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Revision 1.12 by root, Mon Oct 29 08:52:28 2007 UTC vs.
Revision 1.102 by root, Mon Sep 8 17:27:42 2008 UTC

1=head1 NAME 1=head1 NAME
2 2
3EV - perl interface to libevent, monkey.org/~provos/libevent/ 3EV - perl interface to libev, a high performance full-featured event loop
4 4
5=head1 SYNOPSIS 5=head1 SYNOPSIS
6 6
7 use EV; 7 use EV;
8
9 # TIMERS
10
11 my $w = EV::timer 2, 0, sub {
12 warn "is called after 2s";
13 };
14
15 my $w = EV::timer 2, 2, sub {
16 warn "is called roughly every 2s (repeat = 2)";
17 };
18
19 undef $w; # destroy event watcher again
20
21 my $w = EV::periodic 0, 60, 0, sub {
22 warn "is called every minute, on the minute, exactly";
23 };
24
25 # IO
26
27 my $w = EV::io *STDIN, EV::READ, sub {
28 my ($w, $revents) = @_; # all callbacks receive the watcher and event mask
29 warn "stdin is readable, you entered: ", <STDIN>;
30 };
31
32 # SIGNALS
33
34 my $w = EV::signal 'QUIT', sub {
35 warn "sigquit received\n";
36 };
37
38 # CHILD/PID STATUS CHANGES
8 39
9 # TIMER 40 my $w = EV::child 666, 0, sub {
41 my ($w, $revents) = @_;
42 my $status = $w->rstatus;
43 };
10 44
11 my $w = EV::timer 2, 0, sub { 45 # STAT CHANGES
12 warn "is called after 2s"; 46 my $w = EV::stat "/etc/passwd", 10, sub {
13 };
14
15 my $w = EV::timer 2, 1, sub {
16 warn "is called roughly every 2s (repeat = 1)";
17 };
18
19 undef $w; # destroy event watcher again
20
21 my $w = EV::timer_abs 0, 60, sub {
22 warn "is called every minute, on the minute, exactly";
23 };
24
25 # IO
26
27 my $w = EV::io \*STDIN, EV::READ | EV::PERSIST, sub {
28 my ($w, $events) = @_; # all callbacks get the watcher object and event mask
29 if ($events & EV::TIMEOUT) {
30 warn "nothing received on stdin for 10 seconds, retrying";
31 } else {
32 warn "stdin is readable, you entered: ", <STDIN>;
33 }
34 };
35 $w->timeout (10);
36
37 my $w = EV::timed_io \*STDIN, EV::READ, 30, sub {
38 my ($w, $events) = @_; 47 my ($w, $revents) = @_;
39 if ($_[1] & EV::TIMEOUT) { 48 warn $w->path, " has changed somehow.\n";
40 warn "nothing entered within 30 seconds, bye bye.\n";
41 $w->stop;
42 } else {
43 my $line = <STDIN>;
44 warn "you entered something, you again have 30 seconds.\n";
45 }
46 }; 49 };
47 50
48 # SIGNALS
49
50 my $w = EV::signal 'QUIT', sub {
51 warn "sigquit received\n";
52 };
53
54 my $w = EV::signal 3, sub {
55 warn "sigquit received (this is GNU/Linux, right?)\n";
56 };
57
58 # MAINLOOP 51 # MAINLOOP
59 EV::dispatch; # loop as long as watchers are active 52 EV::loop; # loop until EV::unloop is called or all watchers stop
60 EV::loop; # the same thing
61 EV::loop EV::LOOP_ONCE; # block until some events could be handles 53 EV::loop EV::LOOP_ONESHOT; # block until at least one event could be handled
62 EV::loop EV::LOOP_NONBLOCK; # check and handle some events, but do not wait 54 EV::loop EV::LOOP_NONBLOCK; # try to handle same events, but do not block
63 55
64=head1 DESCRIPTION 56=head1 DESCRIPTION
65 57
66This module provides an interface to libevent 58This module provides an interface to libev
67(L<http://monkey.org/~provos/libevent/>). You probably should acquaint 59(L<http://software.schmorp.de/pkg/libev.html>). While the documentation
68yourself with its documentation and source code to be able to use this 60below is comprehensive, one might also consult the documentation of libev
69module fully. 61itself (L<http://pod.tst.eu/http://cvs.schmorp.de/libev/ev.pod>) for more
62subtle details on watcher semantics or some discussion on the available
63backends, or how to force a specific backend with C<LIBEV_FLAGS>, or just
64about in any case because it has much more detailed information.
70 65
71Please note thta this module disables the libevent EPOLL method by 66This module is very fast and scalable. It is actually so fast that you
72default, see BUGS, below, if you need to enable it. 67can use it through the L<AnyEvent> module, stay portable to other event
68loops (if you don't rely on any watcher types not available through it)
69and still be faster than with any other event loop currently supported in
70Perl.
73 71
74=cut 72=cut
75 73
76package EV; 74package EV;
77 75
76no warnings;
78use strict; 77use strict;
79 78
80BEGIN { 79BEGIN {
81 our $VERSION = '0.03'; 80 our $VERSION = '3.44';
82 use XSLoader; 81 use XSLoader;
83 XSLoader::load "EV", $VERSION; 82 XSLoader::load "EV", $VERSION;
84} 83}
85 84
85@EV::IO::ISA =
86@EV::Timer::ISA =
87@EV::Periodic::ISA =
88@EV::Signal::ISA =
89@EV::Child::ISA =
90@EV::Stat::ISA =
91@EV::Idle::ISA =
92@EV::Prepare::ISA =
93@EV::Check::ISA =
94@EV::Embed::ISA =
95@EV::Fork::ISA =
96@EV::Async::ISA =
97 "EV::Watcher";
98
99@EV::Loop::Default::ISA = "EV::Loop";
100
101=head1 EVENT LOOPS
102
103EV supports multiple event loops: There is a single "default event loop"
104that can handle everything including signals and child watchers, and any
105number of "dynamic event loops" that can use different backends (with
106various limitations), but no child and signal watchers.
107
108You do not have to do anything to create the default event loop: When
109the module is loaded a suitable backend is selected on the premise of
110selecting a working backend (which for example rules out kqueue on most
111BSDs). Modules should, unless they have "special needs" always use the
112default loop as this is fastest (perl-wise), best supported by other
113modules (e.g. AnyEvent or Coro) and most portable event loop.
114
115For specific programs you can create additional event loops dynamically.
116
117If you want to take avdantage of kqueue (which often works properly for
118sockets only) even though the default loop doesn't enable it, you can
119I<embed> a kqueue loop into the default loop: running the default loop
120will then also service the kqueue loop to some extent. See the example in
121the section about embed watchers for an example on how to achieve that.
122
123=over 4
124
125=item $loop = new EV::loop [$flags]
126
127Create a new event loop as per the specified flags. Please refer to the
128C<ev_loop_new ()> function description in the libev documentation
129(L<http://pod.tst.eu/http://cvs.schmorp.de/libev/ev.pod#GLOBAL_FUNCTIONS>)
130for more info.
131
132The loop will automatically be destroyed when it is no longer referenced
133by any watcher and the loop object goes out of scope.
134
135Using C<EV::FLAG_FORKCHECK> is recommended, as only the default event loop
136is protected by this module.
137
138=item $loop->loop_fork
139
140Must be called after a fork in the child, before entering or continuing
141the event loop. An alternative is to use C<EV::FLAG_FORKCHECK> which calls
142this function automatically, at some performance loss (refer to the libev
143documentation).
144
145=item $loop->loop_verify
146
147Calls C<ev_verify> to make internal consistency checks (for debugging
148libev) and abort the program if any data structures were found to be
149corrupted.
150
151=item $loop = EV::default_loop [$flags]
152
153Return the default loop (which is a singleton object). Since this module
154already creates the default loop with default flags, specifying flags here
155will not have any effect unless you destroy the default loop first, which
156isn't supported. So in short: don't do it, and if you break it, you get to
157keep the pieces.
158
159=back
160
161
86=head1 BASIC INTERFACE 162=head1 BASIC INTERFACE
87 163
88=over 4 164=over 4
89 165
90=item $EV::NPRI
91
92How many priority levels are available.
93
94=item $EV::DIED 166=item $EV::DIED
95 167
96Must contain a reference to a function that is called when a callback 168Must contain a reference to a function that is called when a callback
97throws an exception (with $@ containing thr error). The default prints an 169throws an exception (with $@ containing the error). The default prints an
98informative message and continues. 170informative message and continues.
99 171
100If this callback throws an exception it will be silently ignored. 172If this callback throws an exception it will be silently ignored.
101 173
174=item $flags = EV::supported_backends
175
176=item $flags = EV::recommended_backends
177
178=item $flags = EV::embeddable_backends
179
180Returns the set (see C<EV::BACKEND_*> flags) of backends supported by this
181instance of EV, the set of recommended backends (supposed to be good) for
182this platform and the set of embeddable backends (see EMBED WATCHERS).
183
184=item EV::sleep $seconds
185
186Block the process for the given number of (fractional) seconds.
187
188=item $time = EV::time
189
190Returns the current time in (fractional) seconds since the epoch.
191
102=item $time = EV::now 192=item $time = EV::now
103 193
104Returns the time in (fractional) seconds since the epoch. 194=item $time = $loop->now
105 195
106=item $version = EV::version 196Returns the time the last event loop iteration has been started. This
197is the time that (relative) timers are based on, and refering to it is
198usually faster then calling EV::time.
107 199
108=item $method = EV::method 200=item $backend = EV::backend
109 201
110Return version string and event polling method used. 202=item $backend = $loop->backend
111 203
112=item EV::loop $flags # EV::LOOP_ONCE, EV::LOOP_ONESHOT 204Returns an integer describing the backend used by libev (EV::METHOD_SELECT
205or EV::METHOD_EPOLL).
113 206
114=item EV::loopexit $after 207=item EV::loop [$flags]
115 208
116Exit any active loop or dispatch after C<$after> seconds or immediately if 209=item $loop->loop ([$flags])
117C<$after> is missing or zero.
118 210
119=item EV::dispatch 211Begin checking for events and calling callbacks. It returns when a
212callback calls EV::unloop.
120 213
121Same as C<EV::loop 0>. 214The $flags argument can be one of the following:
122 215
123=item EV::event $callback 216 0 as above
217 EV::LOOP_ONESHOT block at most once (wait, but do not loop)
218 EV::LOOP_NONBLOCK do not block at all (fetch/handle events but do not wait)
124 219
125Creates a new event watcher waiting for nothing, calling the given callback. 220=item EV::unloop [$how]
126 221
222=item $loop->unloop ([$how])
223
224When called with no arguments or an argument of EV::UNLOOP_ONE, makes the
225innermost call to EV::loop return.
226
227When called with an argument of EV::UNLOOP_ALL, all calls to EV::loop will return as
228fast as possible.
229
230=item $count = EV::loop_count
231
232=item $count = $loop->loop_count
233
234Return the number of times the event loop has polled for new
235events. Sometiems useful as a generation counter.
236
237=item EV::once $fh_or_undef, $events, $timeout, $cb->($revents)
238
239=item $loop->once ($fh_or_undef, $events, $timeout, $cb->($revents))
240
241This function rolls together an I/O and a timer watcher for a single
242one-shot event without the need for managing a watcher object.
243
244If C<$fh_or_undef> is a filehandle or file descriptor, then C<$events>
245must be a bitset containing either C<EV::READ>, C<EV::WRITE> or C<EV::READ
246| EV::WRITE>, indicating the type of I/O event you want to wait for. If
247you do not want to wait for some I/O event, specify C<undef> for
248C<$fh_or_undef> and C<0> for C<$events>).
249
250If timeout is C<undef> or negative, then there will be no
251timeout. Otherwise a EV::timer with this value will be started.
252
253When an error occurs or either the timeout or I/O watcher triggers, then
254the callback will be called with the received event set (in general
255you can expect it to be a combination of C<EV::ERROR>, C<EV::READ>,
256C<EV::WRITE> and C<EV::TIMEOUT>).
257
258EV::once doesn't return anything: the watchers stay active till either
259of them triggers, then they will be stopped and freed, and the callback
260invoked.
261
262=item EV::feed_fd_event ($fd, $revents)
263
264=item $loop->feed_fd_event ($fd, $revents)
265
266Feed an event on a file descriptor into EV. EV will react to this call as
267if the readyness notifications specified by C<$revents> (a combination of
268C<EV::READ> and C<EV::WRITE>) happened on the file descriptor C<$fd>.
269
270=item EV::feed_signal_event ($signal)
271
272Feed a signal event into EV. EV will react to this call as if the signal
273specified by C<$signal> had occured.
274
275=item EV::set_io_collect_interval $time
276
277=item $loop->set_io_collect_interval ($time)
278
279=item EV::set_timeout_collect_interval $time
280
281=item $loop->set_timeout_collect_interval ($time)
282
283These advanced functions set the minimum block interval when polling for I/O events and the minimum
284wait interval for timer events. See the libev documentation at
285L<http://pod.tst.eu/http://cvs.schmorp.de/libev/ev.pod#FUNCTIONS_CONTROLLING_THE_EVENT_LOOP> for
286a more detailed discussion.
287
288=back
289
290
291=head1 WATCHER OBJECTS
292
293A watcher is an object that gets created to record your interest in some
294event. For instance, if you want to wait for STDIN to become readable, you
295would create an EV::io watcher for that:
296
297 my $watcher = EV::io *STDIN, EV::READ, sub {
298 my ($watcher, $revents) = @_;
299 warn "yeah, STDIN should now be readable without blocking!\n"
300 };
301
302All watchers can be active (waiting for events) or inactive (paused). Only
303active watchers will have their callbacks invoked. All callbacks will be
304called with at least two arguments: the watcher and a bitmask of received
305events.
306
307Each watcher type has its associated bit in revents, so you can use the
308same callback for multiple watchers. The event mask is named after the
309type, i..e. EV::child sets EV::CHILD, EV::prepare sets EV::PREPARE,
310EV::periodic sets EV::PERIODIC and so on, with the exception of I/O events
311(which can set both EV::READ and EV::WRITE bits), and EV::timer (which
312uses EV::TIMEOUT).
313
314In the rare case where one wants to create a watcher but not start it at
315the same time, each constructor has a variant with a trailing C<_ns> in
316its name, e.g. EV::io has a non-starting variant EV::io_ns and so on.
317
318Please note that a watcher will automatically be stopped when the watcher
319object is destroyed, so you I<need> to keep the watcher objects returned by
320the constructors.
321
322Also, all methods changing some aspect of a watcher (->set, ->priority,
323->fh and so on) automatically stop and start it again if it is active,
324which means pending events get lost.
325
326=head2 COMMON WATCHER METHODS
327
328This section lists methods common to all watchers.
329
330=over 4
331
332=item $w->start
333
334Starts a watcher if it isn't active already. Does nothing to an already
335active watcher. By default, all watchers start out in the active state
336(see the description of the C<_ns> variants if you need stopped watchers).
337
338=item $w->stop
339
340Stop a watcher if it is active. Also clear any pending events (events that
341have been received but that didn't yet result in a callback invocation),
342regardless of whether the watcher was active or not.
343
344=item $bool = $w->is_active
345
346Returns true if the watcher is active, false otherwise.
347
348=item $current_data = $w->data
349
350=item $old_data = $w->data ($new_data)
351
352Queries a freely usable data scalar on the watcher and optionally changes
353it. This is a way to associate custom data with a watcher:
354
355 my $w = EV::timer 60, 0, sub {
356 warn $_[0]->data;
357 };
358 $w->data ("print me!");
359
360=item $current_cb = $w->cb
361
362=item $old_cb = $w->cb ($new_cb)
363
364Queries the callback on the watcher and optionally changes it. You can do
365this at any time without the watcher restarting.
366
367=item $current_priority = $w->priority
368
369=item $old_priority = $w->priority ($new_priority)
370
371Queries the priority on the watcher and optionally changes it. Pending
372watchers with higher priority will be invoked first. The valid range of
373priorities lies between EV::MAXPRI (default 2) and EV::MINPRI (default
374-2). If the priority is outside this range it will automatically be
375normalised to the nearest valid priority.
376
377The default priority of any newly-created watcher is 0.
378
379Note that the priority semantics have not yet been fleshed out and are
380subject to almost certain change.
381
382=item $w->invoke ($revents)
383
384Call the callback *now* with the given event mask.
385
386=item $w->feed_event ($revents)
387
388Feed some events on this watcher into EV. EV will react to this call as if
389the watcher had received the given C<$revents> mask.
390
391=item $revents = $w->clear_pending
392
393If the watcher is pending, this function clears its pending status and
394returns its C<$revents> bitset (as if its callback was invoked). If the
395watcher isn't pending it does nothing and returns C<0>.
396
397=item $previous_state = $w->keepalive ($bool)
398
399Normally, C<EV::loop> will return when there are no active watchers
400(which is a "deadlock" because no progress can be made anymore). This is
401convinient because it allows you to start your watchers (and your jobs),
402call C<EV::loop> once and when it returns you know that all your jobs are
403finished (or they forgot to register some watchers for their task :).
404
405Sometimes, however, this gets in your way, for example when the module
406that calls C<EV::loop> (usually the main program) is not the same module
407as a long-living watcher (for example a DNS client module written by
408somebody else even). Then you might want any outstanding requests to be
409handled, but you would not want to keep C<EV::loop> from returning just
410because you happen to have this long-running UDP port watcher.
411
412In this case you can clear the keepalive status, which means that even
413though your watcher is active, it won't keep C<EV::loop> from returning.
414
415The initial value for keepalive is true (enabled), and you cna change it
416any time.
417
418Example: Register an I/O watcher for some UDP socket but do not keep the
419event loop from running just because of that watcher.
420
421 my $udp_socket = ...
422 my $udp_watcher = EV::io $udp_socket, EV::READ, sub { ... };
423 $udp_watcher->keepalive (0);
424
425=item $loop = $w->loop
426
427Return the loop that this watcher is attached to.
428
429=back
430
431
432=head1 WATCHER TYPES
433
434Each of the following subsections describes a single watcher type.
435
436=head3 I/O WATCHERS - is this file descriptor readable or writable?
437
438=over 4
439
127=item my $w = EV::io $fileno_or_fh, $eventmask, $callback 440=item $w = EV::io $fileno_or_fh, $eventmask, $callback
128 441
129=item my $w = EV::io_ns $fileno_or_fh, $eventmask, $callback 442=item $w = EV::io_ns $fileno_or_fh, $eventmask, $callback
443
444=item $w = $loop->io ($fileno_or_fh, $eventmask, $callback)
445
446=item $w = $loop->io_ns ($fileno_or_fh, $eventmask, $callback)
130 447
131As long as the returned watcher object is alive, call the C<$callback> 448As long as the returned watcher object is alive, call the C<$callback>
132when the events specified in C<$eventmask> happen. Initially, the timeout 449when at least one of events specified in C<$eventmask> occurs.
133is disabled.
134 450
135You can additionall set a timeout to occur on the watcher, but note that
136this timeout will not be reset when you get an I/O event in the EV::PERSIST
137case, and reaching a timeout will always stop the watcher even in the
138EV::PERSIST case.
139
140If you want a timeout to occur only after a specific time of inactivity, set
141a repeating timeout and do NOT use EV::PERSIST.
142
143Eventmask can be one or more of these constants ORed together: 451The $eventmask can be one or more of these constants ORed together:
144 452
145 EV::READ wait until read() wouldn't block anymore 453 EV::READ wait until read() wouldn't block anymore
146 EV::WRITE wait until write() wouldn't block anymore 454 EV::WRITE wait until write() wouldn't block anymore
147 EV::PERSIST stay active after a (non-timeout) event occured
148 455
149The C<io_ns> variant doesn't add/start the newly created watcher. 456The C<io_ns> variant doesn't start (activate) the newly created watcher.
150 457
151=item my $w = EV::timed_io $fileno_or_fh, $eventmask, $timeout, $callback 458=item $w->set ($fileno_or_fh, $eventmask)
152 459
153=item my $w = EV::timed_io_ns $fileno_or_fh, $eventmask, $timeout, $callback 460Reconfigures the watcher, see the constructor above for details. Can be
461called at any time.
154 462
155Same as C<io> and C<io_ns>, but also specifies a timeout (as if there was 463=item $current_fh = $w->fh
156a call to C<< $w->timeout ($timout, 1) >>. The persist flag is not allowed
157and will automatically be cleared. The watcher will be restarted after each event.
158 464
159If the timeout is zero or undef, no timeout will be set, and a normal 465=item $old_fh = $w->fh ($new_fh)
160watcher (with the persist flag set!) will be created.
161 466
162This has the effect of timing out after the specified period of inactivity 467Returns the previously set filehandle and optionally set a new one.
163has happened.
164 468
165Due to the design of libevent, this is also relatively inefficient, having 469=item $current_eventmask = $w->events
166one or two io watchers and a separate timeout watcher that you reset on
167activity (by calling its C<start> method) is usually more efficient.
168 470
471=item $old_eventmask = $w->events ($new_eventmask)
472
473Returns the previously set event mask and optionally set a new one.
474
475=back
476
477
478=head3 TIMER WATCHERS - relative and optionally repeating timeouts
479
480=over 4
481
169=item my $w = EV::timer $after, $repeat, $callback 482=item $w = EV::timer $after, $repeat, $callback
170 483
171=item my $w = EV::timer_ns $after, $repeat, $callback 484=item $w = EV::timer_ns $after, $repeat, $callback
172 485
173Calls the callback after C<$after> seconds. If C<$repeat> is true, the 486=item $w = $loop->timer ($after, $repeat, $callback)
174timer will be restarted after the callback returns. This means that the
175callback would be called roughly every C<$after> seconds, prolonged by the
176time the callback takes.
177 487
488=item $w = $loop->timer_ns ($after, $repeat, $callback)
489
490Calls the callback after C<$after> seconds (which may be fractional). If
491C<$repeat> is non-zero, the timer will be restarted (with the $repeat
492value as $after) after the callback returns.
493
494This means that the callback would be called roughly after C<$after>
495seconds, and then every C<$repeat> seconds. The timer does his best not
496to drift, but it will not invoke the timer more often then once per event
497loop iteration, and might drift in other cases. If that isn't acceptable,
498look at EV::periodic, which can provide long-term stable timers.
499
500The timer is based on a monotonic clock, that is, if somebody is sitting
501in front of the machine while the timer is running and changes the system
502clock, the timer will nevertheless run (roughly) the same time.
503
178The C<timer_ns> variant doesn't add/start the newly created watcher. 504The C<timer_ns> variant doesn't start (activate) the newly created watcher.
179 505
180=item my $w = EV::timer_abs $at, $interval, $callback 506=item $w->set ($after, $repeat)
181 507
182=item my $w = EV::timer_abs_ns $at, $interval, $callback 508Reconfigures the watcher, see the constructor above for details. Can be called at
509any time.
183 510
184Similar to EV::timer, but the time is given as an absolute point in time 511=item $w->again
185(C<$at>), plus an optional C<$interval>.
186 512
187If the C<$interval> is zero, then the callback will be called at the time 513Similar to the C<start> method, but has special semantics for repeating timers:
188C<$at> if that is in the future, or as soon as possible if its in the
189past. It will not automatically repeat.
190 514
191If the C<$interval> is nonzero, then the watcher will always be scheduled 515If the timer is active and non-repeating, it will be stopped.
192to time out at the next C<$at + integer * $interval> time.
193 516
194This can be used to schedule a callback to run at very regular intervals, 517If the timer is active and repeating, reset the timeout to occur
195as long as the processing time is less then the interval (otherwise 518C<$repeat> seconds after now.
196obviously events will be skipped). 519
520If the timer is inactive and repeating, start it using the repeat value.
521
522Otherwise do nothing.
523
524This behaviour is useful when you have a timeout for some IO
525operation. You create a timer object with the same value for C<$after> and
526C<$repeat>, and then, in the read/write watcher, run the C<again> method
527on the timeout.
528
529=back
530
531
532=head3 PERIODIC WATCHERS - to cron or not to cron?
533
534=over 4
535
536=item $w = EV::periodic $at, $interval, $reschedule_cb, $callback
537
538=item $w = EV::periodic_ns $at, $interval, $reschedule_cb, $callback
539
540=item $w = $loop->periodic ($at, $interval, $reschedule_cb, $callback)
541
542=item $w = $loop->periodic_ns ($at, $interval, $reschedule_cb, $callback)
543
544Similar to EV::timer, but is not based on relative timeouts but on
545absolute times. Apart from creating "simple" timers that trigger "at" the
546specified time, it can also be used for non-drifting absolute timers and
547more complex, cron-like, setups that are not adversely affected by time
548jumps (i.e. when the system clock is changed by explicit date -s or other
549means such as ntpd). It is also the most complex watcher type in EV.
550
551It has three distinct "modes":
552
553=over 4
554
555=item * absolute timer ($interval = $reschedule_cb = 0)
556
557This time simply fires at the wallclock time C<$at> and doesn't repeat. It
558will not adjust when a time jump occurs, that is, if it is to be run
559at January 1st 2011 then it will run when the system time reaches or
560surpasses this time.
561
562=item * repeating interval timer ($interval > 0, $reschedule_cb = 0)
563
564In this mode the watcher will always be scheduled to time out at the
565next C<$at + N * $interval> time (for some integer N) and then repeat,
566regardless of any time jumps.
567
568This can be used to create timers that do not drift with respect to system
569time:
570
571 my $hourly = EV::periodic 0, 3600, 0, sub { print "once/hour\n" };
572
573That doesn't mean there will always be 3600 seconds in between triggers,
574but only that the the clalback will be called when the system time shows a
575full hour (UTC).
197 576
198Another way to think about it (for the mathematically inclined) is that 577Another way to think about it (for the mathematically inclined) is that
199C<timer_abs> will try to tun the callback at the next possible time where 578EV::periodic will try to run the callback in this mode at the next
200C<$time = $at (mod $interval)>, regardless of any time jumps. 579possible time where C<$time = $at (mod $interval)>, regardless of any time
580jumps.
201 581
582=item * manual reschedule mode ($reschedule_cb = coderef)
583
584In this mode $interval and $at are both being ignored. Instead, each
585time the periodic watcher gets scheduled, the reschedule callback
586($reschedule_cb) will be called with the watcher as first, and the current
587time as second argument.
588
589I<This callback MUST NOT stop or destroy this or any other periodic
590watcher, ever, and MUST NOT call any event loop functions or methods>. If
591you need to stop it, return 1e30 and stop it afterwards. You may create
592and start a C<EV::prepare> watcher for this task.
593
594It must return the next time to trigger, based on the passed time value
595(that is, the lowest time value larger than or equal to to the second
596argument). It will usually be called just before the callback will be
597triggered, but might be called at other times, too.
598
599This can be used to create very complex timers, such as a timer that
600triggers on each midnight, local time (actually 24 hours after the last
601midnight, to keep the example simple. If you know a way to do it correctly
602in about the same space (without requiring elaborate modules), drop me a
603note :):
604
605 my $daily = EV::periodic 0, 0, sub {
606 my ($w, $now) = @_;
607
608 use Time::Local ();
609 my (undef, undef, undef, $d, $m, $y) = localtime $now;
610 86400 + Time::Local::timelocal 0, 0, 0, $d, $m, $y
611 }, sub {
612 print "it's midnight or likely shortly after, now\n";
613 };
614
615=back
616
202The C<timer_abs_ns> variant doesn't add/start the newly created watcher. 617The C<periodic_ns> variant doesn't start (activate) the newly created watcher.
203 618
619=item $w->set ($at, $interval, $reschedule_cb)
620
621Reconfigures the watcher, see the constructor above for details. Can be called at
622any time.
623
624=item $w->again
625
626Simply stops and starts the watcher again.
627
628=item $time = $w->at
629
630Return the time that the watcher is expected to trigger next.
631
632=back
633
634
635=head3 SIGNAL WATCHERS - signal me when a signal gets signalled!
636
637=over 4
638
204=item my $w = EV::signal $signal, $callback 639=item $w = EV::signal $signal, $callback
205 640
206=item my $w = EV::signal_ns $signal, $callback 641=item $w = EV::signal_ns $signal, $callback
207 642
208Call the callback when $signal is received (the signal can be specified 643Call the callback when $signal is received (the signal can be specified by
209by number or by name, just as with kill or %SIG). Signal watchers are 644number or by name, just as with C<kill> or C<%SIG>).
210persistent no natter what.
211 645
212EV will grab the signal for the process (the kernel only allows one 646EV will grab the signal for the process (the kernel only allows one
213component to receive signals) when you start a signal watcher, and 647component to receive a signal at a time) when you start a signal watcher,
214removes it again when you stop it. Pelr does the same when you add/remove 648and removes it again when you stop it. Perl does the same when you
215callbacks to %SIG, so watch out. 649add/remove callbacks to C<%SIG>, so watch out.
216 650
217Unfortunately, only one handler can be registered per signal. Screw 651You can have as many signal watchers per signal as you want.
218libevent.
219 652
220The C<signal_ns> variant doesn't add/start the newly created watcher. 653The C<signal_ns> variant doesn't start (activate) the newly created watcher.
221 654
222=back 655=item $w->set ($signal)
223 656
224=head1 THE EV::Event CLASS 657Reconfigures the watcher, see the constructor above for details. Can be
658called at any time.
225 659
226All EV functions creating an event watcher (designated by C<my $w =>
227above) support the following methods on the returned watcher object:
228
229=over 4
230
231=item $w->add ($timeout)
232
233Stops and (re-)starts the event watcher, setting the optional timeout to
234the given value, or clearing the timeout if none is given.
235
236=item $w->start
237
238Stops and (re-)starts the event watcher without touching the timeout.
239
240=item $w->del
241
242=item $w->stop
243
244Stop the event watcher if it was started.
245
246=item $current_callback = $w->cb
247
248=item $old_callback = $w->cb ($new_callback)
249
250Return the previously set callback and optionally set a new one.
251
252=item $current_fh = $w->fh
253
254=item $old_fh = $w->fh ($new_fh)
255
256Returns the previously set filehandle and optionally set a new one (also
257clears the EV::SIGNAL flag when setting a filehandle).
258
259=item $current_signal = $w->signal 660=item $current_signum = $w->signal
260 661
261=item $old_signal = $w->signal ($new_signal) 662=item $old_signum = $w->signal ($new_signal)
262 663
664Returns the previously set signal (always as a number not name) and
665optionally set a new one.
666
667=back
668
669
670=head3 CHILD WATCHERS - watch out for process status changes
671
672=over 4
673
674=item $w = EV::child $pid, $trace, $callback
675
676=item $w = EV::child_ns $pid, $trace, $callback
677
678=item $w = $loop->child ($pid, $trace, $callback)
679
680=item $w = $loop->child_ns ($pid, $trace, $callback)
681
682Call the callback when a status change for pid C<$pid> (or any pid
683if C<$pid> is 0) has been received (a status change happens when the
684process terminates or is killed, or, when trace is true, additionally when
685it is stopped or continued). More precisely: when the process receives
686a C<SIGCHLD>, EV will fetch the outstanding exit/wait status for all
687changed/zombie children and call the callback.
688
689It is valid (and fully supported) to install a child watcher after a child
690has exited but before the event loop has started its next iteration (for
691example, first you C<fork>, then the new child process might exit, and
692only then do you install a child watcher in the parent for the new pid).
693
694You can access both exit (or tracing) status and pid by using the
695C<rstatus> and C<rpid> methods on the watcher object.
696
697You can have as many pid watchers per pid as you want, they will all be
698called.
699
700The C<child_ns> variant doesn't start (activate) the newly created watcher.
701
702=item $w->set ($pid, $trace)
703
704Reconfigures the watcher, see the constructor above for details. Can be called at
705any time.
706
707=item $current_pid = $w->pid
708
263Returns the previously set signal number and optionally set a new one (also sets 709Returns the previously set process id and optionally set a new one.
264the EV::SIGNAL flag when setting a signal).
265 710
266=item $current_eventmask = $w->events 711=item $exit_status = $w->rstatus
267 712
268=item $old_eventmask = $w->events ($new_eventmask) 713Return the exit/wait status (as returned by waitpid, see the waitpid entry
714in perlfunc).
269 715
716=item $pid = $w->rpid
717
718Return the pid of the awaited child (useful when you have installed a
719watcher for all pids).
720
721=back
722
723
724=head3 STAT WATCHERS - did the file attributes just change?
725
726=over 4
727
728=item $w = EV::stat $path, $interval, $callback
729
730=item $w = EV::stat_ns $path, $interval, $callback
731
732=item $w = $loop->stat ($path, $interval, $callback)
733
734=item $w = $loop->stat_ns ($path, $interval, $callback)
735
736Call the callback when a file status change has been detected on
737C<$path>. The C<$path> does not need to exist, changing from "path exists"
738to "path does not exist" is a status change like any other.
739
740The C<$interval> is a recommended polling interval for systems where
741OS-supported change notifications don't exist or are not supported. If
742you use C<0> then an unspecified default is used (which is highly
743recommended!), which is to be expected to be around five seconds usually.
744
745This watcher type is not meant for massive numbers of stat watchers,
746as even with OS-supported change notifications, this can be
747resource-intensive.
748
749The C<stat_ns> variant doesn't start (activate) the newly created watcher.
750
751=item ... = $w->stat
752
753This call is very similar to the perl C<stat> built-in: It stats (using
754C<lstat>) the path specified in the watcher and sets perls stat cache (as
755well as EV's idea of the current stat values) to the values found.
756
757In scalar context, a boolean is return indicating success or failure of
758the stat. In list context, the same 13-value list as with stat is returned
759(except that the blksize and blocks fields are not reliable).
760
761In the case of an error, errno is set to C<ENOENT> (regardless of the
762actual error value) and the C<nlink> value is forced to zero (if the stat
763was successful then nlink is guaranteed to be non-zero).
764
765See also the next two entries for more info.
766
767=item ... = $w->attr
768
769Just like C<< $w->stat >>, but without the initial stat'ing: this returns
770the values most recently detected by EV. See the next entry for more info.
771
772=item ... = $w->prev
773
774Just like C<< $w->stat >>, but without the initial stat'ing: this returns
775the previous set of values, before the change.
776
777That is, when the watcher callback is invoked, C<< $w->prev >> will be set
778to the values found I<before> a change was detected, while C<< $w->attr >>
779returns the values found leading to the change detection. The difference (if any)
780between C<prev> and C<attr> is what triggered the callback.
781
782If you did something to the filesystem object and do not want to trigger
783yet another change, you can call C<stat> to update EV's idea of what the
784current attributes are.
785
786=item $w->set ($path, $interval)
787
788Reconfigures the watcher, see the constructor above for details. Can be
789called at any time.
790
791=item $current_path = $w->path
792
793=item $old_path = $w->path ($new_path)
794
270Returns the previously set event mask and optionally set a new one. 795Returns the previously set path and optionally set a new one.
271 796
272=item $w->timeout ($after, $repeat) 797=item $current_interval = $w->interval
273 798
274Resets the timeout (see C<EV::timer> for details). 799=item $old_interval = $w->interval ($new_interval)
275 800
276=item $w->timeout_abs ($at, $interval) 801Returns the previously set interval and optionally set a new one. Can be
802used to query the actual interval used.
277 803
278Resets the timeout (see C<EV::timer_abs> for details).
279
280=item $w->priority_set ($priority)
281
282Set the priority of the watcher to C<$priority> (0 <= $priority < $EV::NPRI).
283
284=back 804=back
285 805
286=head1 BUGS
287 806
288Lots. Libevent itself isn't well tested and rather buggy, and this module 807=head3 IDLE WATCHERS - when you've got nothing better to do...
289is quite new at the moment.
290 808
291Please note that the epoll method is not, in general, reliable in programs 809=over 4
292that use fork (even if no libveent calls are being made in the forked
293process). If your program behaves erratically, try setting the environment
294variable C<EVENT_NOEPOLL> first when running the program.
295 810
296In general, if you fork, then you can only use the EV module in one of the 811=item $w = EV::idle $callback
297children. 812
813=item $w = EV::idle_ns $callback
814
815=item $w = $loop->idle ($callback)
816
817=item $w = $loop->idle_ns ($callback)
818
819Call the callback when there are no other pending watchers of the same or
820higher priority (excluding check, prepare and other idle watchers of the
821same or lower priority, of course). They are called idle watchers because
822when the watcher is the highest priority pending event in the process, the
823process is considered to be idle at that priority.
824
825If you want a watcher that is only ever called when I<no> other events are
826outstanding you have to set the priority to C<EV::MINPRI>.
827
828The process will not block as long as any idle watchers are active, and
829they will be called repeatedly until stopped.
830
831For example, if you have idle watchers at priority C<0> and C<1>, and
832an I/O watcher at priority C<0>, then the idle watcher at priority C<1>
833and the I/O watcher will always run when ready. Only when the idle watcher
834at priority C<1> is stopped and the I/O watcher at priority C<0> is not
835pending with the C<0>-priority idle watcher be invoked.
836
837The C<idle_ns> variant doesn't start (activate) the newly created watcher.
838
839=back
840
841
842=head3 PREPARE WATCHERS - customise your event loop!
843
844=over 4
845
846=item $w = EV::prepare $callback
847
848=item $w = EV::prepare_ns $callback
849
850=item $w = $loop->prepare ($callback)
851
852=item $w = $loop->prepare_ns ($callback)
853
854Call the callback just before the process would block. You can still
855create/modify any watchers at this point.
856
857See the EV::check watcher, below, for explanations and an example.
858
859The C<prepare_ns> variant doesn't start (activate) the newly created watcher.
860
861=back
862
863
864=head3 CHECK WATCHERS - customise your event loop even more!
865
866=over 4
867
868=item $w = EV::check $callback
869
870=item $w = EV::check_ns $callback
871
872=item $w = $loop->check ($callback)
873
874=item $w = $loop->check_ns ($callback)
875
876Call the callback just after the process wakes up again (after it has
877gathered events), but before any other callbacks have been invoked.
878
879This is used to integrate other event-based software into the EV
880mainloop: You register a prepare callback and in there, you create io and
881timer watchers as required by the other software. Here is a real-world
882example of integrating Net::SNMP (with some details left out):
883
884 our @snmp_watcher;
885
886 our $snmp_prepare = EV::prepare sub {
887 # do nothing unless active
888 $dispatcher->{_event_queue_h}
889 or return;
890
891 # make the dispatcher handle any outstanding stuff
892 ... not shown
893
894 # create an I/O watcher for each and every socket
895 @snmp_watcher = (
896 (map { EV::io $_, EV::READ, sub { } }
897 keys %{ $dispatcher->{_descriptors} }),
898
899 EV::timer +($event->[Net::SNMP::Dispatcher::_ACTIVE]
900 ? $event->[Net::SNMP::Dispatcher::_TIME] - EV::now : 0),
901 0, sub { },
902 );
903 };
904
905The callbacks are irrelevant (and are not even being called), the
906only purpose of those watchers is to wake up the process as soon as
907one of those events occurs (socket readable, or timer timed out). The
908corresponding EV::check watcher will then clean up:
909
910 our $snmp_check = EV::check sub {
911 # destroy all watchers
912 @snmp_watcher = ();
913
914 # make the dispatcher handle any new stuff
915 ... not shown
916 };
917
918The callbacks of the created watchers will not be called as the watchers
919are destroyed before this cna happen (remember EV::check gets called
920first).
921
922The C<check_ns> variant doesn't start (activate) the newly created watcher.
923
924=back
925
926
927=head3 FORK WATCHERS - the audacity to resume the event loop after a fork
928
929Fork watchers are called when a C<fork ()> was detected. The invocation
930is done before the event loop blocks next and before C<check> watchers
931are being called, and only in the child after the fork.
932
933=over 4
934
935=item $w = EV::fork $callback
936
937=item $w = EV::fork_ns $callback
938
939=item $w = $loop->fork ($callback)
940
941=item $w = $loop->fork_ns ($callback)
942
943Call the callback before the event loop is resumed in the child process
944after a fork.
945
946The C<fork_ns> variant doesn't start (activate) the newly created watcher.
947
948=back
949
950
951=head3 EMBED WATCHERS - when one backend isn't enough...
952
953This is a rather advanced watcher type that lets you embed one event loop
954into another (currently only IO events are supported in the embedded
955loop, other types of watchers might be handled in a delayed or incorrect
956fashion and must not be used).
957
958See the libev documentation at
959L<http://pod.tst.eu/http://cvs.schmorp.de/libev/ev.pod#code_ev_embed_code_when_one_backend_>
960for more details.
961
962In short, this watcher is most useful on BSD systems without working
963kqueue to still be able to handle a large number of sockets:
964
965 my $socket_loop;
966
967 # check wether we use SELECT or POLL _and_ KQUEUE is supported
968 if (
969 (EV::backend & (EV::BACKEND_POLL | EV::BACKEND_SELECT))
970 && (EV::supported_backends & EV::embeddable_backends & EV::BACKEND_KQUEUE)
971 ) {
972 # use kqueue for sockets
973 $socket_loop = new EV::Loop EV::BACKEND_KQUEUE | EV::FLAG_NOENV;
974 }
975
976 # use the default loop otherwise
977 $socket_loop ||= EV::default_loop;
978
979=over 4
980
981=item $w = EV::embed $otherloop[, $callback]
982
983=item $w = EV::embed_ns $otherloop[, $callback]
984
985=item $w = $loop->embed ($otherloop[, $callback])
986
987=item $w = $loop->embed_ns ($otherloop[, $callback])
988
989Call the callback when the embedded event loop (C<$otherloop>) has any
990I/O activity. The C<$callback> is optional: if it is missing, then the
991embedded event loop will be managed automatically (which is recommended),
992otherwise you have to invoke C<sweep> yourself.
993
994The C<embed_ns> variant doesn't start (activate) the newly created watcher.
995
996=back
997
998=head3 ASYNC WATCHERS - how to wake up another event loop
999
1000Async watchers are provided by EV, but have little use in perl directly, as perl
1001neither supports threads nor direct access to signal handlers or other
1002contexts where they could be of value.
1003
1004It is, however, possible to use them from the XS level.
1005
1006Please see the libev documentation for further details.
1007
1008=over 4
1009
1010=item $w = EV::async $callback
1011
1012=item $w = EV::async_ns $callback
1013
1014=item $w->send
1015
1016=item $bool = $w->async_pending
1017
1018=back
1019
1020
1021=head1 PERL SIGNALS
1022
1023While Perl signal handling (C<%SIG>) is not affected by EV, the behaviour
1024with EV is as the same as any other C library: Perl-signals will only be
1025handled when Perl runs, which means your signal handler might be invoked
1026only the next time an event callback is invoked.
1027
1028The solution is to use EV signal watchers (see C<EV::signal>), which will
1029ensure proper operations with regards to other event watchers.
1030
1031If you cannot do this for whatever reason, you can also force a watcher
1032to be called on every event loop iteration by installing a C<EV::check>
1033watcher:
1034
1035 my $async_check = EV::check sub { };
1036
1037This ensures that perl gets into control for a short time to handle any
1038pending signals, and also ensures (slightly) slower overall operation.
1039
1040=head1 THREADS
1041
1042Threads are not supported by this module in any way. Perl pseudo-threads
1043is evil stuff and must die. As soon as Perl gains real threads I will work
1044on thread support for it.
1045
1046=head1 FORK
1047
1048Most of the "improved" event delivering mechanisms of modern operating
1049systems have quite a few problems with fork(2) (to put it bluntly: it is
1050not supported and usually destructive). Libev makes it possible to work
1051around this by having a function that recreates the kernel state after
1052fork in the child.
1053
1054On non-win32 platforms, this module requires the pthread_atfork
1055functionality to do this automatically for you. This function is quite
1056buggy on most BSDs, though, so YMMV. The overhead for this is quite
1057negligible, because everything the function currently does is set a flag
1058that is checked only when the event loop gets used the next time, so when
1059you do fork but not use EV, the overhead is minimal.
1060
1061On win32, there is no notion of fork so all this doesn't apply, of course.
298 1062
299=cut 1063=cut
300 1064
301our $DIED = sub { 1065our $DIED = sub {
302 warn "EV: error in callback (ignoring): $@"; 1066 warn "EV: error in callback (ignoring): $@";
303}; 1067};
304 1068
305our $NPRI = 4; 1069default_loop
306our $BASE = init; 1070 or die 'EV: cannot initialise libev backend. bad $ENV{LIBEV_FLAGS}?';
307priority_init $NPRI;
308
309push @AnyEvent::REGISTRY, [EV => "EV::AnyEvent"];
310 1071
3111; 10721;
312 1073
313=head1 SEE ALSO 1074=head1 SEE ALSO
314 1075
315 L<EV::DNS>, L<event(3)>, L<event.h>, L<evdns.h>. 1076L<EV::ADNS> (asynchronous DNS), L<Glib::EV> (makes Glib/Gtk2 use EV as
316 L<EV::AnyEvent>. 1077event loop), L<EV::Glib> (embed Glib into EV), L<Coro::EV> (efficient
1078coroutines with EV), L<Net::SNMP::EV> (asynchronous SNMP), L<AnyEvent> for
1079event-loop agnostic and portable event driven programming.
317 1080
318=head1 AUTHOR 1081=head1 AUTHOR
319 1082
320 Marc Lehmann <schmorp@schmorp.de> 1083 Marc Lehmann <schmorp@schmorp.de>
321 http://home.schmorp.de/ 1084 http://home.schmorp.de/
322 1085
323=cut 1086=cut
324 1087

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