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1=head1 NAME 1=head1 NAME
2 2
3AnyEvent - provide framework for multiple event loops 3AnyEvent - the DBI of event loop programming
4 4
5EV, Event, Glib, Tk, Perl, Event::Lib, Qt, POE - various supported event loops 5EV, Event, Glib, Tk, Perl, Event::Lib, Irssi, rxvt-unicode, IO::Async, Qt
6and POE are various supported event loops/environments.
6 7
7=head1 SYNOPSIS 8=head1 SYNOPSIS
8 9
9 use AnyEvent; 10 use AnyEvent;
10 11
12 # file descriptor readable
11 my $w = AnyEvent->io (fh => $fh, poll => "r|w", cb => sub { ... }); 13 my $w = AnyEvent->io (fh => $fh, poll => "r", cb => sub { ... });
12 14
15 # one-shot or repeating timers
13 my $w = AnyEvent->timer (after => $seconds, cb => sub { ... }); 16 my $w = AnyEvent->timer (after => $seconds, cb => sub { ... });
14 my $w = AnyEvent->timer (after => $seconds, interval => $seconds, cb => ... 17 my $w = AnyEvent->timer (after => $seconds, interval => $seconds, cb => ...
15 18
16 print AnyEvent->now; # prints current event loop time 19 print AnyEvent->now; # prints current event loop time
17 print AnyEvent->time; # think Time::HiRes::time or simply CORE::time. 20 print AnyEvent->time; # think Time::HiRes::time or simply CORE::time.
18 21
22 # POSIX signal
19 my $w = AnyEvent->signal (signal => "TERM", cb => sub { ... }); 23 my $w = AnyEvent->signal (signal => "TERM", cb => sub { ... });
20 24
25 # child process exit
21 my $w = AnyEvent->child (pid => $pid, cb => sub { 26 my $w = AnyEvent->child (pid => $pid, cb => sub {
22 my ($pid, $status) = @_; 27 my ($pid, $status) = @_;
23 ... 28 ...
24 }); 29 });
30
31 # called when event loop idle (if applicable)
32 my $w = AnyEvent->idle (cb => sub { ... });
25 33
26 my $w = AnyEvent->condvar; # stores whether a condition was flagged 34 my $w = AnyEvent->condvar; # stores whether a condition was flagged
27 $w->send; # wake up current and all future recv's 35 $w->send; # wake up current and all future recv's
28 $w->recv; # enters "main loop" till $condvar gets ->send 36 $w->recv; # enters "main loop" till $condvar gets ->send
29 # use a condvar in callback mode: 37 # use a condvar in callback mode:
32=head1 INTRODUCTION/TUTORIAL 40=head1 INTRODUCTION/TUTORIAL
33 41
34This manpage is mainly a reference manual. If you are interested 42This manpage is mainly a reference manual. If you are interested
35in a tutorial or some gentle introduction, have a look at the 43in a tutorial or some gentle introduction, have a look at the
36L<AnyEvent::Intro> manpage. 44L<AnyEvent::Intro> manpage.
45
46=head1 SUPPORT
47
48There is a mailinglist for discussing all things AnyEvent, and an IRC
49channel, too.
50
51See the AnyEvent project page at the B<Schmorpforge Ta-Sa Software
52Repository>, at L<http://anyevent.schmorp.de>, for more info.
37 53
38=head1 WHY YOU SHOULD USE THIS MODULE (OR NOT) 54=head1 WHY YOU SHOULD USE THIS MODULE (OR NOT)
39 55
40Glib, POE, IO::Async, Event... CPAN offers event models by the dozen 56Glib, POE, IO::Async, Event... CPAN offers event models by the dozen
41nowadays. So what is different about AnyEvent? 57nowadays. So what is different about AnyEvent?
137These watchers are normal Perl objects with normal Perl lifetime. After 153These watchers are normal Perl objects with normal Perl lifetime. After
138creating a watcher it will immediately "watch" for events and invoke the 154creating a watcher it will immediately "watch" for events and invoke the
139callback when the event occurs (of course, only when the event model 155callback when the event occurs (of course, only when the event model
140is in control). 156is in control).
141 157
158Note that B<callbacks must not permanently change global variables>
159potentially in use by the event loop (such as C<$_> or C<$[>) and that B<<
160callbacks must not C<die> >>. The former is good programming practise in
161Perl and the latter stems from the fact that exception handling differs
162widely between event loops.
163
142To disable the watcher you have to destroy it (e.g. by setting the 164To disable the watcher you have to destroy it (e.g. by setting the
143variable you store it in to C<undef> or otherwise deleting all references 165variable you store it in to C<undef> or otherwise deleting all references
144to it). 166to it).
145 167
146All watchers are created by calling a method on the C<AnyEvent> class. 168All watchers are created by calling a method on the C<AnyEvent> class.
162=head2 I/O WATCHERS 184=head2 I/O WATCHERS
163 185
164You can create an I/O watcher by calling the C<< AnyEvent->io >> method 186You can create an I/O watcher by calling the C<< AnyEvent->io >> method
165with the following mandatory key-value pairs as arguments: 187with the following mandatory key-value pairs as arguments:
166 188
167C<fh> the Perl I<file handle> (I<not> file descriptor) to watch for events 189C<fh> is the Perl I<file handle> (or a naked file descriptor) to watch
168(AnyEvent might or might not keep a reference to this file handle). C<poll> 190for events (AnyEvent might or might not keep a reference to this file
191handle). Note that only file handles pointing to things for which
192non-blocking operation makes sense are allowed. This includes sockets,
193most character devices, pipes, fifos and so on, but not for example files
194or block devices.
195
169must be a string that is either C<r> or C<w>, which creates a watcher 196C<poll> must be a string that is either C<r> or C<w>, which creates a
170waiting for "r"eadable or "w"ritable events, respectively. C<cb> is the 197watcher waiting for "r"eadable or "w"ritable events, respectively.
198
171callback to invoke each time the file handle becomes ready. 199C<cb> is the callback to invoke each time the file handle becomes ready.
172 200
173Although the callback might get passed parameters, their value and 201Although the callback might get passed parameters, their value and
174presence is undefined and you cannot rely on them. Portable AnyEvent 202presence is undefined and you cannot rely on them. Portable AnyEvent
175callbacks cannot use arguments passed to I/O watcher callbacks. 203callbacks cannot use arguments passed to I/O watcher callbacks.
176 204
308In either case, if you care (and in most cases, you don't), then you 336In either case, if you care (and in most cases, you don't), then you
309can get whatever behaviour you want with any event loop, by taking the 337can get whatever behaviour you want with any event loop, by taking the
310difference between C<< AnyEvent->time >> and C<< AnyEvent->now >> into 338difference between C<< AnyEvent->time >> and C<< AnyEvent->now >> into
311account. 339account.
312 340
341=item AnyEvent->now_update
342
343Some event loops (such as L<EV> or L<AnyEvent::Impl::Perl>) cache
344the current time for each loop iteration (see the discussion of L<<
345AnyEvent->now >>, above).
346
347When a callback runs for a long time (or when the process sleeps), then
348this "current" time will differ substantially from the real time, which
349might affect timers and time-outs.
350
351When this is the case, you can call this method, which will update the
352event loop's idea of "current time".
353
354Note that updating the time I<might> cause some events to be handled.
355
313=back 356=back
314 357
315=head2 SIGNAL WATCHERS 358=head2 SIGNAL WATCHERS
316 359
317You can watch for signals using a signal watcher, C<signal> is the signal 360You can watch for signals using a signal watcher, C<signal> is the signal
326invocation, and callback invocation will be synchronous. Synchronous means 369invocation, and callback invocation will be synchronous. Synchronous means
327that it might take a while until the signal gets handled by the process, 370that it might take a while until the signal gets handled by the process,
328but it is guaranteed not to interrupt any other callbacks. 371but it is guaranteed not to interrupt any other callbacks.
329 372
330The main advantage of using these watchers is that you can share a signal 373The main advantage of using these watchers is that you can share a signal
331between multiple watchers. 374between multiple watchers, and AnyEvent will ensure that signals will not
375interrupt your program at bad times.
332 376
333This watcher might use C<%SIG>, so programs overwriting those signals 377This watcher might use C<%SIG> (depending on the event loop used),
334directly will likely not work correctly. 378so programs overwriting those signals directly will likely not work
379correctly.
335 380
336Example: exit on SIGINT 381Example: exit on SIGINT
337 382
338 my $w = AnyEvent->signal (signal => "INT", cb => sub { exit 1 }); 383 my $w = AnyEvent->signal (signal => "INT", cb => sub { exit 1 });
339 384
385=head3 Signal Races, Delays and Workarounds
386
387Many event loops (e.g. Glib, Tk, Qt, IO::Async) do not support attaching
388callbacks to signals in a generic way, which is a pity, as you cannot do
389race-free signal handling in perl. AnyEvent will try to do it's best, but
390in some cases, signals will be delayed. The maximum time a signal might
391be delayed is specified in C<$AnyEvent::MAX_SIGNAL_LATENCY> (default: 10
392seconds). This variable can be changed only before the first signal
393watcher is created, and should be left alone otherwise. Higher values
394will cause fewer spurious wake-ups, which is better for power and CPU
395saving. All these problems can be avoided by installing the optional
396L<Async::Interrupt> module. This will not work with inherently broken
397event loops such as L<Event> or L<Event::Lib> (and not with L<POE>
398currently, as POE does it's own workaround with one-second latency). With
399those, you just have to suffer the delays.
400
340=head2 CHILD PROCESS WATCHERS 401=head2 CHILD PROCESS WATCHERS
341 402
342You can also watch on a child process exit and catch its exit status. 403You can also watch on a child process exit and catch its exit status.
343 404
344The child process is specified by the C<pid> argument (if set to C<0>, it 405The child process is specified by the C<pid> argument (one some backends,
345watches for any child process exit). The watcher will triggered only when 406using C<0> watches for any child process exit, on others this will
346the child process has finished and an exit status is available, not on 407croak). The watcher will be triggered only when the child process has
347any trace events (stopped/continued). 408finished and an exit status is available, not on any trace events
409(stopped/continued).
348 410
349The callback will be called with the pid and exit status (as returned by 411The callback will be called with the pid and exit status (as returned by
350waitpid), so unlike other watcher types, you I<can> rely on child watcher 412waitpid), so unlike other watcher types, you I<can> rely on child watcher
351callback arguments. 413callback arguments.
352 414
357 419
358There is a slight catch to child watchers, however: you usually start them 420There is a slight catch to child watchers, however: you usually start them
359I<after> the child process was created, and this means the process could 421I<after> the child process was created, and this means the process could
360have exited already (and no SIGCHLD will be sent anymore). 422have exited already (and no SIGCHLD will be sent anymore).
361 423
362Not all event models handle this correctly (POE doesn't), but even for 424Not all event models handle this correctly (neither POE nor IO::Async do,
425see their AnyEvent::Impl manpages for details), but even for event models
363event models that I<do> handle this correctly, they usually need to be 426that I<do> handle this correctly, they usually need to be loaded before
364loaded before the process exits (i.e. before you fork in the first place). 427the process exits (i.e. before you fork in the first place). AnyEvent's
428pure perl event loop handles all cases correctly regardless of when you
429start the watcher.
365 430
366This means you cannot create a child watcher as the very first thing in an 431This means you cannot create a child watcher as the very first
367AnyEvent program, you I<have> to create at least one watcher before you 432thing in an AnyEvent program, you I<have> to create at least one
368C<fork> the child (alternatively, you can call C<AnyEvent::detect>). 433watcher before you C<fork> the child (alternatively, you can call
434C<AnyEvent::detect>).
435
436As most event loops do not support waiting for child events, they will be
437emulated by AnyEvent in most cases, in which the latency and race problems
438mentioned in the description of signal watchers apply.
369 439
370Example: fork a process and wait for it 440Example: fork a process and wait for it
371 441
372 my $done = AnyEvent->condvar; 442 my $done = AnyEvent->condvar;
373 443
383 ); 453 );
384 454
385 # do something else, then wait for process exit 455 # do something else, then wait for process exit
386 $done->recv; 456 $done->recv;
387 457
458=head2 IDLE WATCHERS
459
460Sometimes there is a need to do something, but it is not so important
461to do it instantly, but only when there is nothing better to do. This
462"nothing better to do" is usually defined to be "no other events need
463attention by the event loop".
464
465Idle watchers ideally get invoked when the event loop has nothing
466better to do, just before it would block the process to wait for new
467events. Instead of blocking, the idle watcher is invoked.
468
469Most event loops unfortunately do not really support idle watchers (only
470EV, Event and Glib do it in a usable fashion) - for the rest, AnyEvent
471will simply call the callback "from time to time".
472
473Example: read lines from STDIN, but only process them when the
474program is otherwise idle:
475
476 my @lines; # read data
477 my $idle_w;
478 my $io_w = AnyEvent->io (fh => \*STDIN, poll => 'r', cb => sub {
479 push @lines, scalar <STDIN>;
480
481 # start an idle watcher, if not already done
482 $idle_w ||= AnyEvent->idle (cb => sub {
483 # handle only one line, when there are lines left
484 if (my $line = shift @lines) {
485 print "handled when idle: $line";
486 } else {
487 # otherwise disable the idle watcher again
488 undef $idle_w;
489 }
490 });
491 });
492
388=head2 CONDITION VARIABLES 493=head2 CONDITION VARIABLES
389 494
390If you are familiar with some event loops you will know that all of them 495If you are familiar with some event loops you will know that all of them
391require you to run some blocking "loop", "run" or similar function that 496require you to run some blocking "loop", "run" or similar function that
392will actively watch for new events and call your callbacks. 497will actively watch for new events and call your callbacks.
393 498
394AnyEvent is different, it expects somebody else to run the event loop and 499AnyEvent is slightly different: it expects somebody else to run the event
395will only block when necessary (usually when told by the user). 500loop and will only block when necessary (usually when told by the user).
396 501
397The instrument to do that is called a "condition variable", so called 502The instrument to do that is called a "condition variable", so called
398because they represent a condition that must become true. 503because they represent a condition that must become true.
399 504
505Now is probably a good time to look at the examples further below.
506
400Condition variables can be created by calling the C<< AnyEvent->condvar 507Condition variables can be created by calling the C<< AnyEvent->condvar
401>> method, usually without arguments. The only argument pair allowed is 508>> method, usually without arguments. The only argument pair allowed is
402
403C<cb>, which specifies a callback to be called when the condition variable 509C<cb>, which specifies a callback to be called when the condition variable
404becomes true, with the condition variable as the first argument (but not 510becomes true, with the condition variable as the first argument (but not
405the results). 511the results).
406 512
407After creation, the condition variable is "false" until it becomes "true" 513After creation, the condition variable is "false" until it becomes "true"
412Condition variables are similar to callbacks, except that you can 518Condition variables are similar to callbacks, except that you can
413optionally wait for them. They can also be called merge points - points 519optionally wait for them. They can also be called merge points - points
414in time where multiple outstanding events have been processed. And yet 520in time where multiple outstanding events have been processed. And yet
415another way to call them is transactions - each condition variable can be 521another way to call them is transactions - each condition variable can be
416used to represent a transaction, which finishes at some point and delivers 522used to represent a transaction, which finishes at some point and delivers
417a result. 523a result. And yet some people know them as "futures" - a promise to
524compute/deliver something that you can wait for.
418 525
419Condition variables are very useful to signal that something has finished, 526Condition variables are very useful to signal that something has finished,
420for example, if you write a module that does asynchronous http requests, 527for example, if you write a module that does asynchronous http requests,
421then a condition variable would be the ideal candidate to signal the 528then a condition variable would be the ideal candidate to signal the
422availability of results. The user can either act when the callback is 529availability of results. The user can either act when the callback is
456 after => 1, 563 after => 1,
457 cb => sub { $result_ready->send }, 564 cb => sub { $result_ready->send },
458 ); 565 );
459 566
460 # this "blocks" (while handling events) till the callback 567 # this "blocks" (while handling events) till the callback
461 # calls send 568 # calls -<send
462 $result_ready->recv; 569 $result_ready->recv;
463 570
464Example: wait for a timer, but take advantage of the fact that 571Example: wait for a timer, but take advantage of the fact that condition
465condition variables are also code references. 572variables are also callable directly.
466 573
467 my $done = AnyEvent->condvar; 574 my $done = AnyEvent->condvar;
468 my $delay = AnyEvent->timer (after => 5, cb => $done); 575 my $delay = AnyEvent->timer (after => 5, cb => $done);
469 $done->recv; 576 $done->recv;
470 577
476 583
477 ... 584 ...
478 585
479 my @info = $couchdb->info->recv; 586 my @info = $couchdb->info->recv;
480 587
481And this is how you would just ste a callback to be called whenever the 588And this is how you would just set a callback to be called whenever the
482results are available: 589results are available:
483 590
484 $couchdb->info->cb (sub { 591 $couchdb->info->cb (sub {
485 my @info = $_[0]->recv; 592 my @info = $_[0]->recv;
486 }); 593 });
504immediately from within send. 611immediately from within send.
505 612
506Any arguments passed to the C<send> call will be returned by all 613Any arguments passed to the C<send> call will be returned by all
507future C<< ->recv >> calls. 614future C<< ->recv >> calls.
508 615
509Condition variables are overloaded so one can call them directly 616Condition variables are overloaded so one can call them directly (as if
510(as a code reference). Calling them directly is the same as calling 617they were a code reference). Calling them directly is the same as calling
511C<send>. Note, however, that many C-based event loops do not handle 618C<send>.
512overloading, so as tempting as it may be, passing a condition variable
513instead of a callback does not work. Both the pure perl and EV loops
514support overloading, however, as well as all functions that use perl to
515invoke a callback (as in L<AnyEvent::Socket> and L<AnyEvent::DNS> for
516example).
517 619
518=item $cv->croak ($error) 620=item $cv->croak ($error)
519 621
520Similar to send, but causes all call's to C<< ->recv >> to invoke 622Similar to send, but causes all call's to C<< ->recv >> to invoke
521C<Carp::croak> with the given error message/object/scalar. 623C<Carp::croak> with the given error message/object/scalar.
522 624
523This can be used to signal any errors to the condition variable 625This can be used to signal any errors to the condition variable
524user/consumer. 626user/consumer. Doing it this way instead of calling C<croak> directly
627delays the error detetcion, but has the overwhelmign advantage that it
628diagnoses the error at the place where the result is expected, and not
629deep in some event clalback without connection to the actual code causing
630the problem.
525 631
526=item $cv->begin ([group callback]) 632=item $cv->begin ([group callback])
527 633
528=item $cv->end 634=item $cv->end
529
530These two methods are EXPERIMENTAL and MIGHT CHANGE.
531 635
532These two methods can be used to combine many transactions/events into 636These two methods can be used to combine many transactions/events into
533one. For example, a function that pings many hosts in parallel might want 637one. For example, a function that pings many hosts in parallel might want
534to use a condition variable for the whole process. 638to use a condition variable for the whole process.
535 639
537C<< ->end >> will decrement it. If the counter reaches C<0> in C<< ->end 641C<< ->end >> will decrement it. If the counter reaches C<0> in C<< ->end
538>>, the (last) callback passed to C<begin> will be executed. That callback 642>>, the (last) callback passed to C<begin> will be executed. That callback
539is I<supposed> to call C<< ->send >>, but that is not required. If no 643is I<supposed> to call C<< ->send >>, but that is not required. If no
540callback was set, C<send> will be called without any arguments. 644callback was set, C<send> will be called without any arguments.
541 645
542Let's clarify this with the ping example: 646You can think of C<< $cv->send >> giving you an OR condition (one call
647sends), while C<< $cv->begin >> and C<< $cv->end >> giving you an AND
648condition (all C<begin> calls must be C<end>'ed before the condvar sends).
649
650Let's start with a simple example: you have two I/O watchers (for example,
651STDOUT and STDERR for a program), and you want to wait for both streams to
652close before activating a condvar:
653
654 my $cv = AnyEvent->condvar;
655
656 $cv->begin; # first watcher
657 my $w1 = AnyEvent->io (fh => $fh1, cb => sub {
658 defined sysread $fh1, my $buf, 4096
659 or $cv->end;
660 });
661
662 $cv->begin; # second watcher
663 my $w2 = AnyEvent->io (fh => $fh2, cb => sub {
664 defined sysread $fh2, my $buf, 4096
665 or $cv->end;
666 });
667
668 $cv->recv;
669
670This works because for every event source (EOF on file handle), there is
671one call to C<begin>, so the condvar waits for all calls to C<end> before
672sending.
673
674The ping example mentioned above is slightly more complicated, as the
675there are results to be passwd back, and the number of tasks that are
676begung can potentially be zero:
543 677
544 my $cv = AnyEvent->condvar; 678 my $cv = AnyEvent->condvar;
545 679
546 my %result; 680 my %result;
547 $cv->begin (sub { $cv->send (\%result) }); 681 $cv->begin (sub { $cv->send (\%result) });
567loop, which serves two important purposes: first, it sets the callback 701loop, which serves two important purposes: first, it sets the callback
568to be called once the counter reaches C<0>, and second, it ensures that 702to be called once the counter reaches C<0>, and second, it ensures that
569C<send> is called even when C<no> hosts are being pinged (the loop 703C<send> is called even when C<no> hosts are being pinged (the loop
570doesn't execute once). 704doesn't execute once).
571 705
572This is the general pattern when you "fan out" into multiple subrequests: 706This is the general pattern when you "fan out" into multiple (but
573use an outer C<begin>/C<end> pair to set the callback and ensure C<end> 707potentially none) subrequests: use an outer C<begin>/C<end> pair to set
574is called at least once, and then, for each subrequest you start, call 708the callback and ensure C<end> is called at least once, and then, for each
575C<begin> and for each subrequest you finish, call C<end>. 709subrequest you start, call C<begin> and for each subrequest you finish,
710call C<end>.
576 711
577=back 712=back
578 713
579=head3 METHODS FOR CONSUMERS 714=head3 METHODS FOR CONSUMERS
580 715
596function will call C<croak>. 731function will call C<croak>.
597 732
598In list context, all parameters passed to C<send> will be returned, 733In list context, all parameters passed to C<send> will be returned,
599in scalar context only the first one will be returned. 734in scalar context only the first one will be returned.
600 735
736Note that doing a blocking wait in a callback is not supported by any
737event loop, that is, recursive invocation of a blocking C<< ->recv
738>> is not allowed, and the C<recv> call will C<croak> if such a
739condition is detected. This condition can be slightly loosened by using
740L<Coro::AnyEvent>, which allows you to do a blocking C<< ->recv >> from
741any thread that doesn't run the event loop itself.
742
601Not all event models support a blocking wait - some die in that case 743Not all event models support a blocking wait - some die in that case
602(programs might want to do that to stay interactive), so I<if you are 744(programs might want to do that to stay interactive), so I<if you are
603using this from a module, never require a blocking wait>, but let the 745using this from a module, never require a blocking wait>. Instead, let the
604caller decide whether the call will block or not (for example, by coupling 746caller decide whether the call will block or not (for example, by coupling
605condition variables with some kind of request results and supporting 747condition variables with some kind of request results and supporting
606callbacks so the caller knows that getting the result will not block, 748callbacks so the caller knows that getting the result will not block,
607while still supporting blocking waits if the caller so desires). 749while still supporting blocking waits if the caller so desires).
608 750
609Another reason I<never> to C<< ->recv >> in a module is that you cannot
610sensibly have two C<< ->recv >>'s in parallel, as that would require
611multiple interpreters or coroutines/threads, none of which C<AnyEvent>
612can supply.
613
614The L<Coro> module, however, I<can> and I<does> supply coroutines and, in
615fact, L<Coro::AnyEvent> replaces AnyEvent's condvars by coroutine-safe
616versions and also integrates coroutines into AnyEvent, making blocking
617C<< ->recv >> calls perfectly safe as long as they are done from another
618coroutine (one that doesn't run the event loop).
619
620You can ensure that C<< -recv >> never blocks by setting a callback and 751You can ensure that C<< -recv >> never blocks by setting a callback and
621only calling C<< ->recv >> from within that callback (or at a later 752only calling C<< ->recv >> from within that callback (or at a later
622time). This will work even when the event loop does not support blocking 753time). This will work even when the event loop does not support blocking
623waits otherwise. 754waits otherwise.
624 755
637variable itself. Calling C<recv> inside the callback or at any later time 768variable itself. Calling C<recv> inside the callback or at any later time
638is guaranteed not to block. 769is guaranteed not to block.
639 770
640=back 771=back
641 772
773=head1 SUPPORTED EVENT LOOPS/BACKENDS
774
775The available backend classes are (every class has its own manpage):
776
777=over 4
778
779=item Backends that are autoprobed when no other event loop can be found.
780
781EV is the preferred backend when no other event loop seems to be in
782use. If EV is not installed, then AnyEvent will try Event, and, failing
783that, will fall back to its own pure-perl implementation, which is
784available everywhere as it comes with AnyEvent itself.
785
786 AnyEvent::Impl::EV based on EV (interface to libev, best choice).
787 AnyEvent::Impl::Event based on Event, very stable, few glitches.
788 AnyEvent::Impl::Perl pure-perl implementation, fast and portable.
789
790=item Backends that are transparently being picked up when they are used.
791
792These will be used when they are currently loaded when the first watcher
793is created, in which case it is assumed that the application is using
794them. This means that AnyEvent will automatically pick the right backend
795when the main program loads an event module before anything starts to
796create watchers. Nothing special needs to be done by the main program.
797
798 AnyEvent::Impl::Glib based on Glib, slow but very stable.
799 AnyEvent::Impl::Tk based on Tk, very broken.
800 AnyEvent::Impl::EventLib based on Event::Lib, leaks memory and worse.
801 AnyEvent::Impl::POE based on POE, very slow, some limitations.
802 AnyEvent::Impl::Irssi used when running within irssi.
803
804=item Backends with special needs.
805
806Qt requires the Qt::Application to be instantiated first, but will
807otherwise be picked up automatically. As long as the main program
808instantiates the application before any AnyEvent watchers are created,
809everything should just work.
810
811 AnyEvent::Impl::Qt based on Qt.
812
813Support for IO::Async can only be partial, as it is too broken and
814architecturally limited to even support the AnyEvent API. It also
815is the only event loop that needs the loop to be set explicitly, so
816it can only be used by a main program knowing about AnyEvent. See
817L<AnyEvent::Impl::Async> for the gory details.
818
819 AnyEvent::Impl::IOAsync based on IO::Async, cannot be autoprobed.
820
821=item Event loops that are indirectly supported via other backends.
822
823Some event loops can be supported via other modules:
824
825There is no direct support for WxWidgets (L<Wx>) or L<Prima>.
826
827B<WxWidgets> has no support for watching file handles. However, you can
828use WxWidgets through the POE adaptor, as POE has a Wx backend that simply
829polls 20 times per second, which was considered to be too horrible to even
830consider for AnyEvent.
831
832B<Prima> is not supported as nobody seems to be using it, but it has a POE
833backend, so it can be supported through POE.
834
835AnyEvent knows about both L<Prima> and L<Wx>, however, and will try to
836load L<POE> when detecting them, in the hope that POE will pick them up,
837in which case everything will be automatic.
838
839=back
840
642=head1 GLOBAL VARIABLES AND FUNCTIONS 841=head1 GLOBAL VARIABLES AND FUNCTIONS
643 842
843These are not normally required to use AnyEvent, but can be useful to
844write AnyEvent extension modules.
845
644=over 4 846=over 4
645 847
646=item $AnyEvent::MODEL 848=item $AnyEvent::MODEL
647 849
648Contains C<undef> until the first watcher is being created. Then it 850Contains C<undef> until the first watcher is being created, before the
851backend has been autodetected.
852
649contains the event model that is being used, which is the name of the 853Afterwards it contains the event model that is being used, which is the
650Perl class implementing the model. This class is usually one of the 854name of the Perl class implementing the model. This class is usually one
651C<AnyEvent::Impl:xxx> modules, but can be any other class in the case 855of the C<AnyEvent::Impl:xxx> modules, but can be any other class in the
652AnyEvent has been extended at runtime (e.g. in I<rxvt-unicode>). 856case AnyEvent has been extended at runtime (e.g. in I<rxvt-unicode> it
653 857will be C<urxvt::anyevent>).
654The known classes so far are:
655
656 AnyEvent::Impl::EV based on EV (an interface to libev, best choice).
657 AnyEvent::Impl::Event based on Event, second best choice.
658 AnyEvent::Impl::Perl pure-perl implementation, fast and portable.
659 AnyEvent::Impl::Glib based on Glib, third-best choice.
660 AnyEvent::Impl::Tk based on Tk, very bad choice.
661 AnyEvent::Impl::Qt based on Qt, cannot be autoprobed (see its docs).
662 AnyEvent::Impl::EventLib based on Event::Lib, leaks memory and worse.
663 AnyEvent::Impl::POE based on POE, not generic enough for full support.
664
665There is no support for WxWidgets, as WxWidgets has no support for
666watching file handles. However, you can use WxWidgets through the
667POE Adaptor, as POE has a Wx backend that simply polls 20 times per
668second, which was considered to be too horrible to even consider for
669AnyEvent. Likewise, other POE backends can be used by AnyEvent by using
670it's adaptor.
671
672AnyEvent knows about L<Prima> and L<Wx> and will try to use L<POE> when
673autodetecting them.
674 858
675=item AnyEvent::detect 859=item AnyEvent::detect
676 860
677Returns C<$AnyEvent::MODEL>, forcing autodetection of the event model 861Returns C<$AnyEvent::MODEL>, forcing autodetection of the event model
678if necessary. You should only call this function right before you would 862if necessary. You should only call this function right before you would
679have created an AnyEvent watcher anyway, that is, as late as possible at 863have created an AnyEvent watcher anyway, that is, as late as possible at
680runtime. 864runtime, and not e.g. while initialising of your module.
865
866If you need to do some initialisation before AnyEvent watchers are
867created, use C<post_detect>.
681 868
682=item $guard = AnyEvent::post_detect { BLOCK } 869=item $guard = AnyEvent::post_detect { BLOCK }
683 870
684Arranges for the code block to be executed as soon as the event model is 871Arranges for the code block to be executed as soon as the event model is
685autodetected (or immediately if this has already happened). 872autodetected (or immediately if this has already happened).
686 873
874The block will be executed I<after> the actual backend has been detected
875(C<$AnyEvent::MODEL> is set), but I<before> any watchers have been
876created, so it is possible to e.g. patch C<@AnyEvent::ISA> or do
877other initialisations - see the sources of L<AnyEvent::Strict> or
878L<AnyEvent::AIO> to see how this is used.
879
880The most common usage is to create some global watchers, without forcing
881event module detection too early, for example, L<AnyEvent::AIO> creates
882and installs the global L<IO::AIO> watcher in a C<post_detect> block to
883avoid autodetecting the event module at load time.
884
687If called in scalar or list context, then it creates and returns an object 885If called in scalar or list context, then it creates and returns an object
688that automatically removes the callback again when it is destroyed. See 886that automatically removes the callback again when it is destroyed (or
887C<undef> when the hook was immediately executed). See L<AnyEvent::AIO> for
689L<Coro::BDB> for a case where this is useful. 888a case where this is useful.
889
890Example: Create a watcher for the IO::AIO module and store it in
891C<$WATCHER>. Only do so after the event loop is initialised, though.
892
893 our WATCHER;
894
895 my $guard = AnyEvent::post_detect {
896 $WATCHER = AnyEvent->io (fh => IO::AIO::poll_fileno, poll => 'r', cb => \&IO::AIO::poll_cb);
897 };
898
899 # the ||= is important in case post_detect immediately runs the block,
900 # as to not clobber the newly-created watcher. assigning both watcher and
901 # post_detect guard to the same variable has the advantage of users being
902 # able to just C<undef $WATCHER> if the watcher causes them grief.
903
904 $WATCHER ||= $guard;
690 905
691=item @AnyEvent::post_detect 906=item @AnyEvent::post_detect
692 907
693If there are any code references in this array (you can C<push> to it 908If there are any code references in this array (you can C<push> to it
694before or after loading AnyEvent), then they will called directly after 909before or after loading AnyEvent), then they will called directly after
695the event loop has been chosen. 910the event loop has been chosen.
696 911
697You should check C<$AnyEvent::MODEL> before adding to this array, though: 912You should check C<$AnyEvent::MODEL> before adding to this array, though:
698if it contains a true value then the event loop has already been detected, 913if it is defined then the event loop has already been detected, and the
699and the array will be ignored. 914array will be ignored.
700 915
701Best use C<AnyEvent::post_detect { BLOCK }> instead. 916Best use C<AnyEvent::post_detect { BLOCK }> when your application allows
917it,as it takes care of these details.
918
919This variable is mainly useful for modules that can do something useful
920when AnyEvent is used and thus want to know when it is initialised, but do
921not need to even load it by default. This array provides the means to hook
922into AnyEvent passively, without loading it.
702 923
703=back 924=back
704 925
705=head1 WHAT TO DO IN A MODULE 926=head1 WHAT TO DO IN A MODULE
706 927
761 982
762 983
763=head1 OTHER MODULES 984=head1 OTHER MODULES
764 985
765The following is a non-exhaustive list of additional modules that use 986The following is a non-exhaustive list of additional modules that use
766AnyEvent and can therefore be mixed easily with other AnyEvent modules 987AnyEvent as a client and can therefore be mixed easily with other AnyEvent
767in the same program. Some of the modules come with AnyEvent, some are 988modules and other event loops in the same program. Some of the modules
768available via CPAN. 989come with AnyEvent, most are available via CPAN.
769 990
770=over 4 991=over 4
771 992
772=item L<AnyEvent::Util> 993=item L<AnyEvent::Util>
773 994
782 1003
783=item L<AnyEvent::Handle> 1004=item L<AnyEvent::Handle>
784 1005
785Provide read and write buffers, manages watchers for reads and writes, 1006Provide read and write buffers, manages watchers for reads and writes,
786supports raw and formatted I/O, I/O queued and fully transparent and 1007supports raw and formatted I/O, I/O queued and fully transparent and
787non-blocking SSL/TLS. 1008non-blocking SSL/TLS (via L<AnyEvent::TLS>.
788 1009
789=item L<AnyEvent::DNS> 1010=item L<AnyEvent::DNS>
790 1011
791Provides rich asynchronous DNS resolver capabilities. 1012Provides rich asynchronous DNS resolver capabilities.
792 1013
820 1041
821=item L<AnyEvent::GPSD> 1042=item L<AnyEvent::GPSD>
822 1043
823A non-blocking interface to gpsd, a daemon delivering GPS information. 1044A non-blocking interface to gpsd, a daemon delivering GPS information.
824 1045
1046=item L<AnyEvent::IRC>
1047
1048AnyEvent based IRC client module family (replacing the older Net::IRC3).
1049
1050=item L<AnyEvent::XMPP>
1051
1052AnyEvent based XMPP (Jabber protocol) module family (replacing the older
1053Net::XMPP2>.
1054
825=item L<AnyEvent::IGS> 1055=item L<AnyEvent::IGS>
826 1056
827A non-blocking interface to the Internet Go Server protocol (used by 1057A non-blocking interface to the Internet Go Server protocol (used by
828L<App::IGS>). 1058L<App::IGS>).
829 1059
830=item L<AnyEvent::IRC>
831
832AnyEvent based IRC client module family (replacing the older Net::IRC3).
833
834=item L<Net::XMPP2>
835
836AnyEvent based XMPP (Jabber protocol) module family.
837
838=item L<Net::FCP> 1060=item L<Net::FCP>
839 1061
840AnyEvent-based implementation of the Freenet Client Protocol, birthplace 1062AnyEvent-based implementation of the Freenet Client Protocol, birthplace
841of AnyEvent. 1063of AnyEvent.
842 1064
846 1068
847=item L<Coro> 1069=item L<Coro>
848 1070
849Has special support for AnyEvent via L<Coro::AnyEvent>. 1071Has special support for AnyEvent via L<Coro::AnyEvent>.
850 1072
851=item L<IO::Lambda>
852
853The lambda approach to I/O - don't ask, look there. Can use AnyEvent.
854
855=back 1073=back
856 1074
857=cut 1075=cut
858 1076
859package AnyEvent; 1077package AnyEvent;
860 1078
1079# basically a tuned-down version of common::sense
1080sub common_sense {
861no warnings; 1081 # no warnings
1082 ${^WARNING_BITS} ^= ${^WARNING_BITS};
862use strict qw(vars subs); 1083 # use strict vars subs
1084 $^H |= 0x00000600;
1085}
863 1086
1087BEGIN { AnyEvent::common_sense }
1088
864use Carp; 1089use Carp ();
865 1090
866our $VERSION = 4.32; 1091our $VERSION = 4.881;
867our $MODEL; 1092our $MODEL;
868 1093
869our $AUTOLOAD; 1094our $AUTOLOAD;
870our @ISA; 1095our @ISA;
871 1096
872our @REGISTRY; 1097our @REGISTRY;
873 1098
874our $WIN32; 1099our $WIN32;
875 1100
1101our $VERBOSE;
1102
876BEGIN { 1103BEGIN {
877 my $win32 = ! ! ($^O =~ /mswin32/i); 1104 eval "sub WIN32(){ " . (($^O =~ /mswin32/i)*1) ." }";
878 eval "sub WIN32(){ $win32 }"; 1105 eval "sub TAINT(){ " . (${^TAINT}*1) . " }";
879}
880 1106
1107 delete @ENV{grep /^PERL_ANYEVENT_/, keys %ENV}
1108 if ${^TAINT};
1109
881our $verbose = $ENV{PERL_ANYEVENT_VERBOSE}*1; 1110 $VERBOSE = $ENV{PERL_ANYEVENT_VERBOSE}*1;
1111
1112}
1113
1114our $MAX_SIGNAL_LATENCY = 10;
882 1115
883our %PROTOCOL; # (ipv4|ipv6) => (1|2), higher numbers are preferred 1116our %PROTOCOL; # (ipv4|ipv6) => (1|2), higher numbers are preferred
884 1117
885{ 1118{
886 my $idx; 1119 my $idx;
888 for reverse split /\s*,\s*/, 1121 for reverse split /\s*,\s*/,
889 $ENV{PERL_ANYEVENT_PROTOCOLS} || "ipv4,ipv6"; 1122 $ENV{PERL_ANYEVENT_PROTOCOLS} || "ipv4,ipv6";
890} 1123}
891 1124
892my @models = ( 1125my @models = (
893 [EV:: => AnyEvent::Impl::EV::], 1126 [EV:: => AnyEvent::Impl::EV:: , 1],
894 [Event:: => AnyEvent::Impl::Event::], 1127 [Event:: => AnyEvent::Impl::Event::, 1],
895 [AnyEvent::Impl::Perl:: => AnyEvent::Impl::Perl::], 1128 [AnyEvent::Impl::Perl:: => AnyEvent::Impl::Perl:: , 1],
896 # everything below here will not be autoprobed 1129 # everything below here will not (normally) be autoprobed
897 # as the pureperl backend should work everywhere 1130 # as the pureperl backend should work everywhere
898 # and is usually faster 1131 # and is usually faster
1132 [Glib:: => AnyEvent::Impl::Glib:: , 1], # becomes extremely slow with many watchers
1133 [Event::Lib:: => AnyEvent::Impl::EventLib::], # too buggy
1134 [Irssi:: => AnyEvent::Impl::Irssi::], # Irssi has a bogus "Event" package
899 [Tk:: => AnyEvent::Impl::Tk::], # crashes with many handles 1135 [Tk:: => AnyEvent::Impl::Tk::], # crashes with many handles
900 [Glib:: => AnyEvent::Impl::Glib::], # becomes extremely slow with many watchers
901 [Event::Lib:: => AnyEvent::Impl::EventLib::], # too buggy
902 [Qt:: => AnyEvent::Impl::Qt::], # requires special main program 1136 [Qt:: => AnyEvent::Impl::Qt::], # requires special main program
903 [POE::Kernel:: => AnyEvent::Impl::POE::], # lasciate ogni speranza 1137 [POE::Kernel:: => AnyEvent::Impl::POE::], # lasciate ogni speranza
904 [Wx:: => AnyEvent::Impl::POE::], 1138 [Wx:: => AnyEvent::Impl::POE::],
905 [Prima:: => AnyEvent::Impl::POE::], 1139 [Prima:: => AnyEvent::Impl::POE::],
1140 # IO::Async is just too broken - we would need workarounds for its
1141 # byzantine signal and broken child handling, among others.
1142 # IO::Async is rather hard to detect, as it doesn't have any
1143 # obvious default class.
1144# [0, IO::Async:: => AnyEvent::Impl::IOAsync::], # requires special main program
1145# [0, IO::Async::Loop:: => AnyEvent::Impl::IOAsync::], # requires special main program
1146# [0, IO::Async::Notifier:: => AnyEvent::Impl::IOAsync::], # requires special main program
906); 1147);
907 1148
908our %method = map +($_ => 1), qw(io timer time now signal child condvar one_event DESTROY); 1149our %method = map +($_ => 1),
1150 qw(io timer time now now_update signal child idle condvar one_event DESTROY);
909 1151
910our @post_detect; 1152our @post_detect;
911 1153
912sub post_detect(&) { 1154sub post_detect(&) {
913 my ($cb) = @_; 1155 my ($cb) = @_;
914 1156
915 if ($MODEL) { 1157 if ($MODEL) {
916 $cb->(); 1158 $cb->();
917 1159
918 1 1160 undef
919 } else { 1161 } else {
920 push @post_detect, $cb; 1162 push @post_detect, $cb;
921 1163
922 defined wantarray 1164 defined wantarray
923 ? bless \$cb, "AnyEvent::Util::PostDetect" 1165 ? bless \$cb, "AnyEvent::Util::postdetect"
924 : () 1166 : ()
925 } 1167 }
926} 1168}
927 1169
928sub AnyEvent::Util::PostDetect::DESTROY { 1170sub AnyEvent::Util::postdetect::DESTROY {
929 @post_detect = grep $_ != ${$_[0]}, @post_detect; 1171 @post_detect = grep $_ != ${$_[0]}, @post_detect;
930} 1172}
931 1173
932sub detect() { 1174sub detect() {
933 unless ($MODEL) { 1175 unless ($MODEL) {
934 no strict 'refs';
935 local $SIG{__DIE__}; 1176 local $SIG{__DIE__};
936 1177
937 if ($ENV{PERL_ANYEVENT_MODEL} =~ /^([a-zA-Z]+)$/) { 1178 if ($ENV{PERL_ANYEVENT_MODEL} =~ /^([a-zA-Z]+)$/) {
938 my $model = "AnyEvent::Impl::$1"; 1179 my $model = "AnyEvent::Impl::$1";
939 if (eval "require $model") { 1180 if (eval "require $model") {
940 $MODEL = $model; 1181 $MODEL = $model;
941 warn "AnyEvent: loaded model '$model' (forced by \$PERL_ANYEVENT_MODEL), using it.\n" if $verbose > 1; 1182 warn "AnyEvent: loaded model '$model' (forced by \$ENV{PERL_ANYEVENT_MODEL}), using it.\n" if $VERBOSE >= 2;
942 } else { 1183 } else {
943 warn "AnyEvent: unable to load model '$model' (from \$PERL_ANYEVENT_MODEL):\n$@" if $verbose; 1184 warn "AnyEvent: unable to load model '$model' (from \$ENV{PERL_ANYEVENT_MODEL}):\n$@" if $VERBOSE;
944 } 1185 }
945 } 1186 }
946 1187
947 # check for already loaded models 1188 # check for already loaded models
948 unless ($MODEL) { 1189 unless ($MODEL) {
949 for (@REGISTRY, @models) { 1190 for (@REGISTRY, @models) {
950 my ($package, $model) = @$_; 1191 my ($package, $model) = @$_;
951 if (${"$package\::VERSION"} > 0) { 1192 if (${"$package\::VERSION"} > 0) {
952 if (eval "require $model") { 1193 if (eval "require $model") {
953 $MODEL = $model; 1194 $MODEL = $model;
954 warn "AnyEvent: autodetected model '$model', using it.\n" if $verbose > 1; 1195 warn "AnyEvent: autodetected model '$model', using it.\n" if $VERBOSE >= 2;
955 last; 1196 last;
956 } 1197 }
957 } 1198 }
958 } 1199 }
959 1200
960 unless ($MODEL) { 1201 unless ($MODEL) {
961 # try to load a model 1202 # try to autoload a model
962
963 for (@REGISTRY, @models) { 1203 for (@REGISTRY, @models) {
964 my ($package, $model) = @$_; 1204 my ($package, $model, $autoload) = @$_;
1205 if (
1206 $autoload
965 if (eval "require $package" 1207 and eval "require $package"
966 and ${"$package\::VERSION"} > 0 1208 and ${"$package\::VERSION"} > 0
967 and eval "require $model") { 1209 and eval "require $model"
1210 ) {
968 $MODEL = $model; 1211 $MODEL = $model;
969 warn "AnyEvent: autoprobed model '$model', using it.\n" if $verbose > 1; 1212 warn "AnyEvent: autoloaded model '$model', using it.\n" if $VERBOSE >= 2;
970 last; 1213 last;
971 } 1214 }
972 } 1215 }
973 1216
974 $MODEL 1217 $MODEL
975 or die "No event module selected for AnyEvent and autodetect failed. Install any one of these modules: EV, Event or Glib."; 1218 or die "No event module selected for AnyEvent and autodetect failed. Install any one of these modules: EV, Event or Glib.\n";
976 } 1219 }
977 } 1220 }
978 1221
979 push @{"$MODEL\::ISA"}, "AnyEvent::Base"; 1222 push @{"$MODEL\::ISA"}, "AnyEvent::Base";
980 1223
990 1233
991sub AUTOLOAD { 1234sub AUTOLOAD {
992 (my $func = $AUTOLOAD) =~ s/.*://; 1235 (my $func = $AUTOLOAD) =~ s/.*://;
993 1236
994 $method{$func} 1237 $method{$func}
995 or croak "$func: not a valid method for AnyEvent objects"; 1238 or Carp::croak "$func: not a valid method for AnyEvent objects";
996 1239
997 detect unless $MODEL; 1240 detect unless $MODEL;
998 1241
999 my $class = shift; 1242 my $class = shift;
1000 $class->$func (@_); 1243 $class->$func (@_);
1001} 1244}
1002 1245
1003# utility function to dup a filehandle. this is used by many backends 1246# utility function to dup a filehandle. this is used by many backends
1004# to support binding more than one watcher per filehandle (they usually 1247# to support binding more than one watcher per filehandle (they usually
1005# allow only one watcher per fd, so we dup it to get a different one). 1248# allow only one watcher per fd, so we dup it to get a different one).
1006sub _dupfh($$$$) { 1249sub _dupfh($$;$$) {
1007 my ($poll, $fh, $r, $w) = @_; 1250 my ($poll, $fh, $r, $w) = @_;
1008 1251
1009 require Fcntl;
1010
1011 # cygwin requires the fh mode to be matching, unix doesn't 1252 # cygwin requires the fh mode to be matching, unix doesn't
1012 my ($rw, $mode) = $poll eq "r" ? ($r, "<") 1253 my ($rw, $mode) = $poll eq "r" ? ($r, "<&") : ($w, ">&");
1013 : $poll eq "w" ? ($w, ">")
1014 : Carp::croak "AnyEvent->io requires poll set to either 'r' or 'w'";
1015 1254
1016 open my $fh2, "$mode&" . fileno $fh 1255 open my $fh2, $mode, $fh
1017 or die "cannot dup() filehandle: $!"; 1256 or die "AnyEvent->io: cannot dup() filehandle in mode '$poll': $!,";
1018 1257
1019 # we assume CLOEXEC is already set by perl in all important cases 1258 # we assume CLOEXEC is already set by perl in all important cases
1020 1259
1021 ($fh2, $rw) 1260 ($fh2, $rw)
1022} 1261}
1023 1262
1024package AnyEvent::Base; 1263package AnyEvent::Base;
1025 1264
1026# default implementation for now and time 1265# default implementations for many methods
1027 1266
1028BEGIN { 1267sub _time {
1268 # probe for availability of Time::HiRes
1029 if (eval "use Time::HiRes (); time (); 1") { 1269 if (eval "use Time::HiRes (); Time::HiRes::time (); 1") {
1270 warn "AnyEvent: using Time::HiRes for sub-second timing accuracy.\n" if $VERBOSE >= 8;
1030 *_time = \&Time::HiRes::time; 1271 *_time = \&Time::HiRes::time;
1031 # if (eval "use POSIX (); (POSIX::times())... 1272 # if (eval "use POSIX (); (POSIX::times())...
1032 } else { 1273 } else {
1274 warn "AnyEvent: using built-in time(), WARNING, no sub-second resolution!\n" if $VERBOSE;
1033 *_time = sub { time }; # epic fail 1275 *_time = sub { time }; # epic fail
1034 } 1276 }
1277
1278 &_time
1035} 1279}
1036 1280
1037sub time { _time } 1281sub time { _time }
1038sub now { _time } 1282sub now { _time }
1283sub now_update { }
1039 1284
1040# default implementation for ->condvar 1285# default implementation for ->condvar
1041 1286
1042sub condvar { 1287sub condvar {
1043 bless { @_ == 3 ? (_ae_cb => $_[2]) : () }, AnyEvent::CondVar:: 1288 bless { @_ == 3 ? (_ae_cb => $_[2]) : () }, "AnyEvent::CondVar"
1044} 1289}
1045 1290
1046# default implementation for ->signal 1291# default implementation for ->signal
1047 1292
1048our %SIG_CB; 1293our $HAVE_ASYNC_INTERRUPT;
1294
1295sub _have_async_interrupt() {
1296 $HAVE_ASYNC_INTERRUPT = 1*(!$ENV{PERL_ANYEVENT_AVOID_ASYNC_INTERRUPT}
1297 && eval "use Async::Interrupt 1.0 (); 1")
1298 unless defined $HAVE_ASYNC_INTERRUPT;
1299
1300 $HAVE_ASYNC_INTERRUPT
1301}
1302
1303our ($SIGPIPE_R, $SIGPIPE_W, %SIG_CB, %SIG_EV, $SIG_IO);
1304our (%SIG_ASY, %SIG_ASY_W);
1305our ($SIG_COUNT, $SIG_TW);
1306
1307sub _signal_exec {
1308 $HAVE_ASYNC_INTERRUPT
1309 ? $SIGPIPE_R->drain
1310 : sysread $SIGPIPE_R, my $dummy, 9;
1311
1312 while (%SIG_EV) {
1313 for (keys %SIG_EV) {
1314 delete $SIG_EV{$_};
1315 $_->() for values %{ $SIG_CB{$_} || {} };
1316 }
1317 }
1318}
1319
1320# install a dummy wakeup watcher to reduce signal catching latency
1321sub _sig_add() {
1322 unless ($SIG_COUNT++) {
1323 # try to align timer on a full-second boundary, if possible
1324 my $NOW = AnyEvent->now;
1325
1326 $SIG_TW = AnyEvent->timer (
1327 after => $MAX_SIGNAL_LATENCY - ($NOW - int $NOW),
1328 interval => $MAX_SIGNAL_LATENCY,
1329 cb => sub { }, # just for the PERL_ASYNC_CHECK
1330 );
1331 }
1332}
1333
1334sub _sig_del {
1335 undef $SIG_TW
1336 unless --$SIG_COUNT;
1337}
1338
1339our $_sig_name_init; $_sig_name_init = sub {
1340 eval q{ # poor man's autoloading
1341 undef $_sig_name_init;
1342
1343 if (_have_async_interrupt) {
1344 *sig2num = \&Async::Interrupt::sig2num;
1345 *sig2name = \&Async::Interrupt::sig2name;
1346 } else {
1347 require Config;
1348
1349 my %signame2num;
1350 @signame2num{ split ' ', $Config::Config{sig_name} }
1351 = split ' ', $Config::Config{sig_num};
1352
1353 my @signum2name;
1354 @signum2name[values %signame2num] = keys %signame2num;
1355
1356 *sig2num = sub($) {
1357 $_[0] > 0 ? shift : $signame2num{+shift}
1358 };
1359 *sig2name = sub ($) {
1360 $_[0] > 0 ? $signum2name[+shift] : shift
1361 };
1362 }
1363 };
1364 die if $@;
1365};
1366
1367sub sig2num ($) { &$_sig_name_init; &sig2num }
1368sub sig2name($) { &$_sig_name_init; &sig2name }
1049 1369
1050sub signal { 1370sub signal {
1371 eval q{ # poor man's autoloading {}
1372 # probe for availability of Async::Interrupt
1373 if (_have_async_interrupt) {
1374 warn "AnyEvent: using Async::Interrupt for race-free signal handling.\n" if $VERBOSE >= 8;
1375
1376 $SIGPIPE_R = new Async::Interrupt::EventPipe;
1377 $SIG_IO = AnyEvent->io (fh => $SIGPIPE_R->fileno, poll => "r", cb => \&_signal_exec);
1378
1379 } else {
1380 warn "AnyEvent: using emulated perl signal handling with latency timer.\n" if $VERBOSE >= 8;
1381
1382 require Fcntl;
1383
1384 if (AnyEvent::WIN32) {
1385 require AnyEvent::Util;
1386
1387 ($SIGPIPE_R, $SIGPIPE_W) = AnyEvent::Util::portable_pipe ();
1388 AnyEvent::Util::fh_nonblocking ($SIGPIPE_R, 1) if $SIGPIPE_R;
1389 AnyEvent::Util::fh_nonblocking ($SIGPIPE_W, 1) if $SIGPIPE_W; # just in case
1390 } else {
1391 pipe $SIGPIPE_R, $SIGPIPE_W;
1392 fcntl $SIGPIPE_R, &Fcntl::F_SETFL, &Fcntl::O_NONBLOCK if $SIGPIPE_R;
1393 fcntl $SIGPIPE_W, &Fcntl::F_SETFL, &Fcntl::O_NONBLOCK if $SIGPIPE_W; # just in case
1394
1395 # not strictly required, as $^F is normally 2, but let's make sure...
1396 fcntl $SIGPIPE_R, &Fcntl::F_SETFD, &Fcntl::FD_CLOEXEC;
1397 fcntl $SIGPIPE_W, &Fcntl::F_SETFD, &Fcntl::FD_CLOEXEC;
1398 }
1399
1400 $SIGPIPE_R
1401 or Carp::croak "AnyEvent: unable to create a signal reporting pipe: $!\n";
1402
1403 $SIG_IO = AnyEvent->io (fh => $SIGPIPE_R, poll => "r", cb => \&_signal_exec);
1404 }
1405
1406 *signal = sub {
1051 my (undef, %arg) = @_; 1407 my (undef, %arg) = @_;
1052 1408
1053 my $signal = uc $arg{signal} 1409 my $signal = uc $arg{signal}
1054 or Carp::croak "required option 'signal' is missing"; 1410 or Carp::croak "required option 'signal' is missing";
1055 1411
1412 if ($HAVE_ASYNC_INTERRUPT) {
1413 # async::interrupt
1414
1415 $signal = sig2num $signal;
1056 $SIG_CB{$signal}{$arg{cb}} = $arg{cb}; 1416 $SIG_CB{$signal}{$arg{cb}} = $arg{cb};
1417
1418 $SIG_ASY{$signal} ||= new Async::Interrupt
1419 cb => sub { undef $SIG_EV{$signal} },
1420 signal => $signal,
1421 pipe => [$SIGPIPE_R->filenos],
1422 pipe_autodrain => 0,
1423 ;
1424
1425 } else {
1426 # pure perl
1427
1428 # AE::Util has been loaded in signal
1429 $signal = sig2name $signal;
1430 $SIG_CB{$signal}{$arg{cb}} = $arg{cb};
1431
1057 $SIG{$signal} ||= sub { 1432 $SIG{$signal} ||= sub {
1058 $_->() for values %{ $SIG_CB{$signal} || {} }; 1433 local $!;
1434 syswrite $SIGPIPE_W, "\x00", 1 unless %SIG_EV;
1435 undef $SIG_EV{$signal};
1436 };
1437
1438 # can't do signal processing without introducing races in pure perl,
1439 # so limit the signal latency.
1440 _sig_add;
1441 }
1442
1443 bless [$signal, $arg{cb}], "AnyEvent::Base::signal"
1444 };
1445
1446 *AnyEvent::Base::signal::DESTROY = sub {
1447 my ($signal, $cb) = @{$_[0]};
1448
1449 _sig_del;
1450
1451 delete $SIG_CB{$signal}{$cb};
1452
1453 $HAVE_ASYNC_INTERRUPT
1454 ? delete $SIG_ASY{$signal}
1455 : # delete doesn't work with older perls - they then
1456 # print weird messages, or just unconditionally exit
1457 # instead of getting the default action.
1458 undef $SIG{$signal}
1459 unless keys %{ $SIG_CB{$signal} };
1460 };
1059 }; 1461 };
1060 1462 die if $@;
1061 bless [$signal, $arg{cb}], "AnyEvent::Base::Signal" 1463 &signal
1062}
1063
1064sub AnyEvent::Base::Signal::DESTROY {
1065 my ($signal, $cb) = @{$_[0]};
1066
1067 delete $SIG_CB{$signal}{$cb};
1068
1069 delete $SIG{$signal} unless keys %{ $SIG_CB{$signal} };
1070} 1464}
1071 1465
1072# default implementation for ->child 1466# default implementation for ->child
1073 1467
1074our %PID_CB; 1468our %PID_CB;
1075our $CHLD_W; 1469our $CHLD_W;
1076our $CHLD_DELAY_W; 1470our $CHLD_DELAY_W;
1077our $PID_IDLE;
1078our $WNOHANG; 1471our $WNOHANG;
1079 1472
1080sub _child_wait { 1473sub _emit_childstatus($$) {
1081 while (0 < (my $pid = waitpid -1, $WNOHANG)) { 1474 my (undef, $rpid, $rstatus) = @_;
1475
1476 $_->($rpid, $rstatus)
1082 $_->($pid, $?) for (values %{ $PID_CB{$pid} || {} }), 1477 for values %{ $PID_CB{$rpid} || {} },
1083 (values %{ $PID_CB{0} || {} }); 1478 values %{ $PID_CB{0} || {} };
1084 }
1085
1086 undef $PID_IDLE;
1087} 1479}
1088 1480
1089sub _sigchld { 1481sub _sigchld {
1090 # make sure we deliver these changes "synchronous" with the event loop. 1482 my $pid;
1091 $CHLD_DELAY_W ||= AnyEvent->timer (after => 0, cb => sub { 1483
1092 undef $CHLD_DELAY_W; 1484 AnyEvent->_emit_childstatus ($pid, $?)
1093 &_child_wait; 1485 while ($pid = waitpid -1, $WNOHANG) > 0;
1094 });
1095} 1486}
1096 1487
1097sub child { 1488sub child {
1098 my (undef, %arg) = @_; 1489 my (undef, %arg) = @_;
1099 1490
1100 defined (my $pid = $arg{pid} + 0) 1491 defined (my $pid = $arg{pid} + 0)
1101 or Carp::croak "required option 'pid' is missing"; 1492 or Carp::croak "required option 'pid' is missing";
1102 1493
1103 $PID_CB{$pid}{$arg{cb}} = $arg{cb}; 1494 $PID_CB{$pid}{$arg{cb}} = $arg{cb};
1104 1495
1105 unless ($WNOHANG) { 1496 # WNOHANG is almost cetrainly 1 everywhere
1497 $WNOHANG ||= $^O =~ /^(?:openbsd|netbsd|linux|freebsd|cygwin|MSWin32)$/
1498 ? 1
1106 $WNOHANG = eval { local $SIG{__DIE__}; require POSIX; &POSIX::WNOHANG } || 1; 1499 : eval { local $SIG{__DIE__}; require POSIX; &POSIX::WNOHANG } || 1;
1107 }
1108 1500
1109 unless ($CHLD_W) { 1501 unless ($CHLD_W) {
1110 $CHLD_W = AnyEvent->signal (signal => 'CHLD', cb => \&_sigchld); 1502 $CHLD_W = AnyEvent->signal (signal => 'CHLD', cb => \&_sigchld);
1111 # child could be a zombie already, so make at least one round 1503 # child could be a zombie already, so make at least one round
1112 &_sigchld; 1504 &_sigchld;
1113 } 1505 }
1114 1506
1115 bless [$pid, $arg{cb}], "AnyEvent::Base::Child" 1507 bless [$pid, $arg{cb}], "AnyEvent::Base::child"
1116} 1508}
1117 1509
1118sub AnyEvent::Base::Child::DESTROY { 1510sub AnyEvent::Base::child::DESTROY {
1119 my ($pid, $cb) = @{$_[0]}; 1511 my ($pid, $cb) = @{$_[0]};
1120 1512
1121 delete $PID_CB{$pid}{$cb}; 1513 delete $PID_CB{$pid}{$cb};
1122 delete $PID_CB{$pid} unless keys %{ $PID_CB{$pid} }; 1514 delete $PID_CB{$pid} unless keys %{ $PID_CB{$pid} };
1123 1515
1124 undef $CHLD_W unless keys %PID_CB; 1516 undef $CHLD_W unless keys %PID_CB;
1125} 1517}
1126 1518
1519# idle emulation is done by simply using a timer, regardless
1520# of whether the process is idle or not, and not letting
1521# the callback use more than 50% of the time.
1522sub idle {
1523 my (undef, %arg) = @_;
1524
1525 my ($cb, $w, $rcb) = $arg{cb};
1526
1527 $rcb = sub {
1528 if ($cb) {
1529 $w = _time;
1530 &$cb;
1531 $w = _time - $w;
1532
1533 # never use more then 50% of the time for the idle watcher,
1534 # within some limits
1535 $w = 0.0001 if $w < 0.0001;
1536 $w = 5 if $w > 5;
1537
1538 $w = AnyEvent->timer (after => $w, cb => $rcb);
1539 } else {
1540 # clean up...
1541 undef $w;
1542 undef $rcb;
1543 }
1544 };
1545
1546 $w = AnyEvent->timer (after => 0.05, cb => $rcb);
1547
1548 bless \\$cb, "AnyEvent::Base::idle"
1549}
1550
1551sub AnyEvent::Base::idle::DESTROY {
1552 undef $${$_[0]};
1553}
1554
1127package AnyEvent::CondVar; 1555package AnyEvent::CondVar;
1128 1556
1129our @ISA = AnyEvent::CondVar::Base::; 1557our @ISA = AnyEvent::CondVar::Base::;
1130 1558
1131package AnyEvent::CondVar::Base; 1559package AnyEvent::CondVar::Base;
1132 1560
1133use overload 1561#use overload
1134 '&{}' => sub { my $self = shift; sub { $self->send (@_) } }, 1562# '&{}' => sub { my $self = shift; sub { $self->send (@_) } },
1135 fallback => 1; 1563# fallback => 1;
1564
1565# save 300+ kilobytes by dirtily hardcoding overloading
1566${"AnyEvent::CondVar::Base::OVERLOAD"}{dummy}++; # Register with magic by touching.
1567*{'AnyEvent::CondVar::Base::()'} = sub { }; # "Make it findable via fetchmethod."
1568*{'AnyEvent::CondVar::Base::(&{}'} = sub { my $self = shift; sub { $self->send (@_) } }; # &{}
1569${'AnyEvent::CondVar::Base::()'} = 1; # fallback
1570
1571our $WAITING;
1136 1572
1137sub _send { 1573sub _send {
1138 # nop 1574 # nop
1139} 1575}
1140 1576
1153sub ready { 1589sub ready {
1154 $_[0]{_ae_sent} 1590 $_[0]{_ae_sent}
1155} 1591}
1156 1592
1157sub _wait { 1593sub _wait {
1594 $WAITING
1595 and !$_[0]{_ae_sent}
1596 and Carp::croak "AnyEvent::CondVar: recursive blocking wait detected";
1597
1598 local $WAITING = 1;
1158 AnyEvent->one_event while !$_[0]{_ae_sent}; 1599 AnyEvent->one_event while !$_[0]{_ae_sent};
1159} 1600}
1160 1601
1161sub recv { 1602sub recv {
1162 $_[0]->_wait; 1603 $_[0]->_wait;
1203so on. 1644so on.
1204 1645
1205=head1 ENVIRONMENT VARIABLES 1646=head1 ENVIRONMENT VARIABLES
1206 1647
1207The following environment variables are used by this module or its 1648The following environment variables are used by this module or its
1208submodules: 1649submodules.
1650
1651Note that AnyEvent will remove I<all> environment variables starting with
1652C<PERL_ANYEVENT_> from C<%ENV> when it is loaded while taint mode is
1653enabled.
1209 1654
1210=over 4 1655=over 4
1211 1656
1212=item C<PERL_ANYEVENT_VERBOSE> 1657=item C<PERL_ANYEVENT_VERBOSE>
1213 1658
1220C<PERL_ANYEVENT_MODEL>. 1665C<PERL_ANYEVENT_MODEL>.
1221 1666
1222When set to C<2> or higher, cause AnyEvent to report to STDERR which event 1667When set to C<2> or higher, cause AnyEvent to report to STDERR which event
1223model it chooses. 1668model it chooses.
1224 1669
1670When set to C<8> or higher, then AnyEvent will report extra information on
1671which optional modules it loads and how it implements certain features.
1672
1225=item C<PERL_ANYEVENT_STRICT> 1673=item C<PERL_ANYEVENT_STRICT>
1226 1674
1227AnyEvent does not do much argument checking by default, as thorough 1675AnyEvent does not do much argument checking by default, as thorough
1228argument checking is very costly. Setting this variable to a true value 1676argument checking is very costly. Setting this variable to a true value
1229will cause AnyEvent to load C<AnyEvent::Strict> and then to thoroughly 1677will cause AnyEvent to load C<AnyEvent::Strict> and then to thoroughly
1230check the arguments passed to most method calls. If it finds any problems 1678check the arguments passed to most method calls. If it finds any problems,
1231it will croak. 1679it will croak.
1232 1680
1233In other words, enables "strict" mode. 1681In other words, enables "strict" mode.
1234 1682
1235Unlike C<use strict>, it is definitely recommended ot keep it off in 1683Unlike C<use strict> (or it's modern cousin, C<< use L<common::sense>
1236production. Keeping C<PERL_ANYEVENT_STRICT=1> in your environment while 1684>>, it is definitely recommended to keep it off in production. Keeping
1237developing programs can be very useful, however. 1685C<PERL_ANYEVENT_STRICT=1> in your environment while developing programs
1686can be very useful, however.
1238 1687
1239=item C<PERL_ANYEVENT_MODEL> 1688=item C<PERL_ANYEVENT_MODEL>
1240 1689
1241This can be used to specify the event model to be used by AnyEvent, before 1690This can be used to specify the event model to be used by AnyEvent, before
1242auto detection and -probing kicks in. It must be a string consisting 1691auto detection and -probing kicks in. It must be a string consisting
1263used, and preference will be given to protocols mentioned earlier in the 1712used, and preference will be given to protocols mentioned earlier in the
1264list. 1713list.
1265 1714
1266This variable can effectively be used for denial-of-service attacks 1715This variable can effectively be used for denial-of-service attacks
1267against local programs (e.g. when setuid), although the impact is likely 1716against local programs (e.g. when setuid), although the impact is likely
1268small, as the program has to handle connection errors already- 1717small, as the program has to handle conenction and other failures anyways.
1269 1718
1270Examples: C<PERL_ANYEVENT_PROTOCOLS=ipv4,ipv6> - prefer IPv4 over IPv6, 1719Examples: C<PERL_ANYEVENT_PROTOCOLS=ipv4,ipv6> - prefer IPv4 over IPv6,
1271but support both and try to use both. C<PERL_ANYEVENT_PROTOCOLS=ipv4> 1720but support both and try to use both. C<PERL_ANYEVENT_PROTOCOLS=ipv4>
1272- only support IPv4, never try to resolve or contact IPv6 1721- only support IPv4, never try to resolve or contact IPv6
1273addresses. C<PERL_ANYEVENT_PROTOCOLS=ipv6,ipv4> support either IPv4 or 1722addresses. C<PERL_ANYEVENT_PROTOCOLS=ipv6,ipv4> support either IPv4 or
1285 1734
1286=item C<PERL_ANYEVENT_MAX_FORKS> 1735=item C<PERL_ANYEVENT_MAX_FORKS>
1287 1736
1288The maximum number of child processes that C<AnyEvent::Util::fork_call> 1737The maximum number of child processes that C<AnyEvent::Util::fork_call>
1289will create in parallel. 1738will create in parallel.
1739
1740=item C<PERL_ANYEVENT_MAX_OUTSTANDING_DNS>
1741
1742The default value for the C<max_outstanding> parameter for the default DNS
1743resolver - this is the maximum number of parallel DNS requests that are
1744sent to the DNS server.
1745
1746=item C<PERL_ANYEVENT_RESOLV_CONF>
1747
1748The file to use instead of F</etc/resolv.conf> (or OS-specific
1749configuration) in the default resolver. When set to the empty string, no
1750default config will be used.
1751
1752=item C<PERL_ANYEVENT_CA_FILE>, C<PERL_ANYEVENT_CA_PATH>.
1753
1754When neither C<ca_file> nor C<ca_path> was specified during
1755L<AnyEvent::TLS> context creation, and either of these environment
1756variables exist, they will be used to specify CA certificate locations
1757instead of a system-dependent default.
1758
1759=item C<PERL_ANYEVENT_AVOID_GUARD> and C<PERL_ANYEVENT_AVOID_ASYNC_INTERRUPT>
1760
1761When these are set to C<1>, then the respective modules are not
1762loaded. Mostly good for testing AnyEvent itself.
1290 1763
1291=back 1764=back
1292 1765
1293=head1 SUPPLYING YOUR OWN EVENT MODEL INTERFACE 1766=head1 SUPPLYING YOUR OWN EVENT MODEL INTERFACE
1294 1767
1539 EV/Any 100000 224 2.88 0.34 0.27 EV + AnyEvent watchers 2012 EV/Any 100000 224 2.88 0.34 0.27 EV + AnyEvent watchers
1540 CoroEV/Any 100000 224 2.85 0.35 0.28 coroutines + Coro::Signal 2013 CoroEV/Any 100000 224 2.85 0.35 0.28 coroutines + Coro::Signal
1541 Perl/Any 100000 452 4.13 0.73 0.95 pure perl implementation 2014 Perl/Any 100000 452 4.13 0.73 0.95 pure perl implementation
1542 Event/Event 16000 517 32.20 31.80 0.81 Event native interface 2015 Event/Event 16000 517 32.20 31.80 0.81 Event native interface
1543 Event/Any 16000 590 35.85 31.55 1.06 Event + AnyEvent watchers 2016 Event/Any 16000 590 35.85 31.55 1.06 Event + AnyEvent watchers
2017 IOAsync/Any 16000 989 38.10 32.77 11.13 via IO::Async::Loop::IO_Poll
2018 IOAsync/Any 16000 990 37.59 29.50 10.61 via IO::Async::Loop::Epoll
1544 Glib/Any 16000 1357 102.33 12.31 51.00 quadratic behaviour 2019 Glib/Any 16000 1357 102.33 12.31 51.00 quadratic behaviour
1545 Tk/Any 2000 1860 27.20 66.31 14.00 SEGV with >> 2000 watchers 2020 Tk/Any 2000 1860 27.20 66.31 14.00 SEGV with >> 2000 watchers
1546 POE/Event 2000 6328 109.99 751.67 14.02 via POE::Loop::Event 2021 POE/Event 2000 6328 109.99 751.67 14.02 via POE::Loop::Event
1547 POE/Select 2000 6027 94.54 809.13 579.80 via POE::Loop::Select 2022 POE/Select 2000 6027 94.54 809.13 579.80 via POE::Loop::Select
1548 2023
1577performance becomes really bad with lots of file descriptors (and few of 2052performance becomes really bad with lots of file descriptors (and few of
1578them active), of course, but this was not subject of this benchmark. 2053them active), of course, but this was not subject of this benchmark.
1579 2054
1580The C<Event> module has a relatively high setup and callback invocation 2055The C<Event> module has a relatively high setup and callback invocation
1581cost, but overall scores in on the third place. 2056cost, but overall scores in on the third place.
2057
2058C<IO::Async> performs admirably well, about on par with C<Event>, even
2059when using its pure perl backend.
1582 2060
1583C<Glib>'s memory usage is quite a bit higher, but it features a 2061C<Glib>'s memory usage is quite a bit higher, but it features a
1584faster callback invocation and overall ends up in the same class as 2062faster callback invocation and overall ends up in the same class as
1585C<Event>. However, Glib scales extremely badly, doubling the number of 2063C<Event>. However, Glib scales extremely badly, doubling the number of
1586watchers increases the processing time by more than a factor of four, 2064watchers increases the processing time by more than a factor of four,
1664it to another server. This includes deleting the old timeout and creating 2142it to another server. This includes deleting the old timeout and creating
1665a new one that moves the timeout into the future. 2143a new one that moves the timeout into the future.
1666 2144
1667=head3 Results 2145=head3 Results
1668 2146
1669 name sockets create request 2147 name sockets create request
1670 EV 20000 69.01 11.16 2148 EV 20000 69.01 11.16
1671 Perl 20000 73.32 35.87 2149 Perl 20000 73.32 35.87
2150 IOAsync 20000 157.00 98.14 epoll
2151 IOAsync 20000 159.31 616.06 poll
1672 Event 20000 212.62 257.32 2152 Event 20000 212.62 257.32
1673 Glib 20000 651.16 1896.30 2153 Glib 20000 651.16 1896.30
1674 POE 20000 349.67 12317.24 uses POE::Loop::Event 2154 POE 20000 349.67 12317.24 uses POE::Loop::Event
1675 2155
1676=head3 Discussion 2156=head3 Discussion
1677 2157
1678This benchmark I<does> measure scalability and overall performance of the 2158This benchmark I<does> measure scalability and overall performance of the
1679particular event loop. 2159particular event loop.
1681EV is again fastest. Since it is using epoll on my system, the setup time 2161EV is again fastest. Since it is using epoll on my system, the setup time
1682is relatively high, though. 2162is relatively high, though.
1683 2163
1684Perl surprisingly comes second. It is much faster than the C-based event 2164Perl surprisingly comes second. It is much faster than the C-based event
1685loops Event and Glib. 2165loops Event and Glib.
2166
2167IO::Async performs very well when using its epoll backend, and still quite
2168good compared to Glib when using its pure perl backend.
1686 2169
1687Event suffers from high setup time as well (look at its code and you will 2170Event suffers from high setup time as well (look at its code and you will
1688understand why). Callback invocation also has a high overhead compared to 2171understand why). Callback invocation also has a high overhead compared to
1689the C<< $_->() for .. >>-style loop that the Perl event loop uses. Event 2172the C<< $_->() for .. >>-style loop that the Perl event loop uses. Event
1690uses select or poll in basically all documented configurations. 2173uses select or poll in basically all documented configurations.
1753=item * C-based event loops perform very well with small number of 2236=item * C-based event loops perform very well with small number of
1754watchers, as the management overhead dominates. 2237watchers, as the management overhead dominates.
1755 2238
1756=back 2239=back
1757 2240
2241=head2 THE IO::Lambda BENCHMARK
2242
2243Recently I was told about the benchmark in the IO::Lambda manpage, which
2244could be misinterpreted to make AnyEvent look bad. In fact, the benchmark
2245simply compares IO::Lambda with POE, and IO::Lambda looks better (which
2246shouldn't come as a surprise to anybody). As such, the benchmark is
2247fine, and mostly shows that the AnyEvent backend from IO::Lambda isn't
2248very optimal. But how would AnyEvent compare when used without the extra
2249baggage? To explore this, I wrote the equivalent benchmark for AnyEvent.
2250
2251The benchmark itself creates an echo-server, and then, for 500 times,
2252connects to the echo server, sends a line, waits for the reply, and then
2253creates the next connection. This is a rather bad benchmark, as it doesn't
2254test the efficiency of the framework or much non-blocking I/O, but it is a
2255benchmark nevertheless.
2256
2257 name runtime
2258 Lambda/select 0.330 sec
2259 + optimized 0.122 sec
2260 Lambda/AnyEvent 0.327 sec
2261 + optimized 0.138 sec
2262 Raw sockets/select 0.077 sec
2263 POE/select, components 0.662 sec
2264 POE/select, raw sockets 0.226 sec
2265 POE/select, optimized 0.404 sec
2266
2267 AnyEvent/select/nb 0.085 sec
2268 AnyEvent/EV/nb 0.068 sec
2269 +state machine 0.134 sec
2270
2271The benchmark is also a bit unfair (my fault): the IO::Lambda/POE
2272benchmarks actually make blocking connects and use 100% blocking I/O,
2273defeating the purpose of an event-based solution. All of the newly
2274written AnyEvent benchmarks use 100% non-blocking connects (using
2275AnyEvent::Socket::tcp_connect and the asynchronous pure perl DNS
2276resolver), so AnyEvent is at a disadvantage here, as non-blocking connects
2277generally require a lot more bookkeeping and event handling than blocking
2278connects (which involve a single syscall only).
2279
2280The last AnyEvent benchmark additionally uses L<AnyEvent::Handle>, which
2281offers similar expressive power as POE and IO::Lambda, using conventional
2282Perl syntax. This means that both the echo server and the client are 100%
2283non-blocking, further placing it at a disadvantage.
2284
2285As you can see, the AnyEvent + EV combination even beats the
2286hand-optimised "raw sockets benchmark", while AnyEvent + its pure perl
2287backend easily beats IO::Lambda and POE.
2288
2289And even the 100% non-blocking version written using the high-level (and
2290slow :) L<AnyEvent::Handle> abstraction beats both POE and IO::Lambda by a
2291large margin, even though it does all of DNS, tcp-connect and socket I/O
2292in a non-blocking way.
2293
2294The two AnyEvent benchmarks programs can be found as F<eg/ae0.pl> and
2295F<eg/ae2.pl> in the AnyEvent distribution, the remaining benchmarks are
2296part of the IO::lambda distribution and were used without any changes.
2297
1758 2298
1759=head1 SIGNALS 2299=head1 SIGNALS
1760 2300
1761AnyEvent currently installs handlers for these signals: 2301AnyEvent currently installs handlers for these signals:
1762 2302
1765=item SIGCHLD 2305=item SIGCHLD
1766 2306
1767A handler for C<SIGCHLD> is installed by AnyEvent's child watcher 2307A handler for C<SIGCHLD> is installed by AnyEvent's child watcher
1768emulation for event loops that do not support them natively. Also, some 2308emulation for event loops that do not support them natively. Also, some
1769event loops install a similar handler. 2309event loops install a similar handler.
2310
2311Additionally, when AnyEvent is loaded and SIGCHLD is set to IGNORE, then
2312AnyEvent will reset it to default, to avoid losing child exit statuses.
1770 2313
1771=item SIGPIPE 2314=item SIGPIPE
1772 2315
1773A no-op handler is installed for C<SIGPIPE> when C<$SIG{PIPE}> is C<undef> 2316A no-op handler is installed for C<SIGPIPE> when C<$SIG{PIPE}> is C<undef>
1774when AnyEvent gets loaded. 2317when AnyEvent gets loaded.
1786 2329
1787=back 2330=back
1788 2331
1789=cut 2332=cut
1790 2333
2334undef $SIG{CHLD}
2335 if $SIG{CHLD} eq 'IGNORE';
2336
1791$SIG{PIPE} = sub { } 2337$SIG{PIPE} = sub { }
1792 unless defined $SIG{PIPE}; 2338 unless defined $SIG{PIPE};
2339
2340=head1 RECOMMENDED/OPTIONAL MODULES
2341
2342One of AnyEvent's main goals is to be 100% Pure-Perl(tm): only perl (and
2343it's built-in modules) are required to use it.
2344
2345That does not mean that AnyEvent won't take advantage of some additional
2346modules if they are installed.
2347
2348This section epxlains which additional modules will be used, and how they
2349affect AnyEvent's operetion.
2350
2351=over 4
2352
2353=item L<Async::Interrupt>
2354
2355This slightly arcane module is used to implement fast signal handling: To
2356my knowledge, there is no way to do completely race-free and quick
2357signal handling in pure perl. To ensure that signals still get
2358delivered, AnyEvent will start an interval timer to wake up perl (and
2359catch the signals) with some delay (default is 10 seconds, look for
2360C<$AnyEvent::MAX_SIGNAL_LATENCY>).
2361
2362If this module is available, then it will be used to implement signal
2363catching, which means that signals will not be delayed, and the event loop
2364will not be interrupted regularly, which is more efficient (And good for
2365battery life on laptops).
2366
2367This affects not just the pure-perl event loop, but also other event loops
2368that have no signal handling on their own (e.g. Glib, Tk, Qt).
2369
2370Some event loops (POE, Event, Event::Lib) offer signal watchers natively,
2371and either employ their own workarounds (POE) or use AnyEvent's workaround
2372(using C<$AnyEvent::MAX_SIGNAL_LATENCY>). Installing L<Async::Interrupt>
2373does nothing for those backends.
2374
2375=item L<EV>
2376
2377This module isn't really "optional", as it is simply one of the backend
2378event loops that AnyEvent can use. However, it is simply the best event
2379loop available in terms of features, speed and stability: It supports
2380the AnyEvent API optimally, implements all the watcher types in XS, does
2381automatic timer adjustments even when no monotonic clock is available,
2382can take avdantage of advanced kernel interfaces such as C<epoll> and
2383C<kqueue>, and is the fastest backend I<by far>. You can even embed
2384L<Glib>/L<Gtk2> in it (or vice versa, see L<EV::Glib> and L<Glib::EV>).
2385
2386=item L<Guard>
2387
2388The guard module, when used, will be used to implement
2389C<AnyEvent::Util::guard>. This speeds up guards considerably (and uses a
2390lot less memory), but otherwise doesn't affect guard operation much. It is
2391purely used for performance.
2392
2393=item L<JSON> and L<JSON::XS>
2394
2395This module is required when you want to read or write JSON data via
2396L<AnyEvent::Handle>. It is also written in pure-perl, but can take
2397advantage of the ultra-high-speed L<JSON::XS> module when it is installed.
2398
2399In fact, L<AnyEvent::Handle> will use L<JSON::XS> by default if it is
2400installed.
2401
2402=item L<Net::SSLeay>
2403
2404Implementing TLS/SSL in Perl is certainly interesting, but not very
2405worthwhile: If this module is installed, then L<AnyEvent::Handle> (with
2406the help of L<AnyEvent::TLS>), gains the ability to do TLS/SSL.
2407
2408=item L<Time::HiRes>
2409
2410This module is part of perl since release 5.008. It will be used when the
2411chosen event library does not come with a timing source on it's own. The
2412pure-perl event loop (L<AnyEvent::Impl::Perl>) will additionally use it to
2413try to use a monotonic clock for timing stability.
2414
2415=back
1793 2416
1794 2417
1795=head1 FORK 2418=head1 FORK
1796 2419
1797Most event libraries are not fork-safe. The ones who are usually are 2420Most event libraries are not fork-safe. The ones who are usually are
1798because they rely on inefficient but fork-safe C<select> or C<poll> 2421because they rely on inefficient but fork-safe C<select> or C<poll>
1799calls. Only L<EV> is fully fork-aware. 2422calls. Only L<EV> is fully fork-aware.
1800 2423
1801If you have to fork, you must either do so I<before> creating your first 2424If you have to fork, you must either do so I<before> creating your first
1802watcher OR you must not use AnyEvent at all in the child. 2425watcher OR you must not use AnyEvent at all in the child OR you must do
2426something completely out of the scope of AnyEvent.
1803 2427
1804 2428
1805=head1 SECURITY CONSIDERATIONS 2429=head1 SECURITY CONSIDERATIONS
1806 2430
1807AnyEvent can be forced to load any event model via 2431AnyEvent can be forced to load any event model via
1819 use AnyEvent; 2443 use AnyEvent;
1820 2444
1821Similar considerations apply to $ENV{PERL_ANYEVENT_VERBOSE}, as that can 2445Similar considerations apply to $ENV{PERL_ANYEVENT_VERBOSE}, as that can
1822be used to probe what backend is used and gain other information (which is 2446be used to probe what backend is used and gain other information (which is
1823probably even less useful to an attacker than PERL_ANYEVENT_MODEL), and 2447probably even less useful to an attacker than PERL_ANYEVENT_MODEL), and
1824$ENV{PERL_ANYEGENT_STRICT}. 2448$ENV{PERL_ANYEVENT_STRICT}.
2449
2450Note that AnyEvent will remove I<all> environment variables starting with
2451C<PERL_ANYEVENT_> from C<%ENV> when it is loaded while taint mode is
2452enabled.
1825 2453
1826 2454
1827=head1 BUGS 2455=head1 BUGS
1828 2456
1829Perl 5.8 has numerous memleaks that sometimes hit this module and are hard 2457Perl 5.8 has numerous memleaks that sometimes hit this module and are hard
1830to work around. If you suffer from memleaks, first upgrade to Perl 5.10 2458to work around. If you suffer from memleaks, first upgrade to Perl 5.10
1831and check wether the leaks still show up. (Perl 5.10.0 has other annoying 2459and check wether the leaks still show up. (Perl 5.10.0 has other annoying
1832mamleaks, such as leaking on C<map> and C<grep> but it is usually not as 2460memleaks, such as leaking on C<map> and C<grep> but it is usually not as
1833pronounced). 2461pronounced).
1834 2462
1835 2463
1836=head1 SEE ALSO 2464=head1 SEE ALSO
1837 2465
1841L<Glib>, L<Tk>, L<Event::Lib>, L<Qt>, L<POE>. 2469L<Glib>, L<Tk>, L<Event::Lib>, L<Qt>, L<POE>.
1842 2470
1843Implementations: L<AnyEvent::Impl::EV>, L<AnyEvent::Impl::Event>, 2471Implementations: L<AnyEvent::Impl::EV>, L<AnyEvent::Impl::Event>,
1844L<AnyEvent::Impl::Glib>, L<AnyEvent::Impl::Tk>, L<AnyEvent::Impl::Perl>, 2472L<AnyEvent::Impl::Glib>, L<AnyEvent::Impl::Tk>, L<AnyEvent::Impl::Perl>,
1845L<AnyEvent::Impl::EventLib>, L<AnyEvent::Impl::Qt>, 2473L<AnyEvent::Impl::EventLib>, L<AnyEvent::Impl::Qt>,
1846L<AnyEvent::Impl::POE>. 2474L<AnyEvent::Impl::POE>, L<AnyEvent::Impl::IOAsync>, L<Anyevent::Impl::Irssi>.
1847 2475
1848Non-blocking file handles, sockets, TCP clients and 2476Non-blocking file handles, sockets, TCP clients and
1849servers: L<AnyEvent::Handle>, L<AnyEvent::Socket>. 2477servers: L<AnyEvent::Handle>, L<AnyEvent::Socket>, L<AnyEvent::TLS>.
1850 2478
1851Asynchronous DNS: L<AnyEvent::DNS>. 2479Asynchronous DNS: L<AnyEvent::DNS>.
1852 2480
1853Coroutine support: L<Coro>, L<Coro::AnyEvent>, L<Coro::EV>, L<Coro::Event>, 2481Coroutine support: L<Coro>, L<Coro::AnyEvent>, L<Coro::EV>,
2482L<Coro::Event>,
1854 2483
1855Nontrivial usage examples: L<Net::FCP>, L<Net::XMPP2>, L<AnyEvent::DNS>. 2484Nontrivial usage examples: L<AnyEvent::GPSD>, L<AnyEvent::XMPP>,
2485L<AnyEvent::HTTP>.
1856 2486
1857 2487
1858=head1 AUTHOR 2488=head1 AUTHOR
1859 2489
1860 Marc Lehmann <schmorp@schmorp.de> 2490 Marc Lehmann <schmorp@schmorp.de>

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