ViewVC Help
View File | Revision Log | Show Annotations | Download File
/cvs/Coro/Coro.pm
(Generate patch)

Comparing Coro/Coro.pm (file contents):
Revision 1.65 by root, Tue Feb 22 19:51:58 2005 UTC vs.
Revision 1.222 by root, Tue Nov 18 08:59:46 2008 UTC

2 2
3Coro - coroutine process abstraction 3Coro - coroutine process abstraction
4 4
5=head1 SYNOPSIS 5=head1 SYNOPSIS
6 6
7 use Coro; 7 use Coro;
8 8
9 async { 9 async {
10 # some asynchronous thread of execution 10 # some asynchronous thread of execution
11 print "2\n";
12 cede; # yield back to main
13 print "4\n";
11 }; 14 };
12 15 print "1\n";
13 # alternatively create an async process like this: 16 cede; # yield to coroutine
14 17 print "3\n";
15 sub some_func : Coro { 18 cede; # and again
16 # some more async code 19
17 } 20 # use locking
18 21 use Coro::Semaphore;
19 cede; 22 my $lock = new Coro::Semaphore;
23 my $locked;
24
25 $lock->down;
26 $locked = 1;
27 $lock->up;
20 28
21=head1 DESCRIPTION 29=head1 DESCRIPTION
22 30
23This module collection manages coroutines. Coroutines are similar to 31This module collection manages coroutines. Coroutines are similar to
24threads but don't run in parallel. 32threads but don't (in general) run in parallel at the same time even
33on SMP machines. The specific flavor of coroutine used in this module
34also guarantees you that it will not switch between coroutines unless
35necessary, at easily-identified points in your program, so locking and
36parallel access are rarely an issue, making coroutine programming much
37safer and easier than threads programming.
25 38
39Unlike a normal perl program, however, coroutines allow you to have
40multiple running interpreters that share data, which is especially useful
41to code pseudo-parallel processes and for event-based programming, such as
42multiple HTTP-GET requests running concurrently. See L<Coro::AnyEvent> to
43learn more.
44
45Coroutines are also useful because Perl has no support for threads (the so
46called "threads" that perl offers are nothing more than the (bad) process
47emulation coming from the Windows platform: On standard operating systems
48they serve no purpose whatsoever, except by making your programs slow and
49making them use a lot of memory. Best disable them when building perl, or
50aks your software vendor/distributor to do it for you).
51
26In this module, coroutines are defined as "callchain + lexical variables 52In this module, coroutines are defined as "callchain + lexical variables +
27+ @_ + $_ + $@ + $^W + C stack), that is, a coroutine has it's own 53@_ + $_ + $@ + $/ + C stack), that is, a coroutine has its own callchain,
28callchain, it's own set of lexicals and it's own set of perl's most 54its own set of lexicals and its own set of perls most important global
29important global variables. 55variables (see L<Coro::State> for more configuration).
30 56
31=cut 57=cut
32 58
33package Coro; 59package Coro;
34 60
35BEGIN { eval { require warnings } && warnings->unimport ("uninitialized") } 61use strict qw(vars subs);
62no warnings "uninitialized";
36 63
37use Coro::State; 64use Coro::State;
38 65
39use vars qw($idle $main $current); 66use base qw(Coro::State Exporter);
40 67
41use base Exporter; 68our $idle; # idle handler
69our $main; # main coroutine
70our $current; # current coroutine
42 71
43$VERSION = 1.1; 72our $VERSION = 5.0;
44 73
45@EXPORT = qw(async cede schedule terminate current); 74our @EXPORT = qw(async async_pool cede schedule terminate current unblock_sub);
46%EXPORT_TAGS = ( 75our %EXPORT_TAGS = (
47 prio => [qw(PRIO_MAX PRIO_HIGH PRIO_NORMAL PRIO_LOW PRIO_IDLE PRIO_MIN)], 76 prio => [qw(PRIO_MAX PRIO_HIGH PRIO_NORMAL PRIO_LOW PRIO_IDLE PRIO_MIN)],
48); 77);
49@EXPORT_OK = @{$EXPORT_TAGS{prio}}; 78our @EXPORT_OK = (@{$EXPORT_TAGS{prio}}, qw(nready));
50
51{
52 my @async;
53 my $init;
54
55 # this way of handling attributes simply is NOT scalable ;()
56 sub import {
57 Coro->export_to_level(1, @_);
58 my $old = *{(caller)[0]."::MODIFY_CODE_ATTRIBUTES"}{CODE};
59 *{(caller)[0]."::MODIFY_CODE_ATTRIBUTES"} = sub {
60 my ($package, $ref) = (shift, shift);
61 my @attrs;
62 for (@_) {
63 if ($_ eq "Coro") {
64 push @async, $ref;
65 unless ($init++) {
66 eval q{
67 sub INIT {
68 &async(pop @async) while @async;
69 }
70 };
71 }
72 } else {
73 push @attrs, $_;
74 }
75 }
76 return $old ? $old->($package, $ref, @attrs) : @attrs;
77 };
78 }
79
80}
81 79
82=over 4 80=over 4
83 81
84=item $main 82=item $Coro::main
85 83
86This coroutine represents the main program. 84This variable stores the coroutine object that represents the main
85program. While you cna C<ready> it and do most other things you can do to
86coroutines, it is mainly useful to compare again C<$Coro::current>, to see
87whether you are running in the main program or not.
87 88
88=cut 89=cut
89 90
90$main = new Coro; 91# $main is now being initialised by Coro::State
91 92
92=item $current (or as function: current) 93=item $Coro::current
93 94
94The current coroutine (the last coroutine switched to). The initial value is C<$main> (of course). 95The coroutine object representing the current coroutine (the last
96coroutine that the Coro scheduler switched to). The initial value is
97C<$Coro::main> (of course).
95 98
96=cut 99This variable is B<strictly> I<read-only>. You can take copies of the
100value stored in it and use it as any other coroutine object, but you must
101not otherwise modify the variable itself.
97 102
98# maybe some other module used Coro::Specific before... 103=cut
99if ($current) {
100 $main->{specific} = $current->{specific};
101}
102 104
103$current = $main;
104
105sub current() { $current } 105sub current() { $current } # [DEPRECATED]
106 106
107=item $idle 107=item $Coro::idle
108 108
109The coroutine to switch to when no other coroutine is running. The default 109This variable is mainly useful to integrate Coro into event loops. It is
110implementation prints "FATAL: deadlock detected" and exits. 110usually better to rely on L<Coro::AnyEvent> or LC<Coro::EV>, as this is
111pretty low-level functionality.
111 112
112=cut 113This variable stores a callback that is called whenever the scheduler
114finds no ready coroutines to run. The default implementation prints
115"FATAL: deadlock detected" and exits, because the program has no other way
116to continue.
113 117
114# should be done using priorities :( 118This hook is overwritten by modules such as C<Coro::Timer> and
115$idle = new Coro sub { 119C<Coro::AnyEvent> to wait on an external event that hopefully wake up a
116 print STDERR "FATAL: deadlock detected\n"; 120coroutine so the scheduler can run it.
117 exit(51); 121
122Note that the callback I<must not>, under any circumstances, block
123the current coroutine. Normally, this is achieved by having an "idle
124coroutine" that calls the event loop and then blocks again, and then
125readying that coroutine in the idle handler.
126
127See L<Coro::Event> or L<Coro::AnyEvent> for examples of using this
128technique.
129
130Please note that if your callback recursively invokes perl (e.g. for event
131handlers), then it must be prepared to be called recursively itself.
132
133=cut
134
135$idle = sub {
136 require Carp;
137 Carp::croak ("FATAL: deadlock detected");
118}; 138};
139
140sub _cancel {
141 my ($self) = @_;
142
143 # free coroutine data and mark as destructed
144 $self->_destroy
145 or return;
146
147 # call all destruction callbacks
148 $_->(@{$self->{_status}})
149 for @{ delete $self->{_on_destroy} || [] };
150}
119 151
120# this coroutine is necessary because a coroutine 152# this coroutine is necessary because a coroutine
121# cannot destroy itself. 153# cannot destroy itself.
122my @destroy; 154my @destroy;
123my $manager; 155my $manager;
156
124$manager = new Coro sub { 157$manager = new Coro sub {
125 while () { 158 while () {
126 # by overwriting the state object with the manager we destroy it 159 (shift @destroy)->_cancel
127 # while still being able to schedule this coroutine (in case it has
128 # been readied multiple times. this is harmless since the manager
129 # can be called as many times as neccessary and will always
130 # remove itself from the runqueue
131 while (@destroy) { 160 while @destroy;
132 my $coro = pop @destroy;
133 $coro->{status} ||= [];
134 $_->ready for @{delete $coro->{join} || []};
135 161
136 # the next line destroys the _coro_state, but keeps the
137 # process itself intact (we basically make it a zombie
138 # process that always runs the manager thread, so it's possible
139 # to transfer() to this process).
140 $coro->{_coro_state} = $manager->{_coro_state};
141 }
142 &schedule; 162 &schedule;
143 } 163 }
144}; 164};
145 165$manager->{desc} = "[coro manager]";
146# static methods. not really. 166$manager->prio (PRIO_MAX);
147 167
148=back 168=back
149 169
150=head2 STATIC METHODS 170=head2 SIMPLE COROUTINE CREATION
151
152Static methods are actually functions that operate on the current process only.
153 171
154=over 4 172=over 4
155 173
156=item async { ... } [@args...] 174=item async { ... } [@args...]
157 175
158Create a new asynchronous process and return it's process object 176Create a new coroutine and return it's coroutine object (usually
159(usually unused). When the sub returns the new process is automatically 177unused). The coroutine will be put into the ready queue, so
178it will start running automatically on the next scheduler run.
179
180The first argument is a codeblock/closure that should be executed in the
181coroutine. When it returns argument returns the coroutine is automatically
160terminated. 182terminated.
161 183
184The remaining arguments are passed as arguments to the closure.
185
186See the C<Coro::State::new> constructor for info about the coroutine
187environment in which coroutines are executed.
188
189Calling C<exit> in a coroutine will do the same as calling exit outside
190the coroutine. Likewise, when the coroutine dies, the program will exit,
191just as it would in the main program.
192
193If you do not want that, you can provide a default C<die> handler, or
194simply avoid dieing (by use of C<eval>).
195
162 # create a new coroutine that just prints its arguments 196Example: Create a new coroutine that just prints its arguments.
197
163 async { 198 async {
164 print "@_\n"; 199 print "@_\n";
165 } 1,2,3,4; 200 } 1,2,3,4;
166 201
167=cut 202=cut
168 203
169sub async(&@) { 204sub async(&@) {
170 my $pid = new Coro @_; 205 my $coro = new Coro @_;
171 $manager->ready; # this ensures that the stack is cloned from the manager
172 $pid->ready; 206 $coro->ready;
173 $pid; 207 $coro
174} 208}
209
210=item async_pool { ... } [@args...]
211
212Similar to C<async>, but uses a coroutine pool, so you should not call
213terminate or join on it (although you are allowed to), and you get a
214coroutine that might have executed other code already (which can be good
215or bad :).
216
217On the plus side, this function is faster than creating (and destroying)
218a completly new coroutine, so if you need a lot of generic coroutines in
219quick successsion, use C<async_pool>, not C<async>.
220
221The code block is executed in an C<eval> context and a warning will be
222issued in case of an exception instead of terminating the program, as
223C<async> does. As the coroutine is being reused, stuff like C<on_destroy>
224will not work in the expected way, unless you call terminate or cancel,
225which somehow defeats the purpose of pooling (but is fine in the
226exceptional case).
227
228The priority will be reset to C<0> after each run, tracing will be
229disabled, the description will be reset and the default output filehandle
230gets restored, so you can change all these. Otherwise the coroutine will
231be re-used "as-is": most notably if you change other per-coroutine global
232stuff such as C<$/> you I<must needs> revert that change, which is most
233simply done by using local as in: C<< local $/ >>.
234
235The idle pool size is limited to C<8> idle coroutines (this can be
236adjusted by changing $Coro::POOL_SIZE), but there can be as many non-idle
237coros as required.
238
239If you are concerned about pooled coroutines growing a lot because a
240single C<async_pool> used a lot of stackspace you can e.g. C<async_pool
241{ terminate }> once per second or so to slowly replenish the pool. In
242addition to that, when the stacks used by a handler grows larger than 16kb
243(adjustable via $Coro::POOL_RSS) it will also be destroyed.
244
245=cut
246
247our $POOL_SIZE = 8;
248our $POOL_RSS = 16 * 1024;
249our @async_pool;
250
251sub pool_handler {
252 my $cb;
253
254 while () {
255 eval {
256 while () {
257 _pool_1 $cb;
258 &$cb;
259 _pool_2 $cb;
260 &schedule;
261 }
262 };
263
264 if ($@) {
265 last if $@ eq "\3async_pool terminate\2\n";
266 warn $@;
267 }
268 }
269}
270
271sub async_pool(&@) {
272 # this is also inlined into the unblock_scheduler
273 my $coro = (pop @async_pool) || new Coro \&pool_handler;
274
275 $coro->{_invoke} = [@_];
276 $coro->ready;
277
278 $coro
279}
280
281=back
282
283=head2 STATIC METHODS
284
285Static methods are actually functions that operate on the current coroutine.
286
287=over 4
175 288
176=item schedule 289=item schedule
177 290
178Calls the scheduler. Please note that the current process will not be put 291Calls the scheduler. The scheduler will find the next coroutine that is
292to be run from the ready queue and switches to it. The next coroutine
293to be run is simply the one with the highest priority that is longest
294in its ready queue. If there is no coroutine ready, it will clal the
295C<$Coro::idle> hook.
296
297Please note that the current coroutine will I<not> be put into the ready
179into the ready queue, so calling this function usually means you will 298queue, so calling this function usually means you will never be called
180never be called again. 299again unless something else (e.g. an event handler) calls C<< ->ready >>,
300thus waking you up.
181 301
182=cut 302This makes C<schedule> I<the> generic method to use to block the current
303coroutine and wait for events: first you remember the current coroutine in
304a variable, then arrange for some callback of yours to call C<< ->ready
305>> on that once some event happens, and last you call C<schedule> to put
306yourself to sleep. Note that a lot of things can wake your coroutine up,
307so you need to check whether the event indeed happened, e.g. by storing the
308status in a variable.
309
310The canonical way to wait on external events is this:
311
312 {
313 # remember current coroutine
314 my $current = $Coro::current;
315
316 # register a hypothetical event handler
317 on_event_invoke sub {
318 # wake up sleeping coroutine
319 $current->ready;
320 undef $current;
321 };
322
323 # call schedule until event occurred.
324 # in case we are woken up for other reasons
325 # (current still defined), loop.
326 Coro::schedule while $current;
327 }
183 328
184=item cede 329=item cede
185 330
186"Cede" to other processes. This function puts the current process into the 331"Cede" to other coroutines. This function puts the current coroutine into
187ready queue and calls C<schedule>, which has the effect of giving up the 332the ready queue and calls C<schedule>, which has the effect of giving
188current "timeslice" to other coroutines of the same or higher priority. 333up the current "timeslice" to other coroutines of the same or higher
334priority. Once your coroutine gets its turn again it will automatically be
335resumed.
189 336
190=cut 337This function is often called C<yield> in other languages.
338
339=item Coro::cede_notself
340
341Works like cede, but is not exported by default and will cede to I<any>
342coroutine, regardless of priority. This is useful sometimes to ensure
343progress is made.
191 344
192=item terminate [arg...] 345=item terminate [arg...]
193 346
194Terminates the current process with the given status values (see L<cancel>). 347Terminates the current coroutine with the given status values (see L<cancel>).
348
349=item killall
350
351Kills/terminates/cancels all coroutines except the currently running
352one. This is useful after a fork, either in the child or the parent, as
353usually only one of them should inherit the running coroutines.
354
355Note that while this will try to free some of the main programs resources,
356you cannot free all of them, so if a coroutine that is not the main
357program calls this function, there will be some one-time resource leak.
195 358
196=cut 359=cut
197 360
198sub terminate { 361sub terminate {
199 $current->cancel (@_); 362 $current->cancel (@_);
200} 363}
201 364
365sub killall {
366 for (Coro::State::list) {
367 $_->cancel
368 if $_ != $current && UNIVERSAL::isa $_, "Coro";
369 }
370}
371
202=back 372=back
203 373
204# dynamic methods
205
206=head2 PROCESS METHODS 374=head2 COROUTINE METHODS
207 375
208These are the methods you can call on process objects. 376These are the methods you can call on coroutine objects (or to create
377them).
209 378
210=over 4 379=over 4
211 380
212=item new Coro \&sub [, @args...] 381=item new Coro \&sub [, @args...]
213 382
214Create a new process and return it. When the sub returns the process 383Create a new coroutine and return it. When the sub returns, the coroutine
215automatically terminates as if C<terminate> with the returned values were 384automatically terminates as if C<terminate> with the returned values were
216called. To make the process run you must first put it into the ready queue 385called. To make the coroutine run you must first put it into the ready
217by calling the ready method. 386queue by calling the ready method.
218 387
219=cut 388See C<async> and C<Coro::State::new> for additional info about the
389coroutine environment.
220 390
391=cut
392
221sub _newcoro { 393sub _run_coro {
222 terminate &{+shift}; 394 terminate &{+shift};
223} 395}
224 396
225sub new { 397sub new {
226 my $class = shift; 398 my $class = shift;
227 bless {
228 _coro_state => (new Coro::State $_[0] && \&_newcoro, @_),
229 }, $class;
230}
231 399
232=item $process->ready 400 $class->SUPER::new (\&_run_coro, @_)
401}
233 402
234Put the given process into the ready queue. 403=item $success = $coroutine->ready
235 404
236=cut 405Put the given coroutine into the end of its ready queue (there is one
406queue for each priority) and return true. If the coroutine is already in
407the ready queue, do nothing and return false.
237 408
409This ensures that the scheduler will resume this coroutine automatically
410once all the coroutines of higher priority and all coroutines of the same
411priority that were put into the ready queue earlier have been resumed.
412
413=item $is_ready = $coroutine->is_ready
414
415Return whether the coroutine is currently the ready queue or not,
416
238=item $process->cancel (arg...) 417=item $coroutine->cancel (arg...)
239 418
240Temrinates the given process and makes it return the given arguments as 419Terminates the given coroutine and makes it return the given arguments as
241status (default: the empty list). 420status (default: the empty list). Never returns if the coroutine is the
421current coroutine.
242 422
243=cut 423=cut
244 424
245sub cancel { 425sub cancel {
246 my $self = shift; 426 my $self = shift;
247 $self->{status} = [@_]; 427 $self->{_status} = [@_];
428
429 if ($current == $self) {
248 push @destroy, $self; 430 push @destroy, $self;
249 $manager->ready; 431 $manager->ready;
250 &schedule if $current == $self; 432 &schedule while 1;
433 } else {
434 $self->_cancel;
435 }
251} 436}
252 437
438=item $coroutine->throw ([$scalar])
439
440If C<$throw> is specified and defined, it will be thrown as an exception
441inside the coroutine at the next convenient point in time. Otherwise
442clears the exception object.
443
444Coro will check for the exception each time a schedule-like-function
445returns, i.e. after each C<schedule>, C<cede>, C<< Coro::Semaphore->down
446>>, C<< Coro::Handle->readable >> and so on. Note that this means that
447when a coroutine is acquiring a lock, it might only throw after it has
448sucessfully acquired it.
449
450The exception object will be thrown "as is" with the specified scalar in
451C<$@>, i.e. if it is a string, no line number or newline will be appended
452(unlike with C<die>).
453
454This can be used as a softer means than C<cancel> to ask a coroutine to
455end itself, although there is no guarantee that the exception will lead to
456termination, and if the exception isn't caught it might well end the whole
457program.
458
459You might also think of C<throw> as being the moral equivalent of
460C<kill>ing a coroutine with a signal (in this case, a scalar).
461
253=item $process->join 462=item $coroutine->join
254 463
255Wait until the coroutine terminates and return any values given to the 464Wait until the coroutine terminates and return any values given to the
256C<terminate> or C<cancel> functions. C<join> can be called multiple times 465C<terminate> or C<cancel> functions. C<join> can be called concurrently
257from multiple processes. 466from multiple coroutines, and all will be resumed and given the status
467return once the C<$coroutine> terminates.
258 468
259=cut 469=cut
260 470
261sub join { 471sub join {
262 my $self = shift; 472 my $self = shift;
473
263 unless ($self->{status}) { 474 unless ($self->{_status}) {
264 push @{$self->{join}}, $current; 475 my $current = $current;
265 &schedule; 476
477 push @{$self->{_on_destroy}}, sub {
478 $current->ready;
479 undef $current;
480 };
481
482 &schedule while $current;
266 } 483 }
484
267 wantarray ? @{$self->{status}} : $self->{status}[0]; 485 wantarray ? @{$self->{_status}} : $self->{_status}[0];
268} 486}
269 487
488=item $coroutine->on_destroy (\&cb)
489
490Registers a callback that is called when this coroutine gets destroyed,
491but before it is joined. The callback gets passed the terminate arguments,
492if any, and I<must not> die, under any circumstances.
493
494=cut
495
496sub on_destroy {
497 my ($self, $cb) = @_;
498
499 push @{ $self->{_on_destroy} }, $cb;
500}
501
270=item $oldprio = $process->prio($newprio) 502=item $oldprio = $coroutine->prio ($newprio)
271 503
272Sets (or gets, if the argument is missing) the priority of the 504Sets (or gets, if the argument is missing) the priority of the
273process. Higher priority processes get run before lower priority 505coroutine. Higher priority coroutines get run before lower priority
274processes. Priorities are small signed integers (currently -4 .. +3), 506coroutines. Priorities are small signed integers (currently -4 .. +3),
275that you can refer to using PRIO_xxx constants (use the import tag :prio 507that you can refer to using PRIO_xxx constants (use the import tag :prio
276to get then): 508to get then):
277 509
278 PRIO_MAX > PRIO_HIGH > PRIO_NORMAL > PRIO_LOW > PRIO_IDLE > PRIO_MIN 510 PRIO_MAX > PRIO_HIGH > PRIO_NORMAL > PRIO_LOW > PRIO_IDLE > PRIO_MIN
279 3 > 1 > 0 > -1 > -3 > -4 511 3 > 1 > 0 > -1 > -3 > -4
282 current->prio(PRIO_HIGH); 514 current->prio(PRIO_HIGH);
283 515
284The idle coroutine ($Coro::idle) always has a lower priority than any 516The idle coroutine ($Coro::idle) always has a lower priority than any
285existing coroutine. 517existing coroutine.
286 518
287Changing the priority of the current process will take effect immediately, 519Changing the priority of the current coroutine will take effect immediately,
288but changing the priority of processes in the ready queue (but not 520but changing the priority of coroutines in the ready queue (but not
289running) will only take effect after the next schedule (of that 521running) will only take effect after the next schedule (of that
290process). This is a bug that will be fixed in some future version. 522coroutine). This is a bug that will be fixed in some future version.
291 523
292=cut
293
294sub prio {
295 my $old = $_[0]{prio};
296 $_[0]{prio} = $_[1] if @_ > 1;
297 $old;
298}
299
300=item $newprio = $process->nice($change) 524=item $newprio = $coroutine->nice ($change)
301 525
302Similar to C<prio>, but subtract the given value from the priority (i.e. 526Similar to C<prio>, but subtract the given value from the priority (i.e.
303higher values mean lower priority, just as in unix). 527higher values mean lower priority, just as in unix).
304 528
305=cut
306
307sub nice {
308 $_[0]{prio} -= $_[1];
309}
310
311=item $olddesc = $process->desc($newdesc) 529=item $olddesc = $coroutine->desc ($newdesc)
312 530
313Sets (or gets in case the argument is missing) the description for this 531Sets (or gets in case the argument is missing) the description for this
314process. This is just a free-form string you can associate with a process. 532coroutine. This is just a free-form string you can associate with a
533coroutine.
534
535This method simply sets the C<< $coroutine->{desc} >> member to the given
536string. You can modify this member directly if you wish.
315 537
316=cut 538=cut
317 539
318sub desc { 540sub desc {
319 my $old = $_[0]{desc}; 541 my $old = $_[0]{desc};
321 $old; 543 $old;
322} 544}
323 545
324=back 546=back
325 547
548=head2 GLOBAL FUNCTIONS
549
550=over 4
551
552=item Coro::nready
553
554Returns the number of coroutines that are currently in the ready state,
555i.e. that can be switched to by calling C<schedule> directory or
556indirectly. The value C<0> means that the only runnable coroutine is the
557currently running one, so C<cede> would have no effect, and C<schedule>
558would cause a deadlock unless there is an idle handler that wakes up some
559coroutines.
560
561=item my $guard = Coro::guard { ... }
562
563This creates and returns a guard object. Nothing happens until the object
564gets destroyed, in which case the codeblock given as argument will be
565executed. This is useful to free locks or other resources in case of a
566runtime error or when the coroutine gets canceled, as in both cases the
567guard block will be executed. The guard object supports only one method,
568C<< ->cancel >>, which will keep the codeblock from being executed.
569
570Example: set some flag and clear it again when the coroutine gets canceled
571or the function returns:
572
573 sub do_something {
574 my $guard = Coro::guard { $busy = 0 };
575 $busy = 1;
576
577 # do something that requires $busy to be true
578 }
579
580=cut
581
582sub guard(&) {
583 bless \(my $cb = $_[0]), "Coro::guard"
584}
585
586sub Coro::guard::cancel {
587 ${$_[0]} = sub { };
588}
589
590sub Coro::guard::DESTROY {
591 ${$_[0]}->();
592}
593
594
595=item unblock_sub { ... }
596
597This utility function takes a BLOCK or code reference and "unblocks" it,
598returning a new coderef. Unblocking means that calling the new coderef
599will return immediately without blocking, returning nothing, while the
600original code ref will be called (with parameters) from within another
601coroutine.
602
603The reason this function exists is that many event libraries (such as the
604venerable L<Event|Event> module) are not coroutine-safe (a weaker form
605of thread-safety). This means you must not block within event callbacks,
606otherwise you might suffer from crashes or worse. The only event library
607currently known that is safe to use without C<unblock_sub> is L<EV>.
608
609This function allows your callbacks to block by executing them in another
610coroutine where it is safe to block. One example where blocking is handy
611is when you use the L<Coro::AIO|Coro::AIO> functions to save results to
612disk, for example.
613
614In short: simply use C<unblock_sub { ... }> instead of C<sub { ... }> when
615creating event callbacks that want to block.
616
617If your handler does not plan to block (e.g. simply sends a message to
618another coroutine, or puts some other coroutine into the ready queue),
619there is no reason to use C<unblock_sub>.
620
621Note that you also need to use C<unblock_sub> for any other callbacks that
622are indirectly executed by any C-based event loop. For example, when you
623use a module that uses L<AnyEvent> (and you use L<Coro::AnyEvent>) and it
624provides callbacks that are the result of some event callback, then you
625must not block either, or use C<unblock_sub>.
626
627=cut
628
629our @unblock_queue;
630
631# we create a special coro because we want to cede,
632# to reduce pressure on the coro pool (because most callbacks
633# return immediately and can be reused) and because we cannot cede
634# inside an event callback.
635our $unblock_scheduler = new Coro sub {
636 while () {
637 while (my $cb = pop @unblock_queue) {
638 # this is an inlined copy of async_pool
639 my $coro = (pop @async_pool) || new Coro \&pool_handler;
640
641 $coro->{_invoke} = $cb;
642 $coro->ready;
643 cede; # for short-lived callbacks, this reduces pressure on the coro pool
644 }
645 schedule; # sleep well
646 }
647};
648$unblock_scheduler->{desc} = "[unblock_sub scheduler]";
649
650sub unblock_sub(&) {
651 my $cb = shift;
652
653 sub {
654 unshift @unblock_queue, [$cb, @_];
655 $unblock_scheduler->ready;
656 }
657}
658
659=back
660
326=cut 661=cut
327 662
3281; 6631;
329 664
330=head1 BUGS/LIMITATIONS 665=head1 BUGS/LIMITATIONS
331 666
332 - you must make very sure that no coro is still active on global 667=over 4
333 destruction. very bad things might happen otherwise (usually segfaults).
334 668
669=item fork with pthread backend
670
671When Coro is compiled using the pthread backend (which isn't recommended
672but required on many BSDs as their libcs are completely broken), then
673coroutines will not survive a fork. There is no known workaround except to
674fix your libc and use a saner backend.
675
676=item perl process emulation ("threads")
677
335 - this module is not thread-safe. You should only ever use this module 678This module is not perl-pseudo-thread-safe. You should only ever use this
336 from the same thread (this requirement might be losened in the future 679module from the same thread (this requirement might be removed in the
337 to allow per-thread schedulers, but Coro::State does not yet allow 680future to allow per-thread schedulers, but Coro::State does not yet allow
338 this). 681this). I recommend disabling thread support and using processes, as having
682the windows process emulation enabled under unix roughly halves perl
683performance, even when not used.
684
685=item coroutine switching not signal safe
686
687You must not switch to another coroutine from within a signal handler
688(only relevant with %SIG - most event libraries provide safe signals).
689
690That means you I<MUST NOT> call any function that might "block" the
691current coroutine - C<cede>, C<schedule> C<< Coro::Semaphore->down >> or
692anything that calls those. Everything else, including calling C<ready>,
693works.
694
695=back
696
339 697
340=head1 SEE ALSO 698=head1 SEE ALSO
341 699
342L<Coro::Channel>, L<Coro::Cont>, L<Coro::Specific>, L<Coro::Semaphore>, 700Event-Loop integration: L<Coro::AnyEvent>, L<Coro::EV>, L<Coro::Event>.
343L<Coro::Signal>, L<Coro::State>, L<Coro::Timer>, L<Coro::Event>, 701
344L<Coro::Handle>, L<Coro::RWLock>, L<Coro::Socket>. 702Debugging: L<Coro::Debug>.
703
704Support/Utility: L<Coro::Specific>, L<Coro::Util>.
705
706Locking/IPC: L<Coro::Signal>, L<Coro::Channel>, L<Coro::Semaphore>, L<Coro::SemaphoreSet>, L<Coro::RWLock>.
707
708IO/Timers: L<Coro::Timer>, L<Coro::Handle>, L<Coro::Socket>, L<Coro::AIO>.
709
710Compatibility: L<Coro::LWP>, L<Coro::BDB>, L<Coro::Storable>, L<Coro::Select>.
711
712XS API: L<Coro::MakeMaker>.
713
714Low level Configuration, Coroutine Environment: L<Coro::State>.
345 715
346=head1 AUTHOR 716=head1 AUTHOR
347 717
348 Marc Lehmann <pcg@goof.com> 718 Marc Lehmann <schmorp@schmorp.de>
349 http://home.schmorp.de/ 719 http://home.schmorp.de/
350 720
351=cut 721=cut
352 722

Diff Legend

Removed lines
+ Added lines
< Changed lines
> Changed lines