[ViewVC] Diff of: cvs/cvsroot/AnyEvent-MP/MP.pm

Comparing cvsroot/AnyEvent-MP/MP.pm (file contents):
Revision 1.50 by root, Fri Aug 14 14:01:05 2009 UTC vs.
Revision 1.126 by root, Sat Mar 3 19:43:41 2012 UTC

…		…
1	=head1 NAME	1	=head1 NAME
2		2
3	AnyEvent::MP - multi-processing/message-passing framework	3	AnyEvent::MP - erlang-style multi-processing/message-passing framework
4		4
5	=head1 SYNOPSIS	5	=head1 SYNOPSIS
6		6
7	use AnyEvent::MP;	7	use AnyEvent::MP;
8		8
9	$NODE # contains this node's noderef	9	$NODE # contains this node's node ID
10	NODE # returns this node's noderef	10	NODE # returns this node's node ID
11	NODE $port # returns the noderef of the port
12		11
13	$SELF # receiving/own port id in rcv callbacks	12	$SELF # receiving/own port id in rcv callbacks
14		13
15	# initialise the node so it can send/receive messages	14	# initialise the node so it can send/receive messages
16	initialise_node; # -OR-	15	configure;
17	initialise_node "localhost:4040"; # -OR-
18	initialise_node "slave/", "localhost:4040"
19		16
20	# ports are message endpoints	17	# ports are message destinations
21		18
22	# sending messages	19	# sending messages
23	snd $port, type => data...;	20	snd $port, type => data...;
24	snd $port, @msg;	21	snd $port, @msg;
25	snd @msg_with_first_element_being_a_port;	22	snd @msg_with_first_element_being_a_port;
26		23
27	# creating/using ports, the simple way	24	# creating/using ports, the simple way
28	my $somple_port = port { my @msg = @_; 0 };	25	my $simple_port = port { my @msg = @_ };
29		26
30	# creating/using ports, type matching	27	# creating/using ports, tagged message matching
31	my $port = port;	28	my $port = port;
32	rcv $port, ping => sub { snd $_[0], "pong"; 0 };	29	rcv $port, ping => sub { snd $_[0], "pong" };
33	rcv $port, pong => sub { warn "pong received\n"; 0 };	30	rcv $port, pong => sub { warn "pong received\n" };
34		31
35	# create a port on another node	32	# create a port on another node
36	my $port = spawn $node, $initfunc, @initdata;	33	my $port = spawn $node, $initfunc, @initdata;
37		34
		35	# destroy a port again
		36	kil $port; # "normal" kill
		37	kil $port, my_error => "everything is broken"; # error kill
		38
38	# monitoring	39	# monitoring
39	mon $port, $cb->(@msg) # callback is invoked on death	40	mon $localport, $cb->(@msg) # callback is invoked on death
40	mon $port, $otherport # kill otherport on abnormal death	41	mon $localport, $otherport # kill otherport on abnormal death
41	mon $port, $otherport, @msg # send message on death	42	mon $localport, $otherport, @msg # send message on death
		43
		44	# temporarily execute code in port context
		45	peval $port, sub { die "kill the port!" };
		46
		47	# execute callbacks in $SELF port context
		48	my $timer = AE::timer 1, 0, psub {
		49	die "kill the port, delayed";
		50	};
42		51
43	=head1 CURRENT STATUS	52	=head1 CURRENT STATUS
44		53
		54	bin/aemp - stable.
45	AnyEvent::MP - stable API, should work	55	AnyEvent::MP - stable API, should work.
46	AnyEvent::MP::Intro - outdated	56	AnyEvent::MP::Intro - explains most concepts.
47	AnyEvent::MP::Kernel - WIP
48	AnyEvent::MP::Transport - mostly stable	57	AnyEvent::MP::Kernel - mostly stable API.
49		58	AnyEvent::MP::Global - stable API.
50	stay tuned.
51		59
52	=head1 DESCRIPTION	60	=head1 DESCRIPTION
53		61
54	This module (-family) implements a simple message passing framework.	62	This module (-family) implements a simple message passing framework.
55		63
56	Despite its simplicity, you can securely message other processes running	64	Despite its simplicity, you can securely message other processes running
57	on the same or other hosts.	65	on the same or other hosts, and you can supervise entities remotely.
58		66
59	For an introduction to this module family, see the L<AnyEvent::MP::Intro>	67	For an introduction to this module family, see the L<AnyEvent::MP::Intro>
60	manual page.	68	manual page and the examples under F<eg/>.
61
62	At the moment, this module family is severly broken and underdocumented,
63	so do not use. This was uploaded mainly to reserve the CPAN namespace -
64	stay tuned!
65		69
66	=head1 CONCEPTS	70	=head1 CONCEPTS
67		71
68	=over 4	72	=over 4
69		73
70	=item port	74	=item port
71		75
72	A port is something you can send messages to (with the C<snd> function).	76	Not to be confused with a TCP port, a "port" is something you can send
		77	messages to (with the C<snd> function).
73		78
74	Some ports allow you to register C<rcv> handlers that can match specific	79	Ports allow you to register C<rcv> handlers that can match all or just
75	messages. All C<rcv> handlers will receive messages they match, messages	80	some messages. Messages send to ports will not be queued, regardless of
76	will not be queued.	81	anything was listening for them or not.
77		82
		83	Ports are represented by (printable) strings called "port IDs".
		84
78	=item port id - C<noderef#portname>	85	=item port ID - C<nodeid#portname>
79		86
80	A port id is normaly the concatenation of a noderef, a hash-mark (C<#>) as	87	A port ID is the concatenation of a node ID, a hash-mark (C<#>)
81	separator, and a port name (a printable string of unspecified format). An	88	as separator, and a port name (a printable string of unspecified
82	exception is the the node port, whose ID is identical to its node	89	format created by AnyEvent::MP).
83	reference.
84		90
85	=item node	91	=item node
86		92
87	A node is a single process containing at least one port - the node	93	A node is a single process containing at least one port - the node port,
88	port. You can send messages to node ports to find existing ports or to	94	which enables nodes to manage each other remotely, and to create new
89	create new ports, among other things.	95	ports.
90		96
91	Nodes are either private (single-process only), slaves (connected to a	97	Nodes are either public (have one or more listening ports) or private
92	master node only) or public nodes (connectable from unrelated nodes).	98	(no listening ports). Private nodes cannot talk to other private nodes
		99	currently, but all nodes can talk to public nodes.
93		100
94	=item noderef - C<host:port,host:port...>, C<id@noderef>, C<id>	101	Nodes is represented by (printable) strings called "node IDs".
95		102
96	A node reference is a string that either simply identifies the node (for	103	=item node ID - C<[A-Za-z0-9_\-.:]*>
97	private and slave nodes), or contains a recipe on how to reach a given
98	node (for public nodes).
99		104
100	This recipe is simply a comma-separated list of C<address:port> pairs (for	105	A node ID is a string that uniquely identifies the node within a
101	TCP/IP, other protocols might look different).	106	network. Depending on the configuration used, node IDs can look like a
		107	hostname, a hostname and a port, or a random string. AnyEvent::MP itself
		108	doesn't interpret node IDs in any way except to uniquely identify a node.
102		109
103	Node references come in two flavours: resolved (containing only numerical	110	=item binds - C<ip:port>
104	addresses) or unresolved (where hostnames are used instead of addresses).
105		111
106	Before using an unresolved node reference in a message you first have to	112	Nodes can only talk to each other by creating some kind of connection to
107	resolve it.	113	each other. To do this, nodes should listen on one or more local transport
		114	endpoints - binds.
		115
		116	Currently, only standard C<ip:port> specifications can be used, which
		117	specify TCP ports to listen on. So a bind is basically just a tcp socket
		118	in listening mode thta accepts conenctions form other nodes.
		119
		120	=item seed nodes
		121
		122	When a node starts, it knows nothing about the network it is in - it
		123	needs to connect to at least one other node that is already in the
		124	network. These other nodes are called "seed nodes".
		125
		126	Seed nodes themselves are not special - they are seed nodes only because
		127	some other node I<uses> them as such, but any node can be used as seed
		128	node for other nodes, and eahc node cna use a different set of seed nodes.
		129
		130	In addition to discovering the network, seed nodes are also used to
		131	maintain the network - all nodes using the same seed node form are part of
		132	the same network. If a network is split into multiple subnets because e.g.
		133	the network link between the parts goes down, then using the same seed
		134	nodes for all nodes ensures that eventually the subnets get merged again.
		135
		136	Seed nodes are expected to be long-running, and at least one seed node
		137	should always be available. They should also be relatively responsive - a
		138	seed node that blocks for long periods will slow down everybody else.
		139
		140	For small networks, it's best if every node uses the same set of seed
		141	nodes. For large networks, it can be useful to specify "regional" seed
		142	nodes for most nodes in an area, and use all seed nodes as seed nodes for
		143	each other. What's important is that all seed nodes connections form a
		144	complete graph, so that the network cannot split into separate subnets
		145	forever.
		146
		147	Seed nodes are represented by seed IDs.
		148
		149	=item seed IDs - C<host:port>
		150
		151	Seed IDs are transport endpoint(s) (usually a hostname/IP address and a
		152	TCP port) of nodes that should be used as seed nodes.
		153
		154	=item global nodes
		155
		156	An AEMP network needs a discovery service - nodes need to know how to
		157	connect to other nodes they only know by name. In addition, AEMP offers a
		158	distributed "group database", which maps group names to a list of strings
		159	- for example, to register worker ports.
		160
		161	A network needs at least one global node to work, and allows every node to
		162	be a global node.
		163
		164	Any node that loads the L<AnyEvent::MP::Global> module becomes a global
		165	node and tries to keep connections to all other nodes. So while it can
		166	make sense to make every node "global" in small networks, it usually makes
		167	sense to only make seed nodes into global nodes in large networks (nodes
		168	keep connections to seed nodes and global nodes, so makign them the same
		169	reduces overhead).
108		170
109	=back	171	=back
110		172
111	=head1 VARIABLES/FUNCTIONS	173	=head1 VARIABLES/FUNCTIONS
112		174
114		176
115	=cut	177	=cut
116		178
117	package AnyEvent::MP;	179	package AnyEvent::MP;
118		180
		181	use AnyEvent::MP::Config ();
119	use AnyEvent::MP::Kernel;	182	use AnyEvent::MP::Kernel;
		183	use AnyEvent::MP::Kernel qw(%NODE %PORT %PORT_DATA $UNIQ $RUNIQ $ID);
120		184
121	use common::sense;	185	use common::sense;
122		186
123	use Carp ();	187	use Carp ();
124		188
125	use AE ();	189	use AE ();
		190	use Guard ();
126		191
127	use base "Exporter";	192	use base "Exporter";
128		193
129	our $VERSION = $AnyEvent::MP::Kernel::VERSION;	194	our $VERSION = $AnyEvent::MP::Config::VERSION;
130		195
131	our @EXPORT = qw(	196	our @EXPORT = qw(
132	NODE $NODE *SELF node_of _any_	197	NODE $NODE *SELF node_of after
133	resolve_node initialise_node	198	configure
134	snd rcv mon kil reg psub spawn	199	snd rcv mon mon_guard kil psub peval spawn cal
135	port	200	port
		201	db_set db_del db_reg
136	);	202	);
137		203
138	our $SELF;	204	our $SELF;
139		205
140	sub _self_die() {	206	sub _self_die() {
…		…
143	kil $SELF, die => $msg;	209	kil $SELF, die => $msg;
144	}	210	}
145		211
146	=item $thisnode = NODE / $NODE	212	=item $thisnode = NODE / $NODE
147		213
148	The C<NODE> function returns, and the C<$NODE> variable contains	214	The C<NODE> function returns, and the C<$NODE> variable contains, the node
149	the noderef of the local node. The value is initialised by a call	215	ID of the node running in the current process. This value is initialised by
150	to C<become_public> or C<become_slave>, after which all local port	216	a call to C<configure>.
151	identifiers become invalid.
152		217
153	=item $noderef = node_of $port	218	=item $nodeid = node_of $port
154		219
155	Extracts and returns the noderef from a portid or a noderef.	220	Extracts and returns the node ID from a port ID or a node ID.
156		221
157	=item initialise_node $noderef, $seednode, $seednode...	222	=item configure $profile, key => value...
158		223
159	=item initialise_node "slave/", $master, $master...	224	=item configure key => value...
160		225
161	Before a node can talk to other nodes on the network it has to initialise	226	Before a node can talk to other nodes on the network (i.e. enter
162	itself - the minimum a node needs to know is it's own name, and optionally	227	"distributed mode") it has to configure itself - the minimum a node needs
163	it should know the noderefs of some other nodes in the network.	228	to know is its own name, and optionally it should know the addresses of
		229	some other nodes in the network to discover other nodes.
164		230
165	This function initialises a node - it must be called exactly once (or	231	This function configures a node - it must be called exactly once (or
166	never) before calling other AnyEvent::MP functions.	232	never) before calling other AnyEvent::MP functions.
167		233
168	All arguments (optionally except for the first) are noderefs, which can be	234	The key/value pairs are basically the same ones as documented for the
169	either resolved or unresolved.	235	F<aemp> command line utility (sans the set/del prefix), with two additions:
170
171	The first argument will be looked up in the configuration database first
172	(if it is C<undef> then the current nodename will be used instead) to find
173	the relevant configuration profile (see L<aemp>). If none is found then
174	the default configuration is used. The configuration supplies additional
175	seed/master nodes and can override the actual noderef.
176
177	There are two types of networked nodes, public nodes and slave nodes:
178		236
179	=over 4	237	=over 4
180		238
181	=item public nodes	239	=item norc => $boolean (default false)
182		240
183	For public nodes, C<$noderef> (supplied either directly to	241	If true, then the rc file (e.g. F<~/.perl-anyevent-mp>) will I<not>
184	C<initialise_node> or indirectly via a profile or the nodename) must be a	242	be consulted - all configuraiton options must be specified in the
185	noderef (possibly unresolved, in which case it will be resolved).	243	C<configure> call.
186		244
187	After resolving, the node will bind itself on all endpoints and try to	245	=item force => $boolean (default false)
188	connect to all additional C<$seednodes> that are specified. Seednodes are
189	optional and can be used to quickly bootstrap the node into an existing
190	network.
191		246
192	=item slave nodes	247	IF true, then the values specified in the C<configure> will take
193		248	precedence over any values configured via the rc file. The default is for
194	When the C<$noderef> (either as given or overriden by the config file)	249	the rc file to override any options specified in the program.
195	is the special string C<slave/>, then the node will become a slave
196	node. Slave nodes cannot be contacted from outside and will route most of
197	their traffic to the master node that they attach to.
198
199	At least one additional noderef is required (either by specifying it
200	directly or because it is part of the configuration profile): The node
201	will try to connect to all of them and will become a slave attached to the
202	first node it can successfully connect to.
203		250
204	=back	251	=back
205		252
206	This function will block until all nodes have been resolved and, for slave
207	nodes, until it has successfully established a connection to a master
208	server.
209
210	Example: become a public node listening on the guessed noderef, or the one
211	specified via C<aemp> for the current node. This should be the most common
212	form of invocation for "daemon"-type nodes.
213
214	initialise_node;
215
216	Example: become a slave node to any of the the seednodes specified via
217	C<aemp>. This form is often used for commandline clients.
218
219	initialise_node "slave/";
220
221	Example: become a slave node to any of the specified master servers. This
222	form is also often used for commandline clients.
223
224	initialise_node "slave/", "master1", "192.168.13.17", "mp.example.net";
225
226	Example: become a public node, and try to contact some well-known master
227	servers to become part of the network.
228
229	initialise_node undef, "master1", "master2";
230
231	Example: become a public node listening on port C<4041>.
232
233	initialise_node 4041;
234
235	Example: become a public node, only visible on localhost port 4044.
236
237	initialise_node "localhost:4044";
238
239	=item $cv = resolve_node $noderef
240
241	Takes an unresolved node reference that may contain hostnames and
242	abbreviated IDs, resolves all of them and returns a resolved node
243	reference.
244
245	In addition to C<address:port> pairs allowed in resolved noderefs, the
246	following forms are supported:
247
248	=over 4	253	=over 4
249		254
250	=item the empty string	255	=item step 1, gathering configuration from profiles
251		256
252	An empty-string component gets resolved as if the default port (4040) was	257	The function first looks up a profile in the aemp configuration (see the
253	specified.	258	L<aemp> commandline utility). The profile name can be specified via the
		259	named C<profile> parameter or can simply be the first parameter). If it is
		260	missing, then the nodename (F<uname -n>) will be used as profile name.
254		261
255	=item naked port numbers (e.g. C<1234>)	262	The profile data is then gathered as follows:
256		263
257	These are resolved by prepending the local nodename and a colon, to be	264	First, all remaining key => value pairs (all of which are conveniently
258	further resolved.	265	undocumented at the moment) will be interpreted as configuration
		266	data. Then they will be overwritten by any values specified in the global
		267	default configuration (see the F<aemp> utility), then the chain of
		268	profiles chosen by the profile name (and any C<parent> attributes).
259		269
260	=item hostnames (e.g. C<localhost:1234>, C<localhost>)	270	That means that the values specified in the profile have highest priority
		271	and the values specified directly via C<configure> have lowest priority,
		272	and can only be used to specify defaults.
261		273
262	These are resolved by using AnyEvent::DNS to resolve them, optionally	274	If the profile specifies a node ID, then this will become the node ID of
263	looking up SRV records for the C<aemp=4040> port, if no port was	275	this process. If not, then the profile name will be used as node ID, with
264	specified.	276	a unique randoms tring (C</%u>) appended.
		277
		278	The node ID can contain some C<%> sequences that are expanded: C<%n>
		279	is expanded to the local nodename, C<%u> is replaced by a random
		280	strign to make the node unique. For example, the F<aemp> commandline
		281	utility uses C<aemp/%n/%u> as nodename, which might expand to
		282	C<aemp/cerebro/ZQDGSIkRhEZQDGSIkRhE>.
		283
		284	=item step 2, bind listener sockets
		285
		286	The next step is to look up the binds in the profile, followed by binding
		287	aemp protocol listeners on all binds specified (it is possible and valid
		288	to have no binds, meaning that the node cannot be contacted form the
		289	outside. This means the node cannot talk to other nodes that also have no
		290	binds, but it can still talk to all "normal" nodes).
		291
		292	If the profile does not specify a binds list, then a default of C<*> is
		293	used, meaning the node will bind on a dynamically-assigned port on every
		294	local IP address it finds.
		295
		296	=item step 3, connect to seed nodes
		297
		298	As the last step, the seed ID list from the profile is passed to the
		299	L<AnyEvent::MP::Global> module, which will then use it to keep
		300	connectivity with at least one node at any point in time.
265		301
266	=back	302	=back
		303
		304	Example: become a distributed node using the local node name as profile.
		305	This should be the most common form of invocation for "daemon"-type nodes.
		306
		307	configure
		308
		309	Example: become a semi-anonymous node. This form is often used for
		310	commandline clients.
		311
		312	configure nodeid => "myscript/%n/%u";
		313
		314	Example: configure a node using a profile called seed, which is suitable
		315	for a seed node as it binds on all local addresses on a fixed port (4040,
		316	customary for aemp).
		317
		318	# use the aemp commandline utility
		319	# aemp profile seed binds '*:4040'
		320
		321	# then use it
		322	configure profile => "seed";
		323
		324	# or simply use aemp from the shell again:
		325	# aemp run profile seed
		326
		327	# or provide a nicer-to-remember nodeid
		328	# aemp run profile seed nodeid "$(hostname)"
267		329
268	=item $SELF	330	=item $SELF
269		331
270	Contains the current port id while executing C<rcv> callbacks or C<psub>	332	Contains the current port id while executing C<rcv> callbacks or C<psub>
271	blocks.	333	blocks.
272		334
273	=item SELF, %SELF, @SELF...	335	=item *SELF, SELF, %SELF, @SELF...
274		336
275	Due to some quirks in how perl exports variables, it is impossible to	337	Due to some quirks in how perl exports variables, it is impossible to
276	just export C<$SELF>, all the symbols called C<SELF> are exported by this	338	just export C<$SELF>, all the symbols named C<SELF> are exported by this
277	module, but only C<$SELF> is currently used.	339	module, but only C<$SELF> is currently used.
278		340
279	=item snd $port, type => @data	341	=item snd $port, type => @data
280		342
281	=item snd $port, @msg	343	=item snd $port, @msg
282		344
283	Send the given message to the given port ID, which can identify either	345	Send the given message to the given port, which can identify either a
284	a local or a remote port, and can be either a string or soemthignt hat	346	local or a remote port, and must be a port ID.
285	stringifies a sa port ID (such as a port object :).
286		347
287	While the message can be about anything, it is highly recommended to use a	348	While the message can be almost anything, it is highly recommended to
288	string as first element (a portid, or some word that indicates a request	349	use a string as first element (a port ID, or some word that indicates a
289	type etc.).	350	request type etc.) and to consist if only simple perl values (scalars,
		351	arrays, hashes) - if you think you need to pass an object, think again.
290		352
291	The message data effectively becomes read-only after a call to this	353	The message data logically becomes read-only after a call to this
292	function: modifying any argument is not allowed and can cause many	354	function: modifying any argument (or values referenced by them) is
293	problems.	355	forbidden, as there can be considerable time between the call to C<snd>
		356	and the time the message is actually being serialised - in fact, it might
		357	never be copied as within the same process it is simply handed to the
		358	receiving port.
294		359
295	The type of data you can transfer depends on the transport protocol: when	360	The type of data you can transfer depends on the transport protocol: when
296	JSON is used, then only strings, numbers and arrays and hashes consisting	361	JSON is used, then only strings, numbers and arrays and hashes consisting
297	of those are allowed (no objects). When Storable is used, then anything	362	of those are allowed (no objects). When Storable is used, then anything
298	that Storable can serialise and deserialise is allowed, and for the local	363	that Storable can serialise and deserialise is allowed, and for the local
299	node, anything can be passed.	364	node, anything can be passed. Best rely only on the common denominator of
		365	these.
300		366
301	=item $local_port = port	367	=item $local_port = port
302		368
303	Create a new local port object and returns its port ID. Initially it has	369	Create a new local port object and returns its port ID. Initially it has
304	no callbacks set and will throw an error when it receives messages.	370	no callbacks set and will throw an error when it receives messages.
…		…
328	sub _kilme {	394	sub _kilme {
329	die "received message on port without callback";	395	die "received message on port without callback";
330	}	396	}
331		397
332	sub port(;&) {	398	sub port(;&) {
333	my $id = "$UNIQ." . $ID++;	399	my $id = $UNIQ . ++$ID;
334	my $port = "$NODE#$id";	400	my $port = "$NODE#$id";
335		401
336	rcv $port, shift \|\| \&_kilme;	402	rcv $port, shift \|\| \&_kilme;
337		403
338	$port	404	$port
…		…
351	The default callback received all messages not matched by a more specific	417	The default callback received all messages not matched by a more specific
352	C<tag> match.	418	C<tag> match.
353		419
354	=item rcv $local_port, tag => $callback->(@msg_without_tag), ...	420	=item rcv $local_port, tag => $callback->(@msg_without_tag), ...
355		421
356	Register callbacks to be called on messages starting with the given tag on	422	Register (or replace) callbacks to be called on messages starting with the
357	the given port (and return the port), or unregister it (when C<$callback>	423	given tag on the given port (and return the port), or unregister it (when
358	is C<$undef>).	424	C<$callback> is C<$undef> or missing). There can only be one callback
		425	registered for each tag.
359		426
360	The original message will be passed to the callback, after the first	427	The original message will be passed to the callback, after the first
361	element (the tag) has been removed. The callback will use the same	428	element (the tag) has been removed. The callback will use the same
362	environment as the default callback (see above).	429	environment as the default callback (see above).
363		430
…		…
375	rcv port,	442	rcv port,
376	msg1 => sub { ... },	443	msg1 => sub { ... },
377	...	444	...
378	;	445	;
379		446
		447	Example: temporarily register a rcv callback for a tag matching some port
		448	(e.g. for an rpc reply) and unregister it after a message was received.
		449
		450	rcv $port, $otherport => sub {
		451	my @reply = @_;
		452
		453	rcv $SELF, $otherport;
		454	};
		455
380	=cut	456	=cut
381		457
382	sub rcv($@) {	458	sub rcv($@) {
383	my $port = shift;	459	my $port = shift;
384	my ($noderef, $portid) = split /#/, $port, 2;	460	my ($nodeid, $portid) = split /#/, $port, 2;
385		461
386	($NODE{$noderef} \|\| add_node $noderef) == $NODE{""}	462	$NODE{$nodeid} == $NODE{""}
387	or Carp::croak "$port: rcv can only be called on local ports, caught";	463	or Carp::croak "$port: rcv can only be called on local ports, caught";
388		464
389	while (@_) {	465	while (@_) {
390	if (ref $_[0]) {	466	if (ref $_[0]) {
391	if (my $self = $PORT_DATA{$portid}) {	467	if (my $self = $PORT_DATA{$portid}) {
392	"AnyEvent::MP::Port" eq ref $self	468	"AnyEvent::MP::Port" eq ref $self
393	or Carp::croak "$port: rcv can only be called on message matching ports, caught";	469	or Carp::croak "$port: rcv can only be called on message matching ports, caught";
394		470
395	$self->[2] = shift;	471	$self->[0] = shift;
396	} else {	472	} else {
397	my $cb = shift;	473	my $cb = shift;
398	$PORT{$portid} = sub {	474	$PORT{$portid} = sub {
399	local $SELF = $port;	475	local $SELF = $port;
400	eval { &$cb }; _self_die if $@;	476	eval { &$cb }; _self_die if $@;
401	};	477	};
402	}	478	}
403	} elsif (defined $_[0]) {	479	} elsif (defined $_[0]) {
404	my $self = $PORT_DATA{$portid} \|\|= do {	480	my $self = $PORT_DATA{$portid} \|\|= do {
405	my $self = bless [$PORT{$port} \|\| sub { }, { }, $port], "AnyEvent::MP::Port";	481	my $self = bless [$PORT{$portid} \|\| sub { }, { }, $port], "AnyEvent::MP::Port";
406		482
407	$PORT{$portid} = sub {	483	$PORT{$portid} = sub {
408	local $SELF = $port;	484	local $SELF = $port;
409		485
410	if (my $cb = $self->[1]{$_[0]}) {	486	if (my $cb = $self->[1]{$_[0]}) {
…		…
432	}	508	}
433		509
434	$port	510	$port
435	}	511	}
436		512
		513	=item peval $port, $coderef[, @args]
		514
		515	Evaluates the given C<$codref> within the contetx of C<$port>, that is,
		516	when the code throews an exception the C<$port> will be killed.
		517
		518	Any remaining args will be passed to the callback. Any return values will
		519	be returned to the caller.
		520
		521	This is useful when you temporarily want to execute code in the context of
		522	a port.
		523
		524	Example: create a port and run some initialisation code in it's context.
		525
		526	my $port = port { ... };
		527
		528	peval $port, sub {
		529	init
		530	or die "unable to init";
		531	};
		532
		533	=cut
		534
		535	sub peval($$) {
		536	local $SELF = shift;
		537	my $cb = shift;
		538
		539	if (wantarray) {
		540	my @res = eval { &$cb };
		541	_self_die if $@;
		542	@res
		543	} else {
		544	my $res = eval { &$cb };
		545	_self_die if $@;
		546	$res
		547	}
		548	}
		549
437	=item $closure = psub { BLOCK }	550	=item $closure = psub { BLOCK }
438		551
439	Remembers C<$SELF> and creates a closure out of the BLOCK. When the	552	Remembers C<$SELF> and creates a closure out of the BLOCK. When the
440	closure is executed, sets up the environment in the same way as in C<rcv>	553	closure is executed, sets up the environment in the same way as in C<rcv>
441	callbacks, i.e. runtime errors will cause the port to get C<kil>ed.	554	callbacks, i.e. runtime errors will cause the port to get C<kil>ed.
		555
		556	The effect is basically as if it returned C<< sub { peval $SELF, sub {
		557	BLOCK }, @_ } >>.
442		558
443	This is useful when you register callbacks from C<rcv> callbacks:	559	This is useful when you register callbacks from C<rcv> callbacks:
444		560
445	rcv delayed_reply => sub {	561	rcv delayed_reply => sub {
446	my ($delay, @reply) = @_;	562	my ($delay, @reply) = @_;
…		…
470	$res	586	$res
471	}	587	}
472	}	588	}
473	}	589	}
474		590
475	=item $guard = mon $port, $cb->(@reason)	591	=item $guard = mon $port, $cb->(@reason) # call $cb when $port dies
476		592
477	=item $guard = mon $port, $rcvport	593	=item $guard = mon $port, $rcvport # kill $rcvport when $port dies
478		594
479	=item $guard = mon $port	595	=item $guard = mon $port # kill $SELF when $port dies
480		596
481	=item $guard = mon $port, $rcvport, @msg	597	=item $guard = mon $port, $rcvport, @msg # send a message when $port dies
482		598
483	Monitor the given port and do something when the port is killed or	599	Monitor the given port and do something when the port is killed or
484	messages to it were lost, and optionally return a guard that can be used	600	messages to it were lost, and optionally return a guard that can be used
485	to stop monitoring again.	601	to stop monitoring again.
486
487	C<mon> effectively guarantees that, in the absence of hardware failures,
488	that after starting the monitor, either all messages sent to the port
489	will arrive, or the monitoring action will be invoked after possible
490	message loss has been detected. No messages will be lost "in between"
491	(after the first lost message no further messages will be received by the
492	port). After the monitoring action was invoked, further messages might get
493	delivered again.
494		602
495	In the first form (callback), the callback is simply called with any	603	In the first form (callback), the callback is simply called with any
496	number of C<@reason> elements (no @reason means that the port was deleted	604	number of C<@reason> elements (no @reason means that the port was deleted
497	"normally"). Note also that I<< the callback B<must> never die >>, so use	605	"normally"). Note also that I<< the callback B<must> never die >>, so use
498	C<eval> if unsure.	606	C<eval> if unsure.
499		607
500	In the second form (another port given), the other port (C<$rcvport>)	608	In the second form (another port given), the other port (C<$rcvport>)
501	will be C<kil>'ed with C<@reason>, iff a @reason was specified, i.e. on	609	will be C<kil>'ed with C<@reason>, if a @reason was specified, i.e. on
502	"normal" kils nothing happens, while under all other conditions, the other	610	"normal" kils nothing happens, while under all other conditions, the other
503	port is killed with the same reason.	611	port is killed with the same reason.
504		612
505	The third form (kill self) is the same as the second form, except that	613	The third form (kill self) is the same as the second form, except that
506	C<$rvport> defaults to C<$SELF>.	614	C<$rvport> defaults to C<$SELF>.
507		615
508	In the last form (message), a message of the form C<@msg, @reason> will be	616	In the last form (message), a message of the form C<@msg, @reason> will be
509	C<snd>.	617	C<snd>.
		618
		619	Monitoring-actions are one-shot: once messages are lost (and a monitoring
		620	alert was raised), they are removed and will not trigger again.
510		621
511	As a rule of thumb, monitoring requests should always monitor a port from	622	As a rule of thumb, monitoring requests should always monitor a port from
512	a local port (or callback). The reason is that kill messages might get	623	a local port (or callback). The reason is that kill messages might get
513	lost, just like any other message. Another less obvious reason is that	624	lost, just like any other message. Another less obvious reason is that
514	even monitoring requests can get lost (for exmaple, when the connection	625	even monitoring requests can get lost (for example, when the connection
515	to the other node goes down permanently). When monitoring a port locally	626	to the other node goes down permanently). When monitoring a port locally
516	these problems do not exist.	627	these problems do not exist.
517		628
		629	C<mon> effectively guarantees that, in the absence of hardware failures,
		630	after starting the monitor, either all messages sent to the port will
		631	arrive, or the monitoring action will be invoked after possible message
		632	loss has been detected. No messages will be lost "in between" (after
		633	the first lost message no further messages will be received by the
		634	port). After the monitoring action was invoked, further messages might get
		635	delivered again.
		636
		637	Inter-host-connection timeouts and monitoring depend on the transport
		638	used. The only transport currently implemented is TCP, and AnyEvent::MP
		639	relies on TCP to detect node-downs (this can take 10-15 minutes on a
		640	non-idle connection, and usually around two hours for idle connections).
		641
		642	This means that monitoring is good for program errors and cleaning up
		643	stuff eventually, but they are no replacement for a timeout when you need
		644	to ensure some maximum latency.
		645
518	Example: call a given callback when C<$port> is killed.	646	Example: call a given callback when C<$port> is killed.
519		647
520	mon $port, sub { warn "port died because of <@_>\n" };	648	mon $port, sub { warn "port died because of <@_>\n" };
521		649
522	Example: kill ourselves when C<$port> is killed abnormally.	650	Example: kill ourselves when C<$port> is killed abnormally.
…		…
528	mon $port, $self => "restart";	656	mon $port, $self => "restart";
529		657
530	=cut	658	=cut
531		659
532	sub mon {	660	sub mon {
533	my ($noderef, $port) = split /#/, shift, 2;	661	my ($nodeid, $port) = split /#/, shift, 2;
534		662
535	my $node = $NODE{$noderef} \|\| add_node $noderef;	663	my $node = $NODE{$nodeid} \|\| add_node $nodeid;
536		664
537	my $cb = @_ ? shift : $SELF \|\| Carp::croak 'mon: called with one argument only, but $SELF not set,';	665	my $cb = @_ ? shift : $SELF \|\| Carp::croak 'mon: called with one argument only, but $SELF not set,';
538		666
539	unless (ref $cb) {	667	unless (ref $cb) {
540	if (@_) {	668	if (@_) {
…		…
549	}	677	}
550		678
551	$node->monitor ($port, $cb);	679	$node->monitor ($port, $cb);
552		680
553	defined wantarray	681	defined wantarray
554	and AnyEvent::Util::guard { $node->unmonitor ($port, $cb) }	682	and ($cb += 0, Guard::guard { $node->unmonitor ($port, $cb) })
555	}	683	}
556		684
557	=item $guard = mon_guard $port, $ref, $ref...	685	=item $guard = mon_guard $port, $ref, $ref...
558		686
559	Monitors the given C<$port> and keeps the passed references. When the port	687	Monitors the given C<$port> and keeps the passed references. When the port
560	is killed, the references will be freed.	688	is killed, the references will be freed.
561		689
562	Optionally returns a guard that will stop the monitoring.	690	Optionally returns a guard that will stop the monitoring.
563		691
564	This function is useful when you create e.g. timers or other watchers and	692	This function is useful when you create e.g. timers or other watchers and
565	want to free them when the port gets killed:	693	want to free them when the port gets killed (note the use of C<psub>):
566		694
567	$port->rcv (start => sub {	695	$port->rcv (start => sub {
568	my $timer; $timer = mon_guard $port, AE::timer 1, 1, sub {	696	my $timer; $timer = mon_guard $port, AE::timer 1, 1, psub {
569	undef $timer if 0.9 < rand;	697	undef $timer if 0.9 < rand;
570	});	698	});
571	});	699	});
572		700
573	=cut	701	=cut
…		…
582		710
583	=item kil $port[, @reason]	711	=item kil $port[, @reason]
584		712
585	Kill the specified port with the given C<@reason>.	713	Kill the specified port with the given C<@reason>.
586		714
587	If no C<@reason> is specified, then the port is killed "normally" (linked	715	If no C<@reason> is specified, then the port is killed "normally" -
588	ports will not be kileld, or even notified).	716	monitor callback will be invoked, but the kil will not cause linked ports
		717	(C<mon $mport, $lport> form) to get killed.
589		718
590	Otherwise, linked ports get killed with the same reason (second form of	719	If a C<@reason> is specified, then linked ports (C<mon $mport, $lport>
591	C<mon>, see below).	720	form) get killed with the same reason.
592		721
593	Runtime errors while evaluating C<rcv> callbacks or inside C<psub> blocks	722	Runtime errors while evaluating C<rcv> callbacks or inside C<psub> blocks
594	will be reported as reason C<< die => $@ >>.	723	will be reported as reason C<< die => $@ >>.
595		724
596	Transport/communication errors are reported as C<< transport_error =>	725	Transport/communication errors are reported as C<< transport_error =>
…		…
601	=item $port = spawn $node, $initfunc[, @initdata]	730	=item $port = spawn $node, $initfunc[, @initdata]
602		731
603	Creates a port on the node C<$node> (which can also be a port ID, in which	732	Creates a port on the node C<$node> (which can also be a port ID, in which
604	case it's the node where that port resides).	733	case it's the node where that port resides).
605		734
606	The port ID of the newly created port is return immediately, and it is	735	The port ID of the newly created port is returned immediately, and it is
607	permissible to immediately start sending messages or monitor the port.	736	possible to immediately start sending messages or to monitor the port.
608		737
609	After the port has been created, the init function is	738	After the port has been created, the init function is called on the remote
610	called. This function must be a fully-qualified function name	739	node, in the same context as a C<rcv> callback. This function must be a
611	(e.g. C<MyApp::Chat::Server::init>). To specify a function in the main	740	fully-qualified function name (e.g. C<MyApp::Chat::Server::init>). To
612	program, use C<::name>.	741	specify a function in the main program, use C<::name>.
613		742
614	If the function doesn't exist, then the node tries to C<require>	743	If the function doesn't exist, then the node tries to C<require>
615	the package, then the package above the package and so on (e.g.	744	the package, then the package above the package and so on (e.g.
616	C<MyApp::Chat::Server>, C<MyApp::Chat>, C<MyApp>) until the function	745	C<MyApp::Chat::Server>, C<MyApp::Chat>, C<MyApp>) until the function
617	exists or it runs out of package names.	746	exists or it runs out of package names.
618		747
619	The init function is then called with the newly-created port as context	748	The init function is then called with the newly-created port as context
620	object (C<$SELF>) and the C<@initdata> values as arguments.	749	object (C<$SELF>) and the C<@initdata> values as arguments. It I<must>
		750	call one of the C<rcv> functions to set callbacks on C<$SELF>, otherwise
		751	the port might not get created.
621		752
622	A common idiom is to pass your own port, monitor the spawned port, and	753	A common idiom is to pass a local port, immediately monitor the spawned
623	in the init function, monitor the original port. This two-way monitoring	754	port, and in the remote init function, immediately monitor the passed
624	ensures that both ports get cleaned up when there is a problem.	755	local port. This two-way monitoring ensures that both ports get cleaned up
		756	when there is a problem.
		757
		758	C<spawn> guarantees that the C<$initfunc> has no visible effects on the
		759	caller before C<spawn> returns (by delaying invocation when spawn is
		760	called for the local node).
625		761
626	Example: spawn a chat server port on C<$othernode>.	762	Example: spawn a chat server port on C<$othernode>.
627		763
628	# this node, executed from within a port context:	764	# this node, executed from within a port context:
629	my $server = spawn $othernode, "MyApp::Chat::Server::connect", $SELF;	765	my $server = spawn $othernode, "MyApp::Chat::Server::connect", $SELF;
…		…
644		780
645	sub _spawn {	781	sub _spawn {
646	my $port = shift;	782	my $port = shift;
647	my $init = shift;	783	my $init = shift;
648		784
		785	# rcv will create the actual port
649	local $SELF = "$NODE#$port";	786	local $SELF = "$NODE#$port";
650	eval {	787	eval {
651	&{ load_func $init }	788	&{ load_func $init }
652	};	789	};
653	_self_die if $@;	790	_self_die if $@;
654	}	791	}
655		792
656	sub spawn(@) {	793	sub spawn(@) {
657	my ($noderef, undef) = split /#/, shift, 2;	794	my ($nodeid, undef) = split /#/, shift, 2;
658		795
659	my $id = "$RUNIQ." . $ID++;	796	my $id = $RUNIQ . ++$ID;
660		797
661	$_[0] =~ /::/	798	$_[0] =~ /::/
662	or Carp::croak "spawn init function must be a fully-qualified name, caught";	799	or Carp::croak "spawn init function must be a fully-qualified name, caught";
663		800
664	($NODE{$noderef} \|\| add_node $noderef)	801	snd_to_func $nodeid, "AnyEvent::MP::_spawn" => $id, @_;
665	->send (["", "AnyEvent::MP::_spawn" => $id, @_]);
666		802
667	"$noderef#$id"	803	"$nodeid#$id"
668	}	804	}
669		805
		806
		807	=item after $timeout, @msg
		808
		809	=item after $timeout, $callback
		810
		811	Either sends the given message, or call the given callback, after the
		812	specified number of seconds.
		813
		814	This is simply a utility function that comes in handy at times - the
		815	AnyEvent::MP author is not convinced of the wisdom of having it, though,
		816	so it may go away in the future.
		817
		818	=cut
		819
		820	sub after($@) {
		821	my ($timeout, @action) = @_;
		822
		823	my $t; $t = AE::timer $timeout, 0, sub {
		824	undef $t;
		825	ref $action[0]
		826	? $action[0]()
		827	: snd @action;
		828	};
		829	}
		830
		831	=item cal $port, @msg, $callback[, $timeout]
		832
		833	A simple form of RPC - sends a message to the given C<$port> with the
		834	given contents (C<@msg>), but adds a reply port to the message.
		835
		836	The reply port is created temporarily just for the purpose of receiving
		837	the reply, and will be C<kil>ed when no longer needed.
		838
		839	A reply message sent to the port is passed to the C<$callback> as-is.
		840
		841	If an optional time-out (in seconds) is given and it is not C<undef>,
		842	then the callback will be called without any arguments after the time-out
		843	elapsed and the port is C<kil>ed.
		844
		845	If no time-out is given (or it is C<undef>), then the local port will
		846	monitor the remote port instead, so it eventually gets cleaned-up.
		847
		848	Currently this function returns the temporary port, but this "feature"
		849	might go in future versions unless you can make a convincing case that
		850	this is indeed useful for something.
		851
		852	=cut
		853
		854	sub cal(@) {
		855	my $timeout = ref $_[-1] ? undef : pop;
		856	my $cb = pop;
		857
		858	my $port = port {
		859	undef $timeout;
		860	kil $SELF;
		861	&$cb;
		862	};
		863
		864	if (defined $timeout) {
		865	$timeout = AE::timer $timeout, 0, sub {
		866	undef $timeout;
		867	kil $port;
		868	$cb->();
		869	};
		870	} else {
		871	mon $_[0], sub {
		872	kil $port;
		873	$cb->();
		874	};
		875	}
		876
		877	push @_, $port;
		878	&snd;
		879
		880	$port
		881	}
		882
670	=back	883	=back
671		884
672	=head1 NODE MESSAGES	885	=head1 DISTRIBUTED DATABASE
673		886
674	Nodes understand the following messages sent to them. Many of them take	887	AnyEvent::MP comes with a simple distributed database. The database will
675	arguments called C<@reply>, which will simply be used to compose a reply	888	be mirrored asynchronously at all global nodes. Other nodes bind to one of
676	message - C<$reply[0]> is the port to reply to, C<$reply[1]> the type and	889	the global nodes for their needs.
677	the remaining arguments are simply the message data.
678		890
679	While other messages exist, they are not public and subject to change.	891	The database consists of a two-level hash - a hash contains a hash which
		892	contains values.
680		893
		894	The top level hash key is called "family", and the second-level hash key
		895	is called "subkey" or simply "key".
		896
		897	The family must be alphanumeric, i.e. start with a letter and consist
		898	of letters, digits, underscores and colons (C<[A-Za-z][A-Za-z0-9_:]*>,
		899	pretty much like Perl module names.
		900
		901	As the family namespace is global, it is recommended to prefix family names
		902	with the name of the application or module using it.
		903
		904	The subkeys must be non-empty strings, with no further restrictions.
		905
		906	The values should preferably be strings, but other perl scalars should
		907	work as well (such as undef, arrays and hashes).
		908
		909	Every database entry is owned by one node - adding the same family/subkey
		910	combination on multiple nodes will not cause discomfort for AnyEvent::MP,
		911	but the result might be nondeterministic, i.e. the key might have
		912	different values on different nodes.
		913
		914	Different subkeys in the same family can be owned by different nodes
		915	without problems, and in fact, this is the common method to create worker
		916	pools. For example, a worker port for image scaling might do this:
		917
		918	db_set my_image_scalers => $port;
		919
		920	And clients looking for an image scaler will want to get the
		921	C<my_image_scalers> keys:
		922
		923	db_keys "my_image_scalers" => 60 => sub {
		924	#d##TODO#
		925
681	=over 4	926	=over
682		927
683	=cut	928	=item db_set $family => $subkey [=> $value]
684		929
685	=item lookup => $name, @reply	930	Sets (or replaces) a key to the database - if C<$value> is omitted,
		931	C<undef> is used instead.
686		932
687	Replies with the port ID of the specified well-known port, or C<undef>.	933	=item db_del $family => $subkey
688		934
689	=item devnull => ...	935	Deletes a key from the database.
690		936
691	Generic data sink/CPU heat conversion.	937	=item $guard = db_reg $family => $subkey [=> $value]
692		938
693	=item relay => $port, @msg	939	Sets the key on the database and returns a guard. When the guard is
		940	destroyed, the key is deleted from the database. If C<$value> is missing,
		941	then C<undef> is used.
694		942
695	Simply forwards the message to the given port.	943	=cut
696
697	=item eval => $string[ @reply]
698
699	Evaluates the given string. If C<@reply> is given, then a message of the
700	form C<@reply, $@, @evalres> is sent.
701
702	Example: crash another node.
703
704	snd $othernode, eval => "exit";
705
706	=item time => @reply
707
708	Replies the the current node time to C<@reply>.
709
710	Example: tell the current node to send the current time to C<$myport> in a
711	C<timereply> message.
712
713	snd $NODE, time => $myport, timereply => 1, 2;
714	# => snd $myport, timereply => 1, 2, <time>
715		944
716	=back	945	=back
717		946
718	=head1 AnyEvent::MP vs. Distributed Erlang	947	=head1 AnyEvent::MP vs. Distributed Erlang
719		948
720	AnyEvent::MP got lots of its ideas from distributed Erlang (Erlang node	949	AnyEvent::MP got lots of its ideas from distributed Erlang (Erlang node
721	== aemp node, Erlang process == aemp port), so many of the documents and	950	== aemp node, Erlang process == aemp port), so many of the documents and
722	programming techniques employed by Erlang apply to AnyEvent::MP. Here is a	951	programming techniques employed by Erlang apply to AnyEvent::MP. Here is a
723	sample:	952	sample:
724		953
725	http://www.Erlang.se/doc/programming_rules.shtml	954	http://www.erlang.se/doc/programming_rules.shtml
726	http://Erlang.org/doc/getting_started/part_frame.html # chapters 3 and 4	955	http://erlang.org/doc/getting_started/part_frame.html # chapters 3 and 4
727	http://Erlang.org/download/Erlang-book-part1.pdf # chapters 5 and 6	956	http://erlang.org/download/erlang-book-part1.pdf # chapters 5 and 6
728	http://Erlang.org/download/armstrong_thesis_2003.pdf # chapters 4 and 5	957	http://erlang.org/download/armstrong_thesis_2003.pdf # chapters 4 and 5
729		958
730	Despite the similarities, there are also some important differences:	959	Despite the similarities, there are also some important differences:
731		960
732	=over 4	961	=over 4
733		962
734	=item * Node references contain the recipe on how to contact them.	963	=item * Node IDs are arbitrary strings in AEMP.
735		964
736	Erlang relies on special naming and DNS to work everywhere in the	965	Erlang relies on special naming and DNS to work everywhere in the same
737	same way. AEMP relies on each node knowing it's own address(es), with	966	way. AEMP relies on each node somehow knowing its own address(es) (e.g. by
738	convenience functionality.	967	configuration or DNS), and possibly the addresses of some seed nodes, but
		968	will otherwise discover other nodes (and their IDs) itself.
739		969
740	This means that AEMP requires a less tightly controlled environment at the	970	=item * Erlang has a "remote ports are like local ports" philosophy, AEMP
741	cost of longer node references and a slightly higher management overhead.	971	uses "local ports are like remote ports".
		972
		973	The failure modes for local ports are quite different (runtime errors
		974	only) then for remote ports - when a local port dies, you I<know> it dies,
		975	when a connection to another node dies, you know nothing about the other
		976	port.
		977
		978	Erlang pretends remote ports are as reliable as local ports, even when
		979	they are not.
		980
		981	AEMP encourages a "treat remote ports differently" philosophy, with local
		982	ports being the special case/exception, where transport errors cannot
		983	occur.
742		984
743	=item * Erlang uses processes and a mailbox, AEMP does not queue.	985	=item * Erlang uses processes and a mailbox, AEMP does not queue.
744		986
745	Erlang uses processes that selctively receive messages, and therefore	987	Erlang uses processes that selectively receive messages out of order, and
746	needs a queue. AEMP is event based, queuing messages would serve no useful	988	therefore needs a queue. AEMP is event based, queuing messages would serve
747	purpose.	989	no useful purpose. For the same reason the pattern-matching abilities
		990	of AnyEvent::MP are more limited, as there is little need to be able to
		991	filter messages without dequeuing them.
748		992
749	(But see L<Coro::MP> for a more Erlang-like process model on top of AEMP).	993	This is not a philosophical difference, but simply stems from AnyEvent::MP
		994	being event-based, while Erlang is process-based.
		995
		996	You cna have a look at L<Coro::MP> for a more Erlang-like process model on
		997	top of AEMP and Coro threads.
750		998
751	=item * Erlang sends are synchronous, AEMP sends are asynchronous.	999	=item * Erlang sends are synchronous, AEMP sends are asynchronous.
752		1000
753	Sending messages in Erlang is synchronous and blocks the process. AEMP	1001	Sending messages in Erlang is synchronous and blocks the process until
754	sends are immediate, connection establishment is handled in the	1002	a conenction has been established and the message sent (and so does not
755	background.	1003	need a queue that can overflow). AEMP sends return immediately, connection
		1004	establishment is handled in the background.
756		1005
757	=item * Erlang can silently lose messages, AEMP cannot.	1006	=item * Erlang suffers from silent message loss, AEMP does not.
758		1007
759	Erlang makes few guarantees on messages delivery - messages can get lost	1008	Erlang implements few guarantees on messages delivery - messages can get
760	without any of the processes realising it (i.e. you send messages a, b,	1009	lost without any of the processes realising it (i.e. you send messages a,
761	and c, and the other side only receives messages a and c).	1010	b, and c, and the other side only receives messages a and c).
762		1011
763	AEMP guarantees correct ordering, and the guarantee that there are no	1012	AEMP guarantees (modulo hardware errors) correct ordering, and the
		1013	guarantee that after one message is lost, all following ones sent to the
		1014	same port are lost as well, until monitoring raises an error, so there are
764	holes in the message sequence.	1015	no silent "holes" in the message sequence.
765		1016
766	=item * In Erlang, processes can be declared dead and later be found to be	1017	If you want your software to be very reliable, you have to cope with
767	alive.	1018	corrupted and even out-of-order messages in both Erlang and AEMP. AEMP
768		1019	simply tries to work better in common error cases, such as when a network
769	In Erlang it can happen that a monitored process is declared dead and	1020	link goes down.
770	linked processes get killed, but later it turns out that the process is
771	still alive - and can receive messages.
772
773	In AEMP, when port monitoring detects a port as dead, then that port will
774	eventually be killed - it cannot happen that a node detects a port as dead
775	and then later sends messages to it, finding it is still alive.
776		1021
777	=item * Erlang can send messages to the wrong port, AEMP does not.	1022	=item * Erlang can send messages to the wrong port, AEMP does not.
778		1023
779	In Erlang it is quite possible that a node that restarts reuses a process	1024	In Erlang it is quite likely that a node that restarts reuses an Erlang
780	ID known to other nodes for a completely different process, causing	1025	process ID known to other nodes for a completely different process,
781	messages destined for that process to end up in an unrelated process.	1026	causing messages destined for that process to end up in an unrelated
		1027	process.
782		1028
783	AEMP never reuses port IDs, so old messages or old port IDs floating	1029	AEMP does not reuse port IDs, so old messages or old port IDs floating
784	around in the network will not be sent to an unrelated port.	1030	around in the network will not be sent to an unrelated port.
785		1031
786	=item * Erlang uses unprotected connections, AEMP uses secure	1032	=item * Erlang uses unprotected connections, AEMP uses secure
787	authentication and can use TLS.	1033	authentication and can use TLS.
788		1034
789	AEMP can use a proven protocol - SSL/TLS - to protect connections and	1035	AEMP can use a proven protocol - TLS - to protect connections and
790	securely authenticate nodes.	1036	securely authenticate nodes.
791		1037
792	=item * The AEMP protocol is optimised for both text-based and binary	1038	=item * The AEMP protocol is optimised for both text-based and binary
793	communications.	1039	communications.
794		1040
795	The AEMP protocol, unlike the Erlang protocol, supports both	1041	The AEMP protocol, unlike the Erlang protocol, supports both programming
796	language-independent text-only protocols (good for debugging) and binary,	1042	language independent text-only protocols (good for debugging), and binary,
797	language-specific serialisers (e.g. Storable).	1043	language-specific serialisers (e.g. Storable). By default, unless TLS is
		1044	used, the protocol is actually completely text-based.
798		1045
799	It has also been carefully designed to be implementable in other languages	1046	It has also been carefully designed to be implementable in other languages
800	with a minimum of work while gracefully degrading fucntionality to make the	1047	with a minimum of work while gracefully degrading functionality to make the
801	protocol simple.	1048	protocol simple.
802		1049
803	=item * AEMP has more flexible monitoring options than Erlang.	1050	=item * AEMP has more flexible monitoring options than Erlang.
804		1051
805	In Erlang, you can chose to receive I<all> exit signals as messages	1052	In Erlang, you can chose to receive I<all> exit signals as messages or
806	or I<none>, there is no in-between, so monitoring single processes is	1053	I<none>, there is no in-between, so monitoring single Erlang processes is
807	difficult to implement. Monitoring in AEMP is more flexible than in	1054	difficult to implement.
808	Erlang, as one can choose between automatic kill, exit message or callback	1055
809	on a per-process basis.	1056	Monitoring in AEMP is more flexible than in Erlang, as one can choose
		1057	between automatic kill, exit message or callback on a per-port basis.
810		1058
811	=item * Erlang tries to hide remote/local connections, AEMP does not.	1059	=item * Erlang tries to hide remote/local connections, AEMP does not.
812		1060
813	Monitoring in Erlang is not an indicator of process death/crashes,	1061	Monitoring in Erlang is not an indicator of process death/crashes, in the
814	as linking is (except linking is unreliable in Erlang).	1062	same way as linking is (except linking is unreliable in Erlang).
815		1063
816	In AEMP, you don't "look up" registered port names or send to named ports	1064	In AEMP, you don't "look up" registered port names or send to named ports
817	that might or might not be persistent. Instead, you normally spawn a port	1065	that might or might not be persistent. Instead, you normally spawn a port
818	on the remote node. The init function monitors the you, and you monitor	1066	on the remote node. The init function monitors you, and you monitor the
819	the remote port. Since both monitors are local to the node, they are much	1067	remote port. Since both monitors are local to the node, they are much more
820	more reliable.	1068	reliable (no need for C<spawn_link>).
821		1069
822	This also saves round-trips and avoids sending messages to the wrong port	1070	This also saves round-trips and avoids sending messages to the wrong port
823	(hard to do in Erlang).	1071	(hard to do in Erlang).
824		1072
825	=back	1073	=back
826		1074
827	=head1 RATIONALE	1075	=head1 RATIONALE
828		1076
829	=over 4	1077	=over 4
830		1078
831	=item Why strings for ports and noderefs, why not objects?	1079	=item Why strings for port and node IDs, why not objects?
832		1080
833	We considered "objects", but found that the actual number of methods	1081	We considered "objects", but found that the actual number of methods
834	thatc an be called are very low. Since port IDs and noderefs travel over	1082	that can be called are quite low. Since port and node IDs travel over
835	the network frequently, the serialising/deserialising would add lots of	1083	the network frequently, the serialising/deserialising would add lots of
836	overhead, as well as having to keep a proxy object.	1084	overhead, as well as having to keep a proxy object everywhere.
837		1085
838	Strings can easily be printed, easily serialised etc. and need no special	1086	Strings can easily be printed, easily serialised etc. and need no special
839	procedures to be "valid".	1087	procedures to be "valid".
840		1088
841	And a a miniport consists of a single closure stored in a global hash - it	1089	And as a result, a port with just a default receiver consists of a single
842	can't become much cheaper.	1090	code reference stored in a global hash - it can't become much cheaper.
843		1091
844	=item Why favour JSON, why not real serialising format such as Storable?	1092	=item Why favour JSON, why not a real serialising format such as Storable?
845		1093
846	In fact, any AnyEvent::MP node will happily accept Storable as framing	1094	In fact, any AnyEvent::MP node will happily accept Storable as framing
847	format, but currently there is no way to make a node use Storable by	1095	format, but currently there is no way to make a node use Storable by
848	default.	1096	default (although all nodes will accept it).
849		1097
850	The default framing protocol is JSON because a) JSON::XS is many times	1098	The default framing protocol is JSON because a) JSON::XS is many times
851	faster for small messages and b) most importantly, after years of	1099	faster for small messages and b) most importantly, after years of
852	experience we found that object serialisation is causing more problems	1100	experience we found that object serialisation is causing more problems
853	than it gains: Just like function calls, objects simply do not travel	1101	than it solves: Just like function calls, objects simply do not travel
854	easily over the network, mostly because they will always be a copy, so you	1102	easily over the network, mostly because they will always be a copy, so you
855	always have to re-think your design.	1103	always have to re-think your design.
856		1104
857	Keeping your messages simple, concentrating on data structures rather than	1105	Keeping your messages simple, concentrating on data structures rather than
858	objects, will keep your messages clean, tidy and efficient.	1106	objects, will keep your messages clean, tidy and efficient.
859		1107
860	=back	1108	=back
861		1109
862	=head1 SEE ALSO	1110	=head1 SEE ALSO
863		1111
		1112	L<AnyEvent::MP::Intro> - a gentle introduction.
		1113
		1114	L<AnyEvent::MP::Kernel> - more, lower-level, stuff.
		1115
		1116	L<AnyEvent::MP::Global> - network maintenance and port groups, to find
		1117	your applications.
		1118
		1119	L<AnyEvent::MP::DataConn> - establish data connections between nodes.
		1120
		1121	L<AnyEvent::MP::LogCatcher> - simple service to display log messages from
		1122	all nodes.
		1123
864	L<AnyEvent>.	1124	L<AnyEvent>.
865		1125
866	=head1 AUTHOR	1126	=head1 AUTHOR
867		1127
868	Marc Lehmann <schmorp@schmorp.de>	1128	Marc Lehmann <schmorp@schmorp.de>

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Revision 1.126 by root, Sat Mar 3 19:43:41 2012 UTC