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		1	=encoding utf-8
		2
1	=head1 NAME	3	=head1 NAME
2		4
3	libev - a high performance full-featured event loop written in C	5	libev - a high performance full-featured event loop written in C
4		6
5	=head1 SYNOPSIS	7	=head1 SYNOPSIS
…		…
43		45
44	int	46	int
45	main (void)	47	main (void)
46	{	48	{
47	// use the default event loop unless you have special needs	49	// use the default event loop unless you have special needs
48	struct ev_loop *loop = ev_default_loop (0);	50	struct ev_loop *loop = EV_DEFAULT;
49		51
50	// initialise an io watcher, then start it	52	// initialise an io watcher, then start it
51	// this one will watch for stdin to become readable	53	// this one will watch for stdin to become readable
52	ev_io_init (&stdin_watcher, stdin_cb, /*STDIN_FILENO*/ 0, EV_READ);	54	ev_io_init (&stdin_watcher, stdin_cb, /*STDIN_FILENO*/ 0, EV_READ);
53	ev_io_start (loop, &stdin_watcher);	55	ev_io_start (loop, &stdin_watcher);
…		…
58	ev_timer_start (loop, &timeout_watcher);	60	ev_timer_start (loop, &timeout_watcher);
59		61
60	// now wait for events to arrive	62	// now wait for events to arrive
61	ev_run (loop, 0);	63	ev_run (loop, 0);
62		64
63	// unloop was called, so exit	65	// break was called, so exit
64	return 0;	66	return 0;
65	}	67	}
66		68
67	=head1 ABOUT THIS DOCUMENT	69	=head1 ABOUT THIS DOCUMENT
68		70
…		…
78	with libev.	80	with libev.
79		81
80	Familiarity with event based programming techniques in general is assumed	82	Familiarity with event based programming techniques in general is assumed
81	throughout this document.	83	throughout this document.
82		84
		85	=head1 WHAT TO READ WHEN IN A HURRY
		86
		87	This manual tries to be very detailed, but unfortunately, this also makes
		88	it very long. If you just want to know the basics of libev, I suggest
		89	reading L</ANATOMY OF A WATCHER>, then the L</EXAMPLE PROGRAM> above and
		90	look up the missing functions in L</GLOBAL FUNCTIONS> and the C<ev_io> and
		91	C<ev_timer> sections in L</WATCHER TYPES>.
		92
83	=head1 ABOUT LIBEV	93	=head1 ABOUT LIBEV
84		94
85	Libev is an event loop: you register interest in certain events (such as a	95	Libev is an event loop: you register interest in certain events (such as a
86	file descriptor being readable or a timeout occurring), and it will manage	96	file descriptor being readable or a timeout occurring), and it will manage
87	these event sources and provide your program with events.	97	these event sources and provide your program with events.
…		…
95	details of the event, and then hand it over to libev by I<starting> the	105	details of the event, and then hand it over to libev by I<starting> the
96	watcher.	106	watcher.
97		107
98	=head2 FEATURES	108	=head2 FEATURES
99		109
100	Libev supports C<select>, C<poll>, the Linux-specific C<epoll>, the	110	Libev supports C<select>, C<poll>, the Linux-specific aio and C<epoll>
101	BSD-specific C<kqueue> and the Solaris-specific event port mechanisms	111	interfaces, the BSD-specific C<kqueue> and the Solaris-specific event port
102	for file descriptor events (C<ev_io>), the Linux C<inotify> interface	112	mechanisms for file descriptor events (C<ev_io>), the Linux C<inotify>
103	(for C<ev_stat>), Linux eventfd/signalfd (for faster and cleaner	113	interface (for C<ev_stat>), Linux eventfd/signalfd (for faster and cleaner
104	inter-thread wakeup (C<ev_async>)/signal handling (C<ev_signal>)) relative	114	inter-thread wakeup (C<ev_async>)/signal handling (C<ev_signal>)) relative
105	timers (C<ev_timer>), absolute timers with customised rescheduling	115	timers (C<ev_timer>), absolute timers with customised rescheduling
106	(C<ev_periodic>), synchronous signals (C<ev_signal>), process status	116	(C<ev_periodic>), synchronous signals (C<ev_signal>), process status
107	change events (C<ev_child>), and event watchers dealing with the event	117	change events (C<ev_child>), and event watchers dealing with the event
108	loop mechanism itself (C<ev_idle>, C<ev_embed>, C<ev_prepare> and	118	loop mechanism itself (C<ev_idle>, C<ev_embed>, C<ev_prepare> and
…		…
124	this argument.	134	this argument.
125		135
126	=head2 TIME REPRESENTATION	136	=head2 TIME REPRESENTATION
127		137
128	Libev represents time as a single floating point number, representing	138	Libev represents time as a single floating point number, representing
129	the (fractional) number of seconds since the (POSIX) epoch (in practise	139	the (fractional) number of seconds since the (POSIX) epoch (in practice
130	somewhere near the beginning of 1970, details are complicated, don't	140	somewhere near the beginning of 1970, details are complicated, don't
131	ask). This type is called C<ev_tstamp>, which is what you should use	141	ask). This type is called C<ev_tstamp>, which is what you should use
132	too. It usually aliases to the C<double> type in C. When you need to do	142	too. It usually aliases to the C<double> type in C. When you need to do
133	any calculations on it, you should treat it as some floating point value.	143	any calculations on it, you should treat it as some floating point value.
134		144
…		…
149	When libev detects a usage error such as a negative timer interval, then	159	When libev detects a usage error such as a negative timer interval, then
150	it will print a diagnostic message and abort (via the C<assert> mechanism,	160	it will print a diagnostic message and abort (via the C<assert> mechanism,
151	so C<NDEBUG> will disable this checking): these are programming errors in	161	so C<NDEBUG> will disable this checking): these are programming errors in
152	the libev caller and need to be fixed there.	162	the libev caller and need to be fixed there.
153		163
		164	Via the C<EV_FREQUENT> macro you can compile in and/or enable extensive
		165	consistency checking code inside libev that can be used to check for
		166	internal inconsistencies, suually caused by application bugs.
		167
154	Libev also has a few internal error-checking C<assert>ions, and also has	168	Libev also has a few internal error-checking C<assert>ions. These do not
155	extensive consistency checking code. These do not trigger under normal
156	circumstances, as they indicate either a bug in libev or worse.	169	trigger under normal circumstances, as they indicate either a bug in libev
		170	or worse.
157		171
158		172
159	=head1 GLOBAL FUNCTIONS	173	=head1 GLOBAL FUNCTIONS
160		174
161	These functions can be called anytime, even before initialising the	175	These functions can be called anytime, even before initialising the
…		…
165		179
166	=item ev_tstamp ev_time ()	180	=item ev_tstamp ev_time ()
167		181
168	Returns the current time as libev would use it. Please note that the	182	Returns the current time as libev would use it. Please note that the
169	C<ev_now> function is usually faster and also often returns the timestamp	183	C<ev_now> function is usually faster and also often returns the timestamp
170	you actually want to know.	184	you actually want to know. Also interesting is the combination of
		185	C<ev_now_update> and C<ev_now>.
171		186
172	=item ev_sleep (ev_tstamp interval)	187	=item ev_sleep (ev_tstamp interval)
173		188
174	Sleep for the given interval: The current thread will be blocked until	189	Sleep for the given interval: The current thread will be blocked
175	either it is interrupted or the given time interval has passed. Basically	190	until either it is interrupted or the given time interval has
		191	passed (approximately - it might return a bit earlier even if not
		192	interrupted). Returns immediately if C<< interval <= 0 >>.
		193
176	this is a sub-second-resolution C<sleep ()>.	194	Basically this is a sub-second-resolution C<sleep ()>.
		195
		196	The range of the C<interval> is limited - libev only guarantees to work
		197	with sleep times of up to one day (C<< interval <= 86400 >>).
177		198
178	=item int ev_version_major ()	199	=item int ev_version_major ()
179		200
180	=item int ev_version_minor ()	201	=item int ev_version_minor ()
181		202
…		…
192	as this indicates an incompatible change. Minor versions are usually	213	as this indicates an incompatible change. Minor versions are usually
193	compatible to older versions, so a larger minor version alone is usually	214	compatible to older versions, so a larger minor version alone is usually
194	not a problem.	215	not a problem.
195		216
196	Example: Make sure we haven't accidentally been linked against the wrong	217	Example: Make sure we haven't accidentally been linked against the wrong
197	version (note, however, that this will not detect ABI mismatches :).	218	version (note, however, that this will not detect other ABI mismatches,
		219	such as LFS or reentrancy).
198		220
199	assert (("libev version mismatch",	221	assert (("libev version mismatch",
200	ev_version_major () == EV_VERSION_MAJOR	222	ev_version_major () == EV_VERSION_MAJOR
201	&& ev_version_minor () >= EV_VERSION_MINOR));	223	&& ev_version_minor () >= EV_VERSION_MINOR));
202		224
…		…
213	assert (("sorry, no epoll, no sex",	235	assert (("sorry, no epoll, no sex",
214	ev_supported_backends () & EVBACKEND_EPOLL));	236	ev_supported_backends () & EVBACKEND_EPOLL));
215		237
216	=item unsigned int ev_recommended_backends ()	238	=item unsigned int ev_recommended_backends ()
217		239
218	Return the set of all backends compiled into this binary of libev and also	240	Return the set of all backends compiled into this binary of libev and
219	recommended for this platform. This set is often smaller than the one	241	also recommended for this platform, meaning it will work for most file
		242	descriptor types. This set is often smaller than the one returned by
220	returned by C<ev_supported_backends>, as for example kqueue is broken on	243	C<ev_supported_backends>, as for example kqueue is broken on most BSDs
221	most BSDs and will not be auto-detected unless you explicitly request it	244	and will not be auto-detected unless you explicitly request it (assuming
222	(assuming you know what you are doing). This is the set of backends that	245	you know what you are doing). This is the set of backends that libev will
223	libev will probe for if you specify no backends explicitly.	246	probe for if you specify no backends explicitly.
224		247
225	=item unsigned int ev_embeddable_backends ()	248	=item unsigned int ev_embeddable_backends ()
226		249
227	Returns the set of backends that are embeddable in other event loops. This	250	Returns the set of backends that are embeddable in other event loops. This
228	is the theoretical, all-platform, value. To find which backends	251	value is platform-specific but can include backends not available on the
229	might be supported on the current system, you would need to look at	252	current system. To find which embeddable backends might be supported on
230	C<ev_embeddable_backends () & ev_supported_backends ()>, likewise for	253	the current system, you would need to look at C<ev_embeddable_backends ()
231	recommended ones.	254	& ev_supported_backends ()>, likewise for recommended ones.
232		255
233	See the description of C<ev_embed> watchers for more info.	256	See the description of C<ev_embed> watchers for more info.
234		257
235	=item ev_set_allocator (void *(*cb)(void *ptr, long size)) [NOT REENTRANT]	258	=item ev_set_allocator (void *(*cb)(void *ptr, long size) throw ())
236		259
237	Sets the allocation function to use (the prototype is similar - the	260	Sets the allocation function to use (the prototype is similar - the
238	semantics are identical to the C<realloc> C89/SuS/POSIX function). It is	261	semantics are identical to the C<realloc> C89/SuS/POSIX function). It is
239	used to allocate and free memory (no surprises here). If it returns zero	262	used to allocate and free memory (no surprises here). If it returns zero
240	when memory needs to be allocated (C<size != 0>), the library might abort	263	when memory needs to be allocated (C<size != 0>), the library might abort
…		…
246		269
247	You could override this function in high-availability programs to, say,	270	You could override this function in high-availability programs to, say,
248	free some memory if it cannot allocate memory, to use a special allocator,	271	free some memory if it cannot allocate memory, to use a special allocator,
249	or even to sleep a while and retry until some memory is available.	272	or even to sleep a while and retry until some memory is available.
250		273
		274	Example: The following is the C<realloc> function that libev itself uses
		275	which should work with C<realloc> and C<free> functions of all kinds and
		276	is probably a good basis for your own implementation.
		277
		278	static void *
		279	ev_realloc_emul (void *ptr, long size) EV_NOEXCEPT
		280	{
		281	if (size)
		282	return realloc (ptr, size);
		283
		284	free (ptr);
		285	return 0;
		286	}
		287
251	Example: Replace the libev allocator with one that waits a bit and then	288	Example: Replace the libev allocator with one that waits a bit and then
252	retries (example requires a standards-compliant C<realloc>).	289	retries.
253		290
254	static void *	291	static void *
255	persistent_realloc (void *ptr, size_t size)	292	persistent_realloc (void *ptr, size_t size)
256	{	293	{
		294	if (!size)
		295	{
		296	free (ptr);
		297	return 0;
		298	}
		299
257	for (;;)	300	for (;;)
258	{	301	{
259	void *newptr = realloc (ptr, size);	302	void *newptr = realloc (ptr, size);
260		303
261	if (newptr)	304	if (newptr)
…		…
266	}	309	}
267		310
268	...	311	...
269	ev_set_allocator (persistent_realloc);	312	ev_set_allocator (persistent_realloc);
270		313
271	=item ev_set_syserr_cb (void (*cb)(const char *msg)); [NOT REENTRANT]	314	=item ev_set_syserr_cb (void (*cb)(const char *msg) throw ())
272		315
273	Set the callback function to call on a retryable system call error (such	316	Set the callback function to call on a retryable system call error (such
274	as failed select, poll, epoll_wait). The message is a printable string	317	as failed select, poll, epoll_wait). The message is a printable string
275	indicating the system call or subsystem causing the problem. If this	318	indicating the system call or subsystem causing the problem. If this
276	callback is set, then libev will expect it to remedy the situation, no	319	callback is set, then libev will expect it to remedy the situation, no
…		…
288	}	331	}
289		332
290	...	333	...
291	ev_set_syserr_cb (fatal_error);	334	ev_set_syserr_cb (fatal_error);
292		335
		336	=item ev_feed_signal (int signum)
		337
		338	This function can be used to "simulate" a signal receive. It is completely
		339	safe to call this function at any time, from any context, including signal
		340	handlers or random threads.
		341
		342	Its main use is to customise signal handling in your process, especially
		343	in the presence of threads. For example, you could block signals
		344	by default in all threads (and specifying C<EVFLAG_NOSIGMASK> when
		345	creating any loops), and in one thread, use C<sigwait> or any other
		346	mechanism to wait for signals, then "deliver" them to libev by calling
		347	C<ev_feed_signal>.
		348
293	=back	349	=back
294		350
295	=head1 FUNCTIONS CONTROLLING THE EVENT LOOP	351	=head1 FUNCTIONS CONTROLLING EVENT LOOPS
296		352
297	An event loop is described by a C<struct ev_loop *> (the C<struct> is	353	An event loop is described by a C<struct ev_loop *> (the C<struct> is
298	I<not> optional in this case unless libev 3 compatibility is disabled, as	354	I<not> optional in this case unless libev 3 compatibility is disabled, as
299	libev 3 had an C<ev_loop> function colliding with the struct name).	355	libev 3 had an C<ev_loop> function colliding with the struct name).
300		356
301	The library knows two types of such loops, the I<default> loop, which	357	The library knows two types of such loops, the I<default> loop, which
302	supports signals and child events, and dynamically created event loops	358	supports child process events, and dynamically created event loops which
303	which do not.	359	do not.
304		360
305	=over 4	361	=over 4
306		362
307	=item struct ev_loop *ev_default_loop (unsigned int flags)	363	=item struct ev_loop *ev_default_loop (unsigned int flags)
308		364
309	This will initialise the default event loop if it hasn't been initialised	365	This returns the "default" event loop object, which is what you should
310	yet and return it. If the default loop could not be initialised, returns	366	normally use when you just need "the event loop". Event loop objects and
311	false. If it already was initialised it simply returns it (and ignores the	367	the C<flags> parameter are described in more detail in the entry for
312	flags. If that is troubling you, check C<ev_backend ()> afterwards).	368	C<ev_loop_new>.
		369
		370	If the default loop is already initialised then this function simply
		371	returns it (and ignores the flags. If that is troubling you, check
		372	C<ev_backend ()> afterwards). Otherwise it will create it with the given
		373	flags, which should almost always be C<0>, unless the caller is also the
		374	one calling C<ev_run> or otherwise qualifies as "the main program".
313		375
314	If you don't know what event loop to use, use the one returned from this	376	If you don't know what event loop to use, use the one returned from this
315	function.	377	function (or via the C<EV_DEFAULT> macro).
316		378
317	Note that this function is I<not> thread-safe, so if you want to use it	379	Note that this function is I<not> thread-safe, so if you want to use it
318	from multiple threads, you have to lock (note also that this is unlikely,	380	from multiple threads, you have to employ some kind of mutex (note also
319	as loops cannot be shared easily between threads anyway).	381	that this case is unlikely, as loops cannot be shared easily between
		382	threads anyway).
320		383
321	The default loop is the only loop that can handle C<ev_signal> and	384	The default loop is the only loop that can handle C<ev_child> watchers,
322	C<ev_child> watchers, and to do this, it always registers a handler	385	and to do this, it always registers a handler for C<SIGCHLD>. If this is
323	for C<SIGCHLD>. If this is a problem for your application you can either	386	a problem for your application you can either create a dynamic loop with
324	create a dynamic loop with C<ev_loop_new> that doesn't do that, or you	387	C<ev_loop_new> which doesn't do that, or you can simply overwrite the
325	can simply overwrite the C<SIGCHLD> signal handler I<after> calling	388	C<SIGCHLD> signal handler I<after> calling C<ev_default_init>.
326	C<ev_default_init>.	389
		390	Example: This is the most typical usage.
		391
		392	if (!ev_default_loop (0))
		393	fatal ("could not initialise libev, bad $LIBEV_FLAGS in environment?");
		394
		395	Example: Restrict libev to the select and poll backends, and do not allow
		396	environment settings to be taken into account:
		397
		398	ev_default_loop (EVBACKEND_POLL | EVBACKEND_SELECT | EVFLAG_NOENV);
		399
		400	=item struct ev_loop *ev_loop_new (unsigned int flags)
		401
		402	This will create and initialise a new event loop object. If the loop
		403	could not be initialised, returns false.
		404
		405	This function is thread-safe, and one common way to use libev with
		406	threads is indeed to create one loop per thread, and using the default
		407	loop in the "main" or "initial" thread.
327		408
328	The flags argument can be used to specify special behaviour or specific	409	The flags argument can be used to specify special behaviour or specific
329	backends to use, and is usually specified as C<0> (or C<EVFLAG_AUTO>).	410	backends to use, and is usually specified as C<0> (or C<EVFLAG_AUTO>).
330		411
331	The following flags are supported:	412	The following flags are supported:
…		…
341		422
342	If this flag bit is or'ed into the flag value (or the program runs setuid	423	If this flag bit is or'ed into the flag value (or the program runs setuid
343	or setgid) then libev will I<not> look at the environment variable	424	or setgid) then libev will I<not> look at the environment variable
344	C<LIBEV_FLAGS>. Otherwise (the default), this environment variable will	425	C<LIBEV_FLAGS>. Otherwise (the default), this environment variable will
345	override the flags completely if it is found in the environment. This is	426	override the flags completely if it is found in the environment. This is
346	useful to try out specific backends to test their performance, or to work	427	useful to try out specific backends to test their performance, to work
347	around bugs.	428	around bugs, or to make libev threadsafe (accessing environment variables
		429	cannot be done in a threadsafe way, but usually it works if no other
		430	thread modifies them).
348		431
349	=item C<EVFLAG_FORKCHECK>	432	=item C<EVFLAG_FORKCHECK>
350		433
351	Instead of calling C<ev_loop_fork> manually after a fork, you can also	434	Instead of calling C<ev_loop_fork> manually after a fork, you can also
352	make libev check for a fork in each iteration by enabling this flag.	435	make libev check for a fork in each iteration by enabling this flag.
353		436
354	This works by calling C<getpid ()> on every iteration of the loop,	437	This works by calling C<getpid ()> on every iteration of the loop,
355	and thus this might slow down your event loop if you do a lot of loop	438	and thus this might slow down your event loop if you do a lot of loop
356	iterations and little real work, but is usually not noticeable (on my	439	iterations and little real work, but is usually not noticeable (on my
357	GNU/Linux system for example, C<getpid> is actually a simple 5-insn sequence	440	GNU/Linux system for example, C<getpid> is actually a simple 5-insn
358	without a system call and thus I<very> fast, but my GNU/Linux system also has	441	sequence without a system call and thus I<very> fast, but my GNU/Linux
359	C<pthread_atfork> which is even faster).	442	system also has C<pthread_atfork> which is even faster). (Update: glibc
		443	versions 2.25 apparently removed the C<getpid> optimisation again).
360		444
361	The big advantage of this flag is that you can forget about fork (and	445	The big advantage of this flag is that you can forget about fork (and
362	forget about forgetting to tell libev about forking) when you use this	446	forget about forgetting to tell libev about forking, although you still
363	flag.	447	have to ignore C<SIGPIPE>) when you use this flag.
364		448
365	This flag setting cannot be overridden or specified in the C<LIBEV_FLAGS>	449	This flag setting cannot be overridden or specified in the C<LIBEV_FLAGS>
366	environment variable.	450	environment variable.
367		451
368	=item C<EVFLAG_NOINOTIFY>	452	=item C<EVFLAG_NOINOTIFY>
369		453
370	When this flag is specified, then libev will not attempt to use the	454	When this flag is specified, then libev will not attempt to use the
371	I<inotify> API for it's C<ev_stat> watchers. Apart from debugging and	455	I<inotify> API for its C<ev_stat> watchers. Apart from debugging and
372	testing, this flag can be useful to conserve inotify file descriptors, as	456	testing, this flag can be useful to conserve inotify file descriptors, as
373	otherwise each loop using C<ev_stat> watchers consumes one inotify handle.	457	otherwise each loop using C<ev_stat> watchers consumes one inotify handle.
374		458
375	=item C<EVFLAG_SIGNALFD>	459	=item C<EVFLAG_SIGNALFD>
376		460
377	When this flag is specified, then libev will attempt to use the	461	When this flag is specified, then libev will attempt to use the
378	I<signalfd> API for it's C<ev_signal> (and C<ev_child>) watchers. This API	462	I<signalfd> API for its C<ev_signal> (and C<ev_child>) watchers. This API
379	delivers signals synchronously, which makes it both faster and might make	463	delivers signals synchronously, which makes it both faster and might make
380	it possible to get the queued signal data. It can also simplify signal	464	it possible to get the queued signal data. It can also simplify signal
381	handling with threads, as long as you properly block signals in your	465	handling with threads, as long as you properly block signals in your
382	threads that are not interested in handling them.	466	threads that are not interested in handling them.
383		467
384	Signalfd will not be used by default as this changes your signal mask, and	468	Signalfd will not be used by default as this changes your signal mask, and
385	there are a lot of shoddy libraries and programs (glib's threadpool for	469	there are a lot of shoddy libraries and programs (glib's threadpool for
386	example) that can't properly initialise their signal masks.	470	example) that can't properly initialise their signal masks.
		471
		472	=item C<EVFLAG_NOSIGMASK>
		473
		474	When this flag is specified, then libev will avoid to modify the signal
		475	mask. Specifically, this means you have to make sure signals are unblocked
		476	when you want to receive them.
		477
		478	This behaviour is useful when you want to do your own signal handling, or
		479	want to handle signals only in specific threads and want to avoid libev
		480	unblocking the signals.
		481
		482	It's also required by POSIX in a threaded program, as libev calls
		483	C<sigprocmask>, whose behaviour is officially unspecified.
		484
		485	=item C<EVFLAG_NOTIMERFD>
		486
		487	When this flag is specified, the libev will avoid using a C<timerfd> to
		488	detect time jumps. It will still be able to detect time jumps, but takes
		489	longer and has a lower accuracy in doing so, but saves a file descriptor
		490	per loop.
		491
		492	The current implementation only tries to use a C<timerfd> when the first
		493	C<ev_periodic> watcher is started and falls back on other methods if it
		494	cannot be created, but this behaviour might change in the future.
387		495
388	=item C<EVBACKEND_SELECT> (value 1, portable select backend)	496	=item C<EVBACKEND_SELECT> (value 1, portable select backend)
389		497
390	This is your standard select(2) backend. Not I<completely> standard, as	498	This is your standard select(2) backend. Not I<completely> standard, as
391	libev tries to roll its own fd_set with no limits on the number of fds,	499	libev tries to roll its own fd_set with no limits on the number of fds,
…		…
416	This backend maps C<EV_READ> to C<POLLIN | POLLERR | POLLHUP>, and	524	This backend maps C<EV_READ> to C<POLLIN | POLLERR | POLLHUP>, and
417	C<EV_WRITE> to C<POLLOUT | POLLERR | POLLHUP>.	525	C<EV_WRITE> to C<POLLOUT | POLLERR | POLLHUP>.
418		526
419	=item C<EVBACKEND_EPOLL> (value 4, Linux)	527	=item C<EVBACKEND_EPOLL> (value 4, Linux)
420		528
421	Use the linux-specific epoll(7) interface (for both pre- and post-2.6.9	529	Use the Linux-specific epoll(7) interface (for both pre- and post-2.6.9
422	kernels).	530	kernels).
423		531
424	For few fds, this backend is a bit little slower than poll and select,	532	For few fds, this backend is a bit little slower than poll and select, but
425	but it scales phenomenally better. While poll and select usually scale	533	it scales phenomenally better. While poll and select usually scale like
426	like O(total_fds) where n is the total number of fds (or the highest fd),	534	O(total_fds) where total_fds is the total number of fds (or the highest
427	epoll scales either O(1) or O(active_fds).	535	fd), epoll scales either O(1) or O(active_fds).
428		536
429	The epoll mechanism deserves honorable mention as the most misdesigned	537	The epoll mechanism deserves honorable mention as the most misdesigned
430	of the more advanced event mechanisms: mere annoyances include silently	538	of the more advanced event mechanisms: mere annoyances include silently
431	dropping file descriptors, requiring a system call per change per file	539	dropping file descriptors, requiring a system call per change per file
432	descriptor (and unnecessary guessing of parameters), problems with dup and	540	descriptor (and unnecessary guessing of parameters), problems with dup,
		541	returning before the timeout value, resulting in additional iterations
		542	(and only giving 5ms accuracy while select on the same platform gives
433	so on. The biggest issue is fork races, however - if a program forks then	543	0.1ms) and so on. The biggest issue is fork races, however - if a program
434	I<both> parent and child process have to recreate the epoll set, which can	544	forks then I<both> parent and child process have to recreate the epoll
435	take considerable time (one syscall per file descriptor) and is of course	545	set, which can take considerable time (one syscall per file descriptor)
436	hard to detect.	546	and is of course hard to detect.
437		547
438	Epoll is also notoriously buggy - embedding epoll fds I<should> work, but	548	Epoll is also notoriously buggy - embedding epoll fds I<should> work,
439	of course I<doesn't>, and epoll just loves to report events for totally	549	but of course I<doesn't>, and epoll just loves to report events for
440	I<different> file descriptors (even already closed ones, so one cannot	550	totally I<different> file descriptors (even already closed ones, so
441	even remove them from the set) than registered in the set (especially	551	one cannot even remove them from the set) than registered in the set
442	on SMP systems). Libev tries to counter these spurious notifications by	552	(especially on SMP systems). Libev tries to counter these spurious
443	employing an additional generation counter and comparing that against the	553	notifications by employing an additional generation counter and comparing
444	events to filter out spurious ones, recreating the set when required. Last	554	that against the events to filter out spurious ones, recreating the set
		555	when required. Epoll also erroneously rounds down timeouts, but gives you
		556	no way to know when and by how much, so sometimes you have to busy-wait
		557	because epoll returns immediately despite a nonzero timeout. And last
445	not least, it also refuses to work with some file descriptors which work	558	not least, it also refuses to work with some file descriptors which work
446	perfectly fine with C<select> (files, many character devices...).	559	perfectly fine with C<select> (files, many character devices...).
		560
		561	Epoll is truly the train wreck among event poll mechanisms, a frankenpoll,
		562	cobbled together in a hurry, no thought to design or interaction with
		563	others. Oh, the pain, will it ever stop...
447		564
448	While stopping, setting and starting an I/O watcher in the same iteration	565	While stopping, setting and starting an I/O watcher in the same iteration
449	will result in some caching, there is still a system call per such	566	will result in some caching, there is still a system call per such
450	incident (because the same I<file descriptor> could point to a different	567	incident (because the same I<file descriptor> could point to a different
451	I<file description> now), so its best to avoid that. Also, C<dup ()>'ed	568	I<file description> now), so its best to avoid that. Also, C<dup ()>'ed
…		…
463	All this means that, in practice, C<EVBACKEND_SELECT> can be as fast or	580	All this means that, in practice, C<EVBACKEND_SELECT> can be as fast or
464	faster than epoll for maybe up to a hundred file descriptors, depending on	581	faster than epoll for maybe up to a hundred file descriptors, depending on
465	the usage. So sad.	582	the usage. So sad.
466		583
467	While nominally embeddable in other event loops, this feature is broken in	584	While nominally embeddable in other event loops, this feature is broken in
468	all kernel versions tested so far.	585	a lot of kernel revisions, but probably(!) works in current versions.
469		586
470	This backend maps C<EV_READ> and C<EV_WRITE> in the same way as	587	This backend maps C<EV_READ> and C<EV_WRITE> in the same way as
471	C<EVBACKEND_POLL>.	588	C<EVBACKEND_POLL>.
472		589
		590	=item C<EVBACKEND_LINUXAIO> (value 64, Linux)
		591
		592	Use the Linux-specific Linux AIO (I<not> C<< aio(7) >> but C<<
		593	io_submit(2) >>) event interface available in post-4.18 kernels (but libev
		594	only tries to use it in 4.19+).
		595
		596	This is another Linux train wreck of an event interface.
		597
		598	If this backend works for you (as of this writing, it was very
		599	experimental), it is the best event interface available on Linux and might
		600	be well worth enabling it - if it isn't available in your kernel this will
		601	be detected and this backend will be skipped.
		602
		603	This backend can batch oneshot requests and supports a user-space ring
		604	buffer to receive events. It also doesn't suffer from most of the design
		605	problems of epoll (such as not being able to remove event sources from
		606	the epoll set), and generally sounds too good to be true. Because, this
		607	being the Linux kernel, of course it suffers from a whole new set of
		608	limitations, forcing you to fall back to epoll, inheriting all its design
		609	issues.
		610
		611	For one, it is not easily embeddable (but probably could be done using
		612	an event fd at some extra overhead). It also is subject to a system wide
		613	limit that can be configured in F</proc/sys/fs/aio-max-nr>. If no AIO
		614	requests are left, this backend will be skipped during initialisation, and
		615	will switch to epoll when the loop is active.
		616
		617	Most problematic in practice, however, is that not all file descriptors
		618	work with it. For example, in Linux 5.1, TCP sockets, pipes, event fds,
		619	files, F</dev/null> and many others are supported, but ttys do not work
		620	properly (a known bug that the kernel developers don't care about, see
		621	L<https://lore.kernel.org/patchwork/patch/1047453/>), so this is not
		622	(yet?) a generic event polling interface.
		623
		624	Overall, it seems the Linux developers just don't want it to have a
		625	generic event handling mechanism other than C<select> or C<poll>.
		626
		627	To work around all these problem, the current version of libev uses its
		628	epoll backend as a fallback for file descriptor types that do not work. Or
		629	falls back completely to epoll if the kernel acts up.
		630
		631	This backend maps C<EV_READ> and C<EV_WRITE> in the same way as
		632	C<EVBACKEND_POLL>.
		633
473	=item C<EVBACKEND_KQUEUE> (value 8, most BSD clones)	634	=item C<EVBACKEND_KQUEUE> (value 8, most BSD clones)
474		635
475	Kqueue deserves special mention, as at the time of this writing, it	636	Kqueue deserves special mention, as at the time this backend was
476	was broken on all BSDs except NetBSD (usually it doesn't work reliably	637	implemented, it was broken on all BSDs except NetBSD (usually it doesn't
477	with anything but sockets and pipes, except on Darwin, where of course	638	work reliably with anything but sockets and pipes, except on Darwin,
478	it's completely useless). Unlike epoll, however, whose brokenness	639	where of course it's completely useless). Unlike epoll, however, whose
479	is by design, these kqueue bugs can (and eventually will) be fixed	640	brokenness is by design, these kqueue bugs can be (and mostly have been)
480	without API changes to existing programs. For this reason it's not being	641	fixed without API changes to existing programs. For this reason it's not
481	"auto-detected" unless you explicitly specify it in the flags (i.e. using	642	being "auto-detected" on all platforms unless you explicitly specify it
482	C<EVBACKEND_KQUEUE>) or libev was compiled on a known-to-be-good (-enough)	643	in the flags (i.e. using C<EVBACKEND_KQUEUE>) or libev was compiled on a
483	system like NetBSD.	644	known-to-be-good (-enough) system like NetBSD.
484		645
485	You still can embed kqueue into a normal poll or select backend and use it	646	You still can embed kqueue into a normal poll or select backend and use it
486	only for sockets (after having made sure that sockets work with kqueue on	647	only for sockets (after having made sure that sockets work with kqueue on
487	the target platform). See C<ev_embed> watchers for more info.	648	the target platform). See C<ev_embed> watchers for more info.
488		649
489	It scales in the same way as the epoll backend, but the interface to the	650	It scales in the same way as the epoll backend, but the interface to the
490	kernel is more efficient (which says nothing about its actual speed, of	651	kernel is more efficient (which says nothing about its actual speed, of
491	course). While stopping, setting and starting an I/O watcher does never	652	course). While stopping, setting and starting an I/O watcher does never
492	cause an extra system call as with C<EVBACKEND_EPOLL>, it still adds up to	653	cause an extra system call as with C<EVBACKEND_EPOLL>, it still adds up to
493	two event changes per incident. Support for C<fork ()> is very bad (but	654	two event changes per incident. Support for C<fork ()> is very bad (you
494	sane, unlike epoll) and it drops fds silently in similarly hard-to-detect	655	might have to leak fds on fork, but it's more sane than epoll) and it
495	cases	656	drops fds silently in similarly hard-to-detect cases.
496		657
497	This backend usually performs well under most conditions.	658	This backend usually performs well under most conditions.
498		659
499	While nominally embeddable in other event loops, this doesn't work	660	While nominally embeddable in other event loops, this doesn't work
500	everywhere, so you might need to test for this. And since it is broken	661	everywhere, so you might need to test for this. And since it is broken
…		…
517	=item C<EVBACKEND_PORT> (value 32, Solaris 10)	678	=item C<EVBACKEND_PORT> (value 32, Solaris 10)
518		679
519	This uses the Solaris 10 event port mechanism. As with everything on Solaris,	680	This uses the Solaris 10 event port mechanism. As with everything on Solaris,
520	it's really slow, but it still scales very well (O(active_fds)).	681	it's really slow, but it still scales very well (O(active_fds)).
521		682
522	Please note that Solaris event ports can deliver a lot of spurious
523	notifications, so you need to use non-blocking I/O or other means to avoid
524	blocking when no data (or space) is available.
525
526	While this backend scales well, it requires one system call per active	683	While this backend scales well, it requires one system call per active
527	file descriptor per loop iteration. For small and medium numbers of file	684	file descriptor per loop iteration. For small and medium numbers of file
528	descriptors a "slow" C<EVBACKEND_SELECT> or C<EVBACKEND_POLL> backend	685	descriptors a "slow" C<EVBACKEND_SELECT> or C<EVBACKEND_POLL> backend
529	might perform better.	686	might perform better.
530		687
531	On the positive side, with the exception of the spurious readiness	688	On the positive side, this backend actually performed fully to
532	notifications, this backend actually performed fully to specification
533	in all tests and is fully embeddable, which is a rare feat among the	689	specification in all tests and is fully embeddable, which is a rare feat
534	OS-specific backends (I vastly prefer correctness over speed hacks).	690	among the OS-specific backends (I vastly prefer correctness over speed
		691	hacks).
		692
		693	On the negative side, the interface is I<bizarre> - so bizarre that
		694	even sun itself gets it wrong in their code examples: The event polling
		695	function sometimes returns events to the caller even though an error
		696	occurred, but with no indication whether it has done so or not (yes, it's
		697	even documented that way) - deadly for edge-triggered interfaces where you
		698	absolutely have to know whether an event occurred or not because you have
		699	to re-arm the watcher.
		700
		701	Fortunately libev seems to be able to work around these idiocies.
535		702
536	This backend maps C<EV_READ> and C<EV_WRITE> in the same way as	703	This backend maps C<EV_READ> and C<EV_WRITE> in the same way as
537	C<EVBACKEND_POLL>.	704	C<EVBACKEND_POLL>.
538		705
539	=item C<EVBACKEND_ALL>	706	=item C<EVBACKEND_ALL>
540		707
541	Try all backends (even potentially broken ones that wouldn't be tried	708	Try all backends (even potentially broken ones that wouldn't be tried
542	with C<EVFLAG_AUTO>). Since this is a mask, you can do stuff such as	709	with C<EVFLAG_AUTO>). Since this is a mask, you can do stuff such as
543	C<EVBACKEND_ALL & ~EVBACKEND_KQUEUE>.	710	C<EVBACKEND_ALL & ~EVBACKEND_KQUEUE>.
544		711
545	It is definitely not recommended to use this flag.	712	It is definitely not recommended to use this flag, use whatever
		713	C<ev_recommended_backends ()> returns, or simply do not specify a backend
		714	at all.
		715
		716	=item C<EVBACKEND_MASK>
		717
		718	Not a backend at all, but a mask to select all backend bits from a
		719	C<flags> value, in case you want to mask out any backends from a flags
		720	value (e.g. when modifying the C<LIBEV_FLAGS> environment variable).
546		721
547	=back	722	=back
548		723
549	If one or more of the backend flags are or'ed into the flags value,	724	If one or more of the backend flags are or'ed into the flags value,
550	then only these backends will be tried (in the reverse order as listed	725	then only these backends will be tried (in the reverse order as listed
551	here). If none are specified, all backends in C<ev_recommended_backends	726	here). If none are specified, all backends in C<ev_recommended_backends
552	()> will be tried.	727	()> will be tried.
553		728
554	Example: This is the most typical usage.
555
556	if (!ev_default_loop (0))
557	fatal ("could not initialise libev, bad $LIBEV_FLAGS in environment?");
558
559	Example: Restrict libev to the select and poll backends, and do not allow
560	environment settings to be taken into account:
561
562	ev_default_loop (EVBACKEND_POLL | EVBACKEND_SELECT | EVFLAG_NOENV);
563
564	Example: Use whatever libev has to offer, but make sure that kqueue is
565	used if available (warning, breaks stuff, best use only with your own
566	private event loop and only if you know the OS supports your types of
567	fds):
568
569	ev_default_loop (ev_recommended_backends () | EVBACKEND_KQUEUE);
570
571	=item struct ev_loop *ev_loop_new (unsigned int flags)
572
573	Similar to C<ev_default_loop>, but always creates a new event loop that is
574	always distinct from the default loop.
575
576	Note that this function I<is> thread-safe, and one common way to use
577	libev with threads is indeed to create one loop per thread, and using the
578	default loop in the "main" or "initial" thread.
579
580	Example: Try to create a event loop that uses epoll and nothing else.	729	Example: Try to create a event loop that uses epoll and nothing else.
581		730
582	struct ev_loop *epoller = ev_loop_new (EVBACKEND_EPOLL | EVFLAG_NOENV);	731	struct ev_loop *epoller = ev_loop_new (EVBACKEND_EPOLL | EVFLAG_NOENV);
583	if (!epoller)	732	if (!epoller)
584	fatal ("no epoll found here, maybe it hides under your chair");	733	fatal ("no epoll found here, maybe it hides under your chair");
585		734
		735	Example: Use whatever libev has to offer, but make sure that kqueue is
		736	used if available.
		737
		738	struct ev_loop *loop = ev_loop_new (ev_recommended_backends () | EVBACKEND_KQUEUE);
		739
		740	Example: Similarly, on linux, you mgiht want to take advantage of the
		741	linux aio backend if possible, but fall back to something else if that
		742	isn't available.
		743
		744	struct ev_loop *loop = ev_loop_new (ev_recommended_backends () | EVBACKEND_LINUXAIO);
		745
586	=item ev_default_destroy ()	746	=item ev_loop_destroy (loop)
587		747
588	Destroys the default loop (frees all memory and kernel state etc.). None	748	Destroys an event loop object (frees all memory and kernel state
589	of the active event watchers will be stopped in the normal sense, so	749	etc.). None of the active event watchers will be stopped in the normal
590	e.g. C<ev_is_active> might still return true. It is your responsibility to	750	sense, so e.g. C<ev_is_active> might still return true. It is your
591	either stop all watchers cleanly yourself I<before> calling this function,	751	responsibility to either stop all watchers cleanly yourself I<before>
592	or cope with the fact afterwards (which is usually the easiest thing, you	752	calling this function, or cope with the fact afterwards (which is usually
593	can just ignore the watchers and/or C<free ()> them for example).	753	the easiest thing, you can just ignore the watchers and/or C<free ()> them
		754	for example).
594		755
595	Note that certain global state, such as signal state (and installed signal	756	Note that certain global state, such as signal state (and installed signal
596	handlers), will not be freed by this function, and related watchers (such	757	handlers), will not be freed by this function, and related watchers (such
597	as signal and child watchers) would need to be stopped manually.	758	as signal and child watchers) would need to be stopped manually.
598		759
599	In general it is not advisable to call this function except in the	760	This function is normally used on loop objects allocated by
600	rare occasion where you really need to free e.g. the signal handling	761	C<ev_loop_new>, but it can also be used on the default loop returned by
		762	C<ev_default_loop>, in which case it is not thread-safe.
		763
		764	Note that it is not advisable to call this function on the default loop
		765	except in the rare occasion where you really need to free its resources.
601	pipe fds. If you need dynamically allocated loops it is better to use	766	If you need dynamically allocated loops it is better to use C<ev_loop_new>
602	C<ev_loop_new> and C<ev_loop_destroy>.	767	and C<ev_loop_destroy>.
603		768
604	=item ev_loop_destroy (loop)	769	=item ev_loop_fork (loop)
605
606	Like C<ev_default_destroy>, but destroys an event loop created by an
607	earlier call to C<ev_loop_new>.
608
609	=item ev_default_fork ()
610		770
611	This function sets a flag that causes subsequent C<ev_run> iterations	771	This function sets a flag that causes subsequent C<ev_run> iterations
612	to reinitialise the kernel state for backends that have one. Despite the	772	to reinitialise the kernel state for backends that have one. Despite
613	name, you can call it anytime, but it makes most sense after forking, in	773	the name, you can call it anytime you are allowed to start or stop
614	the child process (or both child and parent, but that again makes little	774	watchers (except inside an C<ev_prepare> callback), but it makes most
615	sense). You I<must> call it in the child before using any of the libev	775	sense after forking, in the child process. You I<must> call it (or use
616	functions, and it will only take effect at the next C<ev_run> iteration.	776	C<EVFLAG_FORKCHECK>) in the child before resuming or calling C<ev_run>.
617		777
		778	In addition, if you want to reuse a loop (via this function or
		779	C<EVFLAG_FORKCHECK>), you I<also> have to ignore C<SIGPIPE>.
		780
618	Again, you I<have> to call it on I<any> loop that you want to re-use after	781	Again, you I<have> to call it on I<any> loop that you want to re-use after
619	a fork, I<even if you do not plan to use the loop in the parent>. This is	782	a fork, I<even if you do not plan to use the loop in the parent>. This is
620	because some kernel interfaces *cough* I<kqueue> *cough* do funny things	783	because some kernel interfaces *cough* I<kqueue> *cough* do funny things
621	during fork.	784	during fork.
622		785
623	On the other hand, you only need to call this function in the child	786	On the other hand, you only need to call this function in the child
…		…
626	call it at all (in fact, C<epoll> is so badly broken that it makes a	789	call it at all (in fact, C<epoll> is so badly broken that it makes a
627	difference, but libev will usually detect this case on its own and do a	790	difference, but libev will usually detect this case on its own and do a
628	costly reset of the backend).	791	costly reset of the backend).
629		792
630	The function itself is quite fast and it's usually not a problem to call	793	The function itself is quite fast and it's usually not a problem to call
631	it just in case after a fork. To make this easy, the function will fit in	794	it just in case after a fork.
632	quite nicely into a call to C<pthread_atfork>:
633		795
		796	Example: Automate calling C<ev_loop_fork> on the default loop when
		797	using pthreads.
		798
		799	static void
		800	post_fork_child (void)
		801	{
		802	ev_loop_fork (EV_DEFAULT);
		803	}
		804
		805	...
634	pthread_atfork (0, 0, ev_default_fork);	806	pthread_atfork (0, 0, post_fork_child);
635
636	=item ev_loop_fork (loop)
637
638	Like C<ev_default_fork>, but acts on an event loop created by
639	C<ev_loop_new>. Yes, you have to call this on every allocated event loop
640	after fork that you want to re-use in the child, and how you keep track of
641	them is entirely your own problem.
642		807
643	=item int ev_is_default_loop (loop)	808	=item int ev_is_default_loop (loop)
644		809
645	Returns true when the given loop is, in fact, the default loop, and false	810	Returns true when the given loop is, in fact, the default loop, and false
646	otherwise.	811	otherwise.
…		…
657	prepare and check phases.	822	prepare and check phases.
658		823
659	=item unsigned int ev_depth (loop)	824	=item unsigned int ev_depth (loop)
660		825
661	Returns the number of times C<ev_run> was entered minus the number of	826	Returns the number of times C<ev_run> was entered minus the number of
662	times C<ev_run> was exited, in other words, the recursion depth.	827	times C<ev_run> was exited normally, in other words, the recursion depth.
663		828
664	Outside C<ev_run>, this number is zero. In a callback, this number is	829	Outside C<ev_run>, this number is zero. In a callback, this number is
665	C<1>, unless C<ev_run> was invoked recursively (or from another thread),	830	C<1>, unless C<ev_run> was invoked recursively (or from another thread),
666	in which case it is higher.	831	in which case it is higher.
667		832
668	Leaving C<ev_run> abnormally (setjmp/longjmp, cancelling the thread	833	Leaving C<ev_run> abnormally (setjmp/longjmp, cancelling the thread,
669	etc.), doesn't count as "exit" - consider this as a hint to avoid such	834	throwing an exception etc.), doesn't count as "exit" - consider this
670	ungentleman-like behaviour unless it's really convenient.	835	as a hint to avoid such ungentleman-like behaviour unless it's really
		836	convenient, in which case it is fully supported.
671		837
672	=item unsigned int ev_backend (loop)	838	=item unsigned int ev_backend (loop)
673		839
674	Returns one of the C<EVBACKEND_*> flags indicating the event backend in	840	Returns one of the C<EVBACKEND_*> flags indicating the event backend in
675	use.	841	use.
…		…
690		856
691	This function is rarely useful, but when some event callback runs for a	857	This function is rarely useful, but when some event callback runs for a
692	very long time without entering the event loop, updating libev's idea of	858	very long time without entering the event loop, updating libev's idea of
693	the current time is a good idea.	859	the current time is a good idea.
694		860
695	See also L<The special problem of time updates> in the C<ev_timer> section.	861	See also L</The special problem of time updates> in the C<ev_timer> section.
696		862
697	=item ev_suspend (loop)	863	=item ev_suspend (loop)
698		864
699	=item ev_resume (loop)	865	=item ev_resume (loop)
700		866
…		…
718	without a previous call to C<ev_suspend>.	884	without a previous call to C<ev_suspend>.
719		885
720	Calling C<ev_suspend>/C<ev_resume> has the side effect of updating the	886	Calling C<ev_suspend>/C<ev_resume> has the side effect of updating the
721	event loop time (see C<ev_now_update>).	887	event loop time (see C<ev_now_update>).
722		888
723	=item ev_run (loop, int flags)	889	=item bool ev_run (loop, int flags)
724		890
725	Finally, this is it, the event handler. This function usually is called	891	Finally, this is it, the event handler. This function usually is called
726	after you have initialised all your watchers and you want to start	892	after you have initialised all your watchers and you want to start
727	handling events. It will ask the operating system for any new events, call	893	handling events. It will ask the operating system for any new events, call
728	the watcher callbacks, an then repeat the whole process indefinitely: This	894	the watcher callbacks, and then repeat the whole process indefinitely: This
729	is why event loops are called I<loops>.	895	is why event loops are called I<loops>.
730		896
731	If the flags argument is specified as C<0>, it will keep handling events	897	If the flags argument is specified as C<0>, it will keep handling events
732	until either no event watchers are active anymore or C<ev_break> was	898	until either no event watchers are active anymore or C<ev_break> was
733	called.	899	called.
		900
		901	The return value is false if there are no more active watchers (which
		902	usually means "all jobs done" or "deadlock"), and true in all other cases
		903	(which usually means " you should call C<ev_run> again").
734		904
735	Please note that an explicit C<ev_break> is usually better than	905	Please note that an explicit C<ev_break> is usually better than
736	relying on all watchers to be stopped when deciding when a program has	906	relying on all watchers to be stopped when deciding when a program has
737	finished (especially in interactive programs), but having a program	907	finished (especially in interactive programs), but having a program
738	that automatically loops as long as it has to and no longer by virtue	908	that automatically loops as long as it has to and no longer by virtue
739	of relying on its watchers stopping correctly, that is truly a thing of	909	of relying on its watchers stopping correctly, that is truly a thing of
740	beauty.	910	beauty.
741		911
		912	This function is I<mostly> exception-safe - you can break out of a
		913	C<ev_run> call by calling C<longjmp> in a callback, throwing a C++
		914	exception and so on. This does not decrement the C<ev_depth> value, nor
		915	will it clear any outstanding C<EVBREAK_ONE> breaks.
		916
742	A flags value of C<EVRUN_NOWAIT> will look for new events, will handle	917	A flags value of C<EVRUN_NOWAIT> will look for new events, will handle
743	those events and any already outstanding ones, but will not wait and	918	those events and any already outstanding ones, but will not wait and
744	block your process in case there are no events and will return after one	919	block your process in case there are no events and will return after one
745	iteration of the loop. This is sometimes useful to poll and handle new	920	iteration of the loop. This is sometimes useful to poll and handle new
746	events while doing lengthy calculations, to keep the program responsive.	921	events while doing lengthy calculations, to keep the program responsive.
…		…
755	This is useful if you are waiting for some external event in conjunction	930	This is useful if you are waiting for some external event in conjunction
756	with something not expressible using other libev watchers (i.e. "roll your	931	with something not expressible using other libev watchers (i.e. "roll your
757	own C<ev_run>"). However, a pair of C<ev_prepare>/C<ev_check> watchers is	932	own C<ev_run>"). However, a pair of C<ev_prepare>/C<ev_check> watchers is
758	usually a better approach for this kind of thing.	933	usually a better approach for this kind of thing.
759		934
760	Here are the gory details of what C<ev_run> does:	935	Here are the gory details of what C<ev_run> does (this is for your
		936	understanding, not a guarantee that things will work exactly like this in
		937	future versions):
761		938
762	- Increment loop depth.	939	- Increment loop depth.
763	- Reset the ev_break status.	940	- Reset the ev_break status.
764	- Before the first iteration, call any pending watchers.	941	- Before the first iteration, call any pending watchers.
765	LOOP:	942	LOOP:
…		…
798	anymore.	975	anymore.
799		976
800	... queue jobs here, make sure they register event watchers as long	977	... queue jobs here, make sure they register event watchers as long
801	... as they still have work to do (even an idle watcher will do..)	978	... as they still have work to do (even an idle watcher will do..)
802	ev_run (my_loop, 0);	979	ev_run (my_loop, 0);
803	... jobs done or somebody called unloop. yeah!	980	... jobs done or somebody called break. yeah!
804		981
805	=item ev_break (loop, how)	982	=item ev_break (loop, how)
806		983
807	Can be used to make a call to C<ev_run> return early (but only after it	984	Can be used to make a call to C<ev_run> return early (but only after it
808	has processed all outstanding events). The C<how> argument must be either	985	has processed all outstanding events). The C<how> argument must be either
809	C<EVBREAK_ONE>, which will make the innermost C<ev_run> call return, or	986	C<EVBREAK_ONE>, which will make the innermost C<ev_run> call return, or
810	C<EVBREAK_ALL>, which will make all nested C<ev_run> calls return.	987	C<EVBREAK_ALL>, which will make all nested C<ev_run> calls return.
811		988
812	This "unloop state" will be cleared when entering C<ev_run> again.	989	This "break state" will be cleared on the next call to C<ev_run>.
813		990
814	It is safe to call C<ev_break> from outside any C<ev_run> calls. ##TODO##	991	It is safe to call C<ev_break> from outside any C<ev_run> calls, too, in
		992	which case it will have no effect.
815		993
816	=item ev_ref (loop)	994	=item ev_ref (loop)
817		995
818	=item ev_unref (loop)	996	=item ev_unref (loop)
819		997
…		…
840	running when nothing else is active.	1018	running when nothing else is active.
841		1019
842	ev_signal exitsig;	1020	ev_signal exitsig;
843	ev_signal_init (&exitsig, sig_cb, SIGINT);	1021	ev_signal_init (&exitsig, sig_cb, SIGINT);
844	ev_signal_start (loop, &exitsig);	1022	ev_signal_start (loop, &exitsig);
845	evf_unref (loop);	1023	ev_unref (loop);
846		1024
847	Example: For some weird reason, unregister the above signal handler again.	1025	Example: For some weird reason, unregister the above signal handler again.
848		1026
849	ev_ref (loop);	1027	ev_ref (loop);
850	ev_signal_stop (loop, &exitsig);	1028	ev_signal_stop (loop, &exitsig);
…		…
870	overhead for the actual polling but can deliver many events at once.	1048	overhead for the actual polling but can deliver many events at once.
871		1049
872	By setting a higher I<io collect interval> you allow libev to spend more	1050	By setting a higher I<io collect interval> you allow libev to spend more
873	time collecting I/O events, so you can handle more events per iteration,	1051	time collecting I/O events, so you can handle more events per iteration,
874	at the cost of increasing latency. Timeouts (both C<ev_periodic> and	1052	at the cost of increasing latency. Timeouts (both C<ev_periodic> and
875	C<ev_timer>) will be not affected. Setting this to a non-null value will	1053	C<ev_timer>) will not be affected. Setting this to a non-null value will
876	introduce an additional C<ev_sleep ()> call into most loop iterations. The	1054	introduce an additional C<ev_sleep ()> call into most loop iterations. The
877	sleep time ensures that libev will not poll for I/O events more often then	1055	sleep time ensures that libev will not poll for I/O events more often then
878	once per this interval, on average.	1056	once per this interval, on average (as long as the host time resolution is
		1057	good enough).
879		1058
880	Likewise, by setting a higher I<timeout collect interval> you allow libev	1059	Likewise, by setting a higher I<timeout collect interval> you allow libev
881	to spend more time collecting timeouts, at the expense of increased	1060	to spend more time collecting timeouts, at the expense of increased
882	latency/jitter/inexactness (the watcher callback will be called	1061	latency/jitter/inexactness (the watcher callback will be called
883	later). C<ev_io> watchers will not be affected. Setting this to a non-null	1062	later). C<ev_io> watchers will not be affected. Setting this to a non-null
…		…
908		1087
909	=item ev_invoke_pending (loop)	1088	=item ev_invoke_pending (loop)
910		1089
911	This call will simply invoke all pending watchers while resetting their	1090	This call will simply invoke all pending watchers while resetting their
912	pending state. Normally, C<ev_run> does this automatically when required,	1091	pending state. Normally, C<ev_run> does this automatically when required,
913	but when overriding the invoke callback this call comes handy.	1092	but when overriding the invoke callback this call comes handy. This
		1093	function can be invoked from a watcher - this can be useful for example
		1094	when you want to do some lengthy calculation and want to pass further
		1095	event handling to another thread (you still have to make sure only one
		1096	thread executes within C<ev_invoke_pending> or C<ev_run> of course).
914		1097
915	=item int ev_pending_count (loop)	1098	=item int ev_pending_count (loop)
916		1099
917	Returns the number of pending watchers - zero indicates that no watchers	1100	Returns the number of pending watchers - zero indicates that no watchers
918	are pending.	1101	are pending.
…		…
925	invoke the actual watchers inside another context (another thread etc.).	1108	invoke the actual watchers inside another context (another thread etc.).
926		1109
927	If you want to reset the callback, use C<ev_invoke_pending> as new	1110	If you want to reset the callback, use C<ev_invoke_pending> as new
928	callback.	1111	callback.
929		1112
930	=item ev_set_loop_release_cb (loop, void (*release)(EV_P), void (*acquire)(EV_P))	1113	=item ev_set_loop_release_cb (loop, void (*release)(EV_P) throw (), void (*acquire)(EV_P) throw ())
931		1114
932	Sometimes you want to share the same loop between multiple threads. This	1115	Sometimes you want to share the same loop between multiple threads. This
933	can be done relatively simply by putting mutex_lock/unlock calls around	1116	can be done relatively simply by putting mutex_lock/unlock calls around
934	each call to a libev function.	1117	each call to a libev function.
935		1118
936	However, C<ev_run> can run an indefinite time, so it is not feasible	1119	However, C<ev_run> can run an indefinite time, so it is not feasible
937	to wait for it to return. One way around this is to wake up the event	1120	to wait for it to return. One way around this is to wake up the event
938	loop via C<ev_break> and C<av_async_send>, another way is to set these	1121	loop via C<ev_break> and C<ev_async_send>, another way is to set these
939	I<release> and I<acquire> callbacks on the loop.	1122	I<release> and I<acquire> callbacks on the loop.
940		1123
941	When set, then C<release> will be called just before the thread is	1124	When set, then C<release> will be called just before the thread is
942	suspended waiting for new events, and C<acquire> is called just	1125	suspended waiting for new events, and C<acquire> is called just
943	afterwards.	1126	afterwards.
…		…
958	See also the locking example in the C<THREADS> section later in this	1141	See also the locking example in the C<THREADS> section later in this
959	document.	1142	document.
960		1143
961	=item ev_set_userdata (loop, void *data)	1144	=item ev_set_userdata (loop, void *data)
962		1145
963	=item ev_userdata (loop)	1146	=item void *ev_userdata (loop)
964		1147
965	Set and retrieve a single C<void *> associated with a loop. When	1148	Set and retrieve a single C<void *> associated with a loop. When
966	C<ev_set_userdata> has never been called, then C<ev_userdata> returns	1149	C<ev_set_userdata> has never been called, then C<ev_userdata> returns
967	C<0.>	1150	C<0>.
968		1151
969	These two functions can be used to associate arbitrary data with a loop,	1152	These two functions can be used to associate arbitrary data with a loop,
970	and are intended solely for the C<invoke_pending_cb>, C<release> and	1153	and are intended solely for the C<invoke_pending_cb>, C<release> and
971	C<acquire> callbacks described above, but of course can be (ab-)used for	1154	C<acquire> callbacks described above, but of course can be (ab-)used for
972	any other purpose as well.	1155	any other purpose as well.
…		…
1035	with a watcher-specific start function (C<< ev_TYPE_start (loop, watcher	1218	with a watcher-specific start function (C<< ev_TYPE_start (loop, watcher
1036	*) >>), and you can stop watching for events at any time by calling the	1219	*) >>), and you can stop watching for events at any time by calling the
1037	corresponding stop function (C<< ev_TYPE_stop (loop, watcher *) >>.	1220	corresponding stop function (C<< ev_TYPE_stop (loop, watcher *) >>.
1038		1221
1039	As long as your watcher is active (has been started but not stopped) you	1222	As long as your watcher is active (has been started but not stopped) you
1040	must not touch the values stored in it. Most specifically you must never	1223	must not touch the values stored in it except when explicitly documented
1041	reinitialise it or call its C<ev_TYPE_set> macro.	1224	otherwise. Most specifically you must never reinitialise it or call its
		1225	C<ev_TYPE_set> macro.
1042		1226
1043	Each and every callback receives the event loop pointer as first, the	1227	Each and every callback receives the event loop pointer as first, the
1044	registered watcher structure as second, and a bitset of received events as	1228	registered watcher structure as second, and a bitset of received events as
1045	third argument.	1229	third argument.
1046		1230
…		…
1083		1267
1084	=item C<EV_PREPARE>	1268	=item C<EV_PREPARE>
1085		1269
1086	=item C<EV_CHECK>	1270	=item C<EV_CHECK>
1087		1271
1088	All C<ev_prepare> watchers are invoked just I<before> C<ev_run> starts	1272	All C<ev_prepare> watchers are invoked just I<before> C<ev_run> starts to
1089	to gather new events, and all C<ev_check> watchers are invoked just after	1273	gather new events, and all C<ev_check> watchers are queued (not invoked)
1090	C<ev_run> has gathered them, but before it invokes any callbacks for any	1274	just after C<ev_run> has gathered them, but before it queues any callbacks
		1275	for any received events. That means C<ev_prepare> watchers are the last
		1276	watchers invoked before the event loop sleeps or polls for new events, and
		1277	C<ev_check> watchers will be invoked before any other watchers of the same
		1278	or lower priority within an event loop iteration.
		1279
1091	received events. Callbacks of both watcher types can start and stop as	1280	Callbacks of both watcher types can start and stop as many watchers as
1092	many watchers as they want, and all of them will be taken into account	1281	they want, and all of them will be taken into account (for example, a
1093	(for example, a C<ev_prepare> watcher might start an idle watcher to keep	1282	C<ev_prepare> watcher might start an idle watcher to keep C<ev_run> from
1094	C<ev_run> from blocking).	1283	blocking).
1095		1284
1096	=item C<EV_EMBED>	1285	=item C<EV_EMBED>
1097		1286
1098	The embedded event loop specified in the C<ev_embed> watcher needs attention.	1287	The embedded event loop specified in the C<ev_embed> watcher needs attention.
1099		1288
1100	=item C<EV_FORK>	1289	=item C<EV_FORK>
1101		1290
1102	The event loop has been resumed in the child process after fork (see	1291	The event loop has been resumed in the child process after fork (see
1103	C<ev_fork>).	1292	C<ev_fork>).
		1293
		1294	=item C<EV_CLEANUP>
		1295
		1296	The event loop is about to be destroyed (see C<ev_cleanup>).
1104		1297
1105	=item C<EV_ASYNC>	1298	=item C<EV_ASYNC>
1106		1299
1107	The given async watcher has been asynchronously notified (see C<ev_async>).	1300	The given async watcher has been asynchronously notified (see C<ev_async>).
1108		1301
…		…
1130	programs, though, as the fd could already be closed and reused for another	1323	programs, though, as the fd could already be closed and reused for another
1131	thing, so beware.	1324	thing, so beware.
1132		1325
1133	=back	1326	=back
1134		1327
		1328	=head2 GENERIC WATCHER FUNCTIONS
		1329
		1330	=over 4
		1331
		1332	=item C<ev_init> (ev_TYPE *watcher, callback)
		1333
		1334	This macro initialises the generic portion of a watcher. The contents
		1335	of the watcher object can be arbitrary (so C<malloc> will do). Only
		1336	the generic parts of the watcher are initialised, you I<need> to call
		1337	the type-specific C<ev_TYPE_set> macro afterwards to initialise the
		1338	type-specific parts. For each type there is also a C<ev_TYPE_init> macro
		1339	which rolls both calls into one.
		1340
		1341	You can reinitialise a watcher at any time as long as it has been stopped
		1342	(or never started) and there are no pending events outstanding.
		1343
		1344	The callback is always of type C<void (*)(struct ev_loop *loop, ev_TYPE *watcher,
		1345	int revents)>.
		1346
		1347	Example: Initialise an C<ev_io> watcher in two steps.
		1348
		1349	ev_io w;
		1350	ev_init (&w, my_cb);
		1351	ev_io_set (&w, STDIN_FILENO, EV_READ);
		1352
		1353	=item C<ev_TYPE_set> (ev_TYPE *watcher, [args])
		1354
		1355	This macro initialises the type-specific parts of a watcher. You need to
		1356	call C<ev_init> at least once before you call this macro, but you can
		1357	call C<ev_TYPE_set> any number of times. You must not, however, call this
		1358	macro on a watcher that is active (it can be pending, however, which is a
		1359	difference to the C<ev_init> macro).
		1360
		1361	Although some watcher types do not have type-specific arguments
		1362	(e.g. C<ev_prepare>) you still need to call its C<set> macro.
		1363
		1364	See C<ev_init>, above, for an example.
		1365
		1366	=item C<ev_TYPE_init> (ev_TYPE *watcher, callback, [args])
		1367
		1368	This convenience macro rolls both C<ev_init> and C<ev_TYPE_set> macro
		1369	calls into a single call. This is the most convenient method to initialise
		1370	a watcher. The same limitations apply, of course.
		1371
		1372	Example: Initialise and set an C<ev_io> watcher in one step.
		1373
		1374	ev_io_init (&w, my_cb, STDIN_FILENO, EV_READ);
		1375
		1376	=item C<ev_TYPE_start> (loop, ev_TYPE *watcher)
		1377
		1378	Starts (activates) the given watcher. Only active watchers will receive
		1379	events. If the watcher is already active nothing will happen.
		1380
		1381	Example: Start the C<ev_io> watcher that is being abused as example in this
		1382	whole section.
		1383
		1384	ev_io_start (EV_DEFAULT_UC, &w);
		1385
		1386	=item C<ev_TYPE_stop> (loop, ev_TYPE *watcher)
		1387
		1388	Stops the given watcher if active, and clears the pending status (whether
		1389	the watcher was active or not).
		1390
		1391	It is possible that stopped watchers are pending - for example,
		1392	non-repeating timers are being stopped when they become pending - but
		1393	calling C<ev_TYPE_stop> ensures that the watcher is neither active nor
		1394	pending. If you want to free or reuse the memory used by the watcher it is
		1395	therefore a good idea to always call its C<ev_TYPE_stop> function.
		1396
		1397	=item bool ev_is_active (ev_TYPE *watcher)
		1398
		1399	Returns a true value iff the watcher is active (i.e. it has been started
		1400	and not yet been stopped). As long as a watcher is active you must not modify
		1401	it.
		1402
		1403	=item bool ev_is_pending (ev_TYPE *watcher)
		1404
		1405	Returns a true value iff the watcher is pending, (i.e. it has outstanding
		1406	events but its callback has not yet been invoked). As long as a watcher
		1407	is pending (but not active) you must not call an init function on it (but
		1408	C<ev_TYPE_set> is safe), you must not change its priority, and you must
		1409	make sure the watcher is available to libev (e.g. you cannot C<free ()>
		1410	it).
		1411
		1412	=item callback ev_cb (ev_TYPE *watcher)
		1413
		1414	Returns the callback currently set on the watcher.
		1415
		1416	=item ev_set_cb (ev_TYPE *watcher, callback)
		1417
		1418	Change the callback. You can change the callback at virtually any time
		1419	(modulo threads).
		1420
		1421	=item ev_set_priority (ev_TYPE *watcher, int priority)
		1422
		1423	=item int ev_priority (ev_TYPE *watcher)
		1424
		1425	Set and query the priority of the watcher. The priority is a small
		1426	integer between C<EV_MAXPRI> (default: C<2>) and C<EV_MINPRI>
		1427	(default: C<-2>). Pending watchers with higher priority will be invoked
		1428	before watchers with lower priority, but priority will not keep watchers
		1429	from being executed (except for C<ev_idle> watchers).
		1430
		1431	If you need to suppress invocation when higher priority events are pending
		1432	you need to look at C<ev_idle> watchers, which provide this functionality.
		1433
		1434	You I<must not> change the priority of a watcher as long as it is active or
		1435	pending.
		1436
		1437	Setting a priority outside the range of C<EV_MINPRI> to C<EV_MAXPRI> is
		1438	fine, as long as you do not mind that the priority value you query might
		1439	or might not have been clamped to the valid range.
		1440
		1441	The default priority used by watchers when no priority has been set is
		1442	always C<0>, which is supposed to not be too high and not be too low :).
		1443
		1444	See L</WATCHER PRIORITY MODELS>, below, for a more thorough treatment of
		1445	priorities.
		1446
		1447	=item ev_invoke (loop, ev_TYPE *watcher, int revents)
		1448
		1449	Invoke the C<watcher> with the given C<loop> and C<revents>. Neither
		1450	C<loop> nor C<revents> need to be valid as long as the watcher callback
		1451	can deal with that fact, as both are simply passed through to the
		1452	callback.
		1453
		1454	=item int ev_clear_pending (loop, ev_TYPE *watcher)
		1455
		1456	If the watcher is pending, this function clears its pending status and
		1457	returns its C<revents> bitset (as if its callback was invoked). If the
		1458	watcher isn't pending it does nothing and returns C<0>.
		1459
		1460	Sometimes it can be useful to "poll" a watcher instead of waiting for its
		1461	callback to be invoked, which can be accomplished with this function.
		1462
		1463	=item ev_feed_event (loop, ev_TYPE *watcher, int revents)
		1464
		1465	Feeds the given event set into the event loop, as if the specified event
		1466	had happened for the specified watcher (which must be a pointer to an
		1467	initialised but not necessarily started event watcher). Obviously you must
		1468	not free the watcher as long as it has pending events.
		1469
		1470	Stopping the watcher, letting libev invoke it, or calling
		1471	C<ev_clear_pending> will clear the pending event, even if the watcher was
		1472	not started in the first place.
		1473
		1474	See also C<ev_feed_fd_event> and C<ev_feed_signal_event> for related
		1475	functions that do not need a watcher.
		1476
		1477	=back
		1478
		1479	See also the L</ASSOCIATING CUSTOM DATA WITH A WATCHER> and L</BUILDING YOUR
		1480	OWN COMPOSITE WATCHERS> idioms.
		1481
1135	=head2 WATCHER STATES	1482	=head2 WATCHER STATES
1136		1483
1137	There are various watcher states mentioned throughout this manual -	1484	There are various watcher states mentioned throughout this manual -
1138	active, pending and so on. In this section these states and the rules to	1485	active, pending and so on. In this section these states and the rules to
1139	transition between them will be described in more detail - and while these	1486	transition between them will be described in more detail - and while these
1140	rules might look complicated, they usually do "the right thing".	1487	rules might look complicated, they usually do "the right thing".
1141		1488
1142	=over 4	1489	=over 4
1143		1490
1144	=item initialiased	1491	=item initialised
1145		1492
1146	Before a watcher can be registered with the event looop it has to be	1493	Before a watcher can be registered with the event loop it has to be
1147	initialised. This can be done with a call to C<ev_TYPE_init>, or calls to	1494	initialised. This can be done with a call to C<ev_TYPE_init>, or calls to
1148	C<ev_init> followed by the watcher-specific C<ev_TYPE_set> function.	1495	C<ev_init> followed by the watcher-specific C<ev_TYPE_set> function.
1149		1496
1150	In this state it is simply some block of memory that is suitable for use	1497	In this state it is simply some block of memory that is suitable for
1151	in an event loop. It can be moved around, freed, reused etc. at will.	1498	use in an event loop. It can be moved around, freed, reused etc. at
		1499	will - as long as you either keep the memory contents intact, or call
		1500	C<ev_TYPE_init> again.
1152		1501
1153	=item started/running/active	1502	=item started/running/active
1154		1503
1155	Once a watcher has been started with a call to C<ev_TYPE_start> it becomes	1504	Once a watcher has been started with a call to C<ev_TYPE_start> it becomes
1156	property of the event loop, and is actively waiting for events. While in	1505	property of the event loop, and is actively waiting for events. While in
…		…
1159	and call libev functions on it that are documented to work on active watchers.	1508	and call libev functions on it that are documented to work on active watchers.
1160		1509
1161	=item pending	1510	=item pending
1162		1511
1163	If a watcher is active and libev determines that an event it is interested	1512	If a watcher is active and libev determines that an event it is interested
1164	in has occured (such as a timer expiring), it will become pending. It will	1513	in has occurred (such as a timer expiring), it will become pending. It will
1165	stay in this pending state until either it is stopped or its callback is	1514	stay in this pending state until either it is stopped or its callback is
1166	about to be invoked, so it is not normally pending inside the watcher	1515	about to be invoked, so it is not normally pending inside the watcher
1167	callback.	1516	callback.
1168		1517
1169	The watcher might or might not be active while it is pending (for example,	1518	The watcher might or might not be active while it is pending (for example,
…		…
1184	latter will clear any pending state the watcher might be in, regardless	1533	latter will clear any pending state the watcher might be in, regardless
1185	of whether it was active or not, so stopping a watcher explicitly before	1534	of whether it was active or not, so stopping a watcher explicitly before
1186	freeing it is often a good idea.	1535	freeing it is often a good idea.
1187		1536
1188	While stopped (and not pending) the watcher is essentially in the	1537	While stopped (and not pending) the watcher is essentially in the
1189	initialised state, that is it can be reused, moved, modified in any way	1538	initialised state, that is, it can be reused, moved, modified in any way
1190	you wish.	1539	you wish (but when you trash the memory block, you need to C<ev_TYPE_init>
		1540	it again).
1191		1541
1192	=back	1542	=back
1193
1194	=head2 GENERIC WATCHER FUNCTIONS
1195
1196	=over 4
1197
1198	=item C<ev_init> (ev_TYPE *watcher, callback)
1199
1200	This macro initialises the generic portion of a watcher. The contents
1201	of the watcher object can be arbitrary (so C<malloc> will do). Only
1202	the generic parts of the watcher are initialised, you I<need> to call
1203	the type-specific C<ev_TYPE_set> macro afterwards to initialise the
1204	type-specific parts. For each type there is also a C<ev_TYPE_init> macro
1205	which rolls both calls into one.
1206
1207	You can reinitialise a watcher at any time as long as it has been stopped
1208	(or never started) and there are no pending events outstanding.
1209
1210	The callback is always of type C<void (*)(struct ev_loop *loop, ev_TYPE *watcher,
1211	int revents)>.
1212
1213	Example: Initialise an C<ev_io> watcher in two steps.
1214
1215	ev_io w;
1216	ev_init (&w, my_cb);
1217	ev_io_set (&w, STDIN_FILENO, EV_READ);
1218
1219	=item C<ev_TYPE_set> (ev_TYPE *watcher, [args])
1220
1221	This macro initialises the type-specific parts of a watcher. You need to
1222	call C<ev_init> at least once before you call this macro, but you can
1223	call C<ev_TYPE_set> any number of times. You must not, however, call this
1224	macro on a watcher that is active (it can be pending, however, which is a
1225	difference to the C<ev_init> macro).
1226
1227	Although some watcher types do not have type-specific arguments
1228	(e.g. C<ev_prepare>) you still need to call its C<set> macro.
1229
1230	See C<ev_init>, above, for an example.
1231
1232	=item C<ev_TYPE_init> (ev_TYPE *watcher, callback, [args])
1233
1234	This convenience macro rolls both C<ev_init> and C<ev_TYPE_set> macro
1235	calls into a single call. This is the most convenient method to initialise
1236	a watcher. The same limitations apply, of course.
1237
1238	Example: Initialise and set an C<ev_io> watcher in one step.
1239
1240	ev_io_init (&w, my_cb, STDIN_FILENO, EV_READ);
1241
1242	=item C<ev_TYPE_start> (loop, ev_TYPE *watcher)
1243
1244	Starts (activates) the given watcher. Only active watchers will receive
1245	events. If the watcher is already active nothing will happen.
1246
1247	Example: Start the C<ev_io> watcher that is being abused as example in this
1248	whole section.
1249
1250	ev_io_start (EV_DEFAULT_UC, &w);
1251
1252	=item C<ev_TYPE_stop> (loop, ev_TYPE *watcher)
1253
1254	Stops the given watcher if active, and clears the pending status (whether
1255	the watcher was active or not).
1256
1257	It is possible that stopped watchers are pending - for example,
1258	non-repeating timers are being stopped when they become pending - but
1259	calling C<ev_TYPE_stop> ensures that the watcher is neither active nor
1260	pending. If you want to free or reuse the memory used by the watcher it is
1261	therefore a good idea to always call its C<ev_TYPE_stop> function.
1262
1263	=item bool ev_is_active (ev_TYPE *watcher)
1264
1265	Returns a true value iff the watcher is active (i.e. it has been started
1266	and not yet been stopped). As long as a watcher is active you must not modify
1267	it.
1268
1269	=item bool ev_is_pending (ev_TYPE *watcher)
1270
1271	Returns a true value iff the watcher is pending, (i.e. it has outstanding
1272	events but its callback has not yet been invoked). As long as a watcher
1273	is pending (but not active) you must not call an init function on it (but
1274	C<ev_TYPE_set> is safe), you must not change its priority, and you must
1275	make sure the watcher is available to libev (e.g. you cannot C<free ()>
1276	it).
1277
1278	=item callback ev_cb (ev_TYPE *watcher)
1279
1280	Returns the callback currently set on the watcher.
1281
1282	=item ev_cb_set (ev_TYPE *watcher, callback)
1283
1284	Change the callback. You can change the callback at virtually any time
1285	(modulo threads).
1286
1287	=item ev_set_priority (ev_TYPE *watcher, int priority)
1288
1289	=item int ev_priority (ev_TYPE *watcher)
1290
1291	Set and query the priority of the watcher. The priority is a small
1292	integer between C<EV_MAXPRI> (default: C<2>) and C<EV_MINPRI>
1293	(default: C<-2>). Pending watchers with higher priority will be invoked
1294	before watchers with lower priority, but priority will not keep watchers
1295	from being executed (except for C<ev_idle> watchers).
1296
1297	If you need to suppress invocation when higher priority events are pending
1298	you need to look at C<ev_idle> watchers, which provide this functionality.
1299
1300	You I<must not> change the priority of a watcher as long as it is active or
1301	pending.
1302
1303	Setting a priority outside the range of C<EV_MINPRI> to C<EV_MAXPRI> is
1304	fine, as long as you do not mind that the priority value you query might
1305	or might not have been clamped to the valid range.
1306
1307	The default priority used by watchers when no priority has been set is
1308	always C<0>, which is supposed to not be too high and not be too low :).
1309
1310	See L<WATCHER PRIORITY MODELS>, below, for a more thorough treatment of
1311	priorities.
1312
1313	=item ev_invoke (loop, ev_TYPE *watcher, int revents)
1314
1315	Invoke the C<watcher> with the given C<loop> and C<revents>. Neither
1316	C<loop> nor C<revents> need to be valid as long as the watcher callback
1317	can deal with that fact, as both are simply passed through to the
1318	callback.
1319
1320	=item int ev_clear_pending (loop, ev_TYPE *watcher)
1321
1322	If the watcher is pending, this function clears its pending status and
1323	returns its C<revents> bitset (as if its callback was invoked). If the
1324	watcher isn't pending it does nothing and returns C<0>.
1325
1326	Sometimes it can be useful to "poll" a watcher instead of waiting for its
1327	callback to be invoked, which can be accomplished with this function.
1328
1329	=item ev_feed_event (loop, ev_TYPE *watcher, int revents)
1330
1331	Feeds the given event set into the event loop, as if the specified event
1332	had happened for the specified watcher (which must be a pointer to an
1333	initialised but not necessarily started event watcher). Obviously you must
1334	not free the watcher as long as it has pending events.
1335
1336	Stopping the watcher, letting libev invoke it, or calling
1337	C<ev_clear_pending> will clear the pending event, even if the watcher was
1338	not started in the first place.
1339
1340	See also C<ev_feed_fd_event> and C<ev_feed_signal_event> for related
1341	functions that do not need a watcher.
1342
1343	=back
1344
1345
1346	=head2 ASSOCIATING CUSTOM DATA WITH A WATCHER
1347
1348	Each watcher has, by default, a member C<void *data> that you can change
1349	and read at any time: libev will completely ignore it. This can be used
1350	to associate arbitrary data with your watcher. If you need more data and
1351	don't want to allocate memory and store a pointer to it in that data
1352	member, you can also "subclass" the watcher type and provide your own
1353	data:
1354
1355	struct my_io
1356	{
1357	ev_io io;
1358	int otherfd;
1359	void *somedata;
1360	struct whatever *mostinteresting;
1361	};
1362
1363	...
1364	struct my_io w;
1365	ev_io_init (&w.io, my_cb, fd, EV_READ);
1366
1367	And since your callback will be called with a pointer to the watcher, you
1368	can cast it back to your own type:
1369
1370	static void my_cb (struct ev_loop *loop, ev_io *w_, int revents)
1371	{
1372	struct my_io *w = (struct my_io *)w_;
1373	...
1374	}
1375
1376	More interesting and less C-conformant ways of casting your callback type
1377	instead have been omitted.
1378
1379	Another common scenario is to use some data structure with multiple
1380	embedded watchers:
1381
1382	struct my_biggy
1383	{
1384	int some_data;
1385	ev_timer t1;
1386	ev_timer t2;
1387	}
1388
1389	In this case getting the pointer to C<my_biggy> is a bit more
1390	complicated: Either you store the address of your C<my_biggy> struct
1391	in the C<data> member of the watcher (for woozies), or you need to use
1392	some pointer arithmetic using C<offsetof> inside your watchers (for real
1393	programmers):
1394
1395	#include <stddef.h>
1396
1397	static void
1398	t1_cb (EV_P_ ev_timer *w, int revents)
1399	{
1400	struct my_biggy big = (struct my_biggy *)
1401	(((char *)w) - offsetof (struct my_biggy, t1));
1402	}
1403
1404	static void
1405	t2_cb (EV_P_ ev_timer *w, int revents)
1406	{
1407	struct my_biggy big = (struct my_biggy *)
1408	(((char *)w) - offsetof (struct my_biggy, t2));
1409	}
1410		1543
1411	=head2 WATCHER PRIORITY MODELS	1544	=head2 WATCHER PRIORITY MODELS
1412		1545
1413	Many event loops support I<watcher priorities>, which are usually small	1546	Many event loops support I<watcher priorities>, which are usually small
1414	integers that influence the ordering of event callback invocation	1547	integers that influence the ordering of event callback invocation
1415	between watchers in some way, all else being equal.	1548	between watchers in some way, all else being equal.
1416		1549
1417	In libev, Watcher priorities can be set using C<ev_set_priority>. See its	1550	In libev, watcher priorities can be set using C<ev_set_priority>. See its
1418	description for the more technical details such as the actual priority	1551	description for the more technical details such as the actual priority
1419	range.	1552	range.
1420		1553
1421	There are two common ways how these these priorities are being interpreted	1554	There are two common ways how these these priorities are being interpreted
1422	by event loops:	1555	by event loops:
…		…
1516		1649
1517	This section describes each watcher in detail, but will not repeat	1650	This section describes each watcher in detail, but will not repeat
1518	information given in the last section. Any initialisation/set macros,	1651	information given in the last section. Any initialisation/set macros,
1519	functions and members specific to the watcher type are explained.	1652	functions and members specific to the watcher type are explained.
1520		1653
1521	Members are additionally marked with either I<[read-only]>, meaning that,	1654	Most members are additionally marked with either I<[read-only]>, meaning
1522	while the watcher is active, you can look at the member and expect some	1655	that, while the watcher is active, you can look at the member and expect
1523	sensible content, but you must not modify it (you can modify it while the	1656	some sensible content, but you must not modify it (you can modify it while
1524	watcher is stopped to your hearts content), or I<[read-write]>, which	1657	the watcher is stopped to your hearts content), or I<[read-write]>, which
1525	means you can expect it to have some sensible content while the watcher	1658	means you can expect it to have some sensible content while the watcher
1526	is active, but you can also modify it. Modifying it may not do something	1659	is active, but you can also modify it. Modifying it may not do something
1527	sensible or take immediate effect (or do anything at all), but libev will	1660	sensible or take immediate effect (or do anything at all), but libev will
1528	not crash or malfunction in any way.	1661	not crash or malfunction in any way.
1529		1662
		1663	In any case, the documentation for each member will explain what the
		1664	effects are, and if there are any additional access restrictions.
1530		1665
1531	=head2 C<ev_io> - is this file descriptor readable or writable?	1666	=head2 C<ev_io> - is this file descriptor readable or writable?
1532		1667
1533	I/O watchers check whether a file descriptor is readable or writable	1668	I/O watchers check whether a file descriptor is readable or writable
1534	in each iteration of the event loop, or, more precisely, when reading	1669	in each iteration of the event loop, or, more precisely, when reading
…		…
1541	In general you can register as many read and/or write event watchers per	1676	In general you can register as many read and/or write event watchers per
1542	fd as you want (as long as you don't confuse yourself). Setting all file	1677	fd as you want (as long as you don't confuse yourself). Setting all file
1543	descriptors to non-blocking mode is also usually a good idea (but not	1678	descriptors to non-blocking mode is also usually a good idea (but not
1544	required if you know what you are doing).	1679	required if you know what you are doing).
1545		1680
1546	If you cannot use non-blocking mode, then force the use of a
1547	known-to-be-good backend (at the time of this writing, this includes only
1548	C<EVBACKEND_SELECT> and C<EVBACKEND_POLL>). The same applies to file
1549	descriptors for which non-blocking operation makes no sense (such as
1550	files) - libev doesn't guarantee any specific behaviour in that case.
1551
1552	Another thing you have to watch out for is that it is quite easy to	1681	Another thing you have to watch out for is that it is quite easy to
1553	receive "spurious" readiness notifications, that is your callback might	1682	receive "spurious" readiness notifications, that is, your callback might
1554	be called with C<EV_READ> but a subsequent C<read>(2) will actually block	1683	be called with C<EV_READ> but a subsequent C<read>(2) will actually block
1555	because there is no data. Not only are some backends known to create a	1684	because there is no data. It is very easy to get into this situation even
1556	lot of those (for example Solaris ports), it is very easy to get into	1685	with a relatively standard program structure. Thus it is best to always
1557	this situation even with a relatively standard program structure. Thus	1686	use non-blocking I/O: An extra C<read>(2) returning C<EAGAIN> is far
1558	it is best to always use non-blocking I/O: An extra C<read>(2) returning
1559	C<EAGAIN> is far preferable to a program hanging until some data arrives.	1687	preferable to a program hanging until some data arrives.
1560		1688
1561	If you cannot run the fd in non-blocking mode (for example you should	1689	If you cannot run the fd in non-blocking mode (for example you should
1562	not play around with an Xlib connection), then you have to separately	1690	not play around with an Xlib connection), then you have to separately
1563	re-test whether a file descriptor is really ready with a known-to-be good	1691	re-test whether a file descriptor is really ready with a known-to-be good
1564	interface such as poll (fortunately in our Xlib example, Xlib already	1692	interface such as poll (fortunately in the case of Xlib, it already does
1565	does this on its own, so its quite safe to use). Some people additionally	1693	this on its own, so its quite safe to use). Some people additionally
1566	use C<SIGALRM> and an interval timer, just to be sure you won't block	1694	use C<SIGALRM> and an interval timer, just to be sure you won't block
1567	indefinitely.	1695	indefinitely.
1568		1696
1569	But really, best use non-blocking mode.	1697	But really, best use non-blocking mode.
1570		1698
1571	=head3 The special problem of disappearing file descriptors	1699	=head3 The special problem of disappearing file descriptors
1572		1700
1573	Some backends (e.g. kqueue, epoll) need to be told about closing a file	1701	Some backends (e.g. kqueue, epoll, linuxaio) need to be told about closing
1574	descriptor (either due to calling C<close> explicitly or any other means,	1702	a file descriptor (either due to calling C<close> explicitly or any other
1575	such as C<dup2>). The reason is that you register interest in some file	1703	means, such as C<dup2>). The reason is that you register interest in some
1576	descriptor, but when it goes away, the operating system will silently drop	1704	file descriptor, but when it goes away, the operating system will silently
1577	this interest. If another file descriptor with the same number then is	1705	drop this interest. If another file descriptor with the same number then
1578	registered with libev, there is no efficient way to see that this is, in	1706	is registered with libev, there is no efficient way to see that this is,
1579	fact, a different file descriptor.	1707	in fact, a different file descriptor.
1580		1708
1581	To avoid having to explicitly tell libev about such cases, libev follows	1709	To avoid having to explicitly tell libev about such cases, libev follows
1582	the following policy: Each time C<ev_io_set> is being called, libev	1710	the following policy: Each time C<ev_io_set> is being called, libev
1583	will assume that this is potentially a new file descriptor, otherwise	1711	will assume that this is potentially a new file descriptor, otherwise
1584	it is assumed that the file descriptor stays the same. That means that	1712	it is assumed that the file descriptor stays the same. That means that
…		…
1598		1726
1599	There is no workaround possible except not registering events	1727	There is no workaround possible except not registering events
1600	for potentially C<dup ()>'ed file descriptors, or to resort to	1728	for potentially C<dup ()>'ed file descriptors, or to resort to
1601	C<EVBACKEND_SELECT> or C<EVBACKEND_POLL>.	1729	C<EVBACKEND_SELECT> or C<EVBACKEND_POLL>.
1602		1730
		1731	=head3 The special problem of files
		1732
		1733	Many people try to use C<select> (or libev) on file descriptors
		1734	representing files, and expect it to become ready when their program
		1735	doesn't block on disk accesses (which can take a long time on their own).
		1736
		1737	However, this cannot ever work in the "expected" way - you get a readiness
		1738	notification as soon as the kernel knows whether and how much data is
		1739	there, and in the case of open files, that's always the case, so you
		1740	always get a readiness notification instantly, and your read (or possibly
		1741	write) will still block on the disk I/O.
		1742
		1743	Another way to view it is that in the case of sockets, pipes, character
		1744	devices and so on, there is another party (the sender) that delivers data
		1745	on its own, but in the case of files, there is no such thing: the disk
		1746	will not send data on its own, simply because it doesn't know what you
		1747	wish to read - you would first have to request some data.
		1748
		1749	Since files are typically not-so-well supported by advanced notification
		1750	mechanism, libev tries hard to emulate POSIX behaviour with respect
		1751	to files, even though you should not use it. The reason for this is
		1752	convenience: sometimes you want to watch STDIN or STDOUT, which is
		1753	usually a tty, often a pipe, but also sometimes files or special devices
		1754	(for example, C<epoll> on Linux works with F</dev/random> but not with
		1755	F</dev/urandom>), and even though the file might better be served with
		1756	asynchronous I/O instead of with non-blocking I/O, it is still useful when
		1757	it "just works" instead of freezing.
		1758
		1759	So avoid file descriptors pointing to files when you know it (e.g. use
		1760	libeio), but use them when it is convenient, e.g. for STDIN/STDOUT, or
		1761	when you rarely read from a file instead of from a socket, and want to
		1762	reuse the same code path.
		1763
1603	=head3 The special problem of fork	1764	=head3 The special problem of fork
1604		1765
1605	Some backends (epoll, kqueue) do not support C<fork ()> at all or exhibit	1766	Some backends (epoll, kqueue, linuxaio, iouring) do not support C<fork ()>
1606	useless behaviour. Libev fully supports fork, but needs to be told about	1767	at all or exhibit useless behaviour. Libev fully supports fork, but needs
1607	it in the child.	1768	to be told about it in the child if you want to continue to use it in the
		1769	child.
1608		1770
1609	To support fork in your programs, you either have to call	1771	To support fork in your child processes, you have to call C<ev_loop_fork
1610	C<ev_default_fork ()> or C<ev_loop_fork ()> after a fork in the child,	1772	()> after a fork in the child, enable C<EVFLAG_FORKCHECK>, or resort to
1611	enable C<EVFLAG_FORKCHECK>, or resort to C<EVBACKEND_SELECT> or	1773	C<EVBACKEND_SELECT> or C<EVBACKEND_POLL>.
1612	C<EVBACKEND_POLL>.
1613		1774
1614	=head3 The special problem of SIGPIPE	1775	=head3 The special problem of SIGPIPE
1615		1776
1616	While not really specific to libev, it is easy to forget about C<SIGPIPE>:	1777	While not really specific to libev, it is easy to forget about C<SIGPIPE>:
1617	when writing to a pipe whose other end has been closed, your program gets	1778	when writing to a pipe whose other end has been closed, your program gets
…		…
1668	=item ev_io_init (ev_io *, callback, int fd, int events)	1829	=item ev_io_init (ev_io *, callback, int fd, int events)
1669		1830
1670	=item ev_io_set (ev_io *, int fd, int events)	1831	=item ev_io_set (ev_io *, int fd, int events)
1671		1832
1672	Configures an C<ev_io> watcher. The C<fd> is the file descriptor to	1833	Configures an C<ev_io> watcher. The C<fd> is the file descriptor to
1673	receive events for and C<events> is either C<EV_READ>, C<EV_WRITE> or	1834	receive events for and C<events> is either C<EV_READ>, C<EV_WRITE>, both
1674	C<EV_READ | EV_WRITE>, to express the desire to receive the given events.	1835	C<EV_READ | EV_WRITE> or C<0>, to express the desire to receive the given
		1836	events.
1675		1837
1676	=item int fd [read-only]	1838	Note that setting the C<events> to C<0> and starting the watcher is
		1839	supported, but not specially optimized - if your program sometimes happens
		1840	to generate this combination this is fine, but if it is easy to avoid
		1841	starting an io watcher watching for no events you should do so.
1677		1842
1678	The file descriptor being watched.	1843	=item ev_io_modify (ev_io *, int events)
1679		1844
		1845	Similar to C<ev_io_set>, but only changes the event mask. Using this might
		1846	be faster with some backends, as libev can assume that the C<fd> still
		1847	refers to the same underlying file description, something it cannot do
		1848	when using C<ev_io_set>.
		1849
		1850	=item int fd [no-modify]
		1851
		1852	The file descriptor being watched. While it can be read at any time, you
		1853	must not modify this member even when the watcher is stopped - always use
		1854	C<ev_io_set> for that.
		1855
1680	=item int events [read-only]	1856	=item int events [no-modify]
1681		1857
1682	The events being watched.	1858	The set of events the fd is being watched for, among other flags. Remember
		1859	that this is a bit set - to test for C<EV_READ>, use C<< w->events &
		1860	EV_READ >>, and similarly for C<EV_WRITE>.
		1861
		1862	As with C<fd>, you must not modify this member even when the watcher is
		1863	stopped, always use C<ev_io_set> or C<ev_io_modify> for that.
1683		1864
1684	=back	1865	=back
1685		1866
1686	=head3 Examples	1867	=head3 Examples
1687		1868
…		…
1715	detecting time jumps is hard, and some inaccuracies are unavoidable (the	1896	detecting time jumps is hard, and some inaccuracies are unavoidable (the
1716	monotonic clock option helps a lot here).	1897	monotonic clock option helps a lot here).
1717		1898
1718	The callback is guaranteed to be invoked only I<after> its timeout has	1899	The callback is guaranteed to be invoked only I<after> its timeout has
1719	passed (not I<at>, so on systems with very low-resolution clocks this	1900	passed (not I<at>, so on systems with very low-resolution clocks this
1720	might introduce a small delay). If multiple timers become ready during the	1901	might introduce a small delay, see "the special problem of being too
		1902	early", below). If multiple timers become ready during the same loop
1721	same loop iteration then the ones with earlier time-out values are invoked	1903	iteration then the ones with earlier time-out values are invoked before
1722	before ones of the same priority with later time-out values (but this is	1904	ones of the same priority with later time-out values (but this is no
1723	no longer true when a callback calls C<ev_run> recursively).	1905	longer true when a callback calls C<ev_run> recursively).
1724		1906
1725	=head3 Be smart about timeouts	1907	=head3 Be smart about timeouts
1726		1908
1727	Many real-world problems involve some kind of timeout, usually for error	1909	Many real-world problems involve some kind of timeout, usually for error
1728	recovery. A typical example is an HTTP request - if the other side hangs,	1910	recovery. A typical example is an HTTP request - if the other side hangs,
…		…
1803		1985
1804	In this case, it would be more efficient to leave the C<ev_timer> alone,	1986	In this case, it would be more efficient to leave the C<ev_timer> alone,
1805	but remember the time of last activity, and check for a real timeout only	1987	but remember the time of last activity, and check for a real timeout only
1806	within the callback:	1988	within the callback:
1807		1989
		1990	ev_tstamp timeout = 60.;
1808	ev_tstamp last_activity; // time of last activity	1991	ev_tstamp last_activity; // time of last activity
		1992	ev_timer timer;
1809		1993
1810	static void	1994	static void
1811	callback (EV_P_ ev_timer *w, int revents)	1995	callback (EV_P_ ev_timer *w, int revents)
1812	{	1996	{
1813	ev_tstamp now = ev_now (EV_A);	1997	// calculate when the timeout would happen
1814	ev_tstamp timeout = last_activity + 60.;	1998	ev_tstamp after = last_activity - ev_now (EV_A) + timeout;
1815		1999
1816	// if last_activity + 60. is older than now, we did time out	2000	// if negative, it means we the timeout already occurred
1817	if (timeout < now)	2001	if (after < 0.)
1818	{	2002	{
1819	// timeout occurred, take action	2003	// timeout occurred, take action
1820	}	2004	}
1821	else	2005	else
1822	{	2006	{
1823	// callback was invoked, but there was some activity, re-arm	2007	// callback was invoked, but there was some recent
1824	// the watcher to fire in last_activity + 60, which is	2008	// activity. simply restart the timer to time out
1825	// guaranteed to be in the future, so "again" is positive:	2009	// after "after" seconds, which is the earliest time
1826	w->repeat = timeout - now;	2010	// the timeout can occur.
		2011	ev_timer_set (w, after, 0.);
1827	ev_timer_again (EV_A_ w);	2012	ev_timer_start (EV_A_ w);
1828	}	2013	}
1829	}	2014	}
1830		2015
1831	To summarise the callback: first calculate the real timeout (defined	2016	To summarise the callback: first calculate in how many seconds the
1832	as "60 seconds after the last activity"), then check if that time has	2017	timeout will occur (by calculating the absolute time when it would occur,
1833	been reached, which means something I<did>, in fact, time out. Otherwise	2018	C<last_activity + timeout>, and subtracting the current time, C<ev_now
1834	the callback was invoked too early (C<timeout> is in the future), so	2019	(EV_A)> from that).
1835	re-schedule the timer to fire at that future time, to see if maybe we have
1836	a timeout then.
1837		2020
1838	Note how C<ev_timer_again> is used, taking advantage of the	2021	If this value is negative, then we are already past the timeout, i.e. we
1839	C<ev_timer_again> optimisation when the timer is already running.	2022	timed out, and need to do whatever is needed in this case.
		2023
		2024	Otherwise, we now the earliest time at which the timeout would trigger,
		2025	and simply start the timer with this timeout value.
		2026
		2027	In other words, each time the callback is invoked it will check whether
		2028	the timeout occurred. If not, it will simply reschedule itself to check
		2029	again at the earliest time it could time out. Rinse. Repeat.
1840		2030
1841	This scheme causes more callback invocations (about one every 60 seconds	2031	This scheme causes more callback invocations (about one every 60 seconds
1842	minus half the average time between activity), but virtually no calls to	2032	minus half the average time between activity), but virtually no calls to
1843	libev to change the timeout.	2033	libev to change the timeout.
1844		2034
1845	To start the timer, simply initialise the watcher and set C<last_activity>	2035	To start the machinery, simply initialise the watcher and set
1846	to the current time (meaning we just have some activity :), then call the	2036	C<last_activity> to the current time (meaning there was some activity just
1847	callback, which will "do the right thing" and start the timer:	2037	now), then call the callback, which will "do the right thing" and start
		2038	the timer:
1848		2039
		2040	last_activity = ev_now (EV_A);
1849	ev_init (timer, callback);	2041	ev_init (&timer, callback);
1850	last_activity = ev_now (loop);	2042	callback (EV_A_ &timer, 0);
1851	callback (loop, timer, EV_TIMER);
1852		2043
1853	And when there is some activity, simply store the current time in	2044	When there is some activity, simply store the current time in
1854	C<last_activity>, no libev calls at all:	2045	C<last_activity>, no libev calls at all:
1855		2046
		2047	if (activity detected)
1856	last_activity = ev_now (loop);	2048	last_activity = ev_now (EV_A);
		2049
		2050	When your timeout value changes, then the timeout can be changed by simply
		2051	providing a new value, stopping the timer and calling the callback, which
		2052	will again do the right thing (for example, time out immediately :).
		2053
		2054	timeout = new_value;
		2055	ev_timer_stop (EV_A_ &timer);
		2056	callback (EV_A_ &timer, 0);
1857		2057
1858	This technique is slightly more complex, but in most cases where the	2058	This technique is slightly more complex, but in most cases where the
1859	time-out is unlikely to be triggered, much more efficient.	2059	time-out is unlikely to be triggered, much more efficient.
1860
1861	Changing the timeout is trivial as well (if it isn't hard-coded in the
1862	callback :) - just change the timeout and invoke the callback, which will
1863	fix things for you.
1864		2060
1865	=item 4. Wee, just use a double-linked list for your timeouts.	2061	=item 4. Wee, just use a double-linked list for your timeouts.
1866		2062
1867	If there is not one request, but many thousands (millions...), all	2063	If there is not one request, but many thousands (millions...), all
1868	employing some kind of timeout with the same timeout value, then one can	2064	employing some kind of timeout with the same timeout value, then one can
…		…
1895	Method #1 is almost always a bad idea, and buys you nothing. Method #4 is	2091	Method #1 is almost always a bad idea, and buys you nothing. Method #4 is
1896	rather complicated, but extremely efficient, something that really pays	2092	rather complicated, but extremely efficient, something that really pays
1897	off after the first million or so of active timers, i.e. it's usually	2093	off after the first million or so of active timers, i.e. it's usually
1898	overkill :)	2094	overkill :)
1899		2095
		2096	=head3 The special problem of being too early
		2097
		2098	If you ask a timer to call your callback after three seconds, then
		2099	you expect it to be invoked after three seconds - but of course, this
		2100	cannot be guaranteed to infinite precision. Less obviously, it cannot be
		2101	guaranteed to any precision by libev - imagine somebody suspending the
		2102	process with a STOP signal for a few hours for example.
		2103
		2104	So, libev tries to invoke your callback as soon as possible I<after> the
		2105	delay has occurred, but cannot guarantee this.
		2106
		2107	A less obvious failure mode is calling your callback too early: many event
		2108	loops compare timestamps with a "elapsed delay >= requested delay", but
		2109	this can cause your callback to be invoked much earlier than you would
		2110	expect.
		2111
		2112	To see why, imagine a system with a clock that only offers full second
		2113	resolution (think windows if you can't come up with a broken enough OS
		2114	yourself). If you schedule a one-second timer at the time 500.9, then the
		2115	event loop will schedule your timeout to elapse at a system time of 500
		2116	(500.9 truncated to the resolution) + 1, or 501.
		2117
		2118	If an event library looks at the timeout 0.1s later, it will see "501 >=
		2119	501" and invoke the callback 0.1s after it was started, even though a
		2120	one-second delay was requested - this is being "too early", despite best
		2121	intentions.
		2122
		2123	This is the reason why libev will never invoke the callback if the elapsed
		2124	delay equals the requested delay, but only when the elapsed delay is
		2125	larger than the requested delay. In the example above, libev would only invoke
		2126	the callback at system time 502, or 1.1s after the timer was started.
		2127
		2128	So, while libev cannot guarantee that your callback will be invoked
		2129	exactly when requested, it I<can> and I<does> guarantee that the requested
		2130	delay has actually elapsed, or in other words, it always errs on the "too
		2131	late" side of things.
		2132
1900	=head3 The special problem of time updates	2133	=head3 The special problem of time updates
1901		2134
1902	Establishing the current time is a costly operation (it usually takes at	2135	Establishing the current time is a costly operation (it usually takes
1903	least two system calls): EV therefore updates its idea of the current	2136	at least one system call): EV therefore updates its idea of the current
1904	time only before and after C<ev_run> collects new events, which causes a	2137	time only before and after C<ev_run> collects new events, which causes a
1905	growing difference between C<ev_now ()> and C<ev_time ()> when handling	2138	growing difference between C<ev_now ()> and C<ev_time ()> when handling
1906	lots of events in one iteration.	2139	lots of events in one iteration.
1907		2140
1908	The relative timeouts are calculated relative to the C<ev_now ()>	2141	The relative timeouts are calculated relative to the C<ev_now ()>
1909	time. This is usually the right thing as this timestamp refers to the time	2142	time. This is usually the right thing as this timestamp refers to the time
1910	of the event triggering whatever timeout you are modifying/starting. If	2143	of the event triggering whatever timeout you are modifying/starting. If
1911	you suspect event processing to be delayed and you I<need> to base the	2144	you suspect event processing to be delayed and you I<need> to base the
1912	timeout on the current time, use something like this to adjust for this:	2145	timeout on the current time, use something like the following to adjust
		2146	for it:
1913		2147
1914	ev_timer_set (&timer, after + ev_now () - ev_time (), 0.);	2148	ev_timer_set (&timer, after + (ev_time () - ev_now ()), 0.);
1915		2149
1916	If the event loop is suspended for a long time, you can also force an	2150	If the event loop is suspended for a long time, you can also force an
1917	update of the time returned by C<ev_now ()> by calling C<ev_now_update	2151	update of the time returned by C<ev_now ()> by calling C<ev_now_update
1918	()>.	2152	()>, although that will push the event time of all outstanding events
		2153	further into the future.
		2154
		2155	=head3 The special problem of unsynchronised clocks
		2156
		2157	Modern systems have a variety of clocks - libev itself uses the normal
		2158	"wall clock" clock and, if available, the monotonic clock (to avoid time
		2159	jumps).
		2160
		2161	Neither of these clocks is synchronised with each other or any other clock
		2162	on the system, so C<ev_time ()> might return a considerably different time
		2163	than C<gettimeofday ()> or C<time ()>. On a GNU/Linux system, for example,
		2164	a call to C<gettimeofday> might return a second count that is one higher
		2165	than a directly following call to C<time>.
		2166
		2167	The moral of this is to only compare libev-related timestamps with
		2168	C<ev_time ()> and C<ev_now ()>, at least if you want better precision than
		2169	a second or so.
		2170
		2171	One more problem arises due to this lack of synchronisation: if libev uses
		2172	the system monotonic clock and you compare timestamps from C<ev_time>
		2173	or C<ev_now> from when you started your timer and when your callback is
		2174	invoked, you will find that sometimes the callback is a bit "early".
		2175
		2176	This is because C<ev_timer>s work in real time, not wall clock time, so
		2177	libev makes sure your callback is not invoked before the delay happened,
		2178	I<measured according to the real time>, not the system clock.
		2179
		2180	If your timeouts are based on a physical timescale (e.g. "time out this
		2181	connection after 100 seconds") then this shouldn't bother you as it is
		2182	exactly the right behaviour.
		2183
		2184	If you want to compare wall clock/system timestamps to your timers, then
		2185	you need to use C<ev_periodic>s, as these are based on the wall clock
		2186	time, where your comparisons will always generate correct results.
1919		2187
1920	=head3 The special problems of suspended animation	2188	=head3 The special problems of suspended animation
1921		2189
1922	When you leave the server world it is quite customary to hit machines that	2190	When you leave the server world it is quite customary to hit machines that
1923	can suspend/hibernate - what happens to the clocks during such a suspend?	2191	can suspend/hibernate - what happens to the clocks during such a suspend?
…		…
1953		2221
1954	=item ev_timer_init (ev_timer *, callback, ev_tstamp after, ev_tstamp repeat)	2222	=item ev_timer_init (ev_timer *, callback, ev_tstamp after, ev_tstamp repeat)
1955		2223
1956	=item ev_timer_set (ev_timer *, ev_tstamp after, ev_tstamp repeat)	2224	=item ev_timer_set (ev_timer *, ev_tstamp after, ev_tstamp repeat)
1957		2225
1958	Configure the timer to trigger after C<after> seconds. If C<repeat>	2226	Configure the timer to trigger after C<after> seconds (fractional and
1959	is C<0.>, then it will automatically be stopped once the timeout is	2227	negative values are supported). If C<repeat> is C<0.>, then it will
1960	reached. If it is positive, then the timer will automatically be	2228	automatically be stopped once the timeout is reached. If it is positive,
1961	configured to trigger again C<repeat> seconds later, again, and again,	2229	then the timer will automatically be configured to trigger again C<repeat>
1962	until stopped manually.	2230	seconds later, again, and again, until stopped manually.
1963		2231
1964	The timer itself will do a best-effort at avoiding drift, that is, if	2232	The timer itself will do a best-effort at avoiding drift, that is, if
1965	you configure a timer to trigger every 10 seconds, then it will normally	2233	you configure a timer to trigger every 10 seconds, then it will normally
1966	trigger at exactly 10 second intervals. If, however, your program cannot	2234	trigger at exactly 10 second intervals. If, however, your program cannot
1967	keep up with the timer (because it takes longer than those 10 seconds to	2235	keep up with the timer (because it takes longer than those 10 seconds to
1968	do stuff) the timer will not fire more than once per event loop iteration.	2236	do stuff) the timer will not fire more than once per event loop iteration.
1969		2237
1970	=item ev_timer_again (loop, ev_timer *)	2238	=item ev_timer_again (loop, ev_timer *)
1971		2239
1972	This will act as if the timer timed out and restart it again if it is	2240	This will act as if the timer timed out, and restarts it again if it is
1973	repeating. The exact semantics are:	2241	repeating. It basically works like calling C<ev_timer_stop>, updating the
		2242	timeout to the C<repeat> value and calling C<ev_timer_start>.
1974		2243
		2244	The exact semantics are as in the following rules, all of which will be
		2245	applied to the watcher:
		2246
		2247	=over 4
		2248
1975	If the timer is pending, its pending status is cleared.	2249	=item If the timer is pending, the pending status is always cleared.
1976		2250
1977	If the timer is started but non-repeating, stop it (as if it timed out).	2251	=item If the timer is started but non-repeating, stop it (as if it timed
		2252	out, without invoking it).
1978		2253
1979	If the timer is repeating, either start it if necessary (with the	2254	=item If the timer is repeating, make the C<repeat> value the new timeout
1980	C<repeat> value), or reset the running timer to the C<repeat> value.	2255	and start the timer, if necessary.
1981		2256
		2257	=back
		2258
1982	This sounds a bit complicated, see L<Be smart about timeouts>, above, for a	2259	This sounds a bit complicated, see L</Be smart about timeouts>, above, for a
1983	usage example.	2260	usage example.
1984		2261
1985	=item ev_tstamp ev_timer_remaining (loop, ev_timer *)	2262	=item ev_tstamp ev_timer_remaining (loop, ev_timer *)
1986		2263
1987	Returns the remaining time until a timer fires. If the timer is active,	2264	Returns the remaining time until a timer fires. If the timer is active,
…		…
2040	Periodic watchers are also timers of a kind, but they are very versatile	2317	Periodic watchers are also timers of a kind, but they are very versatile
2041	(and unfortunately a bit complex).	2318	(and unfortunately a bit complex).
2042		2319
2043	Unlike C<ev_timer>, periodic watchers are not based on real time (or	2320	Unlike C<ev_timer>, periodic watchers are not based on real time (or
2044	relative time, the physical time that passes) but on wall clock time	2321	relative time, the physical time that passes) but on wall clock time
2045	(absolute time, the thing you can read on your calender or clock). The	2322	(absolute time, the thing you can read on your calendar or clock). The
2046	difference is that wall clock time can run faster or slower than real	2323	difference is that wall clock time can run faster or slower than real
2047	time, and time jumps are not uncommon (e.g. when you adjust your	2324	time, and time jumps are not uncommon (e.g. when you adjust your
2048	wrist-watch).	2325	wrist-watch).
2049		2326
2050	You can tell a periodic watcher to trigger after some specific point	2327	You can tell a periodic watcher to trigger after some specific point
…		…
2055	C<ev_timer>, which would still trigger roughly 10 seconds after starting	2332	C<ev_timer>, which would still trigger roughly 10 seconds after starting
2056	it, as it uses a relative timeout).	2333	it, as it uses a relative timeout).
2057		2334
2058	C<ev_periodic> watchers can also be used to implement vastly more complex	2335	C<ev_periodic> watchers can also be used to implement vastly more complex
2059	timers, such as triggering an event on each "midnight, local time", or	2336	timers, such as triggering an event on each "midnight, local time", or
2060	other complicated rules. This cannot be done with C<ev_timer> watchers, as	2337	other complicated rules. This cannot easily be done with C<ev_timer>
2061	those cannot react to time jumps.	2338	watchers, as those cannot react to time jumps.
2062		2339
2063	As with timers, the callback is guaranteed to be invoked only when the	2340	As with timers, the callback is guaranteed to be invoked only when the
2064	point in time where it is supposed to trigger has passed. If multiple	2341	point in time where it is supposed to trigger has passed. If multiple
2065	timers become ready during the same loop iteration then the ones with	2342	timers become ready during the same loop iteration then the ones with
2066	earlier time-out values are invoked before ones with later time-out values	2343	earlier time-out values are invoked before ones with later time-out values
…		…
2107		2384
2108	Another way to think about it (for the mathematically inclined) is that	2385	Another way to think about it (for the mathematically inclined) is that
2109	C<ev_periodic> will try to run the callback in this mode at the next possible	2386	C<ev_periodic> will try to run the callback in this mode at the next possible
2110	time where C<time = offset (mod interval)>, regardless of any time jumps.	2387	time where C<time = offset (mod interval)>, regardless of any time jumps.
2111		2388
2112	For numerical stability it is preferable that the C<offset> value is near	2389	The C<interval> I<MUST> be positive, and for numerical stability, the
2113	C<ev_now ()> (the current time), but there is no range requirement for	2390	interval value should be higher than C<1/8192> (which is around 100
2114	this value, and in fact is often specified as zero.	2391	microseconds) and C<offset> should be higher than C<0> and should have
		2392	at most a similar magnitude as the current time (say, within a factor of
		2393	ten). Typical values for offset are, in fact, C<0> or something between
		2394	C<0> and C<interval>, which is also the recommended range.
2115		2395
2116	Note also that there is an upper limit to how often a timer can fire (CPU	2396	Note also that there is an upper limit to how often a timer can fire (CPU
2117	speed for example), so if C<interval> is very small then timing stability	2397	speed for example), so if C<interval> is very small then timing stability
2118	will of course deteriorate. Libev itself tries to be exact to be about one	2398	will of course deteriorate. Libev itself tries to be exact to be about one
2119	millisecond (if the OS supports it and the machine is fast enough).	2399	millisecond (if the OS supports it and the machine is fast enough).
…		…
2149		2429
2150	NOTE: I<< This callback must always return a time that is higher than or	2430	NOTE: I<< This callback must always return a time that is higher than or
2151	equal to the passed C<now> value >>.	2431	equal to the passed C<now> value >>.
2152		2432
2153	This can be used to create very complex timers, such as a timer that	2433	This can be used to create very complex timers, such as a timer that
2154	triggers on "next midnight, local time". To do this, you would calculate the	2434	triggers on "next midnight, local time". To do this, you would calculate
2155	next midnight after C<now> and return the timestamp value for this. How	2435	the next midnight after C<now> and return the timestamp value for
2156	you do this is, again, up to you (but it is not trivial, which is the main	2436	this. Here is a (completely untested, no error checking) example on how to
2157	reason I omitted it as an example).	2437	do this:
		2438
		2439	#include <time.h>
		2440
		2441	static ev_tstamp
		2442	my_rescheduler (ev_periodic *w, ev_tstamp now)
		2443	{
		2444	time_t tnow = (time_t)now;
		2445	struct tm tm;
		2446	localtime_r (&tnow, &tm);
		2447
		2448	tm.tm_sec = tm.tm_min = tm.tm_hour = 0; // midnight current day
		2449	++tm.tm_mday; // midnight next day
		2450
		2451	return mktime (&tm);
		2452	}
		2453
		2454	Note: this code might run into trouble on days that have more then two
		2455	midnights (beginning and end).
2158		2456
2159	=back	2457	=back
2160		2458
2161	=item ev_periodic_again (loop, ev_periodic *)	2459	=item ev_periodic_again (loop, ev_periodic *)
2162		2460
…		…
2227		2525
2228	ev_periodic hourly_tick;	2526	ev_periodic hourly_tick;
2229	ev_periodic_init (&hourly_tick, clock_cb,	2527	ev_periodic_init (&hourly_tick, clock_cb,
2230	fmod (ev_now (loop), 3600.), 3600., 0);	2528	fmod (ev_now (loop), 3600.), 3600., 0);
2231	ev_periodic_start (loop, &hourly_tick);	2529	ev_periodic_start (loop, &hourly_tick);
2232		2530
2233		2531
2234	=head2 C<ev_signal> - signal me when a signal gets signalled!	2532	=head2 C<ev_signal> - signal me when a signal gets signalled!
2235		2533
2236	Signal watchers will trigger an event when the process receives a specific	2534	Signal watchers will trigger an event when the process receives a specific
2237	signal one or more times. Even though signals are very asynchronous, libev	2535	signal one or more times. Even though signals are very asynchronous, libev
2238	will try it's best to deliver signals synchronously, i.e. as part of the	2536	will try its best to deliver signals synchronously, i.e. as part of the
2239	normal event processing, like any other event.	2537	normal event processing, like any other event.
2240		2538
2241	If you want signals to be delivered truly asynchronously, just use	2539	If you want signals to be delivered truly asynchronously, just use
2242	C<sigaction> as you would do without libev and forget about sharing	2540	C<sigaction> as you would do without libev and forget about sharing
2243	the signal. You can even use C<ev_async> from a signal handler to	2541	the signal. You can even use C<ev_async> from a signal handler to
…		…
2247	only within the same loop, i.e. you can watch for C<SIGINT> in your	2545	only within the same loop, i.e. you can watch for C<SIGINT> in your
2248	default loop and for C<SIGIO> in another loop, but you cannot watch for	2546	default loop and for C<SIGIO> in another loop, but you cannot watch for
2249	C<SIGINT> in both the default loop and another loop at the same time. At	2547	C<SIGINT> in both the default loop and another loop at the same time. At
2250	the moment, C<SIGCHLD> is permanently tied to the default loop.	2548	the moment, C<SIGCHLD> is permanently tied to the default loop.
2251		2549
2252	When the first watcher gets started will libev actually register something	2550	Only after the first watcher for a signal is started will libev actually
2253	with the kernel (thus it coexists with your own signal handlers as long as	2551	register something with the kernel. It thus coexists with your own signal
2254	you don't register any with libev for the same signal).	2552	handlers as long as you don't register any with libev for the same signal.
2255		2553
2256	If possible and supported, libev will install its handlers with	2554	If possible and supported, libev will install its handlers with
2257	C<SA_RESTART> (or equivalent) behaviour enabled, so system calls should	2555	C<SA_RESTART> (or equivalent) behaviour enabled, so system calls should
2258	not be unduly interrupted. If you have a problem with system calls getting	2556	not be unduly interrupted. If you have a problem with system calls getting
2259	interrupted by signals you can block all signals in an C<ev_check> watcher	2557	interrupted by signals you can block all signals in an C<ev_check> watcher
…		…
2262	=head3 The special problem of inheritance over fork/execve/pthread_create	2560	=head3 The special problem of inheritance over fork/execve/pthread_create
2263		2561
2264	Both the signal mask (C<sigprocmask>) and the signal disposition	2562	Both the signal mask (C<sigprocmask>) and the signal disposition
2265	(C<sigaction>) are unspecified after starting a signal watcher (and after	2563	(C<sigaction>) are unspecified after starting a signal watcher (and after
2266	stopping it again), that is, libev might or might not block the signal,	2564	stopping it again), that is, libev might or might not block the signal,
2267	and might or might not set or restore the installed signal handler.	2565	and might or might not set or restore the installed signal handler (but
		2566	see C<EVFLAG_NOSIGMASK>).
2268		2567
2269	While this does not matter for the signal disposition (libev never	2568	While this does not matter for the signal disposition (libev never
2270	sets signals to C<SIG_IGN>, so handlers will be reset to C<SIG_DFL> on	2569	sets signals to C<SIG_IGN>, so handlers will be reset to C<SIG_DFL> on
2271	C<execve>), this matters for the signal mask: many programs do not expect	2570	C<execve>), this matters for the signal mask: many programs do not expect
2272	certain signals to be blocked.	2571	certain signals to be blocked.
…		…
2285	I<has> to modify the signal mask, at least temporarily.	2584	I<has> to modify the signal mask, at least temporarily.
2286		2585
2287	So I can't stress this enough: I<If you do not reset your signal mask when	2586	So I can't stress this enough: I<If you do not reset your signal mask when
2288	you expect it to be empty, you have a race condition in your code>. This	2587	you expect it to be empty, you have a race condition in your code>. This
2289	is not a libev-specific thing, this is true for most event libraries.	2588	is not a libev-specific thing, this is true for most event libraries.
		2589
		2590	=head3 The special problem of threads signal handling
		2591
		2592	POSIX threads has problematic signal handling semantics, specifically,
		2593	a lot of functionality (sigfd, sigwait etc.) only really works if all
		2594	threads in a process block signals, which is hard to achieve.
		2595
		2596	When you want to use sigwait (or mix libev signal handling with your own
		2597	for the same signals), you can tackle this problem by globally blocking
		2598	all signals before creating any threads (or creating them with a fully set
		2599	sigprocmask) and also specifying the C<EVFLAG_NOSIGMASK> when creating
		2600	loops. Then designate one thread as "signal receiver thread" which handles
		2601	these signals. You can pass on any signals that libev might be interested
		2602	in by calling C<ev_feed_signal>.
2290		2603
2291	=head3 Watcher-Specific Functions and Data Members	2604	=head3 Watcher-Specific Functions and Data Members
2292		2605
2293	=over 4	2606	=over 4
2294		2607
…		…
2429		2742
2430	=head2 C<ev_stat> - did the file attributes just change?	2743	=head2 C<ev_stat> - did the file attributes just change?
2431		2744
2432	This watches a file system path for attribute changes. That is, it calls	2745	This watches a file system path for attribute changes. That is, it calls
2433	C<stat> on that path in regular intervals (or when the OS says it changed)	2746	C<stat> on that path in regular intervals (or when the OS says it changed)
2434	and sees if it changed compared to the last time, invoking the callback if	2747	and sees if it changed compared to the last time, invoking the callback
2435	it did.	2748	if it did. Starting the watcher C<stat>'s the file, so only changes that
		2749	happen after the watcher has been started will be reported.
2436		2750
2437	The path does not need to exist: changing from "path exists" to "path does	2751	The path does not need to exist: changing from "path exists" to "path does
2438	not exist" is a status change like any other. The condition "path does not	2752	not exist" is a status change like any other. The condition "path does not
2439	exist" (or more correctly "path cannot be stat'ed") is signified by the	2753	exist" (or more correctly "path cannot be stat'ed") is signified by the
2440	C<st_nlink> field being zero (which is otherwise always forced to be at	2754	C<st_nlink> field being zero (which is otherwise always forced to be at
…		…
2670	Apart from keeping your process non-blocking (which is a useful	2984	Apart from keeping your process non-blocking (which is a useful
2671	effect on its own sometimes), idle watchers are a good place to do	2985	effect on its own sometimes), idle watchers are a good place to do
2672	"pseudo-background processing", or delay processing stuff to after the	2986	"pseudo-background processing", or delay processing stuff to after the
2673	event loop has handled all outstanding events.	2987	event loop has handled all outstanding events.
2674		2988
		2989	=head3 Abusing an C<ev_idle> watcher for its side-effect
		2990
		2991	As long as there is at least one active idle watcher, libev will never
		2992	sleep unnecessarily. Or in other words, it will loop as fast as possible.
		2993	For this to work, the idle watcher doesn't need to be invoked at all - the
		2994	lowest priority will do.
		2995
		2996	This mode of operation can be useful together with an C<ev_check> watcher,
		2997	to do something on each event loop iteration - for example to balance load
		2998	between different connections.
		2999
		3000	See L</Abusing an ev_check watcher for its side-effect> for a longer
		3001	example.
		3002
2675	=head3 Watcher-Specific Functions and Data Members	3003	=head3 Watcher-Specific Functions and Data Members
2676		3004
2677	=over 4	3005	=over 4
2678		3006
2679	=item ev_idle_init (ev_idle *, callback)	3007	=item ev_idle_init (ev_idle *, callback)
…		…
2690	callback, free it. Also, use no error checking, as usual.	3018	callback, free it. Also, use no error checking, as usual.
2691		3019
2692	static void	3020	static void
2693	idle_cb (struct ev_loop *loop, ev_idle *w, int revents)	3021	idle_cb (struct ev_loop *loop, ev_idle *w, int revents)
2694	{	3022	{
		3023	// stop the watcher
		3024	ev_idle_stop (loop, w);
		3025
		3026	// now we can free it
2695	free (w);	3027	free (w);
		3028
2696	// now do something you wanted to do when the program has	3029	// now do something you wanted to do when the program has
2697	// no longer anything immediate to do.	3030	// no longer anything immediate to do.
2698	}	3031	}
2699		3032
2700	ev_idle *idle_watcher = malloc (sizeof (ev_idle));	3033	ev_idle *idle_watcher = malloc (sizeof (ev_idle));
…		…
2702	ev_idle_start (loop, idle_watcher);	3035	ev_idle_start (loop, idle_watcher);
2703		3036
2704		3037
2705	=head2 C<ev_prepare> and C<ev_check> - customise your event loop!	3038	=head2 C<ev_prepare> and C<ev_check> - customise your event loop!
2706		3039
2707	Prepare and check watchers are usually (but not always) used in pairs:	3040	Prepare and check watchers are often (but not always) used in pairs:
2708	prepare watchers get invoked before the process blocks and check watchers	3041	prepare watchers get invoked before the process blocks and check watchers
2709	afterwards.	3042	afterwards.
2710		3043
2711	You I<must not> call C<ev_run> or similar functions that enter	3044	You I<must not> call C<ev_run> (or similar functions that enter the
2712	the current event loop from either C<ev_prepare> or C<ev_check>	3045	current event loop) or C<ev_loop_fork> from either C<ev_prepare> or
2713	watchers. Other loops than the current one are fine, however. The	3046	C<ev_check> watchers. Other loops than the current one are fine,
2714	rationale behind this is that you do not need to check for recursion in	3047	however. The rationale behind this is that you do not need to check
2715	those watchers, i.e. the sequence will always be C<ev_prepare>, blocking,	3048	for recursion in those watchers, i.e. the sequence will always be
2716	C<ev_check> so if you have one watcher of each kind they will always be	3049	C<ev_prepare>, blocking, C<ev_check> so if you have one watcher of each
2717	called in pairs bracketing the blocking call.	3050	kind they will always be called in pairs bracketing the blocking call.
2718		3051
2719	Their main purpose is to integrate other event mechanisms into libev and	3052	Their main purpose is to integrate other event mechanisms into libev and
2720	their use is somewhat advanced. They could be used, for example, to track	3053	their use is somewhat advanced. They could be used, for example, to track
2721	variable changes, implement your own watchers, integrate net-snmp or a	3054	variable changes, implement your own watchers, integrate net-snmp or a
2722	coroutine library and lots more. They are also occasionally useful if	3055	coroutine library and lots more. They are also occasionally useful if
…		…
2740	with priority higher than or equal to the event loop and one coroutine	3073	with priority higher than or equal to the event loop and one coroutine
2741	of lower priority, but only once, using idle watchers to keep the event	3074	of lower priority, but only once, using idle watchers to keep the event
2742	loop from blocking if lower-priority coroutines are active, thus mapping	3075	loop from blocking if lower-priority coroutines are active, thus mapping
2743	low-priority coroutines to idle/background tasks).	3076	low-priority coroutines to idle/background tasks).
2744		3077
2745	It is recommended to give C<ev_check> watchers highest (C<EV_MAXPRI>)	3078	When used for this purpose, it is recommended to give C<ev_check> watchers
2746	priority, to ensure that they are being run before any other watchers	3079	highest (C<EV_MAXPRI>) priority, to ensure that they are being run before
2747	after the poll (this doesn't matter for C<ev_prepare> watchers).	3080	any other watchers after the poll (this doesn't matter for C<ev_prepare>
		3081	watchers).
2748		3082
2749	Also, C<ev_check> watchers (and C<ev_prepare> watchers, too) should not	3083	Also, C<ev_check> watchers (and C<ev_prepare> watchers, too) should not
2750	activate ("feed") events into libev. While libev fully supports this, they	3084	activate ("feed") events into libev. While libev fully supports this, they
2751	might get executed before other C<ev_check> watchers did their job. As	3085	might get executed before other C<ev_check> watchers did their job. As
2752	C<ev_check> watchers are often used to embed other (non-libev) event	3086	C<ev_check> watchers are often used to embed other (non-libev) event
2753	loops those other event loops might be in an unusable state until their	3087	loops those other event loops might be in an unusable state until their
2754	C<ev_check> watcher ran (always remind yourself to coexist peacefully with	3088	C<ev_check> watcher ran (always remind yourself to coexist peacefully with
2755	others).	3089	others).
		3090
		3091	=head3 Abusing an C<ev_check> watcher for its side-effect
		3092
		3093	C<ev_check> (and less often also C<ev_prepare>) watchers can also be
		3094	useful because they are called once per event loop iteration. For
		3095	example, if you want to handle a large number of connections fairly, you
		3096	normally only do a bit of work for each active connection, and if there
		3097	is more work to do, you wait for the next event loop iteration, so other
		3098	connections have a chance of making progress.
		3099
		3100	Using an C<ev_check> watcher is almost enough: it will be called on the
		3101	next event loop iteration. However, that isn't as soon as possible -
		3102	without external events, your C<ev_check> watcher will not be invoked.
		3103
		3104	This is where C<ev_idle> watchers come in handy - all you need is a
		3105	single global idle watcher that is active as long as you have one active
		3106	C<ev_check> watcher. The C<ev_idle> watcher makes sure the event loop
		3107	will not sleep, and the C<ev_check> watcher makes sure a callback gets
		3108	invoked. Neither watcher alone can do that.
2756		3109
2757	=head3 Watcher-Specific Functions and Data Members	3110	=head3 Watcher-Specific Functions and Data Members
2758		3111
2759	=over 4	3112	=over 4
2760		3113
…		…
2961		3314
2962	=over 4	3315	=over 4
2963		3316
2964	=item ev_embed_init (ev_embed *, callback, struct ev_loop *embedded_loop)	3317	=item ev_embed_init (ev_embed *, callback, struct ev_loop *embedded_loop)
2965		3318
2966	=item ev_embed_set (ev_embed *, callback, struct ev_loop *embedded_loop)	3319	=item ev_embed_set (ev_embed *, struct ev_loop *embedded_loop)
2967		3320
2968	Configures the watcher to embed the given loop, which must be	3321	Configures the watcher to embed the given loop, which must be
2969	embeddable. If the callback is C<0>, then C<ev_embed_sweep> will be	3322	embeddable. If the callback is C<0>, then C<ev_embed_sweep> will be
2970	invoked automatically, otherwise it is the responsibility of the callback	3323	invoked automatically, otherwise it is the responsibility of the callback
2971	to invoke it (it will continue to be called until the sweep has been done,	3324	to invoke it (it will continue to be called until the sweep has been done,
…		…
2992	used).	3345	used).
2993		3346
2994	struct ev_loop *loop_hi = ev_default_init (0);	3347	struct ev_loop *loop_hi = ev_default_init (0);
2995	struct ev_loop *loop_lo = 0;	3348	struct ev_loop *loop_lo = 0;
2996	ev_embed embed;	3349	ev_embed embed;
2997		3350
2998	// see if there is a chance of getting one that works	3351	// see if there is a chance of getting one that works
2999	// (remember that a flags value of 0 means autodetection)	3352	// (remember that a flags value of 0 means autodetection)
3000	loop_lo = ev_embeddable_backends () & ev_recommended_backends ()	3353	loop_lo = ev_embeddable_backends () & ev_recommended_backends ()
3001	? ev_loop_new (ev_embeddable_backends () & ev_recommended_backends ())	3354	? ev_loop_new (ev_embeddable_backends () & ev_recommended_backends ())
3002	: 0;	3355	: 0;
…		…
3016	C<loop_socket>. (One might optionally use C<EVFLAG_NOENV>, too).	3369	C<loop_socket>. (One might optionally use C<EVFLAG_NOENV>, too).
3017		3370
3018	struct ev_loop *loop = ev_default_init (0);	3371	struct ev_loop *loop = ev_default_init (0);
3019	struct ev_loop *loop_socket = 0;	3372	struct ev_loop *loop_socket = 0;
3020	ev_embed embed;	3373	ev_embed embed;
3021		3374
3022	if (ev_supported_backends () & ~ev_recommended_backends () & EVBACKEND_KQUEUE)	3375	if (ev_supported_backends () & ~ev_recommended_backends () & EVBACKEND_KQUEUE)
3023	if ((loop_socket = ev_loop_new (EVBACKEND_KQUEUE))	3376	if ((loop_socket = ev_loop_new (EVBACKEND_KQUEUE))
3024	{	3377	{
3025	ev_embed_init (&embed, 0, loop_socket);	3378	ev_embed_init (&embed, 0, loop_socket);
3026	ev_embed_start (loop, &embed);	3379	ev_embed_start (loop, &embed);
…		…
3034		3387
3035	=head2 C<ev_fork> - the audacity to resume the event loop after a fork	3388	=head2 C<ev_fork> - the audacity to resume the event loop after a fork
3036		3389
3037	Fork watchers are called when a C<fork ()> was detected (usually because	3390	Fork watchers are called when a C<fork ()> was detected (usually because
3038	whoever is a good citizen cared to tell libev about it by calling	3391	whoever is a good citizen cared to tell libev about it by calling
3039	C<ev_default_fork> or C<ev_loop_fork>). The invocation is done before the	3392	C<ev_loop_fork>). The invocation is done before the event loop blocks next
3040	event loop blocks next and before C<ev_check> watchers are being called,	3393	and before C<ev_check> watchers are being called, and only in the child
3041	and only in the child after the fork. If whoever good citizen calling	3394	after the fork. If whoever good citizen calling C<ev_default_fork> cheats
3042	C<ev_default_fork> cheats and calls it in the wrong process, the fork	3395	and calls it in the wrong process, the fork handlers will be invoked, too,
3043	handlers will be invoked, too, of course.	3396	of course.
3044		3397
3045	=head3 The special problem of life after fork - how is it possible?	3398	=head3 The special problem of life after fork - how is it possible?
3046		3399
3047	Most uses of C<fork()> consist of forking, then some simple calls to set	3400	Most uses of C<fork ()> consist of forking, then some simple calls to set
3048	up/change the process environment, followed by a call to C<exec()>. This	3401	up/change the process environment, followed by a call to C<exec()>. This
3049	sequence should be handled by libev without any problems.	3402	sequence should be handled by libev without any problems.
3050		3403
3051	This changes when the application actually wants to do event handling	3404	This changes when the application actually wants to do event handling
3052	in the child, or both parent in child, in effect "continuing" after the	3405	in the child, or both parent in child, in effect "continuing" after the
…		…
3068	disadvantage of having to use multiple event loops (which do not support	3421	disadvantage of having to use multiple event loops (which do not support
3069	signal watchers).	3422	signal watchers).
3070		3423
3071	When this is not possible, or you want to use the default loop for	3424	When this is not possible, or you want to use the default loop for
3072	other reasons, then in the process that wants to start "fresh", call	3425	other reasons, then in the process that wants to start "fresh", call
3073	C<ev_default_destroy ()> followed by C<ev_default_loop (...)>. Destroying	3426	C<ev_loop_destroy (EV_DEFAULT)> followed by C<ev_default_loop (...)>.
3074	the default loop will "orphan" (not stop) all registered watchers, so you	3427	Destroying the default loop will "orphan" (not stop) all registered
3075	have to be careful not to execute code that modifies those watchers. Note	3428	watchers, so you have to be careful not to execute code that modifies
3076	also that in that case, you have to re-register any signal watchers.	3429	those watchers. Note also that in that case, you have to re-register any
		3430	signal watchers.
3077		3431
3078	=head3 Watcher-Specific Functions and Data Members	3432	=head3 Watcher-Specific Functions and Data Members
3079		3433
3080	=over 4	3434	=over 4
3081		3435
3082	=item ev_fork_init (ev_signal *, callback)	3436	=item ev_fork_init (ev_fork *, callback)
3083		3437
3084	Initialises and configures the fork watcher - it has no parameters of any	3438	Initialises and configures the fork watcher - it has no parameters of any
3085	kind. There is a C<ev_fork_set> macro, but using it is utterly pointless,	3439	kind. There is a C<ev_fork_set> macro, but using it is utterly pointless,
3086	believe me.	3440	really.
3087		3441
3088	=back	3442	=back
3089		3443
3090		3444
		3445	=head2 C<ev_cleanup> - even the best things end
		3446
		3447	Cleanup watchers are called just before the event loop is being destroyed
		3448	by a call to C<ev_loop_destroy>.
		3449
		3450	While there is no guarantee that the event loop gets destroyed, cleanup
		3451	watchers provide a convenient method to install cleanup hooks for your
		3452	program, worker threads and so on - you just to make sure to destroy the
		3453	loop when you want them to be invoked.
		3454
		3455	Cleanup watchers are invoked in the same way as any other watcher. Unlike
		3456	all other watchers, they do not keep a reference to the event loop (which
		3457	makes a lot of sense if you think about it). Like all other watchers, you
		3458	can call libev functions in the callback, except C<ev_cleanup_start>.
		3459
		3460	=head3 Watcher-Specific Functions and Data Members
		3461
		3462	=over 4
		3463
		3464	=item ev_cleanup_init (ev_cleanup *, callback)
		3465
		3466	Initialises and configures the cleanup watcher - it has no parameters of
		3467	any kind. There is a C<ev_cleanup_set> macro, but using it is utterly
		3468	pointless, I assure you.
		3469
		3470	=back
		3471
		3472	Example: Register an atexit handler to destroy the default loop, so any
		3473	cleanup functions are called.
		3474
		3475	static void
		3476	program_exits (void)
		3477	{
		3478	ev_loop_destroy (EV_DEFAULT_UC);
		3479	}
		3480
		3481	...
		3482	atexit (program_exits);
		3483
		3484
3091	=head2 C<ev_async> - how to wake up an event loop	3485	=head2 C<ev_async> - how to wake up an event loop
3092		3486
3093	In general, you cannot use an C<ev_run> from multiple threads or other	3487	In general, you cannot use an C<ev_loop> from multiple threads or other
3094	asynchronous sources such as signal handlers (as opposed to multiple event	3488	asynchronous sources such as signal handlers (as opposed to multiple event
3095	loops - those are of course safe to use in different threads).	3489	loops - those are of course safe to use in different threads).
3096		3490
3097	Sometimes, however, you need to wake up an event loop you do not control,	3491	Sometimes, however, you need to wake up an event loop you do not control,
3098	for example because it belongs to another thread. This is what C<ev_async>	3492	for example because it belongs to another thread. This is what C<ev_async>
…		…
3100	it by calling C<ev_async_send>, which is thread- and signal safe.	3494	it by calling C<ev_async_send>, which is thread- and signal safe.
3101		3495
3102	This functionality is very similar to C<ev_signal> watchers, as signals,	3496	This functionality is very similar to C<ev_signal> watchers, as signals,
3103	too, are asynchronous in nature, and signals, too, will be compressed	3497	too, are asynchronous in nature, and signals, too, will be compressed
3104	(i.e. the number of callback invocations may be less than the number of	3498	(i.e. the number of callback invocations may be less than the number of
3105	C<ev_async_sent> calls).	3499	C<ev_async_send> calls). In fact, you could use signal watchers as a kind
3106		3500	of "global async watchers" by using a watcher on an otherwise unused
3107	Unlike C<ev_signal> watchers, C<ev_async> works with any event loop, not	3501	signal, and C<ev_feed_signal> to signal this watcher from another thread,
3108	just the default loop.	3502	even without knowing which loop owns the signal.
3109		3503
3110	=head3 Queueing	3504	=head3 Queueing
3111		3505
3112	C<ev_async> does not support queueing of data in any way. The reason	3506	C<ev_async> does not support queueing of data in any way. The reason
3113	is that the author does not know of a simple (or any) algorithm for a	3507	is that the author does not know of a simple (or any) algorithm for a
…		…
3205	trust me.	3599	trust me.
3206		3600
3207	=item ev_async_send (loop, ev_async *)	3601	=item ev_async_send (loop, ev_async *)
3208		3602
3209	Sends/signals/activates the given C<ev_async> watcher, that is, feeds	3603	Sends/signals/activates the given C<ev_async> watcher, that is, feeds
3210	an C<EV_ASYNC> event on the watcher into the event loop. Unlike	3604	an C<EV_ASYNC> event on the watcher into the event loop, and instantly
		3605	returns.
		3606
3211	C<ev_feed_event>, this call is safe to do from other threads, signal or	3607	Unlike C<ev_feed_event>, this call is safe to do from other threads,
3212	similar contexts (see the discussion of C<EV_ATOMIC_T> in the embedding	3608	signal or similar contexts (see the discussion of C<EV_ATOMIC_T> in the
3213	section below on what exactly this means).	3609	embedding section below on what exactly this means).
3214		3610
3215	Note that, as with other watchers in libev, multiple events might get	3611	Note that, as with other watchers in libev, multiple events might get
3216	compressed into a single callback invocation (another way to look at this	3612	compressed into a single callback invocation (another way to look at
3217	is that C<ev_async> watchers are level-triggered, set on C<ev_async_send>,	3613	this is that C<ev_async> watchers are level-triggered: they are set on
3218	reset when the event loop detects that).	3614	C<ev_async_send>, reset when the event loop detects that).
3219		3615
3220	This call incurs the overhead of a system call only once per event loop	3616	This call incurs the overhead of at most one extra system call per event
3221	iteration, so while the overhead might be noticeable, it doesn't apply to	3617	loop iteration, if the event loop is blocked, and no syscall at all if
3222	repeated calls to C<ev_async_send> for the same event loop.	3618	the event loop (or your program) is processing events. That means that
		3619	repeated calls are basically free (there is no need to avoid calls for
		3620	performance reasons) and that the overhead becomes smaller (typically
		3621	zero) under load.
3223		3622
3224	=item bool = ev_async_pending (ev_async *)	3623	=item bool = ev_async_pending (ev_async *)
3225		3624
3226	Returns a non-zero value when C<ev_async_send> has been called on the	3625	Returns a non-zero value when C<ev_async_send> has been called on the
3227	watcher but the event has not yet been processed (or even noted) by the	3626	watcher but the event has not yet been processed (or even noted) by the
…		…
3244		3643
3245	There are some other functions of possible interest. Described. Here. Now.	3644	There are some other functions of possible interest. Described. Here. Now.
3246		3645
3247	=over 4	3646	=over 4
3248		3647
3249	=item ev_once (loop, int fd, int events, ev_tstamp timeout, callback)	3648	=item ev_once (loop, int fd, int events, ev_tstamp timeout, callback, arg)
3250		3649
3251	This function combines a simple timer and an I/O watcher, calls your	3650	This function combines a simple timer and an I/O watcher, calls your
3252	callback on whichever event happens first and automatically stops both	3651	callback on whichever event happens first and automatically stops both
3253	watchers. This is useful if you want to wait for a single event on an fd	3652	watchers. This is useful if you want to wait for a single event on an fd
3254	or timeout without having to allocate/configure/start/stop/free one or	3653	or timeout without having to allocate/configure/start/stop/free one or
…		…
3282	ev_once (STDIN_FILENO, EV_READ, 10., stdin_ready, 0);	3681	ev_once (STDIN_FILENO, EV_READ, 10., stdin_ready, 0);
3283		3682
3284	=item ev_feed_fd_event (loop, int fd, int revents)	3683	=item ev_feed_fd_event (loop, int fd, int revents)
3285		3684
3286	Feed an event on the given fd, as if a file descriptor backend detected	3685	Feed an event on the given fd, as if a file descriptor backend detected
3287	the given events it.	3686	the given events.
3288		3687
3289	=item ev_feed_signal_event (loop, int signum)	3688	=item ev_feed_signal_event (loop, int signum)
3290		3689
3291	Feed an event as if the given signal occurred (C<loop> must be the default	3690	Feed an event as if the given signal occurred. See also C<ev_feed_signal>,
3292	loop!).	3691	which is async-safe.
3293		3692
3294	=back	3693	=back
		3694
		3695
		3696	=head1 COMMON OR USEFUL IDIOMS (OR BOTH)
		3697
		3698	This section explains some common idioms that are not immediately
		3699	obvious. Note that examples are sprinkled over the whole manual, and this
		3700	section only contains stuff that wouldn't fit anywhere else.
		3701
		3702	=head2 ASSOCIATING CUSTOM DATA WITH A WATCHER
		3703
		3704	Each watcher has, by default, a C<void *data> member that you can read
		3705	or modify at any time: libev will completely ignore it. This can be used
		3706	to associate arbitrary data with your watcher. If you need more data and
		3707	don't want to allocate memory separately and store a pointer to it in that
		3708	data member, you can also "subclass" the watcher type and provide your own
		3709	data:
		3710
		3711	struct my_io
		3712	{
		3713	ev_io io;
		3714	int otherfd;
		3715	void *somedata;
		3716	struct whatever *mostinteresting;
		3717	};
		3718
		3719	...
		3720	struct my_io w;
		3721	ev_io_init (&w.io, my_cb, fd, EV_READ);
		3722
		3723	And since your callback will be called with a pointer to the watcher, you
		3724	can cast it back to your own type:
		3725
		3726	static void my_cb (struct ev_loop *loop, ev_io *w_, int revents)
		3727	{
		3728	struct my_io *w = (struct my_io *)w_;
		3729	...
		3730	}
		3731
		3732	More interesting and less C-conformant ways of casting your callback
		3733	function type instead have been omitted.
		3734
		3735	=head2 BUILDING YOUR OWN COMPOSITE WATCHERS
		3736
		3737	Another common scenario is to use some data structure with multiple
		3738	embedded watchers, in effect creating your own watcher that combines
		3739	multiple libev event sources into one "super-watcher":
		3740
		3741	struct my_biggy
		3742	{
		3743	int some_data;
		3744	ev_timer t1;
		3745	ev_timer t2;
		3746	}
		3747
		3748	In this case getting the pointer to C<my_biggy> is a bit more
		3749	complicated: Either you store the address of your C<my_biggy> struct in
		3750	the C<data> member of the watcher (for woozies or C++ coders), or you need
		3751	to use some pointer arithmetic using C<offsetof> inside your watchers (for
		3752	real programmers):
		3753
		3754	#include <stddef.h>
		3755
		3756	static void
		3757	t1_cb (EV_P_ ev_timer *w, int revents)
		3758	{
		3759	struct my_biggy big = (struct my_biggy *)
		3760	(((char *)w) - offsetof (struct my_biggy, t1));
		3761	}
		3762
		3763	static void
		3764	t2_cb (EV_P_ ev_timer *w, int revents)
		3765	{
		3766	struct my_biggy big = (struct my_biggy *)
		3767	(((char *)w) - offsetof (struct my_biggy, t2));
		3768	}
		3769
		3770	=head2 AVOIDING FINISHING BEFORE RETURNING
		3771
		3772	Often you have structures like this in event-based programs:
		3773
		3774	callback ()
		3775	{
		3776	free (request);
		3777	}
		3778
		3779	request = start_new_request (..., callback);
		3780
		3781	The intent is to start some "lengthy" operation. The C<request> could be
		3782	used to cancel the operation, or do other things with it.
		3783
		3784	It's not uncommon to have code paths in C<start_new_request> that
		3785	immediately invoke the callback, for example, to report errors. Or you add
		3786	some caching layer that finds that it can skip the lengthy aspects of the
		3787	operation and simply invoke the callback with the result.
		3788
		3789	The problem here is that this will happen I<before> C<start_new_request>
		3790	has returned, so C<request> is not set.
		3791
		3792	Even if you pass the request by some safer means to the callback, you
		3793	might want to do something to the request after starting it, such as
		3794	canceling it, which probably isn't working so well when the callback has
		3795	already been invoked.
		3796
		3797	A common way around all these issues is to make sure that
		3798	C<start_new_request> I<always> returns before the callback is invoked. If
		3799	C<start_new_request> immediately knows the result, it can artificially
		3800	delay invoking the callback by using a C<prepare> or C<idle> watcher for
		3801	example, or more sneakily, by reusing an existing (stopped) watcher and
		3802	pushing it into the pending queue:
		3803
		3804	ev_set_cb (watcher, callback);
		3805	ev_feed_event (EV_A_ watcher, 0);
		3806
		3807	This way, C<start_new_request> can safely return before the callback is
		3808	invoked, while not delaying callback invocation too much.
		3809
		3810	=head2 MODEL/NESTED EVENT LOOP INVOCATIONS AND EXIT CONDITIONS
		3811
		3812	Often (especially in GUI toolkits) there are places where you have
		3813	I<modal> interaction, which is most easily implemented by recursively
		3814	invoking C<ev_run>.
		3815
		3816	This brings the problem of exiting - a callback might want to finish the
		3817	main C<ev_run> call, but not the nested one (e.g. user clicked "Quit", but
		3818	a modal "Are you sure?" dialog is still waiting), or just the nested one
		3819	and not the main one (e.g. user clocked "Ok" in a modal dialog), or some
		3820	other combination: In these cases, a simple C<ev_break> will not work.
		3821
		3822	The solution is to maintain "break this loop" variable for each C<ev_run>
		3823	invocation, and use a loop around C<ev_run> until the condition is
		3824	triggered, using C<EVRUN_ONCE>:
		3825
		3826	// main loop
		3827	int exit_main_loop = 0;
		3828
		3829	while (!exit_main_loop)
		3830	ev_run (EV_DEFAULT_ EVRUN_ONCE);
		3831
		3832	// in a modal watcher
		3833	int exit_nested_loop = 0;
		3834
		3835	while (!exit_nested_loop)
		3836	ev_run (EV_A_ EVRUN_ONCE);
		3837
		3838	To exit from any of these loops, just set the corresponding exit variable:
		3839
		3840	// exit modal loop
		3841	exit_nested_loop = 1;
		3842
		3843	// exit main program, after modal loop is finished
		3844	exit_main_loop = 1;
		3845
		3846	// exit both
		3847	exit_main_loop = exit_nested_loop = 1;
		3848
		3849	=head2 THREAD LOCKING EXAMPLE
		3850
		3851	Here is a fictitious example of how to run an event loop in a different
		3852	thread from where callbacks are being invoked and watchers are
		3853	created/added/removed.
		3854
		3855	For a real-world example, see the C<EV::Loop::Async> perl module,
		3856	which uses exactly this technique (which is suited for many high-level
		3857	languages).
		3858
		3859	The example uses a pthread mutex to protect the loop data, a condition
		3860	variable to wait for callback invocations, an async watcher to notify the
		3861	event loop thread and an unspecified mechanism to wake up the main thread.
		3862
		3863	First, you need to associate some data with the event loop:
		3864
		3865	typedef struct {
		3866	mutex_t lock; /* global loop lock */
		3867	ev_async async_w;
		3868	thread_t tid;
		3869	cond_t invoke_cv;
		3870	} userdata;
		3871
		3872	void prepare_loop (EV_P)
		3873	{
		3874	// for simplicity, we use a static userdata struct.
		3875	static userdata u;
		3876
		3877	ev_async_init (&u->async_w, async_cb);
		3878	ev_async_start (EV_A_ &u->async_w);
		3879
		3880	pthread_mutex_init (&u->lock, 0);
		3881	pthread_cond_init (&u->invoke_cv, 0);
		3882
		3883	// now associate this with the loop
		3884	ev_set_userdata (EV_A_ u);
		3885	ev_set_invoke_pending_cb (EV_A_ l_invoke);
		3886	ev_set_loop_release_cb (EV_A_ l_release, l_acquire);
		3887
		3888	// then create the thread running ev_run
		3889	pthread_create (&u->tid, 0, l_run, EV_A);
		3890	}
		3891
		3892	The callback for the C<ev_async> watcher does nothing: the watcher is used
		3893	solely to wake up the event loop so it takes notice of any new watchers
		3894	that might have been added:
		3895
		3896	static void
		3897	async_cb (EV_P_ ev_async *w, int revents)
		3898	{
		3899	// just used for the side effects
		3900	}
		3901
		3902	The C<l_release> and C<l_acquire> callbacks simply unlock/lock the mutex
		3903	protecting the loop data, respectively.
		3904
		3905	static void
		3906	l_release (EV_P)
		3907	{
		3908	userdata *u = ev_userdata (EV_A);
		3909	pthread_mutex_unlock (&u->lock);
		3910	}
		3911
		3912	static void
		3913	l_acquire (EV_P)
		3914	{
		3915	userdata *u = ev_userdata (EV_A);
		3916	pthread_mutex_lock (&u->lock);
		3917	}
		3918
		3919	The event loop thread first acquires the mutex, and then jumps straight
		3920	into C<ev_run>:
		3921
		3922	void *
		3923	l_run (void *thr_arg)
		3924	{
		3925	struct ev_loop *loop = (struct ev_loop *)thr_arg;
		3926
		3927	l_acquire (EV_A);
		3928	pthread_setcanceltype (PTHREAD_CANCEL_ASYNCHRONOUS, 0);
		3929	ev_run (EV_A_ 0);
		3930	l_release (EV_A);
		3931
		3932	return 0;
		3933	}
		3934
		3935	Instead of invoking all pending watchers, the C<l_invoke> callback will
		3936	signal the main thread via some unspecified mechanism (signals? pipe
		3937	writes? C<Async::Interrupt>?) and then waits until all pending watchers
		3938	have been called (in a while loop because a) spurious wakeups are possible
		3939	and b) skipping inter-thread-communication when there are no pending
		3940	watchers is very beneficial):
		3941
		3942	static void
		3943	l_invoke (EV_P)
		3944	{
		3945	userdata *u = ev_userdata (EV_A);
		3946
		3947	while (ev_pending_count (EV_A))
		3948	{
		3949	wake_up_other_thread_in_some_magic_or_not_so_magic_way ();
		3950	pthread_cond_wait (&u->invoke_cv, &u->lock);
		3951	}
		3952	}
		3953
		3954	Now, whenever the main thread gets told to invoke pending watchers, it
		3955	will grab the lock, call C<ev_invoke_pending> and then signal the loop
		3956	thread to continue:
		3957
		3958	static void
		3959	real_invoke_pending (EV_P)
		3960	{
		3961	userdata *u = ev_userdata (EV_A);
		3962
		3963	pthread_mutex_lock (&u->lock);
		3964	ev_invoke_pending (EV_A);
		3965	pthread_cond_signal (&u->invoke_cv);
		3966	pthread_mutex_unlock (&u->lock);
		3967	}
		3968
		3969	Whenever you want to start/stop a watcher or do other modifications to an
		3970	event loop, you will now have to lock:
		3971
		3972	ev_timer timeout_watcher;
		3973	userdata *u = ev_userdata (EV_A);
		3974
		3975	ev_timer_init (&timeout_watcher, timeout_cb, 5.5, 0.);
		3976
		3977	pthread_mutex_lock (&u->lock);
		3978	ev_timer_start (EV_A_ &timeout_watcher);
		3979	ev_async_send (EV_A_ &u->async_w);
		3980	pthread_mutex_unlock (&u->lock);
		3981
		3982	Note that sending the C<ev_async> watcher is required because otherwise
		3983	an event loop currently blocking in the kernel will have no knowledge
		3984	about the newly added timer. By waking up the loop it will pick up any new
		3985	watchers in the next event loop iteration.
		3986
		3987	=head2 THREADS, COROUTINES, CONTINUATIONS, QUEUES... INSTEAD OF CALLBACKS
		3988
		3989	While the overhead of a callback that e.g. schedules a thread is small, it
		3990	is still an overhead. If you embed libev, and your main usage is with some
		3991	kind of threads or coroutines, you might want to customise libev so that
		3992	doesn't need callbacks anymore.
		3993
		3994	Imagine you have coroutines that you can switch to using a function
		3995	C<switch_to (coro)>, that libev runs in a coroutine called C<libev_coro>
		3996	and that due to some magic, the currently active coroutine is stored in a
		3997	global called C<current_coro>. Then you can build your own "wait for libev
		3998	event" primitive by changing C<EV_CB_DECLARE> and C<EV_CB_INVOKE> (note
		3999	the differing C<;> conventions):
		4000
		4001	#define EV_CB_DECLARE(type) struct my_coro *cb;
		4002	#define EV_CB_INVOKE(watcher) switch_to ((watcher)->cb)
		4003
		4004	That means instead of having a C callback function, you store the
		4005	coroutine to switch to in each watcher, and instead of having libev call
		4006	your callback, you instead have it switch to that coroutine.
		4007
		4008	A coroutine might now wait for an event with a function called
		4009	C<wait_for_event>. (the watcher needs to be started, as always, but it doesn't
		4010	matter when, or whether the watcher is active or not when this function is
		4011	called):
		4012
		4013	void
		4014	wait_for_event (ev_watcher *w)
		4015	{
		4016	ev_set_cb (w, current_coro);
		4017	switch_to (libev_coro);
		4018	}
		4019
		4020	That basically suspends the coroutine inside C<wait_for_event> and
		4021	continues the libev coroutine, which, when appropriate, switches back to
		4022	this or any other coroutine.
		4023
		4024	You can do similar tricks if you have, say, threads with an event queue -
		4025	instead of storing a coroutine, you store the queue object and instead of
		4026	switching to a coroutine, you push the watcher onto the queue and notify
		4027	any waiters.
		4028
		4029	To embed libev, see L</EMBEDDING>, but in short, it's easiest to create two
		4030	files, F<my_ev.h> and F<my_ev.c> that include the respective libev files:
		4031
		4032	// my_ev.h
		4033	#define EV_CB_DECLARE(type) struct my_coro *cb;
		4034	#define EV_CB_INVOKE(watcher) switch_to ((watcher)->cb)
		4035	#include "../libev/ev.h"
		4036
		4037	// my_ev.c
		4038	#define EV_H "my_ev.h"
		4039	#include "../libev/ev.c"
		4040
		4041	And then use F<my_ev.h> when you would normally use F<ev.h>, and compile
		4042	F<my_ev.c> into your project. When properly specifying include paths, you
		4043	can even use F<ev.h> as header file name directly.
3295		4044
3296		4045
3297	=head1 LIBEVENT EMULATION	4046	=head1 LIBEVENT EMULATION
3298		4047
3299	Libev offers a compatibility emulation layer for libevent. It cannot	4048	Libev offers a compatibility emulation layer for libevent. It cannot
3300	emulate the internals of libevent, so here are some usage hints:	4049	emulate the internals of libevent, so here are some usage hints:
3301		4050
3302	=over 4	4051	=over 4
		4052
		4053	=item * Only the libevent-1.4.1-beta API is being emulated.
		4054
		4055	This was the newest libevent version available when libev was implemented,
		4056	and is still mostly unchanged in 2010.
3303		4057
3304	=item * Use it by including <event.h>, as usual.	4058	=item * Use it by including <event.h>, as usual.
3305		4059
3306	=item * The following members are fully supported: ev_base, ev_callback,	4060	=item * The following members are fully supported: ev_base, ev_callback,
3307	ev_arg, ev_fd, ev_res, ev_events.	4061	ev_arg, ev_fd, ev_res, ev_events.
…		…
3313	=item * Priorities are not currently supported. Initialising priorities	4067	=item * Priorities are not currently supported. Initialising priorities
3314	will fail and all watchers will have the same priority, even though there	4068	will fail and all watchers will have the same priority, even though there
3315	is an ev_pri field.	4069	is an ev_pri field.
3316		4070
3317	=item * In libevent, the last base created gets the signals, in libev, the	4071	=item * In libevent, the last base created gets the signals, in libev, the
3318	first base created (== the default loop) gets the signals.	4072	base that registered the signal gets the signals.
3319		4073
3320	=item * Other members are not supported.	4074	=item * Other members are not supported.
3321		4075
3322	=item * The libev emulation is I<not> ABI compatible to libevent, you need	4076	=item * The libev emulation is I<not> ABI compatible to libevent, you need
3323	to use the libev header file and library.	4077	to use the libev header file and library.
3324		4078
3325	=back	4079	=back
3326		4080
3327	=head1 C++ SUPPORT	4081	=head1 C++ SUPPORT
		4082
		4083	=head2 C API
		4084
		4085	The normal C API should work fine when used from C++: both ev.h and the
		4086	libev sources can be compiled as C++. Therefore, code that uses the C API
		4087	will work fine.
		4088
		4089	Proper exception specifications might have to be added to callbacks passed
		4090	to libev: exceptions may be thrown only from watcher callbacks, all other
		4091	callbacks (allocator, syserr, loop acquire/release and periodic reschedule
		4092	callbacks) must not throw exceptions, and might need a C<noexcept>
		4093	specification. If you have code that needs to be compiled as both C and
		4094	C++ you can use the C<EV_NOEXCEPT> macro for this:
		4095
		4096	static void
		4097	fatal_error (const char *msg) EV_NOEXCEPT
		4098	{
		4099	perror (msg);
		4100	abort ();
		4101	}
		4102
		4103	...
		4104	ev_set_syserr_cb (fatal_error);
		4105
		4106	The only API functions that can currently throw exceptions are C<ev_run>,
		4107	C<ev_invoke>, C<ev_invoke_pending> and C<ev_loop_destroy> (the latter
		4108	because it runs cleanup watchers).
		4109
		4110	Throwing exceptions in watcher callbacks is only supported if libev itself
		4111	is compiled with a C++ compiler or your C and C++ environments allow
		4112	throwing exceptions through C libraries (most do).
		4113
		4114	=head2 C++ API
3328		4115
3329	Libev comes with some simplistic wrapper classes for C++ that mainly allow	4116	Libev comes with some simplistic wrapper classes for C++ that mainly allow
3330	you to use some convenience methods to start/stop watchers and also change	4117	you to use some convenience methods to start/stop watchers and also change
3331	the callback model to a model using method callbacks on objects.	4118	the callback model to a model using method callbacks on objects.
3332		4119
3333	To use it,	4120	To use it,
3334		4121
3335	#include <ev++.h>	4122	#include <ev++.h>
3336		4123
3337	This automatically includes F<ev.h> and puts all of its definitions (many	4124	This automatically includes F<ev.h> and puts all of its definitions (many
3338	of them macros) into the global namespace. All C++ specific things are	4125	of them macros) into the global namespace. All C++ specific things are
3339	put into the C<ev> namespace. It should support all the same embedding	4126	put into the C<ev> namespace. It should support all the same embedding
…		…
3342	Care has been taken to keep the overhead low. The only data member the C++	4129	Care has been taken to keep the overhead low. The only data member the C++
3343	classes add (compared to plain C-style watchers) is the event loop pointer	4130	classes add (compared to plain C-style watchers) is the event loop pointer
3344	that the watcher is associated with (or no additional members at all if	4131	that the watcher is associated with (or no additional members at all if
3345	you disable C<EV_MULTIPLICITY> when embedding libev).	4132	you disable C<EV_MULTIPLICITY> when embedding libev).
3346		4133
3347	Currently, functions, and static and non-static member functions can be	4134	Currently, functions, static and non-static member functions and classes
3348	used as callbacks. Other types should be easy to add as long as they only	4135	with C<operator ()> can be used as callbacks. Other types should be easy
3349	need one additional pointer for context. If you need support for other	4136	to add as long as they only need one additional pointer for context. If
3350	types of functors please contact the author (preferably after implementing	4137	you need support for other types of functors please contact the author
3351	it).	4138	(preferably after implementing it).
		4139
		4140	For all this to work, your C++ compiler either has to use the same calling
		4141	conventions as your C compiler (for static member functions), or you have
		4142	to embed libev and compile libev itself as C++.
3352		4143
3353	Here is a list of things available in the C<ev> namespace:	4144	Here is a list of things available in the C<ev> namespace:
3354		4145
3355	=over 4	4146	=over 4
3356		4147
…		…
3366	=item C<ev::io>, C<ev::timer>, C<ev::periodic>, C<ev::idle>, C<ev::sig> etc.	4157	=item C<ev::io>, C<ev::timer>, C<ev::periodic>, C<ev::idle>, C<ev::sig> etc.
3367		4158
3368	For each C<ev_TYPE> watcher in F<ev.h> there is a corresponding class of	4159	For each C<ev_TYPE> watcher in F<ev.h> there is a corresponding class of
3369	the same name in the C<ev> namespace, with the exception of C<ev_signal>	4160	the same name in the C<ev> namespace, with the exception of C<ev_signal>
3370	which is called C<ev::sig> to avoid clashes with the C<signal> macro	4161	which is called C<ev::sig> to avoid clashes with the C<signal> macro
3371	defines by many implementations.	4162	defined by many implementations.
3372		4163
3373	All of those classes have these methods:	4164	All of those classes have these methods:
3374		4165
3375	=over 4	4166	=over 4
3376		4167
…		…
3438	void operator() (ev::io &w, int revents)	4229	void operator() (ev::io &w, int revents)
3439	{	4230	{
3440	...	4231	...
3441	}	4232	}
3442	}	4233	}
3443		4234
3444	myfunctor f;	4235	myfunctor f;
3445		4236
3446	ev::io w;	4237	ev::io w;
3447	w.set (&f);	4238	w.set (&f);
3448		4239
…		…
3466	Associates a different C<struct ev_loop> with this watcher. You can only	4257	Associates a different C<struct ev_loop> with this watcher. You can only
3467	do this when the watcher is inactive (and not pending either).	4258	do this when the watcher is inactive (and not pending either).
3468		4259
3469	=item w->set ([arguments])	4260	=item w->set ([arguments])
3470		4261
3471	Basically the same as C<ev_TYPE_set>, with the same arguments. Either this	4262	Basically the same as C<ev_TYPE_set> (except for C<ev::embed> watchers>),
3472	method or a suitable start method must be called at least once. Unlike the	4263	with the same arguments. Either this method or a suitable start method
3473	C counterpart, an active watcher gets automatically stopped and restarted	4264	must be called at least once. Unlike the C counterpart, an active watcher
3474	when reconfiguring it with this method.	4265	gets automatically stopped and restarted when reconfiguring it with this
		4266	method.
		4267
		4268	For C<ev::embed> watchers this method is called C<set_embed>, to avoid
		4269	clashing with the C<set (loop)> method.
		4270
		4271	For C<ev::io> watchers there is an additional C<set> method that acepts a
		4272	new event mask only, and internally calls C<ev_io_modfify>.
3475		4273
3476	=item w->start ()	4274	=item w->start ()
3477		4275
3478	Starts the watcher. Note that there is no C<loop> argument, as the	4276	Starts the watcher. Note that there is no C<loop> argument, as the
3479	constructor already stores the event loop.	4277	constructor already stores the event loop.
…		…
3509	watchers in the constructor.	4307	watchers in the constructor.
3510		4308
3511	class myclass	4309	class myclass
3512	{	4310	{
3513	ev::io io ; void io_cb (ev::io &w, int revents);	4311	ev::io io ; void io_cb (ev::io &w, int revents);
3514	ev::io2 io2 ; void io2_cb (ev::io &w, int revents);	4312	ev::io io2 ; void io2_cb (ev::io &w, int revents);
3515	ev::idle idle; void idle_cb (ev::idle &w, int revents);	4313	ev::idle idle; void idle_cb (ev::idle &w, int revents);
3516		4314
3517	myclass (int fd)	4315	myclass (int fd)
3518	{	4316	{
3519	io .set <myclass, &myclass::io_cb > (this);	4317	io .set <myclass, &myclass::io_cb > (this);
…		…
3570	L<http://hackage.haskell.org/cgi-bin/hackage-scripts/package/hlibev>.	4368	L<http://hackage.haskell.org/cgi-bin/hackage-scripts/package/hlibev>.
3571		4369
3572	=item D	4370	=item D
3573		4371
3574	Leandro Lucarella has written a D language binding (F<ev.d>) for libev, to	4372	Leandro Lucarella has written a D language binding (F<ev.d>) for libev, to
3575	be found at L<http://proj.llucax.com.ar/wiki/evd>.	4373	be found at L<http://www.llucax.com.ar/proj/ev.d/index.html>.
3576		4374
3577	=item Ocaml	4375	=item Ocaml
3578		4376
3579	Erkki Seppala has written Ocaml bindings for libev, to be found at	4377	Erkki Seppala has written Ocaml bindings for libev, to be found at
3580	L<http://modeemi.cs.tut.fi/~flux/software/ocaml-ev/>.	4378	L<http://modeemi.cs.tut.fi/~flux/software/ocaml-ev/>.
…		…
3583		4381
3584	Brian Maher has written a partial interface to libev for lua (at the	4382	Brian Maher has written a partial interface to libev for lua (at the
3585	time of this writing, only C<ev_io> and C<ev_timer>), to be found at	4383	time of this writing, only C<ev_io> and C<ev_timer>), to be found at
3586	L<http://github.com/brimworks/lua-ev>.	4384	L<http://github.com/brimworks/lua-ev>.
3587		4385
		4386	=item Javascript
		4387
		4388	Node.js (L<http://nodejs.org>) uses libev as the underlying event library.
		4389
		4390	=item Others
		4391
		4392	There are others, and I stopped counting.
		4393
3588	=back	4394	=back
3589		4395
3590		4396
3591	=head1 MACRO MAGIC	4397	=head1 MACRO MAGIC
3592		4398
…		…
3628	suitable for use with C<EV_A>.	4434	suitable for use with C<EV_A>.
3629		4435
3630	=item C<EV_DEFAULT>, C<EV_DEFAULT_>	4436	=item C<EV_DEFAULT>, C<EV_DEFAULT_>
3631		4437
3632	Similar to the other two macros, this gives you the value of the default	4438	Similar to the other two macros, this gives you the value of the default
3633	loop, if multiple loops are supported ("ev loop default").	4439	loop, if multiple loops are supported ("ev loop default"). The default loop
		4440	will be initialised if it isn't already initialised.
		4441
		4442	For non-multiplicity builds, these macros do nothing, so you always have
		4443	to initialise the loop somewhere.
3634		4444
3635	=item C<EV_DEFAULT_UC>, C<EV_DEFAULT_UC_>	4445	=item C<EV_DEFAULT_UC>, C<EV_DEFAULT_UC_>
3636		4446
3637	Usage identical to C<EV_DEFAULT> and C<EV_DEFAULT_>, but requires that the	4447	Usage identical to C<EV_DEFAULT> and C<EV_DEFAULT_>, but requires that the
3638	default loop has been initialised (C<UC> == unchecked). Their behaviour	4448	default loop has been initialised (C<UC> == unchecked). Their behaviour
…		…
3705	ev_vars.h	4515	ev_vars.h
3706	ev_wrap.h	4516	ev_wrap.h
3707		4517
3708	ev_win32.c required on win32 platforms only	4518	ev_win32.c required on win32 platforms only
3709		4519
3710	ev_select.c only when select backend is enabled (which is enabled by default)	4520	ev_select.c only when select backend is enabled
3711	ev_poll.c only when poll backend is enabled (disabled by default)	4521	ev_poll.c only when poll backend is enabled
3712	ev_epoll.c only when the epoll backend is enabled (disabled by default)	4522	ev_epoll.c only when the epoll backend is enabled
		4523	ev_linuxaio.c only when the linux aio backend is enabled
		4524	ev_iouring.c only when the linux io_uring backend is enabled
3713	ev_kqueue.c only when the kqueue backend is enabled (disabled by default)	4525	ev_kqueue.c only when the kqueue backend is enabled
3714	ev_port.c only when the solaris port backend is enabled (disabled by default)	4526	ev_port.c only when the solaris port backend is enabled
3715		4527
3716	F<ev.c> includes the backend files directly when enabled, so you only need	4528	F<ev.c> includes the backend files directly when enabled, so you only need
3717	to compile this single file.	4529	to compile this single file.
3718		4530
3719	=head3 LIBEVENT COMPATIBILITY API	4531	=head3 LIBEVENT COMPATIBILITY API
…		…
3783	supported). It will also not define any of the structs usually found in	4595	supported). It will also not define any of the structs usually found in
3784	F<event.h> that are not directly supported by the libev core alone.	4596	F<event.h> that are not directly supported by the libev core alone.
3785		4597
3786	In standalone mode, libev will still try to automatically deduce the	4598	In standalone mode, libev will still try to automatically deduce the
3787	configuration, but has to be more conservative.	4599	configuration, but has to be more conservative.
		4600
		4601	=item EV_USE_FLOOR
		4602
		4603	If defined to be C<1>, libev will use the C<floor ()> function for its
		4604	periodic reschedule calculations, otherwise libev will fall back on a
		4605	portable (slower) implementation. If you enable this, you usually have to
		4606	link against libm or something equivalent. Enabling this when the C<floor>
		4607	function is not available will fail, so the safe default is to not enable
		4608	this.
3788		4609
3789	=item EV_USE_MONOTONIC	4610	=item EV_USE_MONOTONIC
3790		4611
3791	If defined to be C<1>, libev will try to detect the availability of the	4612	If defined to be C<1>, libev will try to detect the availability of the
3792	monotonic clock option at both compile time and runtime. Otherwise no	4613	monotonic clock option at both compile time and runtime. Otherwise no
…		…
3829	available and will probe for kernel support at runtime. This will improve	4650	available and will probe for kernel support at runtime. This will improve
3830	C<ev_signal> and C<ev_async> performance and reduce resource consumption.	4651	C<ev_signal> and C<ev_async> performance and reduce resource consumption.
3831	If undefined, it will be enabled if the headers indicate GNU/Linux + Glibc	4652	If undefined, it will be enabled if the headers indicate GNU/Linux + Glibc
3832	2.7 or newer, otherwise disabled.	4653	2.7 or newer, otherwise disabled.
3833		4654
		4655	=item EV_USE_SIGNALFD
		4656
		4657	If defined to be C<1>, then libev will assume that C<signalfd ()> is
		4658	available and will probe for kernel support at runtime. This enables
		4659	the use of EVFLAG_SIGNALFD for faster and simpler signal handling. If
		4660	undefined, it will be enabled if the headers indicate GNU/Linux + Glibc
		4661	2.7 or newer, otherwise disabled.
		4662
		4663	=item EV_USE_TIMERFD
		4664
		4665	If defined to be C<1>, then libev will assume that C<timerfd ()> is
		4666	available and will probe for kernel support at runtime. This allows
		4667	libev to detect time jumps accurately. If undefined, it will be enabled
		4668	if the headers indicate GNU/Linux + Glibc 2.8 or newer and define
		4669	C<TFD_TIMER_CANCEL_ON_SET>, otherwise disabled.
		4670
		4671	=item EV_USE_EVENTFD
		4672
		4673	If defined to be C<1>, then libev will assume that C<eventfd ()> is
		4674	available and will probe for kernel support at runtime. This will improve
		4675	C<ev_signal> and C<ev_async> performance and reduce resource consumption.
		4676	If undefined, it will be enabled if the headers indicate GNU/Linux + Glibc
		4677	2.7 or newer, otherwise disabled.
		4678
3834	=item EV_USE_SELECT	4679	=item EV_USE_SELECT
3835		4680
3836	If undefined or defined to be C<1>, libev will compile in support for the	4681	If undefined or defined to be C<1>, libev will compile in support for the
3837	C<select>(2) backend. No attempt at auto-detection will be done: if no	4682	C<select>(2) backend. No attempt at auto-detection will be done: if no
3838	other method takes over, select will be it. Otherwise the select backend	4683	other method takes over, select will be it. Otherwise the select backend
…		…
3878	If programs implement their own fd to handle mapping on win32, then this	4723	If programs implement their own fd to handle mapping on win32, then this
3879	macro can be used to override the C<close> function, useful to unregister	4724	macro can be used to override the C<close> function, useful to unregister
3880	file descriptors again. Note that the replacement function has to close	4725	file descriptors again. Note that the replacement function has to close
3881	the underlying OS handle.	4726	the underlying OS handle.
3882		4727
		4728	=item EV_USE_WSASOCKET
		4729
		4730	If defined to be C<1>, libev will use C<WSASocket> to create its internal
		4731	communication socket, which works better in some environments. Otherwise,
		4732	the normal C<socket> function will be used, which works better in other
		4733	environments.
		4734
3883	=item EV_USE_POLL	4735	=item EV_USE_POLL
3884		4736
3885	If defined to be C<1>, libev will compile in support for the C<poll>(2)	4737	If defined to be C<1>, libev will compile in support for the C<poll>(2)
3886	backend. Otherwise it will be enabled on non-win32 platforms. It	4738	backend. Otherwise it will be enabled on non-win32 platforms. It
3887	takes precedence over select.	4739	takes precedence over select.
…		…
3891	If defined to be C<1>, libev will compile in support for the Linux	4743	If defined to be C<1>, libev will compile in support for the Linux
3892	C<epoll>(7) backend. Its availability will be detected at runtime,	4744	C<epoll>(7) backend. Its availability will be detected at runtime,
3893	otherwise another method will be used as fallback. This is the preferred	4745	otherwise another method will be used as fallback. This is the preferred
3894	backend for GNU/Linux systems. If undefined, it will be enabled if the	4746	backend for GNU/Linux systems. If undefined, it will be enabled if the
3895	headers indicate GNU/Linux + Glibc 2.4 or newer, otherwise disabled.	4747	headers indicate GNU/Linux + Glibc 2.4 or newer, otherwise disabled.
		4748
		4749	=item EV_USE_LINUXAIO
		4750
		4751	If defined to be C<1>, libev will compile in support for the Linux aio
		4752	backend (C<EV_USE_EPOLL> must also be enabled). If undefined, it will be
		4753	enabled on linux, otherwise disabled.
		4754
		4755	=item EV_USE_IOURING
		4756
		4757	If defined to be C<1>, libev will compile in support for the Linux
		4758	io_uring backend (C<EV_USE_EPOLL> must also be enabled). Due to it's
		4759	current limitations it has to be requested explicitly. If undefined, it
		4760	will be enabled on linux, otherwise disabled.
3896		4761
3897	=item EV_USE_KQUEUE	4762	=item EV_USE_KQUEUE
3898		4763
3899	If defined to be C<1>, libev will compile in support for the BSD style	4764	If defined to be C<1>, libev will compile in support for the BSD style
3900	C<kqueue>(2) backend. Its actual availability will be detected at runtime,	4765	C<kqueue>(2) backend. Its actual availability will be detected at runtime,
…		…
3922	If defined to be C<1>, libev will compile in support for the Linux inotify	4787	If defined to be C<1>, libev will compile in support for the Linux inotify
3923	interface to speed up C<ev_stat> watchers. Its actual availability will	4788	interface to speed up C<ev_stat> watchers. Its actual availability will
3924	be detected at runtime. If undefined, it will be enabled if the headers	4789	be detected at runtime. If undefined, it will be enabled if the headers
3925	indicate GNU/Linux + Glibc 2.4 or newer, otherwise disabled.	4790	indicate GNU/Linux + Glibc 2.4 or newer, otherwise disabled.
3926		4791
		4792	=item EV_NO_SMP
		4793
		4794	If defined to be C<1>, libev will assume that memory is always coherent
		4795	between threads, that is, threads can be used, but threads never run on
		4796	different cpus (or different cpu cores). This reduces dependencies
		4797	and makes libev faster.
		4798
		4799	=item EV_NO_THREADS
		4800
		4801	If defined to be C<1>, libev will assume that it will never be called from
		4802	different threads (that includes signal handlers), which is a stronger
		4803	assumption than C<EV_NO_SMP>, above. This reduces dependencies and makes
		4804	libev faster.
		4805
3927	=item EV_ATOMIC_T	4806	=item EV_ATOMIC_T
3928		4807
3929	Libev requires an integer type (suitable for storing C<0> or C<1>) whose	4808	Libev requires an integer type (suitable for storing C<0> or C<1>) whose
3930	access is atomic with respect to other threads or signal contexts. No such	4809	access is atomic with respect to other threads or signal contexts. No
3931	type is easily found in the C language, so you can provide your own type	4810	such type is easily found in the C language, so you can provide your own
3932	that you know is safe for your purposes. It is used both for signal handler "locking"	4811	type that you know is safe for your purposes. It is used both for signal
3933	as well as for signal and thread safety in C<ev_async> watchers.	4812	handler "locking" as well as for signal and thread safety in C<ev_async>
		4813	watchers.
3934		4814
3935	In the absence of this define, libev will use C<sig_atomic_t volatile>	4815	In the absence of this define, libev will use C<sig_atomic_t volatile>
3936	(from F<signal.h>), which is usually good enough on most platforms.	4816	(from F<signal.h>), which is usually good enough on most platforms.
3937		4817
3938	=item EV_H (h)	4818	=item EV_H (h)
…		…
3965	will have the C<struct ev_loop *> as first argument, and you can create	4845	will have the C<struct ev_loop *> as first argument, and you can create
3966	additional independent event loops. Otherwise there will be no support	4846	additional independent event loops. Otherwise there will be no support
3967	for multiple event loops and there is no first event loop pointer	4847	for multiple event loops and there is no first event loop pointer
3968	argument. Instead, all functions act on the single default loop.	4848	argument. Instead, all functions act on the single default loop.
3969		4849
		4850	Note that C<EV_DEFAULT> and C<EV_DEFAULT_> will no longer provide a
		4851	default loop when multiplicity is switched off - you always have to
		4852	initialise the loop manually in this case.
		4853
3970	=item EV_MINPRI	4854	=item EV_MINPRI
3971		4855
3972	=item EV_MAXPRI	4856	=item EV_MAXPRI
3973		4857
3974	The range of allowed priorities. C<EV_MINPRI> must be smaller or equal to	4858	The range of allowed priorities. C<EV_MINPRI> must be smaller or equal to
…		…
4010	#define EV_USE_POLL 1	4894	#define EV_USE_POLL 1
4011	#define EV_CHILD_ENABLE 1	4895	#define EV_CHILD_ENABLE 1
4012	#define EV_ASYNC_ENABLE 1	4896	#define EV_ASYNC_ENABLE 1
4013		4897
4014	The actual value is a bitset, it can be a combination of the following	4898	The actual value is a bitset, it can be a combination of the following
4015	values:	4899	values (by default, all of these are enabled):
4016		4900
4017	=over 4	4901	=over 4
4018		4902
4019	=item C<1> - faster/larger code	4903	=item C<1> - faster/larger code
4020		4904
…		…
4024	code size by roughly 30% on amd64).	4908	code size by roughly 30% on amd64).
4025		4909
4026	When optimising for size, use of compiler flags such as C<-Os> with	4910	When optimising for size, use of compiler flags such as C<-Os> with
4027	gcc is recommended, as well as C<-DNDEBUG>, as libev contains a number of	4911	gcc is recommended, as well as C<-DNDEBUG>, as libev contains a number of
4028	assertions.	4912	assertions.
		4913
		4914	The default is off when C<__OPTIMIZE_SIZE__> is defined by your compiler
		4915	(e.g. gcc with C<-Os>).
4029		4916
4030	=item C<2> - faster/larger data structures	4917	=item C<2> - faster/larger data structures
4031		4918
4032	Replaces the small 2-heap for timer management by a faster 4-heap, larger	4919	Replaces the small 2-heap for timer management by a faster 4-heap, larger
4033	hash table sizes and so on. This will usually further increase code size	4920	hash table sizes and so on. This will usually further increase code size
4034	and can additionally have an effect on the size of data structures at	4921	and can additionally have an effect on the size of data structures at
4035	runtime.	4922	runtime.
4036		4923
		4924	The default is off when C<__OPTIMIZE_SIZE__> is defined by your compiler
		4925	(e.g. gcc with C<-Os>).
		4926
4037	=item C<4> - full API configuration	4927	=item C<4> - full API configuration
4038		4928
4039	This enables priorities (sets C<EV_MAXPRI>=2 and C<EV_MINPRI>=-2), and	4929	This enables priorities (sets C<EV_MAXPRI>=2 and C<EV_MINPRI>=-2), and
4040	enables multiplicity (C<EV_MULTIPLICITY>=1).	4930	enables multiplicity (C<EV_MULTIPLICITY>=1).
4041		4931
…		…
4071		4961
4072	With an intelligent-enough linker (gcc+binutils are intelligent enough	4962	With an intelligent-enough linker (gcc+binutils are intelligent enough
4073	when you use C<-Wl,--gc-sections -ffunction-sections>) functions unused by	4963	when you use C<-Wl,--gc-sections -ffunction-sections>) functions unused by
4074	your program might be left out as well - a binary starting a timer and an	4964	your program might be left out as well - a binary starting a timer and an
4075	I/O watcher then might come out at only 5Kb.	4965	I/O watcher then might come out at only 5Kb.
		4966
		4967	=item EV_API_STATIC
		4968
		4969	If this symbol is defined (by default it is not), then all identifiers
		4970	will have static linkage. This means that libev will not export any
		4971	identifiers, and you cannot link against libev anymore. This can be useful
		4972	when you embed libev, only want to use libev functions in a single file,
		4973	and do not want its identifiers to be visible.
		4974
		4975	To use this, define C<EV_API_STATIC> and include F<ev.c> in the file that
		4976	wants to use libev.
		4977
		4978	This option only works when libev is compiled with a C compiler, as C++
		4979	doesn't support the required declaration syntax.
4076		4980
4077	=item EV_AVOID_STDIO	4981	=item EV_AVOID_STDIO
4078		4982
4079	If this is set to C<1> at compiletime, then libev will avoid using stdio	4983	If this is set to C<1> at compiletime, then libev will avoid using stdio
4080	functions (printf, scanf, perror etc.). This will increase the code size	4984	functions (printf, scanf, perror etc.). This will increase the code size
…		…
4138	in. If set to C<1>, then verification code will be compiled in, but not	5042	in. If set to C<1>, then verification code will be compiled in, but not
4139	called. If set to C<2>, then the internal verification code will be	5043	called. If set to C<2>, then the internal verification code will be
4140	called once per loop, which can slow down libev. If set to C<3>, then the	5044	called once per loop, which can slow down libev. If set to C<3>, then the
4141	verification code will be called very frequently, which will slow down	5045	verification code will be called very frequently, which will slow down
4142	libev considerably.	5046	libev considerably.
		5047
		5048	Verification errors are reported via C's C<assert> mechanism, so if you
		5049	disable that (e.g. by defining C<NDEBUG>) then no errors will be reported.
4143		5050
4144	The default is C<1>, unless C<EV_FEATURES> overrides it, in which case it	5051	The default is C<1>, unless C<EV_FEATURES> overrides it, in which case it
4145	will be C<0>.	5052	will be C<0>.
4146		5053
4147	=item EV_COMMON	5054	=item EV_COMMON
…		…
4224	And a F<ev_cpp.C> implementation file that contains libev proper and is compiled:	5131	And a F<ev_cpp.C> implementation file that contains libev proper and is compiled:
4225		5132
4226	#include "ev_cpp.h"	5133	#include "ev_cpp.h"
4227	#include "ev.c"	5134	#include "ev.c"
4228		5135
4229	=head1 INTERACTION WITH OTHER PROGRAMS OR LIBRARIES	5136	=head1 INTERACTION WITH OTHER PROGRAMS, LIBRARIES OR THE ENVIRONMENT
4230		5137
4231	=head2 THREADS AND COROUTINES	5138	=head2 THREADS AND COROUTINES
4232		5139
4233	=head3 THREADS	5140	=head3 THREADS
4234		5141
…		…
4285	default loop and triggering an C<ev_async> watcher from the default loop	5192	default loop and triggering an C<ev_async> watcher from the default loop
4286	watcher callback into the event loop interested in the signal.	5193	watcher callback into the event loop interested in the signal.
4287		5194
4288	=back	5195	=back
4289		5196
4290	=head4 THREAD LOCKING EXAMPLE	5197	See also L</THREAD LOCKING EXAMPLE>.
4291
4292	Here is a fictitious example of how to run an event loop in a different
4293	thread than where callbacks are being invoked and watchers are
4294	created/added/removed.
4295
4296	For a real-world example, see the C<EV::Loop::Async> perl module,
4297	which uses exactly this technique (which is suited for many high-level
4298	languages).
4299
4300	The example uses a pthread mutex to protect the loop data, a condition
4301	variable to wait for callback invocations, an async watcher to notify the
4302	event loop thread and an unspecified mechanism to wake up the main thread.
4303
4304	First, you need to associate some data with the event loop:
4305
4306	typedef struct {
4307	mutex_t lock; /* global loop lock */
4308	ev_async async_w;
4309	thread_t tid;
4310	cond_t invoke_cv;
4311	} userdata;
4312
4313	void prepare_loop (EV_P)
4314	{
4315	// for simplicity, we use a static userdata struct.
4316	static userdata u;
4317
4318	ev_async_init (&u->async_w, async_cb);
4319	ev_async_start (EV_A_ &u->async_w);
4320
4321	pthread_mutex_init (&u->lock, 0);
4322	pthread_cond_init (&u->invoke_cv, 0);
4323
4324	// now associate this with the loop
4325	ev_set_userdata (EV_A_ u);
4326	ev_set_invoke_pending_cb (EV_A_ l_invoke);
4327	ev_set_loop_release_cb (EV_A_ l_release, l_acquire);
4328
4329	// then create the thread running ev_loop
4330	pthread_create (&u->tid, 0, l_run, EV_A);
4331	}
4332
4333	The callback for the C<ev_async> watcher does nothing: the watcher is used
4334	solely to wake up the event loop so it takes notice of any new watchers
4335	that might have been added:
4336
4337	static void
4338	async_cb (EV_P_ ev_async *w, int revents)
4339	{
4340	// just used for the side effects
4341	}
4342
4343	The C<l_release> and C<l_acquire> callbacks simply unlock/lock the mutex
4344	protecting the loop data, respectively.
4345
4346	static void
4347	l_release (EV_P)
4348	{
4349	userdata *u = ev_userdata (EV_A);
4350	pthread_mutex_unlock (&u->lock);
4351	}
4352
4353	static void
4354	l_acquire (EV_P)
4355	{
4356	userdata *u = ev_userdata (EV_A);
4357	pthread_mutex_lock (&u->lock);
4358	}
4359
4360	The event loop thread first acquires the mutex, and then jumps straight
4361	into C<ev_run>:
4362
4363	void *
4364	l_run (void *thr_arg)
4365	{
4366	struct ev_loop *loop = (struct ev_loop *)thr_arg;
4367
4368	l_acquire (EV_A);
4369	pthread_setcanceltype (PTHREAD_CANCEL_ASYNCHRONOUS, 0);
4370	ev_run (EV_A_ 0);
4371	l_release (EV_A);
4372
4373	return 0;
4374	}
4375
4376	Instead of invoking all pending watchers, the C<l_invoke> callback will
4377	signal the main thread via some unspecified mechanism (signals? pipe
4378	writes? C<Async::Interrupt>?) and then waits until all pending watchers
4379	have been called (in a while loop because a) spurious wakeups are possible
4380	and b) skipping inter-thread-communication when there are no pending
4381	watchers is very beneficial):
4382
4383	static void
4384	l_invoke (EV_P)
4385	{
4386	userdata *u = ev_userdata (EV_A);
4387
4388	while (ev_pending_count (EV_A))
4389	{
4390	wake_up_other_thread_in_some_magic_or_not_so_magic_way ();
4391	pthread_cond_wait (&u->invoke_cv, &u->lock);
4392	}
4393	}
4394
4395	Now, whenever the main thread gets told to invoke pending watchers, it
4396	will grab the lock, call C<ev_invoke_pending> and then signal the loop
4397	thread to continue:
4398
4399	static void
4400	real_invoke_pending (EV_P)
4401	{
4402	userdata *u = ev_userdata (EV_A);
4403
4404	pthread_mutex_lock (&u->lock);
4405	ev_invoke_pending (EV_A);
4406	pthread_cond_signal (&u->invoke_cv);
4407	pthread_mutex_unlock (&u->lock);
4408	}
4409
4410	Whenever you want to start/stop a watcher or do other modifications to an
4411	event loop, you will now have to lock:
4412
4413	ev_timer timeout_watcher;
4414	userdata *u = ev_userdata (EV_A);
4415
4416	ev_timer_init (&timeout_watcher, timeout_cb, 5.5, 0.);
4417
4418	pthread_mutex_lock (&u->lock);
4419	ev_timer_start (EV_A_ &timeout_watcher);
4420	ev_async_send (EV_A_ &u->async_w);
4421	pthread_mutex_unlock (&u->lock);
4422
4423	Note that sending the C<ev_async> watcher is required because otherwise
4424	an event loop currently blocking in the kernel will have no knowledge
4425	about the newly added timer. By waking up the loop it will pick up any new
4426	watchers in the next event loop iteration.
4427		5198
4428	=head3 COROUTINES	5199	=head3 COROUTINES
4429		5200
4430	Libev is very accommodating to coroutines ("cooperative threads"):	5201	Libev is very accommodating to coroutines ("cooperative threads"):
4431	libev fully supports nesting calls to its functions from different	5202	libev fully supports nesting calls to its functions from different
…		…
4527	=head3 C<kqueue> is buggy	5298	=head3 C<kqueue> is buggy
4528		5299
4529	The kqueue syscall is broken in all known versions - most versions support	5300	The kqueue syscall is broken in all known versions - most versions support
4530	only sockets, many support pipes.	5301	only sockets, many support pipes.
4531		5302
4532	Libev tries to work around this by not using C<kqueue> by default on	5303	Libev tries to work around this by not using C<kqueue> by default on this
4533	this rotten platform, but of course you can still ask for it when creating	5304	rotten platform, but of course you can still ask for it when creating a
4534	a loop.	5305	loop - embedding a socket-only kqueue loop into a select-based one is
		5306	probably going to work well.
4535		5307
4536	=head3 C<poll> is buggy	5308	=head3 C<poll> is buggy
4537		5309
4538	Instead of fixing C<kqueue>, Apple replaced their (working) C<poll>	5310	Instead of fixing C<kqueue>, Apple replaced their (working) C<poll>
4539	implementation by something calling C<kqueue> internally around the 10.5.6	5311	implementation by something calling C<kqueue> internally around the 10.5.6
…		…
4558		5330
4559	=head3 C<errno> reentrancy	5331	=head3 C<errno> reentrancy
4560		5332
4561	The default compile environment on Solaris is unfortunately so	5333	The default compile environment on Solaris is unfortunately so
4562	thread-unsafe that you can't even use components/libraries compiled	5334	thread-unsafe that you can't even use components/libraries compiled
4563	without C<-D_REENTRANT> (as long as they use C<errno>), which, of course,	5335	without C<-D_REENTRANT> in a threaded program, which, of course, isn't
4564	isn't defined by default.	5336	defined by default. A valid, if stupid, implementation choice.
4565		5337
4566	If you want to use libev in threaded environments you have to make sure	5338	If you want to use libev in threaded environments you have to make sure
4567	it's compiled with C<_REENTRANT> defined.	5339	it's compiled with C<_REENTRANT> defined.
4568		5340
4569	=head3 Event port backend	5341	=head3 Event port backend
4570		5342
4571	The scalable event interface for Solaris is called "event ports". Unfortunately,	5343	The scalable event interface for Solaris is called "event
4572	this mechanism is very buggy. If you run into high CPU usage, your program	5344	ports". Unfortunately, this mechanism is very buggy in all major
		5345	releases. If you run into high CPU usage, your program freezes or you get
4573	freezes or you get a large number of spurious wakeups, make sure you have	5346	a large number of spurious wakeups, make sure you have all the relevant
4574	all the relevant and latest kernel patches applied. No, I don't know which	5347	and latest kernel patches applied. No, I don't know which ones, but there
4575	ones, but there are multiple ones.	5348	are multiple ones to apply, and afterwards, event ports actually work
		5349	great.
4576		5350
4577	If you can't get it to work, you can try running the program by setting	5351	If you can't get it to work, you can try running the program by setting
4578	the environment variable C<LIBEV_FLAGS=3> to only allow C<poll> and	5352	the environment variable C<LIBEV_FLAGS=3> to only allow C<poll> and
4579	C<select> backends.	5353	C<select> backends.
4580		5354
4581	=head2 AIX POLL BUG	5355	=head2 AIX POLL BUG
4582		5356
4583	AIX unfortunately has a broken C<poll.h> header. Libev works around	5357	AIX unfortunately has a broken C<poll.h> header. Libev works around
4584	this by trying to avoid the poll backend altogether (i.e. it's not even	5358	this by trying to avoid the poll backend altogether (i.e. it's not even
4585	compiled in), which normally isn't a big problem as C<select> works fine	5359	compiled in), which normally isn't a big problem as C<select> works fine
4586	with large bitsets, and AIX is dead anyway.	5360	with large bitsets on AIX, and AIX is dead anyway.
4587		5361
4588	=head2 WIN32 PLATFORM LIMITATIONS AND WORKAROUNDS	5362	=head2 WIN32 PLATFORM LIMITATIONS AND WORKAROUNDS
4589		5363
4590	=head3 General issues	5364	=head3 General issues
4591		5365
…		…
4593	requires, and its I/O model is fundamentally incompatible with the POSIX	5367	requires, and its I/O model is fundamentally incompatible with the POSIX
4594	model. Libev still offers limited functionality on this platform in	5368	model. Libev still offers limited functionality on this platform in
4595	the form of the C<EVBACKEND_SELECT> backend, and only supports socket	5369	the form of the C<EVBACKEND_SELECT> backend, and only supports socket
4596	descriptors. This only applies when using Win32 natively, not when using	5370	descriptors. This only applies when using Win32 natively, not when using
4597	e.g. cygwin. Actually, it only applies to the microsofts own compilers,	5371	e.g. cygwin. Actually, it only applies to the microsofts own compilers,
4598	as every compielr comes with a slightly differently broken/incompatible	5372	as every compiler comes with a slightly differently broken/incompatible
4599	environment.	5373	environment.
4600		5374
4601	Lifting these limitations would basically require the full	5375	Lifting these limitations would basically require the full
4602	re-implementation of the I/O system. If you are into this kind of thing,	5376	re-implementation of the I/O system. If you are into this kind of thing,
4603	then note that glib does exactly that for you in a very portable way (note	5377	then note that glib does exactly that for you in a very portable way (note
…		…
4697	structure (guaranteed by POSIX but not by ISO C for example), but it also	5471	structure (guaranteed by POSIX but not by ISO C for example), but it also
4698	assumes that the same (machine) code can be used to call any watcher	5472	assumes that the same (machine) code can be used to call any watcher
4699	callback: The watcher callbacks have different type signatures, but libev	5473	callback: The watcher callbacks have different type signatures, but libev
4700	calls them using an C<ev_watcher *> internally.	5474	calls them using an C<ev_watcher *> internally.
4701		5475
		5476	=item null pointers and integer zero are represented by 0 bytes
		5477
		5478	Libev uses C<memset> to initialise structs and arrays to C<0> bytes, and
		5479	relies on this setting pointers and integers to null.
		5480
		5481	=item pointer accesses must be thread-atomic
		5482
		5483	Accessing a pointer value must be atomic, it must both be readable and
		5484	writable in one piece - this is the case on all current architectures.
		5485
4702	=item C<sig_atomic_t volatile> must be thread-atomic as well	5486	=item C<sig_atomic_t volatile> must be thread-atomic as well
4703		5487
4704	The type C<sig_atomic_t volatile> (or whatever is defined as	5488	The type C<sig_atomic_t volatile> (or whatever is defined as
4705	C<EV_ATOMIC_T>) must be atomic with respect to accesses from different	5489	C<EV_ATOMIC_T>) must be atomic with respect to accesses from different
4706	threads. This is not part of the specification for C<sig_atomic_t>, but is	5490	threads. This is not part of the specification for C<sig_atomic_t>, but is
…		…
4714	thread" or will block signals process-wide, both behaviours would	5498	thread" or will block signals process-wide, both behaviours would
4715	be compatible with libev. Interaction between C<sigprocmask> and	5499	be compatible with libev. Interaction between C<sigprocmask> and
4716	C<pthread_sigmask> could complicate things, however.	5500	C<pthread_sigmask> could complicate things, however.
4717		5501
4718	The most portable way to handle signals is to block signals in all threads	5502	The most portable way to handle signals is to block signals in all threads
4719	except the initial one, and run the default loop in the initial thread as	5503	except the initial one, and run the signal handling loop in the initial
4720	well.	5504	thread as well.
4721		5505
4722	=item C<long> must be large enough for common memory allocation sizes	5506	=item C<long> must be large enough for common memory allocation sizes
4723		5507
4724	To improve portability and simplify its API, libev uses C<long> internally	5508	To improve portability and simplify its API, libev uses C<long> internally
4725	instead of C<size_t> when allocating its data structures. On non-POSIX	5509	instead of C<size_t> when allocating its data structures. On non-POSIX
…		…
4731		5515
4732	The type C<double> is used to represent timestamps. It is required to	5516	The type C<double> is used to represent timestamps. It is required to
4733	have at least 51 bits of mantissa (and 9 bits of exponent), which is	5517	have at least 51 bits of mantissa (and 9 bits of exponent), which is
4734	good enough for at least into the year 4000 with millisecond accuracy	5518	good enough for at least into the year 4000 with millisecond accuracy
4735	(the design goal for libev). This requirement is overfulfilled by	5519	(the design goal for libev). This requirement is overfulfilled by
4736	implementations using IEEE 754, which is basically all existing ones. With	5520	implementations using IEEE 754, which is basically all existing ones.
		5521
4737	IEEE 754 doubles, you get microsecond accuracy until at least 2200.	5522	With IEEE 754 doubles, you get microsecond accuracy until at least the
		5523	year 2255 (and millisecond accuracy till the year 287396 - by then, libev
		5524	is either obsolete or somebody patched it to use C<long double> or
		5525	something like that, just kidding).
4738		5526
4739	=back	5527	=back
4740		5528
4741	If you know of other additional requirements drop me a note.	5529	If you know of other additional requirements drop me a note.
4742		5530
…		…
4804	=item Processing ev_async_send: O(number_of_async_watchers)	5592	=item Processing ev_async_send: O(number_of_async_watchers)
4805		5593
4806	=item Processing signals: O(max_signal_number)	5594	=item Processing signals: O(max_signal_number)
4807		5595
4808	Sending involves a system call I<iff> there were no other C<ev_async_send>	5596	Sending involves a system call I<iff> there were no other C<ev_async_send>
4809	calls in the current loop iteration. Checking for async and signal events	5597	calls in the current loop iteration and the loop is currently
		5598	blocked. Checking for async and signal events involves iterating over all
4810	involves iterating over all running async watchers or all signal numbers.	5599	running async watchers or all signal numbers.
4811		5600
4812	=back	5601	=back
4813		5602
4814		5603
4815	=head1 PORTING FROM LIBEV 3.X TO 4.X	5604	=head1 PORTING FROM LIBEV 3.X TO 4.X
4816		5605
4817	The major version 4 introduced some minor incompatible changes to the API.	5606	The major version 4 introduced some incompatible changes to the API.
4818		5607
4819	At the moment, the C<ev.h> header file tries to implement superficial	5608	At the moment, the C<ev.h> header file provides compatibility definitions
4820	compatibility, so most programs should still compile. Those might be	5609	for all changes, so most programs should still compile. The compatibility
4821	removed in later versions of libev, so better update early than late.	5610	layer might be removed in later versions of libev, so better update to the
		5611	new API early than late.
4822		5612
4823	=over 4	5613	=over 4
		5614
		5615	=item C<EV_COMPAT3> backwards compatibility mechanism
		5616
		5617	The backward compatibility mechanism can be controlled by
		5618	C<EV_COMPAT3>. See L</"PREPROCESSOR SYMBOLS/MACROS"> in the L</EMBEDDING>
		5619	section.
		5620
		5621	=item C<ev_default_destroy> and C<ev_default_fork> have been removed
		5622
		5623	These calls can be replaced easily by their C<ev_loop_xxx> counterparts:
		5624
		5625	ev_loop_destroy (EV_DEFAULT_UC);
		5626	ev_loop_fork (EV_DEFAULT);
4824		5627
4825	=item function/symbol renames	5628	=item function/symbol renames
4826		5629
4827	A number of functions and symbols have been renamed:	5630	A number of functions and symbols have been renamed:
4828		5631
…		…
4847	ev_loop> anymore and C<EV_TIMER> now follows the same naming scheme	5650	ev_loop> anymore and C<EV_TIMER> now follows the same naming scheme
4848	as all other watcher types. Note that C<ev_loop_fork> is still called	5651	as all other watcher types. Note that C<ev_loop_fork> is still called
4849	C<ev_loop_fork> because it would otherwise clash with the C<ev_fork>	5652	C<ev_loop_fork> because it would otherwise clash with the C<ev_fork>
4850	typedef.	5653	typedef.
4851		5654
4852	=item C<EV_COMPAT3> backwards compatibility mechanism
4853
4854	The backward compatibility mechanism can be controlled by
4855	C<EV_COMPAT3>. See L<PREPROCESSOR SYMBOLS/MACROS> in the L<EMBEDDING>
4856	section.
4857
4858	=item C<EV_MINIMAL> mechanism replaced by C<EV_FEATURES>	5655	=item C<EV_MINIMAL> mechanism replaced by C<EV_FEATURES>
4859		5656
4860	The preprocessor symbol C<EV_MINIMAL> has been replaced by a different	5657	The preprocessor symbol C<EV_MINIMAL> has been replaced by a different
4861	mechanism, C<EV_FEATURES>. Programs using C<EV_MINIMAL> usually compile	5658	mechanism, C<EV_FEATURES>. Programs using C<EV_MINIMAL> usually compile
4862	and work, but the library code will of course be larger.	5659	and work, but the library code will of course be larger.
…		…
4868		5665
4869	=over 4	5666	=over 4
4870		5667
4871	=item active	5668	=item active
4872		5669
4873	A watcher is active as long as it has been started (has been attached to	5670	A watcher is active as long as it has been started and not yet stopped.
4874	an event loop) but not yet stopped (disassociated from the event loop).	5671	See L</WATCHER STATES> for details.
4875		5672
4876	=item application	5673	=item application
4877		5674
4878	In this document, an application is whatever is using libev.	5675	In this document, an application is whatever is using libev.
		5676
		5677	=item backend
		5678
		5679	The part of the code dealing with the operating system interfaces.
4879		5680
4880	=item callback	5681	=item callback
4881		5682
4882	The address of a function that is called when some event has been	5683	The address of a function that is called when some event has been
4883	detected. Callbacks are being passed the event loop, the watcher that	5684	detected. Callbacks are being passed the event loop, the watcher that
4884	received the event, and the actual event bitset.	5685	received the event, and the actual event bitset.
4885		5686
4886	=item callback invocation	5687	=item callback/watcher invocation
4887		5688
4888	The act of calling the callback associated with a watcher.	5689	The act of calling the callback associated with a watcher.
4889		5690
4890	=item event	5691	=item event
4891		5692
…		…
4910	The model used to describe how an event loop handles and processes	5711	The model used to describe how an event loop handles and processes
4911	watchers and events.	5712	watchers and events.
4912		5713
4913	=item pending	5714	=item pending
4914		5715
4915	A watcher is pending as soon as the corresponding event has been detected,	5716	A watcher is pending as soon as the corresponding event has been
4916	and stops being pending as soon as the watcher will be invoked or its	5717	detected. See L</WATCHER STATES> for details.
4917	pending status is explicitly cleared by the application.
4918
4919	A watcher can be pending, but not active. Stopping a watcher also clears
4920	its pending status.
4921		5718
4922	=item real time	5719	=item real time
4923		5720
4924	The physical time that is observed. It is apparently strictly monotonic :)	5721	The physical time that is observed. It is apparently strictly monotonic :)
4925		5722
4926	=item wall-clock time	5723	=item wall-clock time
4927		5724
4928	The time and date as shown on clocks. Unlike real time, it can actually	5725	The time and date as shown on clocks. Unlike real time, it can actually
4929	be wrong and jump forwards and backwards, e.g. when the you adjust your	5726	be wrong and jump forwards and backwards, e.g. when you adjust your
4930	clock.	5727	clock.
4931		5728
4932	=item watcher	5729	=item watcher
4933		5730
4934	A data structure that describes interest in certain events. Watchers need	5731	A data structure that describes interest in certain events. Watchers need
4935	to be started (attached to an event loop) before they can receive events.	5732	to be started (attached to an event loop) before they can receive events.
4936		5733
4937	=item watcher invocation
4938
4939	The act of calling the callback associated with a watcher.
4940
4941	=back	5734	=back
4942		5735
4943	=head1 AUTHOR	5736	=head1 AUTHOR
4944		5737
4945	Marc Lehmann <libev@schmorp.de>, with repeated corrections by Mikael Magnusson.	5738	Marc Lehmann <libev@schmorp.de>, with repeated corrections by Mikael
		5739	Magnusson and Emanuele Giaquinta, and minor corrections by many others.
4946		5740

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