nodeid => "anon/";
242
243Example: configure a node using a profile called seed, which si suitable
244for a seed node as it binds on all local addresses on a fixed port (4040,
245customary for aemp).
246
247 # use the aemp commandline utility
248 # aemp profile seed nodeid anon/ binds '*:4040'
249
250 # then use it
251 configure profile => "seed";
252
253 # or simply use aemp from the shell again:
254 # aemp run profile seed
255
256 # or provide a nicer-to-remember nodeid
257 # aemp run profile seed nodeid "$(hostname)"
116 258
117=item $SELF 259=item $SELF
118 260
119Contains the current port id while executing C<rcv> callbacks or C<psub> 261Contains the current port id while executing C<rcv> callbacks or C<psub>
120blocks. 262blocks.
121 263
122=item SELF, %SELF, @SELF... 264=item *SELF, SELF, %SELF, @SELF...
123 265
124Due to some quirks in how perl exports variables, it is impossible to 266Due to some quirks in how perl exports variables, it is impossible to
125just export C<$SELF>, all the symbols called C<SELF> are exported by this 267just export C<$SELF>, all the symbols named C<SELF> are exported by this
126module, but only C<$SELF> is currently used. 268module, but only C<$SELF> is currently used.
127 269
128=item snd $portid, type => @data 270=item snd $port, type => @data
129 271
130=item snd $portid, @msg 272=item snd $port, @msg
131 273
132Send the given message to the given port ID, which can identify either 274Send the given message to the given port, which can identify either a
133a local or a remote port, and can be either a string or soemthignt hat 275local or a remote port, and must be a port ID.
134stringifies a sa port ID (such as a port object :).
135 276
136While the message can be about anything, it is highly recommended to use a 277While the message can be almost anything, it is highly recommended to
137string as first element (a portid, or some word that indicates a request 278use a string as first element (a port ID, or some word that indicates a
138type etc.). 279request type etc.) and to consist if only simple perl values (scalars,
280arrays, hashes) - if you think you need to pass an object, think again.
139 281
140The message data effectively becomes read-only after a call to this 282The message data logically becomes read-only after a call to this
141function: modifying any argument is not allowed and can cause many 283function: modifying any argument (or values referenced by them) is
142problems. 284forbidden, as there can be considerable time between the call to C<snd>
285and the time the message is actually being serialised - in fact, it might
286never be copied as within the same process it is simply handed to the
287receiving port.
143 288
144The type of data you can transfer depends on the transport protocol: when 289The type of data you can transfer depends on the transport protocol: when
145JSON is used, then only strings, numbers and arrays and hashes consisting 290JSON is used, then only strings, numbers and arrays and hashes consisting
146of those are allowed (no objects). When Storable is used, then anything 291of those are allowed (no objects). When Storable is used, then anything
147that Storable can serialise and deserialise is allowed, and for the local 292that Storable can serialise and deserialise is allowed, and for the local
148node, anything can be passed. 293node, anything can be passed. Best rely only on the common denominator of
294these.
149 295
150=item kil $portid[, @reason] 296=item $local_port = port
151 297
152Kill the specified port with the given C<@reason>. 298Create a new local port object and returns its port ID. Initially it has
299no callbacks set and will throw an error when it receives messages.
153 300
154If no C<@reason> is specified, then the port is killed "normally" (linked 301=item $local_port = port { my @msg = @_ }
155ports will not be kileld, or even notified).
156 302
157Otherwise, linked ports get killed with the same reason (second form of 303Creates a new local port, and returns its ID. Semantically the same as
158C<mon>, see below). 304creating a port and calling C<rcv $port, $callback> on it.
159 305
160Runtime errors while evaluating C<rcv> callbacks or inside C<psub> blocks 306The block will be called for every message received on the port, with the
161will be reported as reason C<< die => $@ >>. 307global variable C<$SELF> set to the port ID. Runtime errors will cause the
308port to be C<kil>ed. The message will be passed as-is, no extra argument
309(i.e. no port ID) will be passed to the callback.
162 310
163Transport/communication errors are reported as C<< transport_error => 311If you want to stop/destroy the port, simply C<kil> it:
164$message >>.
165 312
166=item $guard = mon $portid, $cb->(@reason) 313 my $port = port {
314 my @msg = @_;
315 ...
316 kil $SELF;
317 };
167 318
168=item $guard = mon $portid, $otherport 319=cut
169 320
170=item $guard = mon $portid, $otherport, @msg 321sub rcv($@);
171 322
323sub _kilme {
324 die "received message on port without callback";
325}
326
327sub port(;&) {
328 my $id = "$UNIQ." . $ID++;
329 my $port = "$NODE#$id";
330
331 rcv $port, shift || \&_kilme;
332
333 $port
334}
335
336=item rcv $local_port, $callback->(@msg)
337
338Replaces the default callback on the specified port. There is no way to
339remove the default callback: use C<sub { }> to disable it, or better
340C<kil> the port when it is no longer needed.
341
342The global C<$SELF> (exported by this module) contains C<$port> while
343executing the callback. Runtime errors during callback execution will
344result in the port being C<kil>ed.
345
346The default callback received all messages not matched by a more specific
347C<tag> match.
348
349=item rcv $local_port, tag => $callback->(@msg_without_tag), ...
350
351Register (or replace) callbacks to be called on messages starting with the
352given tag on the given port (and return the port), or unregister it (when
353C<$callback> is C<$undef> or missing). There can only be one callback
354registered for each tag.
355
356The original message will be passed to the callback, after the first
357element (the tag) has been removed. The callback will use the same
358environment as the default callback (see above).
359
360Example: create a port and bind receivers on it in one go.
361
362 my $port = rcv port,
363 msg1 => sub { ... },
364 msg2 => sub { ... },
365 ;
366
367Example: create a port, bind receivers and send it in a message elsewhere
368in one go:
369
370 snd $otherport, reply =>
371 rcv port,
372 msg1 => sub { ... },
373 ...
374 ;
375
376Example: temporarily register a rcv callback for a tag matching some port
377(e.g. for a rpc reply) and unregister it after a message was received.
378
379 rcv $port, $otherport => sub {
380 my @reply = @_;
381
382 rcv $SELF, $otherport;
383 };
384
385=cut
386
387sub rcv($@) {
388 my $port = shift;
389 my ($nodeid, $portid) = split /#/, $port, 2;
390
391 $NODE{$nodeid} == $NODE{""}
392 or Carp::croak "$port: rcv can only be called on local ports, caught";
393
394 while (@_) {
395 if (ref $_[0]) {
396 if (my $self = $PORT_DATA{$portid}) {
397 "AnyEvent::MP::Port" eq ref $self
398 or Carp::croak "$port: rcv can only be called on message matching ports, caught";
399
400 $self->[2] = shift;
401 } else {
402 my $cb = shift;
403 $PORT{$portid} = sub {
404 local $SELF = $port;
405 eval { &$cb }; _self_die if $@;
406 };
407 }
408 } elsif (defined $_[0]) {
409 my $self = $PORT_DATA{$portid} ||= do {
410 my $self = bless [$PORT{$port} || sub { }, { }, $port], "AnyEvent::MP::Port";
411
412 $PORT{$portid} = sub {
413 local $SELF = $port;
414
415 if (my $cb = $self->[1]{$_[0]}) {
416 shift;
417 eval { &$cb }; _self_die if $@;
418 } else {
419 &{ $self->[0] };
420 }
421 };
422
423 $self
424 };
425
426 "AnyEvent::MP::Port" eq ref $self
427 or Carp::croak "$port: rcv can only be called on message matching ports, caught";
428
429 my ($tag, $cb) = splice @_, 0, 2;
430
431 if (defined $cb) {
432 $self->[1]{$tag} = $cb;
433 } else {
434 delete $self->[1]{$tag};
435 }
436 }
437 }
438
439 $port
440}
441
442=item $closure = psub { BLOCK }
443
444Remembers C<$SELF> and creates a closure out of the BLOCK. When the
445closure is executed, sets up the environment in the same way as in C<rcv>
446callbacks, i.e. runtime errors will cause the port to get C<kil>ed.
447
448This is useful when you register callbacks from C<rcv> callbacks:
449
450 rcv delayed_reply => sub {
451 my ($delay, @reply) = @_;
452 my $timer = AE::timer $delay, 0, psub {
453 snd @reply, $SELF;
454 };
455 };
456
457=cut
458
459sub psub(&) {
460 my $cb = shift;
461
462 my $port = $SELF
463 or Carp::croak "psub can only be called from within rcv or psub callbacks, not";
464
465 sub {
466 local $SELF = $port;
467
468 if (wantarray) {
469 my @res = eval { &$cb };
470 _self_die if $@;
471 @res
472 } else {
473 my $res = eval { &$cb };
474 _self_die if $@;
475 $res
476 }
477 }
478}
479
480=item $guard = mon $port, $cb->(@reason) # call $cb when $port dies
481
482=item $guard = mon $port, $rcvport # kill $rcvport when $port dies
483
484=item $guard = mon $port # kill $SELF when $port dies
485
486=item $guard = mon $port, $rcvport, @msg # send a message when $port dies
487
172Monitor the given port and do something when the port is killed. 488Monitor the given port and do something when the port is killed or
489messages to it were lost, and optionally return a guard that can be used
490to stop monitoring again.
173 491
174In the first form, the callback is simply called with any number 492In the first form (callback), the callback is simply called with any
175of C<@reason> elements (no @reason means that the port was deleted 493number of C<@reason> elements (no @reason means that the port was deleted
176"normally"). Note also that I<< the callback B<must> never die >>, so use 494"normally"). Note also that I<< the callback B<must> never die >>, so use
177C<eval> if unsure. 495C<eval> if unsure.
178 496
179In the second form, the other port will be C<kil>'ed with C<@reason>, iff 497In the second form (another port given), the other port (C<$rcvport>)
180a @reason was specified, i.e. on "normal" kils nothing happens, while 498will be C<kil>'ed with C<@reason>, if a @reason was specified, i.e. on
181under all other conditions, the other port is killed with the same reason. 499"normal" kils nothing happens, while under all other conditions, the other
500port is killed with the same reason.
182 501
502The third form (kill self) is the same as the second form, except that
503C<$rvport> defaults to C<$SELF>.
504
183In the last form, a message of the form C<@msg, @reason> will be C<snd>. 505In the last form (message), a message of the form C<@msg, @reason> will be
506C<snd>.
507
508Monitoring-actions are one-shot: once messages are lost (and a monitoring
509alert was raised), they are removed and will not trigger again.
510
511As a rule of thumb, monitoring requests should always monitor a port from
512a local port (or callback). The reason is that kill messages might get
513lost, just like any other message. Another less obvious reason is that
514even monitoring requests can get lost (for example, when the connection
515to the other node goes down permanently). When monitoring a port locally
516these problems do not exist.
517
518C<mon> effectively guarantees that, in the absence of hardware failures,
519after starting the monitor, either all messages sent to the port will
520arrive, or the monitoring action will be invoked after possible message
521loss has been detected. No messages will be lost "in between" (after
522the first lost message no further messages will be received by the
523port). After the monitoring action was invoked, further messages might get
524delivered again.
525
526Inter-host-connection timeouts and monitoring depend on the transport
527used. The only transport currently implemented is TCP, and AnyEvent::MP
528relies on TCP to detect node-downs (this can take 10-15 minutes on a
529non-idle connection, and usually around two hours for idle conenctions).
530
531This means that monitoring is good for program errors and cleaning up
532stuff eventually, but they are no replacement for a timeout when you need
533to ensure some maximum latency.
184 534
185Example: call a given callback when C<$port> is killed. 535Example: call a given callback when C<$port> is killed.
186 536
187 mon $port, sub { warn "port died because of <@_>\n" }; 537 mon $port, sub { warn "port died because of <@_>\n" };
188 538
189Example: kill ourselves when C<$port> is killed abnormally. 539Example: kill ourselves when C<$port> is killed abnormally.
190 540
191 mon $port, $self; 541 mon $port;
192 542
193Example: send us a restart message another C<$port> is killed. 543Example: send us a restart message when another C<$port> is killed.
194 544
195 mon $port, $self => "restart"; 545 mon $port, $self => "restart";
196 546
197=cut 547=cut
198 548
199sub mon { 549sub mon {
200 my ($noderef, $port, $cb) = ((split /#/, shift, 2), shift); 550 my ($nodeid, $port) = split /#/, shift, 2;
201 551
202 my $node = $NODE{$noderef} || add_node $noderef; 552 my $node = $NODE{$nodeid} || add_node $nodeid;
203 553
204 #TODO: ports must not be references 554 my $cb = @_ ? shift : $SELF || Carp::croak 'mon: called with one argument only, but $SELF not set,';
205 if (!ref $cb or "AnyEvent::MP::Port" eq ref $cb) { 555
556 unless (ref $cb) {
206 if (@_) { 557 if (@_) {
207 # send a kill info message 558 # send a kill info message
208 my (@msg) = ($cb, @_); 559 my (@msg) = ($cb, @_);
209 $cb = sub { snd @msg, @_ }; 560 $cb = sub { snd @msg, @_ };
210 } else { 561 } else {
226is killed, the references will be freed. 577is killed, the references will be freed.
227 578
228Optionally returns a guard that will stop the monitoring. 579Optionally returns a guard that will stop the monitoring.
229 580
230This function is useful when you create e.g. timers or other watchers and 581This function is useful when you create e.g. timers or other watchers and
231want to free them when the port gets killed: 582want to free them when the port gets killed (note the use of C<psub>):
232 583
233 $port->rcv (start => sub { 584 $port->rcv (start => sub {
234 my $timer; $timer = mon_guard $port, AE::timer 1, 1, sub { 585 my $timer; $timer = mon_guard $port, AE::timer 1, 1, psub {
235 undef $timer if 0.9 < rand; 586 undef $timer if 0.9 < rand;
236 }); 587 });
237 }); 588 });
238 589
239=cut 590=cut
240 591
241sub mon_guard { 592sub mon_guard {
242 my ($port, @refs) = @_; 593 my ($port, @refs) = @_;
243 594
595 #TODO: mon-less form?
596
244 mon $port, sub { 0 && @refs } 597 mon $port, sub { 0 && @refs }
245} 598}
246 599
247=item $local_port = port 600=item kil $port[, @reason]
248 601
249Create a new local port object that supports message matching. 602Kill the specified port with the given C<@reason>.
250 603
251=item $portid = port { my @msg = @_; $finished } 604If no C<@reason> is specified, then the port is killed "normally" (ports
605monitoring other ports will not necessarily die because a port dies
606"normally").
252 607
253Creates a "mini port", that is, a very lightweight port without any 608Otherwise, linked ports get killed with the same reason (second form of
254pattern matching behind it, and returns its ID. 609C<mon>, see above).
255 610
256The block will be called for every message received on the port. When the 611Runtime errors while evaluating C<rcv> callbacks or inside C<psub> blocks
257callback returns a true value its job is considered "done" and the port 612will be reported as reason C<< die => $@ >>.
258will be destroyed. Otherwise it will stay alive.
259 613
260The message will be passed as-is, no extra argument (i.e. no port id) will 614Transport/communication errors are reported as C<< transport_error =>
261be passed to the callback. 615$message >>.
262 616
263If you need the local port id in the callback, this works nicely:
264
265 my $port; $port = miniport {
266 snd $otherport, reply => $port;
267 };
268
269=cut 617=cut
270 618
271sub port(;&) { 619=item $port = spawn $node, $initfunc[, @initdata]
272 my $id = "$UNIQ." . $ID++;
273 my $port = "$NODE#$id";
274 620
275 if (@_) { 621Creates a port on the node C<$node> (which can also be a port ID, in which
276 my $cb = shift; 622case it's the node where that port resides).
277 $PORT{$id} = sub { 623
278 local $SELF = $port; 624The port ID of the newly created port is returned immediately, and it is
279 eval { 625possible to immediately start sending messages or to monitor the port.
280 &$cb 626
281 and kil $id; 627After the port has been created, the init function is called on the remote
628node, in the same context as a C<rcv> callback. This function must be a
629fully-qualified function name (e.g. C<MyApp::Chat::Server::init>). To
630specify a function in the main program, use C<::name>.
631
632If the function doesn't exist, then the node tries to C<require>
633the package, then the package above the package and so on (e.g.
634C<MyApp::Chat::Server>, C<MyApp::Chat>, C<MyApp>) until the function
635exists or it runs out of package names.
636
637The init function is then called with the newly-created port as context
638object (C<$SELF>) and the C<@initdata> values as arguments. It I<must>
639call one of the C<rcv> functions to set callbacks on C<$SELF>, otherwise
640the port might not get created.
641
642A common idiom is to pass a local port, immediately monitor the spawned
643port, and in the remote init function, immediately monitor the passed
644local port. This two-way monitoring ensures that both ports get cleaned up
645when there is a problem.
646
647C<spawn> guarantees that the C<$initfunc> has no visible effects on the
648caller before C<spawn> returns (by delaying invocation when spawn is
649called for the local node).
650
651Example: spawn a chat server port on C<$othernode>.
652
653 # this node, executed from within a port context:
654 my $server = spawn $othernode, "MyApp::Chat::Server::connect", $SELF;
655 mon $server;
656
657 # init function on C<$othernode>
658 sub connect {
659 my ($srcport) = @_;
660
661 mon $srcport;
662
663 rcv $SELF, sub {
282 }; 664 ...
283 _self_die if $@;
284 };
285 } else {
286 my $self = bless {
287 id => "$NODE#$id",
288 }, "AnyEvent::MP::Port";
289
290 $PORT_DATA{$id} = $self;
291 $PORT{$id} = sub {
292 local $SELF = $port;
293
294 eval {
295 for (@{ $self->{rc0}{$_[0]} }) {
296 $_ && &{$_->[0]}
297 && undef $_;
298 }
299
300 for (@{ $self->{rcv}{$_[0]} }) {
301 $_ && [@_[1 .. @{$_->[1]}]] ~~ $_->[1]
302 && &{$_->[0]}
303 && undef $_;
304 }
305
306 for (@{ $self->{any} }) {
307 $_ && [@_[0 .. $#{$_->[1]}]] ~~ $_->[1]
308 && &{$_->[0]}
309 && undef $_;
310 }
311 };
312 _self_die if $@;
313 }; 665 };
314 } 666 }
315 667
316 $port
317}
318
319=item reg $portid, $name
320
321Registers the given port under the name C<$name>. If the name already
322exists it is replaced.
323
324A port can only be registered under one well known name.
325
326A port automatically becomes unregistered when it is killed.
327
328=cut 668=cut
329 669
330sub reg(@) { 670sub _spawn {
331 my ($portid, $name) = @_; 671 my $port = shift;
672 my $init = shift;
332 673
333 $REG{$name} = $portid; 674 # rcv will create the actual port
334} 675 local $SELF = "$NODE#$port";
335 676 eval {
336=item rcv $portid, tagstring => $callback->(@msg), ... 677 &{ load_func $init }
337
338=item rcv $portid, $smartmatch => $callback->(@msg), ...
339
340=item rcv $portid, [$smartmatch...] => $callback->(@msg), ...
341
342Register callbacks to be called on matching messages on the given port.
343
344The callback has to return a true value when its work is done, after
345which is will be removed, or a false value in which case it will stay
346registered.
347
348The global C<$SELF> (exported by this module) contains C<$portid> while
349executing the callback.
350
351Runtime errors wdurign callback execution will result in the port being
352C<kil>ed.
353
354If the match is an array reference, then it will be matched against the
355first elements of the message, otherwise only the first element is being
356matched.
357
358Any element in the match that is specified as C<_any_> (a function
359exported by this module) matches any single element of the message.
360
361While not required, it is highly recommended that the first matching
362element is a string identifying the message. The one-string-only match is
363also the most efficient match (by far).
364
365=cut
366
367sub rcv($@) {
368 my ($noderef, $port) = split /#/, shift, 2;
369
370 ($NODE{$noderef} || add_node $noderef) == $NODE{""}
371 or Carp::croak "$noderef#$port: rcv can only be called on local ports, caught";
372
373 my $self = $PORT_DATA{$port}
374 or Carp::croak "$noderef#$port: rcv can only be called on message matching ports, caught";
375
376 "AnyEvent::MP::Port" eq ref $self
377 or Carp::croak "$noderef#$port: rcv can only be called on message matching ports, caught";
378
379 while (@_) {
380 my ($match, $cb) = splice @_, 0, 2;
381
382 if (!ref $match) {
383 push @{ $self->{rc0}{$match} }, [$cb];
384 } elsif (("ARRAY" eq ref $match && !ref $match->[0])) {
385 my ($type, @match) = @$match;
386 @match
387 ? push @{ $self->{rcv}{$match->[0]} }, [$cb, \@match]
388 : push @{ $self->{rc0}{$match->[0]} }, [$cb];
389 } else {
390 push @{ $self->{any} }, [$cb, $match];
391 }
392 }
393}
394
395=item $closure = psub { BLOCK }
396
397Remembers C<$SELF> and creates a closure out of the BLOCK. When the
398closure is executed, sets up the environment in the same way as in C<rcv>
399callbacks, i.e. runtime errors will cause the port to get C<kil>ed.
400
401This is useful when you register callbacks from C<rcv> callbacks:
402
403 rcv delayed_reply => sub {
404 my ($delay, @reply) = @_;
405 my $timer = AE::timer $delay, 0, psub {
406 snd @reply, $SELF;
407 };
408 }; 678 };
409
410=cut
411
412sub psub(&) {
413 my $cb = shift;
414
415 my $port = $SELF
416 or Carp::croak "psub can only be called from within rcv or psub callbacks, not";
417
418 sub {
419 local $SELF = $port;
420
421 if (wantarray) {
422 my @res = eval { &$cb };
423 _self_die if $@; 679 _self_die if $@;
424 @res 680}
425 } else { 681
426 my $res = eval { &$cb }; 682sub spawn(@) {
427 _self_die if $@; 683 my ($nodeid, undef) = split /#/, shift, 2;
428 $res 684
429 } 685 my $id = "$RUNIQ." . $ID++;
686
687 $_[0] =~ /::/
688 or Carp::croak "spawn init function must be a fully-qualified name, caught";
689
690 snd_to_func $nodeid, "AnyEvent::MP::_spawn" => $id, @_;
691
692 "$nodeid#$id"
693}
694
695=item after $timeout, @msg
696
697=item after $timeout, $callback
698
699Either sends the given message, or call the given callback, after the
700specified number of seconds.
701
702This is simply a utility function that comes in handy at times - the
703AnyEvent::MP author is not convinced of the wisdom of having it, though,
704so it may go away in the future.
705
706=cut
707
708sub after($@) {
709 my ($timeout, @action) = @_;
710
711 my $t; $t = AE::timer $timeout, 0, sub {
712 undef $t;
713 ref $action[0]
714 ? $action[0]()
715 : snd @action;
430 } 716 };
431} 717}
432 718
433=back 719=back
434 720
435=head1 FUNCTIONS FOR NODES 721=head1 AnyEvent::MP vs. Distributed Erlang
722
723AnyEvent::MP got lots of its ideas from distributed Erlang (Erlang node
724== aemp node, Erlang process == aemp port), so many of the documents and
725programming techniques employed by Erlang apply to AnyEvent::MP. Here is a
726sample:
727
728 http://www.Erlang.se/doc/programming_rules.shtml
729 http://Erlang.org/doc/getting_started/part_frame.html # chapters 3 and 4
730 http://Erlang.org/download/Erlang-book-part1.pdf # chapters 5 and 6
731 http://Erlang.org/download/armstrong_thesis_2003.pdf # chapters 4 and 5
732
733Despite the similarities, there are also some important differences:
436 734
437=over 4 735=over 4
438 736
439=item become_public endpoint... 737=item * Node IDs are arbitrary strings in AEMP.
440 738
441Tells the node to become a public node, i.e. reachable from other nodes. 739Erlang relies on special naming and DNS to work everywhere in the same
740way. AEMP relies on each node somehow knowing its own address(es) (e.g. by
741configuration or DNS), but will otherwise discover other odes itself.
442 742
443If no arguments are given, or the first argument is C<undef>, then 743=item * Erlang has a "remote ports are like local ports" philosophy, AEMP
444AnyEvent::MP tries to bind on port C<4040> on all IP addresses that the 744uses "local ports are like remote ports".
445local nodename resolves to.
446 745
447Otherwise the first argument must be an array-reference with transport 746The failure modes for local ports are quite different (runtime errors
448endpoints ("ip:port", "hostname:port") or port numbers (in which case the 747only) then for remote ports - when a local port dies, you I<know> it dies,
449local nodename is used as hostname). The endpoints are all resolved and 748when a connection to another node dies, you know nothing about the other
450will become the node reference. 749port.
451 750
452=cut 751Erlang pretends remote ports are as reliable as local ports, even when
752they are not.
753
754AEMP encourages a "treat remote ports differently" philosophy, with local
755ports being the special case/exception, where transport errors cannot
756occur.
757
758=item * Erlang uses processes and a mailbox, AEMP does not queue.
759
760Erlang uses processes that selectively receive messages, and therefore
761needs a queue. AEMP is event based, queuing messages would serve no
762useful purpose. For the same reason the pattern-matching abilities of
763AnyEvent::MP are more limited, as there is little need to be able to
764filter messages without dequeuing them.
765
766(But see L<Coro::MP> for a more Erlang-like process model on top of AEMP).
767
768=item * Erlang sends are synchronous, AEMP sends are asynchronous.
769
770Sending messages in Erlang is synchronous and blocks the process (and
771so does not need a queue that can overflow). AEMP sends are immediate,
772connection establishment is handled in the background.
773
774=item * Erlang suffers from silent message loss, AEMP does not.
775
776Erlang makes few guarantees on messages delivery - messages can get lost
777without any of the processes realising it (i.e. you send messages a, b,
778and c, and the other side only receives messages a and c).
779
780AEMP guarantees correct ordering, and the guarantee that after one message
781is lost, all following ones sent to the same port are lost as well, until
782monitoring raises an error, so there are no silent "holes" in the message
783sequence.
784
785=item * Erlang can send messages to the wrong port, AEMP does not.
786
787In Erlang it is quite likely that a node that restarts reuses a process ID
788known to other nodes for a completely different process, causing messages
789destined for that process to end up in an unrelated process.
790
791AEMP never reuses port IDs, so old messages or old port IDs floating
792around in the network will not be sent to an unrelated port.
793
794=item * Erlang uses unprotected connections, AEMP uses secure
795authentication and can use TLS.
796
797AEMP can use a proven protocol - TLS - to protect connections and
798securely authenticate nodes.
799
800=item * The AEMP protocol is optimised for both text-based and binary
801communications.
802
803The AEMP protocol, unlike the Erlang protocol, supports both programming
804language independent text-only protocols (good for debugging) and binary,
805language-specific serialisers (e.g. Storable). By default, unless TLS is
806used, the protocol is actually completely text-based.
807
808It has also been carefully designed to be implementable in other languages
809with a minimum of work while gracefully degrading functionality to make the
810protocol simple.
811
812=item * AEMP has more flexible monitoring options than Erlang.
813
814In Erlang, you can chose to receive I<all> exit signals as messages
815or I<none>, there is no in-between, so monitoring single processes is
816difficult to implement. Monitoring in AEMP is more flexible than in
817Erlang, as one can choose between automatic kill, exit message or callback
818on a per-process basis.
819
820=item * Erlang tries to hide remote/local connections, AEMP does not.
821
822Monitoring in Erlang is not an indicator of process death/crashes, in the
823same way as linking is (except linking is unreliable in Erlang).
824
825In AEMP, you don't "look up" registered port names or send to named ports
826that might or might not be persistent. Instead, you normally spawn a port
827on the remote node. The init function monitors you, and you monitor the
828remote port. Since both monitors are local to the node, they are much more
829reliable (no need for C<spawn_link>).
830
831This also saves round-trips and avoids sending messages to the wrong port
832(hard to do in Erlang).
453 833
454=back 834=back
455 835
456=head1 NODE MESSAGES 836=head1 RATIONALE
457
458Nodes understand the following messages sent to them. Many of them take
459arguments called C<@reply>, which will simply be used to compose a reply
460message - C<$reply[0]> is the port to reply to, C<$reply[1]> the type and
461the remaining arguments are simply the message data.
462 837
463=over 4 838=over 4
464 839
465=cut 840=item Why strings for port and node IDs, why not objects?
466 841
467=item lookup => $name, @reply 842We considered "objects", but found that the actual number of methods
843that can be called are quite low. Since port and node IDs travel over
844the network frequently, the serialising/deserialising would add lots of
845overhead, as well as having to keep a proxy object everywhere.
468 846
469Replies with the port ID of the specified well-known port, or C<undef>. 847Strings can easily be printed, easily serialised etc. and need no special
848procedures to be "valid".
470 849
471=item devnull => ... 850And as a result, a miniport consists of a single closure stored in a
851global hash - it can't become much cheaper.
472 852
473Generic data sink/CPU heat conversion. 853=item Why favour JSON, why not a real serialising format such as Storable?
474 854
475=item relay => $port, @msg 855In fact, any AnyEvent::MP node will happily accept Storable as framing
856format, but currently there is no way to make a node use Storable by
857default (although all nodes will accept it).
476 858
477Simply forwards the message to the given port. 859The default framing protocol is JSON because a) JSON::XS is many times
860faster for small messages and b) most importantly, after years of
861experience we found that object serialisation is causing more problems
862than it solves: Just like function calls, objects simply do not travel
863easily over the network, mostly because they will always be a copy, so you
864always have to re-think your design.
478 865
479=item eval => $string[ @reply] 866Keeping your messages simple, concentrating on data structures rather than
480 867objects, will keep your messages clean, tidy and efficient.
481Evaluates the given string. If C<@reply> is given, then a message of the
482form C<@reply, $@, @evalres> is sent.
483
484Example: crash another node.
485
486 snd $othernode, eval => "exit";
487
488=item time => @reply
489
490Replies the the current node time to C<@reply>.
491
492Example: tell the current node to send the current time to C<$myport> in a
493C<timereply> message.
494
495 snd $NODE, time => $myport, timereply => 1, 2;
496 # => snd $myport, timereply => 1, 2, <time>
497 868
498=back 869=back
499 870
500=head1 SEE ALSO 871=head1 SEE ALSO
872
873L<AnyEvent::MP::Intro> - a gentle introduction.
874
875L<AnyEvent::MP::Kernel> - more, lower-level, stuff.
876
877L<AnyEvent::MP::Global> - network maintainance and port groups, to find
878your applications.
879
880L<AnyEvent::MP::LogCatcher> - simple service to display log messages from
881all nodes.
501 882
502L<AnyEvent>. 883L<AnyEvent>.
503 884
504=head1 AUTHOR 885=head1 AUTHOR
505 886

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