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Revision 1.16 by root, Wed Oct 31 20:10:17 2007 UTC vs.
Revision 1.79 by root, Sat Dec 22 16:37:07 2007 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 8
9 # TIMER 9 # TIMERS
10 10
11 my $w = EV::timer 2, 0, sub { 11 my $w = EV::timer 2, 0, sub {
12 warn "is called after 2s"; 12 warn "is called after 2s";
13 }; 13 };
14 14
15 my $w = EV::timer 2, 1, sub { 15 my $w = EV::timer 2, 2, sub {
16 warn "is called roughly every 2s (repeat = 1)"; 16 warn "is called roughly every 2s (repeat = 2)";
17 }; 17 };
18 18
19 undef $w; # destroy event watcher again 19 undef $w; # destroy event watcher again
20 20
21 my $w = EV::timer_abs 0, 60, sub { 21 my $w = EV::periodic 0, 60, 0, sub {
22 warn "is called every minute, on the minute, exactly"; 22 warn "is called every minute, on the minute, exactly";
23 }; 23 };
24 24
25 # IO 25 # IO
26 26
27 my $w = EV::io \*STDIN, EV::READ | EV::PERSIST, sub { 27 my $w = EV::io *STDIN, EV::READ, sub {
28 my ($w, $revents) = @_; # all callbacks get the watcher object and event mask 28 my ($w, $revents) = @_; # all callbacks receive the watcher and event mask
29 if ($revents & EV::TIMEOUT) {
30 warn "nothing received on stdin for 10 seconds, retrying";
31 } else {
32 warn "stdin is readable, you entered: ", <STDIN>; 29 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, $revents) = @_;
39 if ($revents & EV::TIMEOUT) {
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 }; 30 };
47 31
48 # SIGNALS 32 # SIGNALS
49 33
50 my $w = EV::signal 'QUIT', sub { 34 my $w = EV::signal 'QUIT', sub {
51 warn "sigquit received\n"; 35 warn "sigquit received\n";
52 }; 36 };
53 37
38 # CHILD/PID STATUS CHANGES
39
54 my $w = EV::signal 3, sub { 40 my $w = EV::child 666, sub {
55 warn "sigquit received (this is GNU/Linux, right?)\n"; 41 my ($w, $revents) = @_;
42 my $status = $w->rstatus;
56 }; 43 };
57 44
58 # CHILD/PID STATUS CHANGES 45 # STAT CHANGES
59 46 my $w = EV::stat "/etc/passwd", 10, sub {
60 my $w = EV::child 666, sub {
61 my ($w, $revents, $status) = @_; 47 my ($w, $revents) = @_;
48 warn $w->path, " has changed somehow.\n";
62 }; 49 };
63 50
64 # MAINLOOP 51 # MAINLOOP
65 EV::dispatch; # loop as long as watchers are active 52 EV::loop; # loop until EV::unloop is called or all watchers stop
66 EV::loop; # the same thing
67 EV::loop EV::LOOP_ONESHOT; # block until some events could be handles 53 EV::loop EV::LOOP_ONESHOT; # block until at least one event could be handled
68 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
69 55
70=head1 DESCRIPTION 56=head1 DESCRIPTION
71 57
72This module provides an interface to libev 58This module provides an interface to libev
73(L<http://software.schmorp.de/pkg/libev.html>). You probably should 59(L<http://software.schmorp.de/pkg/libev.html>). While the documentation
74acquaint yourself with its documentation and source code to be able to use 60below is comprehensive, one might also consult the documentation of libev
75this module fully. 61itself (L<http://cvs.schmorp.de/libev/ev.html>) for more subtle details on
62watcher semantics or some discussion on the available backends, or how to
63force a specific backend with C<LIBEV_FLAGS>, or just about in any case
64because it has much more detailed information.
76 65
77=cut 66=cut
78 67
79package EV; 68package EV;
80 69
81use strict; 70use strict;
82 71
83BEGIN { 72BEGIN {
84 our $VERSION = '0.03'; 73 our $VERSION = '2.0';
85 use XSLoader; 74 use XSLoader;
86 XSLoader::load "EV", $VERSION; 75 XSLoader::load "EV", $VERSION;
87} 76}
88 77
89@EV::Io::ISA = "EV::Watcher"; 78@EV::IO::ISA =
90@EV::Time::ISA = "EV::Watcher";
91@EV::Timer::ISA = "EV::Time"; 79@EV::Timer::ISA =
92@EV::Periodic::ISA = "EV::Time"; 80@EV::Periodic::ISA =
93@EV::Signal::ISA = "EV::Watcher"; 81@EV::Signal::ISA =
94@EV::Idle::ISA = "EV::Watcher"; 82@EV::Child::ISA =
95@EV::Prepare::ISA = "EV::Watcher"; 83@EV::Stat::ISA =
96@EV::Check::ISA = "EV::Watcher"; 84@EV::Idle::ISA =
85@EV::Prepare::ISA =
86@EV::Check::ISA =
87@EV::Embed::ISA =
88@EV::Fork::ISA =
89 "EV::Watcher";
90
91@EV::Loop::Default::ISA = "EV::Loop";
92
93=head1 EVENT LOOPS
94
95EV supports multiple event loops: There is a single "default event loop"
96that can handle everything including signals and child watchers, and any
97number of "dynamic event loops" that can use different backends (with
98various limitations), but no child and signal watchers.
99
100You do not have to do anything to create the default event loop: When
101the module is loaded a suitable backend is selected on the premise of
102selecting a working backend (which for example rules out kqueue on most
103BSDs). Modules should, unless they have "special needs" always use the
104default loop as this is fastest (perl-wise), best supported by other
105modules (e.g. AnyEvent or Coro) and most portable event loop.
106
107For specific programs you can create additional event loops dynamically.
108
109=over 4
110
111=item $loop = new EV::loop [$flags]
112
113Create a new event loop as per the specified flags. Please refer to the
114C<ev_loop_new ()> function description in the libev documentation
115(L<http://pod.tst.eu/http://cvs.schmorp.de/libev/ev.pod#GLOBAL_FUNCTIONS>)
116for more info.
117
118The loop will automatically be destroyed when it is no longer referenced
119by any watcher and the loop object goes out of scope.
120
121Using C<EV::FLAG_FORKCHECK> is recommended, as only the default event loop
122is protected by this module.
123
124=item $loop->loop_fork
125
126Must be called after a fork in the child, before entering or continuing
127the event loop. An alternative is to use C<EV::FLAG_FORKCHECK> which calls
128this fucntion automatically, at some performance loss (refer to the libev
129documentation).
130
131=item $loop = EV::default_loop [$flags]
132
133Return the default loop (which is a singleton object).
134
135=back
136
97 137
98=head1 BASIC INTERFACE 138=head1 BASIC INTERFACE
99 139
100=over 4 140=over 4
101 141
102=item $EV::NPRI
103
104How many priority levels are available.
105
106=item $EV::DIED 142=item $EV::DIED
107 143
108Must contain a reference to a function that is called when a callback 144Must contain a reference to a function that is called when a callback
109throws an exception (with $@ containing thr error). The default prints an 145throws an exception (with $@ containing the error). The default prints an
110informative message and continues. 146informative message and continues.
111 147
112If this callback throws an exception it will be silently ignored. 148If this callback throws an exception it will be silently ignored.
113 149
150=item $flags = EV::supported_backends
151
152=item $flags = EV::recommended_backends
153
154=item $flags = EV::embeddable_backends
155
156Returns the set (see C<EV::BACKEND_*> flags) of backends supported by this
157instance of EV, the set of recommended backends (supposed to be good) for
158this platform and the set of embeddable backends (see EMBED WATCHERS).
159
160=item $time = EV::time
161
162Returns the current time in (fractional) seconds since the epoch.
163
114=item $time = EV::now 164=item $time = EV::now
115 165
116Returns the time in (fractional) seconds since the epoch. 166=item $time = $loop->now
117 167
118=item $version = EV::version 168Returns the time the last event loop iteration has been started. This
169is the time that (relative) timers are based on, and refering to it is
170usually faster then calling EV::time.
119 171
120=item $method = EV::method 172=item $backend = EV::backend
121 173
122Return version string and event polling method used. 174=item $backend = $loop->backend
123 175
124=item EV::loop $flags # EV::LOOP_ONCE, EV::LOOP_ONESHOT 176Returns an integer describing the backend used by libev (EV::METHOD_SELECT
177or EV::METHOD_EPOLL).
125 178
126=item EV::loopexit $after 179=item EV::loop [$flags]
127 180
128Exit any active loop or dispatch after C<$after> seconds or immediately if 181=item $loop->loop ([$flags])
129C<$after> is missing or zero.
130 182
131=item EV::dispatch 183Begin checking for events and calling callbacks. It returns when a
184callback calls EV::unloop.
132 185
133Same as C<EV::loop 0>. 186The $flags argument can be one of the following:
134 187
135=item EV::event $callback 188 0 as above
189 EV::LOOP_ONESHOT block at most once (wait, but do not loop)
190 EV::LOOP_NONBLOCK do not block at all (fetch/handle events but do not wait)
136 191
137Creates a new event watcher waiting for nothing, calling the given callback. 192=item EV::unloop [$how]
138 193
194=item $loop->unloop ([$how])
195
196When called with no arguments or an argument of EV::UNLOOP_ONE, makes the
197innermost call to EV::loop return.
198
199When called with an argument of EV::UNLOOP_ALL, all calls to EV::loop will return as
200fast as possible.
201
202=item $count = EV::loop_count
203
204=item $count = $loop->loop_count
205
206Return the number of times the event loop has polled for new
207events. Sometiems useful as a generation counter.
208
209=item EV::once $fh_or_undef, $events, $timeout, $cb->($revents)
210
211=item $loop->once ($fh_or_undef, $events, $timeout, $cb->($revents))
212
213This function rolls together an I/O and a timer watcher for a single
214one-shot event without the need for managing a watcher object.
215
216If C<$fh_or_undef> is a filehandle or file descriptor, then C<$events>
217must be a bitset containing either C<EV::READ>, C<EV::WRITE> or C<EV::READ
218| EV::WRITE>, indicating the type of I/O event you want to wait for. If
219you do not want to wait for some I/O event, specify C<undef> for
220C<$fh_or_undef> and C<0> for C<$events>).
221
222If timeout is C<undef> or negative, then there will be no
223timeout. Otherwise a EV::timer with this value will be started.
224
225When an error occurs or either the timeout or I/O watcher triggers, then
226the callback will be called with the received event set (in general
227you can expect it to be a combination of C<EV::ERROR>, C<EV::READ>,
228C<EV::WRITE> and C<EV::TIMEOUT>).
229
230EV::once doesn't return anything: the watchers stay active till either
231of them triggers, then they will be stopped and freed, and the callback
232invoked.
233
234=item EV::feed_fd_event ($fd, $revents)
235
236=item $loop->feed_fd_event ($fd, $revents)
237
238Feed an event on a file descriptor into EV. EV will react to this call as
239if the readyness notifications specified by C<$revents> (a combination of
240C<EV::READ> and C<EV::WRITE>) happened on the file descriptor C<$fd>.
241
242=item EV::feed_signal_event ($signal)
243
244Feed a signal event into EV. EV will react to this call as if the signal
245specified by C<$signal> had occured.
246
247=item EV::set_io_collect_interval $time
248
249=item $loop->set_io_collect_interval ($time)
250
251=item EV::set_timeout_collect_interval $time
252
253=item $loop->set_timeout_collect_interval ($time)
254
255These advanced functions set the minimum block interval when polling for I/O events and the minimum
256wait interval for timer events. See the libev documentation at
257L<http://pod.tst.eu/http://cvs.schmorp.de/libev/ev.pod#FUNCTIONS_CONTROLLING_THE_EVENT_LOOP> for
258a more detailed discussion.
259
260=back
261
262
263=head1 WATCHER OBJECTS
264
265A watcher is an object that gets created to record your interest in some
266event. For instance, if you want to wait for STDIN to become readable, you
267would create an EV::io watcher for that:
268
269 my $watcher = EV::io *STDIN, EV::READ, sub {
270 my ($watcher, $revents) = @_;
271 warn "yeah, STDIN should now be readable without blocking!\n"
272 };
273
274All watchers can be active (waiting for events) or inactive (paused). Only
275active watchers will have their callbacks invoked. All callbacks will be
276called with at least two arguments: the watcher and a bitmask of received
277events.
278
279Each watcher type has its associated bit in revents, so you can use the
280same callback for multiple watchers. The event mask is named after the
281type, i..e. EV::child sets EV::CHILD, EV::prepare sets EV::PREPARE,
282EV::periodic sets EV::PERIODIC and so on, with the exception of I/O events
283(which can set both EV::READ and EV::WRITE bits), and EV::timer (which
284uses EV::TIMEOUT).
285
286In the rare case where one wants to create a watcher but not start it at
287the same time, each constructor has a variant with a trailing C<_ns> in
288its name, e.g. EV::io has a non-starting variant EV::io_ns and so on.
289
290Please note that a watcher will automatically be stopped when the watcher
291object is destroyed, so you I<need> to keep the watcher objects returned by
292the constructors.
293
294Also, all methods changing some aspect of a watcher (->set, ->priority,
295->fh and so on) automatically stop and start it again if it is active,
296which means pending events get lost.
297
298=head2 COMMON WATCHER METHODS
299
300This section lists methods common to all watchers.
301
302=over 4
303
304=item $w->start
305
306Starts a watcher if it isn't active already. Does nothing to an already
307active watcher. By default, all watchers start out in the active state
308(see the description of the C<_ns> variants if you need stopped watchers).
309
310=item $w->stop
311
312Stop a watcher if it is active. Also clear any pending events (events that
313have been received but that didn't yet result in a callback invocation),
314regardless of whether the watcher was active or not.
315
316=item $bool = $w->is_active
317
318Returns true if the watcher is active, false otherwise.
319
320=item $current_data = $w->data
321
322=item $old_data = $w->data ($new_data)
323
324Queries a freely usable data scalar on the watcher and optionally changes
325it. This is a way to associate custom data with a watcher:
326
327 my $w = EV::timer 60, 0, sub {
328 warn $_[0]->data;
329 };
330 $w->data ("print me!");
331
332=item $current_cb = $w->cb
333
334=item $old_cb = $w->cb ($new_cb)
335
336Queries the callback on the watcher and optionally changes it. You can do
337this at any time without the watcher restarting.
338
339=item $current_priority = $w->priority
340
341=item $old_priority = $w->priority ($new_priority)
342
343Queries the priority on the watcher and optionally changes it. Pending
344watchers with higher priority will be invoked first. The valid range of
345priorities lies between EV::MAXPRI (default 2) and EV::MINPRI (default
346-2). If the priority is outside this range it will automatically be
347normalised to the nearest valid priority.
348
349The default priority of any newly-created watcher is 0.
350
351Note that the priority semantics have not yet been fleshed out and are
352subject to almost certain change.
353
354=item $w->invoke ($revents)
355
356Call the callback *now* with the given event mask.
357
358=item $w->feed_event ($revents)
359
360Feed some events on this watcher into EV. EV will react to this call as if
361the watcher had received the given C<$revents> mask.
362
363=item $revents = $w->clear_pending
364
365If the watcher is pending, this function clears its pending status and
366returns its C<$revents> bitset (as if its callback was invoked). If the
367watcher isn't pending it does nothing and returns C<0>.
368
369=item $previous_state = $w->keepalive ($bool)
370
371Normally, C<EV::loop> will return when there are no active watchers
372(which is a "deadlock" because no progress can be made anymore). This is
373convinient because it allows you to start your watchers (and your jobs),
374call C<EV::loop> once and when it returns you know that all your jobs are
375finished (or they forgot to register some watchers for their task :).
376
377Sometimes, however, this gets in your way, for example when the module
378that calls C<EV::loop> (usually the main program) is not the same module
379as a long-living watcher (for example a DNS client module written by
380somebody else even). Then you might want any outstanding requests to be
381handled, but you would not want to keep C<EV::loop> from returning just
382because you happen to have this long-running UDP port watcher.
383
384In this case you can clear the keepalive status, which means that even
385though your watcher is active, it won't keep C<EV::loop> from returning.
386
387The initial value for keepalive is true (enabled), and you cna change it
388any time.
389
390Example: Register an I/O watcher for some UDP socket but do not keep the
391event loop from running just because of that watcher.
392
393 my $udp_socket = ...
394 my $udp_watcher = EV::io $udp_socket, EV::READ, sub { ... };
395 $1000udp_watcher->keepalive (0);
396
397=item $loop = $w->loop
398
399Return the loop that this watcher is attached to.
400
401=back
402
403
404=head1 WATCHER TYPES
405
406Each of the following subsections describes a single watcher type.
407
408=head3 I/O WATCHERS - is this file descriptor readable or writable?
409
410=over 4
411
139=item my $w = EV::io $fileno_or_fh, $eventmask, $callback 412=item $w = EV::io $fileno_or_fh, $eventmask, $callback
140 413
141=item my $w = EV::io_ns $fileno_or_fh, $eventmask, $callback 414=item $w = EV::io_ns $fileno_or_fh, $eventmask, $callback
415
416=item $w = $loop->io ($fileno_or_fh, $eventmask, $callback)
417
418=item $w = $loop->io_ns ($fileno_or_fh, $eventmask, $callback)
142 419
143As long as the returned watcher object is alive, call the C<$callback> 420As long as the returned watcher object is alive, call the C<$callback>
144when the events specified in C<$eventmask> happen. Initially, the timeout 421when at least one of events specified in C<$eventmask> occurs.
145is disabled.
146 422
147You can additionall set a timeout to occur on the watcher, but note that
148this timeout will not be reset when you get an I/O event in the EV::PERSIST
149case, and reaching a timeout will always stop the watcher even in the
150EV::PERSIST case.
151
152If you want a timeout to occur only after a specific time of inactivity, set
153a repeating timeout and do NOT use EV::PERSIST.
154
155Eventmask can be one or more of these constants ORed together: 423The $eventmask can be one or more of these constants ORed together:
156 424
157 EV::READ wait until read() wouldn't block anymore 425 EV::READ wait until read() wouldn't block anymore
158 EV::WRITE wait until write() wouldn't block anymore 426 EV::WRITE wait until write() wouldn't block anymore
159 EV::PERSIST stay active after a (non-timeout) event occured
160 427
161The C<io_ns> variant doesn't add/start the newly created watcher. 428The C<io_ns> variant doesn't start (activate) the newly created watcher.
162 429
163=item my $w = EV::timed_io $fileno_or_fh, $eventmask, $timeout, $callback 430=item $w->set ($fileno_or_fh, $eventmask)
164 431
165=item my $w = EV::timed_io_ns $fileno_or_fh, $eventmask, $timeout, $callback 432Reconfigures the watcher, see the constructor above for details. Can be
433called at any time.
166 434
167Same as C<io> and C<io_ns>, but also specifies a timeout (as if there was 435=item $current_fh = $w->fh
168a call to C<< $w->timeout ($timout, 1) >>. The persist flag is not allowed
169and will automatically be cleared. The watcher will be restarted after each event.
170 436
171If the timeout is zero or undef, no timeout will be set, and a normal 437=item $old_fh = $w->fh ($new_fh)
172watcher (with the persist flag set!) will be created.
173 438
174This has the effect of timing out after the specified period of inactivity 439Returns the previously set filehandle and optionally set a new one.
175has happened.
176 440
177Due to the design of libevent, this is also relatively inefficient, having 441=item $current_eventmask = $w->events
178one or two io watchers and a separate timeout watcher that you reset on
179activity (by calling its C<start> method) is usually more efficient.
180 442
443=item $old_eventmask = $w->events ($new_eventmask)
444
445Returns the previously set event mask and optionally set a new one.
446
447=back
448
449
450=head3 TIMER WATCHERS - relative and optionally repeating timeouts
451
452=over 4
453
181=item my $w = EV::timer $after, $repeat, $callback 454=item $w = EV::timer $after, $repeat, $callback
182 455
183=item my $w = EV::timer_ns $after, $repeat, $callback 456=item $w = EV::timer_ns $after, $repeat, $callback
184 457
185Calls the callback after C<$after> seconds. If C<$repeat> is true, the 458=item $w = $loop->timer ($after, $repeat, $callback)
186timer will be restarted after the callback returns. This means that the
187callback would be called roughly every C<$after> seconds, prolonged by the
188time the callback takes.
189 459
460=item $w = $loop->timer_ns ($after, $repeat, $callback)
461
462Calls the callback after C<$after> seconds (which may be fractional). If
463C<$repeat> is non-zero, the timer will be restarted (with the $repeat
464value as $after) after the callback returns.
465
466This means that the callback would be called roughly after C<$after>
467seconds, and then every C<$repeat> seconds. The timer does his best not
468to drift, but it will not invoke the timer more often then once per event
469loop iteration, and might drift in other cases. If that isn't acceptable,
470look at EV::periodic, which can provide long-term stable timers.
471
472The timer is based on a monotonic clock, that is, if somebody is sitting
473in front of the machine while the timer is running and changes the system
474clock, the timer will nevertheless run (roughly) the same time.
475
190The C<timer_ns> variant doesn't add/start the newly created watcher. 476The C<timer_ns> variant doesn't start (activate) the newly created watcher.
191 477
192=item my $w = EV::timer_abs $at, $interval, $callback 478=item $w->set ($after, $repeat)
193 479
194=item my $w = EV::timer_abs_ns $at, $interval, $callback 480Reconfigures the watcher, see the constructor above for details. Can be called at
481any time.
195 482
196Similar to EV::timer, but the time is given as an absolute point in time 483=item $w->again
197(C<$at>), plus an optional C<$interval>.
198 484
199If the C<$interval> is zero, then the callback will be called at the time 485Similar to the C<start> method, but has special semantics for repeating timers:
200C<$at> if that is in the future, or as soon as possible if its in the
201past. It will not automatically repeat.
202 486
203If the C<$interval> is nonzero, then the watcher will always be scheduled 487If the timer is active and non-repeating, it will be stopped.
204to time out at the next C<$at + integer * $interval> time.
205 488
206This can be used to schedule a callback to run at very regular intervals, 489If the timer is active and repeating, reset the timeout to occur
207as long as the processing time is less then the interval (otherwise 490C<$repeat> seconds after now.
208obviously events will be skipped). 491
492If the timer is inactive and repeating, start it using the repeat value.
493
494Otherwise do nothing.
495
496This behaviour is useful when you have a timeout for some IO
497operation. You create a timer object with the same value for C<$after> and
498C<$repeat>, and then, in the read/write watcher, run the C<again> method
499on the timeout.
500
501=back
502
503
504=head3 PERIODIC WATCHERS - to cron or not to cron?
505
506=over 4
507
508=item $w = EV::periodic $at, $interval, $reschedule_cb, $callback
509
510=item $w = EV::periodic_ns $at, $interval, $reschedule_cb, $callback
511
512=item $w = $loop->periodic ($at, $interval, $reschedule_cb, $callback)
513
514=item $w = $loop->periodic_ns ($at, $interval, $reschedule_cb, $callback)
515
516Similar to EV::timer, but is not based on relative timeouts but on
517absolute times. Apart from creating "simple" timers that trigger "at" the
518specified time, it can also be used for non-drifting absolute timers and
519more complex, cron-like, setups that are not adversely affected by time
520jumps (i.e. when the system clock is changed by explicit date -s or other
521means such as ntpd). It is also the most complex watcher type in EV.
522
523It has three distinct "modes":
524
525=over 4
526
527=item * absolute timer ($interval = $reschedule_cb = 0)
528
529This time simply fires at the wallclock time C<$at> and doesn't repeat. It
530will not adjust when a time jump occurs, that is, if it is to be run
531at January 1st 2011 then it will run when the system time reaches or
532surpasses this time.
533
534=item * non-repeating interval timer ($interval > 0, $reschedule_cb = 0)
535
536In this mode the watcher will always be scheduled to time out at the
537next C<$at + N * $interval> time (for some integer N) and then repeat,
538regardless of any time jumps.
539
540This can be used to create timers that do not drift with respect to system
541time:
542
543 my $hourly = EV::periodic 0, 3600, 0, sub { print "once/hour\n" };
544
545That doesn't mean there will always be 3600 seconds in between triggers,
546but only that the the clalback will be called when the system time shows a
547full hour (UTC).
209 548
210Another way to think about it (for the mathematically inclined) is that 549Another way to think about it (for the mathematically inclined) is that
211C<timer_abs> will try to tun the callback at the next possible time where 550EV::periodic will try to run the callback in this mode at the next
212C<$time = $at (mod $interval)>, regardless of any time jumps. 551possible time where C<$time = $at (mod $interval)>, regardless of any time
552jumps.
213 553
554=item * manual reschedule mode ($reschedule_cb = coderef)
555
556In this mode $interval and $at are both being ignored. Instead, each
557time the periodic watcher gets scheduled, the reschedule callback
558($reschedule_cb) will be called with the watcher as first, and the current
559time as second argument.
560
561I<This callback MUST NOT stop or destroy this or any other periodic
562watcher, ever>. If you need to stop it, return 1e30 and stop it
563afterwards.
564
565It must return the next time to trigger, based on the passed time value
566(that is, the lowest time value larger than to the second argument). It
567will usually be called just before the callback will be triggered, but
568might be called at other times, too.
569
570This can be used to create very complex timers, such as a timer that
571triggers on each midnight, local time (actually 24 hours after the last
572midnight, to keep the example simple. If you know a way to do it correctly
573in about the same space (without requiring elaborate modules), drop me a
574note :):
575
576 my $daily = EV::periodic 0, 0, sub {
577 my ($w, $now) = @_;
578
579 use Time::Local ();
580 my (undef, undef, undef, $d, $m, $y) = localtime $now;
581 86400 + Time::Local::timelocal 0, 0, 0, $d, $m, $y
582 }, sub {
583 print "it's midnight or likely shortly after, now\n";
584 };
585
586=back
587
214The C<timer_abs_ns> variant doesn't add/start the newly created watcher. 588The C<periodic_ns> variant doesn't start (activate) the newly created watcher.
215 589
590=item $w->set ($at, $interval, $reschedule_cb)
591
592Reconfigures the watcher, see the constructor above for details. Can be called at
593any time.
594
595=item $w->again
596
597Simply stops and starts the watcher again.
598
599=item $time = $w->at
600
601Return the time that the watcher is expected to trigger next.
602
603=back
604
605
606=head3 SIGNAL WATCHERS - signal me when a signal gets signalled!
607
608=over 4
609
216=item my $w = EV::signal $signal, $callback 610=item $w = EV::signal $signal, $callback
217 611
218=item my $w = EV::signal_ns $signal, $callback 612=item $w = EV::signal_ns $signal, $callback
219 613
220Call the callback when $signal is received (the signal can be specified 614Call the callback when $signal is received (the signal can be specified by
221by number or by name, just as with kill or %SIG). Signal watchers are 615number or by name, just as with C<kill> or C<%SIG>).
222persistent no natter what.
223 616
224EV will grab the signal for the process (the kernel only allows one 617EV will grab the signal for the process (the kernel only allows one
225component to receive signals) when you start a signal watcher, and 618component to receive a signal at a time) when you start a signal watcher,
226removes it again when you stop it. Pelr does the same when you add/remove 619and removes it again when you stop it. Perl does the same when you
227callbacks to %SIG, so watch out. 620add/remove callbacks to C<%SIG>, so watch out.
228 621
229Unfortunately, only one handler can be registered per signal. Screw 622You can have as many signal watchers per signal as you want.
230libevent.
231 623
232The C<signal_ns> variant doesn't add/start the newly created watcher. 624The C<signal_ns> variant doesn't start (activate) the newly created watcher.
233 625
234=back 626=item $w->set ($signal)
235 627
236=head1 THE EV::Event CLASS 628Reconfigures the watcher, see the constructor above for details. Can be
629called at any time.
237 630
238All EV functions creating an event watcher (designated by C<my $w =>
239above) support the following methods on the returned watcher object:
240
241=over 4
242
243=item $w->add ($timeout)
244
245Stops and (re-)starts the event watcher, setting the optional timeout to
246the given value, or clearing the timeout if none is given.
247
248=item $w->start
249
250Stops and (re-)starts the event watcher without touching the timeout.
251
252=item $w->del
253
254=item $w->stop
255
256Stop the event watcher if it was started.
257
258=item $current_callback = $w->cb
259
260=item $old_callback = $w->cb ($new_callback)
261
262Return the previously set callback and optionally set a new one.
263
264=item $current_fh = $w->fh
265
266=item $old_fh = $w->fh ($new_fh)
267
268Returns the previously set filehandle and optionally set a new one (also
269clears the EV::SIGNAL flag when setting a filehandle).
270
271=item $current_signal = $w->signal 631=item $current_signum = $w->signal
272 632
273=item $old_signal = $w->signal ($new_signal) 633=item $old_signum = $w->signal ($new_signal)
274 634
635Returns the previously set signal (always as a number not name) and
636optionally set a new one.
637
638=back
639
640
641=head3 CHILD WATCHERS - watch out for process status changes
642
643=over 4
644
645=item $w = EV::child $pid, $callback
646
647=item $w = EV::child_ns $pid, $callback
648
649=item $w = $loop->child ($pid, $callback)
650
651=item $w = $loop->child_ns ($pid, $callback)
652
653Call the callback when a status change for pid C<$pid> (or any pid if
654C<$pid> is 0) has been received. More precisely: when the process receives
655a C<SIGCHLD>, EV will fetch the outstanding exit/wait status for all
656changed/zombie children and call the callback.
657
658It is valid (and fully supported) to install a child watcher after a child
659has exited but before the event loop has started its next iteration (for
660example, first you C<fork>, then the new child process might exit, and
661only then do you install a child watcher in the parent for the new pid).
662
663You can access both exit (or tracing) status and pid by using the
664C<rstatus> and C<rpid> methods on the watcher object.
665
666You can have as many pid watchers per pid as you want, they will all be
667called.
668
669The C<child_ns> variant doesn't start (activate) the newly created watcher.
670
671=item $w->set ($pid)
672
673Reconfigures the watcher, see the constructor above for details. Can be called at
674any time.
675
676=item $current_pid = $w->pid
677
678=item $old_pid = $w->pid ($new_pid)
679
275Returns the previously set signal number and optionally set a new one (also sets 680Returns the previously set process id and optionally set a new one.
276the EV::SIGNAL flag when setting a signal).
277 681
278=item $current_eventmask = $w->events 682=item $exit_status = $w->rstatus
279 683
280=item $old_eventmask = $w->events ($new_eventmask) 684Return the exit/wait status (as returned by waitpid, see the waitpid entry
685in perlfunc).
281 686
687=item $pid = $w->rpid
688
689Return the pid of the awaited child (useful when you have installed a
690watcher for all pids).
691
692=back
693
694
695=head3 STAT WATCHERS - did the file attributes just change?
696
697=over 4
698
699=item $w = EV::stat $path, $interval, $callback
700
701=item $w = EV::stat_ns $path, $interval, $callback
702
703=item $w = $loop->stat ($path, $interval, $callback)
704
705=item $w = $loop->stat_ns ($path, $interval, $callback)
706
707Call the callback when a file status change has been detected on
708C<$path>. The C<$path> does not need to exist, changing from "path exists"
709to "path does not exist" is a status change like any other.
710
711The C<$interval> is a recommended polling interval for systems where
712OS-supported change notifications don't exist or are not supported. If
713you use C<0> then an unspecified default is used (which is highly
714recommended!), which is to be expected to be around five seconds usually.
715
716This watcher type is not meant for massive numbers of stat watchers,
717as even with OS-supported change notifications, this can be
718resource-intensive.
719
720The C<stat_ns> variant doesn't start (activate) the newly created watcher.
721
722=item ... = $w->stat
723
724This call is very similar to the perl C<stat> built-in: It stats (using
725C<lstat>) the path specified in the watcher and sets perls stat cache (as
726well as EV's idea of the current stat values) to the values found.
727
728In scalar context, a boolean is return indicating success or failure of
729the stat. In list context, the same 13-value list as with stat is returned
730(except that the blksize and blocks fields are not reliable).
731
732In the case of an error, errno is set to C<ENOENT> (regardless of the
733actual error value) and the C<nlink> value is forced to zero (if the stat
734was successful then nlink is guaranteed to be non-zero).
735
736See also the next two entries for more info.
737
738=item ... = $w->attr
739
740Just like C<< $w->stat >>, but without the initial stat'ing: this returns
741the values most recently detected by EV. See the next entry for more info.
742
743=item ... = $w->prev
744
745Just like C<< $w->stat >>, but without the initial stat'ing: this returns
746the previous set of values, before the change.
747
748That is, when the watcher callback is invoked, C<< $w->prev >> will be set
749to the values found I<before> a change was detected, while C<< $w->attr >>
750returns the values found leading to the change detection. The difference (if any)
751between C<prev> and C<attr> is what triggered the callback.
752
753If you did something to the filesystem object and do not want to trigger
754yet another change, you can call C<stat> to update EV's idea of what the
755current attributes are.
756
757=item $w->set ($path, $interval)
758
759Reconfigures the watcher, see the constructor above for details. Can be
760called at any time.
761
762=item $current_path = $w->path
763
764=item $old_path = $w->path ($new_path)
765
282Returns the previously set event mask and optionally set a new one. 766Returns the previously set path and optionally set a new one.
283 767
284=item $w->timeout ($after, $repeat) 768=item $current_interval = $w->interval
285 769
286Resets the timeout (see C<EV::timer> for details). 770=item $old_interval = $w->interval ($new_interval)
287 771
288=item $w->timeout_abs ($at, $interval) 772Returns the previously set interval and optionally set a new one. Can be
773used to query the actual interval used.
289 774
290Resets the timeout (see C<EV::timer_abs> for details).
291
292=item $w->priority_set ($priority)
293
294Set the priority of the watcher to C<$priority> (0 <= $priority < $EV::NPRI).
295
296=back 775=back
776
777
778=head3 IDLE WATCHERS - when you've got nothing better to do...
779
780=over 4
781
782=item $w = EV::idle $callback
783
784=item $w = EV::idle_ns $callback
785
786=item $w = $loop->idle ($callback)
787
788=item $w = $loop->idle_ns ($callback)
789
790Call the callback when there are no other pending watchers of the same or
791higher priority (excluding check, prepare and other idle watchers of the
792same or lower priority, of course). They are called idle watchers because
793when the watcher is the highest priority pending event in the process, the
794process is considered to be idle at that priority.
795
796If you want a watcher that is only ever called when I<no> other events are
797outstanding you have to set the priority to C<EV::MINPRI>.
798
799The process will not block as long as any idle watchers are active, and
800they will be called repeatedly until stopped.
801
802For example, if you have idle watchers at priority C<0> and C<1>, and
803an I/O watcher at priority C<0>, then the idle watcher at priority C<1>
804and the I/O watcher will always run when ready. Only when the idle watcher
805at priority C<1> is stopped and the I/O watcher at priority C<0> is not
806pending with the C<0>-priority idle watcher be invoked.
807
808The C<idle_ns> variant doesn't start (activate) the newly created watcher.
809
810=back
811
812
813=head3 PREPARE WATCHERS - customise your event loop!
814
815=over 4
816
817=item $w = EV::prepare $callback
818
819=item $w = EV::prepare_ns $callback
820
821=item $w = $loop->prepare ($callback)
822
823=item $w = $loop->prepare_ns ($callback)
824
825Call the callback just before the process would block. You can still
826create/modify any watchers at this point.
827
828See the EV::check watcher, below, for explanations and an example.
829
830The C<prepare_ns> variant doesn't start (activate) the newly created watcher.
831
832=back
833
834
835=head3 CHECK WATCHERS - customise your event loop even more!
836
837=over 4
838
839=item $w = EV::check $callback
840
841=item $w = EV::check_ns $callback
842
843=item $w = $loop->check ($callback)
844
845=item $w = $loop->check_ns ($callback)
846
847Call the callback just after the process wakes up again (after it has
848gathered events), but before any other callbacks have been invoked.
849
850This is used to integrate other event-based software into the EV
851mainloop: You register a prepare callback and in there, you create io and
852timer watchers as required by the other software. Here is a real-world
853example of integrating Net::SNMP (with some details left out):
854
855 our @snmp_watcher;
856
857 our $snmp_prepare = EV::prepare sub {
858 # do nothing unless active
859 $dispatcher->{_event_queue_h}
860 or return;
861
862 # make the dispatcher handle any outstanding stuff
863 ... not shown
864
865 # create an I/O watcher for each and every socket
866 @snmp_watcher = (
867 (map { EV::io $_, EV::READ, sub { } }
868 keys %{ $dispatcher->{_descriptors} }),
869
870 EV::timer +($event->[Net::SNMP::Dispatcher::_ACTIVE]
871 ? $event->[Net::SNMP::Dispatcher::_TIME] - EV::now : 0),
872 0, sub { },
873 );
874 };
875
876The callbacks are irrelevant (and are not even being called), the
877only purpose of those watchers is to wake up the process as soon as
878one of those events occurs (socket readable, or timer timed out). The
879corresponding EV::check watcher will then clean up:
880
881 our $snmp_check = EV::check sub {
882 # destroy all watchers
883 @snmp_watcher = ();
884
885 # make the dispatcher handle any new stuff
886 ... not shown
887 };
888
889The callbacks of the created watchers will not be called as the watchers
890are destroyed before this cna happen (remember EV::check gets called
891first).
892
893The C<check_ns> variant doesn't start (activate) the newly created watcher.
894
895=back
896
897
898=head3 FORK WATCHERS - the audacity to resume the event loop after a fork
899
900Fork watchers are called when a C<fork ()> was detected. The invocation
901is done before the event loop blocks next and before C<check> watchers
902are being called, and only in the child after the fork.
903
904=over 4
905
906=item $w = EV::fork $callback
907
908=item $w = EV::fork_ns $callback
909
910=item $w = $loop->fork ($callback)
911
912=item $w = $loop->fork_ns ($callback)
913
914Call the callback before the event loop is resumed in the child process
915after a fork.
916
917The C<fork_ns> variant doesn't start (activate) the newly created watcher.
918
919=back
920
921
922=head3 EMBED WATCHERS - when one backend isn't enough...
923
924This is a rather advanced watcher type that lets you embed one event loop
925into another (currently only IO events are supported in the embedded
926loop, other types of watchers might be handled in a delayed or incorrect
927fashion and must not be used).
928
929See the libev documentation at
930L<http://pod.tst.eu/http://cvs.schmorp.de/libev/ev.pod#code_ev_embed_code_when_one_backend_>
931for more details.
932
933In short, this watcher is most useful on BSD systems without working
934kqueue to still be able to handle a large number of sockets:
935
936 my $socket_loop;
937
938 # check wether we use SELECT or POLL _and_ KQUEUE is supported
939 if (
940 (EV::backend & (EV::BACKEND_POLL | EV::BACKEND_SELECT))
941 && (EV::supported_backends & EV::embeddable_backends & EV::BACKEND_KQUEUE)
942 ) {
943 # use kqueue for sockets
944 $socket_loop = new EV::Loop EV::BACKEND_KQUEUE | EV::FLAG_NOENV;
945 }
946
947 # use the default loop otherwise
948 $socket_loop ||= EV::default_loop;
949
950=over 4
951
952=item $w = EV::embed $otherloop, $callback
953
954=item $w = EV::embed_ns $otherloop, $callback
955
956=item $w = $loop->embed ($otherloop, $callback)
957
958=item $w = $loop->embed_ns ($otherloop, $callback)
959
960Call the callback when the embedded event loop (C<$otherloop>) has any
961I/O activity. The C<$callback> should alwas be specified as C<undef> in
962this version of EV, which means the embedded event loop will be managed
963automatically.
964
965The C<embed_ns> variant doesn't start (activate) the newly created watcher.
966
967=back
968
969
970=head1 PERL SIGNALS
971
972While Perl signal handling (C<%SIG>) is not affected by EV, the behaviour
973with EV is as the same as any other C library: Perl-signals will only be
974handled when Perl runs, which means your signal handler might be invoked
975only the next time an event callback is invoked.
976
977The solution is to use EV signal watchers (see C<EV::signal>), which will
978ensure proper operations with regards to other event watchers.
979
980If you cannot do this for whatever reason, you can also force a watcher
981to be called on every event loop iteration by installing a C<EV::check>
982watcher:
983
984 my $async_check = EV::check sub { };
985
986This ensures that perl gets into control for a short time to handle any
987pending signals, and also ensures (slightly) slower overall operation.
297 988
298=head1 THREADS 989=head1 THREADS
299 990
300Threads are not supported by this in any way. Perl pseudo-threads is evil 991Threads are not supported by this module in any way. Perl pseudo-threads
301and must die. 992is evil stuff and must die. As soon as Perl gains real threads I will work
993on thread support for it.
302 994
303=head1 BUGS 995=head1 FORK
304 996
305Lots. Libevent itself isn't well tested and rather buggy, and this module 997Most of the "improved" event delivering mechanisms of modern operating
306is quite new at the moment. 998systems have quite a few problems with fork(2) (to put it bluntly: it is
999not supported and usually destructive). Libev makes it possible to work
1000around this by having a function that recreates the kernel state after
1001fork in the child.
307 1002
308Please note that the epoll method is not, in general, reliable in programs 1003On non-win32 platforms, this module requires the pthread_atfork
309that use fork (even if no libveent calls are being made in the forked 1004functionality to do this automatically for you. This function is quite
310process). If your program behaves erratically, try setting the environment 1005buggy on most BSDs, though, so YMMV. The overhead for this is quite
311variable C<EVENT_NOEPOLL> first when running the program. 1006negligible, because everything the function currently does is set a flag
1007that is checked only when the event loop gets used the next time, so when
1008you do fork but not use EV, the overhead is minimal.
312 1009
313In general, if you fork, then you can only use the EV module in one of the 1010On win32, there is no notion of fork so all this doesn't apply, of course.
314children.
315 1011
316=cut 1012=cut
317 1013
318our $DIED = sub { 1014our $DIED = sub {
319 warn "EV: error in callback (ignoring): $@"; 1015 warn "EV: error in callback (ignoring): $@";
320}; 1016};
321 1017
322init; 1018default_loop
323 1019 or die 'EV: cannot initialise libev backend. bad $ENV{LIBEV_FLAGS}?';
324push @AnyEvent::REGISTRY, [EV => "EV::AnyEvent"];
325 1020
3261; 10211;
327 1022
328=head1 SEE ALSO 1023=head1 SEE ALSO
329 1024
330 L<EV::DNS>, L<event(3)>, L<event.h>, L<evdns.h>. 1025L<EV::ADNS> (asynchronous DNS), L<Glib::EV> (makes Glib/Gtk2 use EV as
331 L<EV::AnyEvent>. 1026event loop), L<EV::Glib> (embed Glib into EV), L<Coro::EV> (efficient
1027coroutines with EV), L<Net::SNMP::EV> (asynchronous SNMP).
332 1028
333=head1 AUTHOR 1029=head1 AUTHOR
334 1030
335 Marc Lehmann <schmorp@schmorp.de> 1031 Marc Lehmann <schmorp@schmorp.de>
336 http://home.schmorp.de/ 1032 http://home.schmorp.de/

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