Provided by: erlang-manpages_20.2.2+dfsg-1ubuntu2_all 
NAME
global - A global name registration facility.
DESCRIPTION
This module consists of the following services:
* Registration of global names
* Global locks
* Maintenance of the fully connected network
These services are controlled through the process global_name_server that exists on every node. The
global name server starts automatically when a node is started. With the term global is meant over a
system consisting of many Erlang nodes.
The ability to globally register names is a central concept in the programming of distributed Erlang
systems. In this module, the equivalent of the register/2 and whereis/1 BIFs (for local name
registration) are provided, but for a network of Erlang nodes. A registered name is an alias for a
process identifier (pid). The global name server monitors globally registered pids. If a process
terminates, the name is also globally unregistered.
The registered names are stored in replica global name tables on every node. There is no central storage
point. Thus, the translation of a name to a pid is fast, as it is always done locally. For any action
resulting in a change to the global name table, all tables on other nodes are automatically updated.
Global locks have lock identities and are set on a specific resource. For example, the specified resource
can be a pid. When a global lock is set, access to the locked resource is denied for all resources other
than the lock requester.
Both the registration and lock services are atomic. All nodes involved in these actions have the same
view of the information.
The global name server also performs the critical task of continuously monitoring changes in node
configuration. If a node that runs a globally registered process goes down, the name is globally
unregistered. To this end, the global name server subscribes to nodeup and nodedown messages sent from
module net_kernel. Relevant Kernel application variables in this context are net_setuptime, net_ticktime,
and dist_auto_connect. See also kernel(7).
The name server also maintains a fully connected network. For example, if node N1 connects to node N2
(which is already connected to N3), the global name servers on the nodes N1 and N3 ensure that also N1
and N3 are connected. If this is not desired, command-line flag -connect_all false can be used (see also
erl(1)). In this case, the name registration service cannot be used, but the lock mechanism still works.
If the global name server fails to connect nodes (N1 and N3 in the example), a warning event is sent to
the error logger. The presence of such an event does not exclude the nodes to connect later (you can, for
example, try command rpc:call(N1, net_adm, ping, [N2]) in the Erlang shell), but it indicates a network
problem.
Note:
If the fully connected network is not set up properly, try first to increase the value of net_setuptime.
DATA TYPES
id() = {ResourceId :: term(), LockRequesterId :: term()}
EXPORTS
del_lock(Id) -> true
del_lock(Id, Nodes) -> true
Types:
Id = id()
Nodes = [node()]
Deletes the lock Id synchronously.
notify_all_name(Name, Pid1, Pid2) -> none
Types:
Name = term()
Pid1 = Pid2 = pid()
Can be used as a name resolving function for register_name/3 and re_register_name/3.
The function unregisters both pids and sends the message {global_name_conflict, Name, OtherPid} to
both processes.
random_exit_name(Name, Pid1, Pid2) -> pid()
Types:
Name = term()
Pid1 = Pid2 = pid()
Can be used as a name resolving function for register_name/3 and re_register_name/3.
The function randomly selects one of the pids for registration and kills the other one.
random_notify_name(Name, Pid1, Pid2) -> pid()
Types:
Name = term()
Pid1 = Pid2 = pid()
Can be used as a name resolving function for register_name/3 and re_register_name/3.
The function randomly selects one of the pids for registration, and sends the message
{global_name_conflict, Name} to the other pid.
re_register_name(Name, Pid) -> yes
re_register_name(Name, Pid, Resolve) -> yes
Types:
Name = term()
Pid = pid()
Resolve = method()
method() =
fun((Name :: term(), Pid :: pid(), Pid2 :: pid()) ->
pid() | none)
{Module, Function} is also allowed.
Atomically changes the registered name Name on all nodes to refer to Pid.
Function Resolve has the same behavior as in register_name/2,3.
register_name(Name, Pid) -> yes | no
register_name(Name, Pid, Resolve) -> yes | no
Types:
Name = term()
Pid = pid()
Resolve = method()
method() =
fun((Name :: term(), Pid :: pid(), Pid2 :: pid()) ->
pid() | none)
{Module, Function} is also allowed for backward compatibility, but its use is deprecated.
Globally associates name Name with a pid, that is, globally notifies all nodes of a new global
name in a network of Erlang nodes.
When new nodes are added to the network, they are informed of the globally registered names that
already exist. The network is also informed of any global names in newly connected nodes. If any
name clashes are discovered, function Resolve is called. Its purpose is to decide which pid is
correct. If the function crashes, or returns anything other than one of the pids, the name is
unregistered. This function is called once for each name clash.
Warning:
If you plan to change code without restarting your system, you must use an external fun (fun
Module:Function/Arity) as function Resolve. If you use a local fun, you can never replace the code
for the module that the fun belongs to.
Three predefined resolve functions exist: random_exit_name/3, random_notify_name/3, and
notify_all_name/3. If no Resolve function is defined, random_exit_name is used. This means that
one of the two registered processes is selected as correct while the other is killed.
This function is completely synchronous, that is, when this function returns, the name is either
registered on all nodes or none.
The function returns yes if successful, no if it fails. For example, no is returned if an attempt
is made to register an already registered process or to register a process with a name that is
already in use.
Note:
Releases up to and including Erlang/OTP R10 did not check if the process was already registered.
The global name table could therefore become inconsistent. The old (buggy) behavior can be chosen
by giving the Kernel application variable global_multi_name_action the value allow.
If a process with a registered name dies, or the node goes down, the name is unregistered on all
nodes.
registered_names() -> [Name]
Types:
Name = term()
Returns a list of all globally registered names.
send(Name, Msg) -> Pid
Types:
Name = Msg = term()
Pid = pid()
Sends message Msg to the pid globally registered as Name.
If Name is not a globally registered name, the calling function exits with reason {badarg, {Name,
Msg}}.
set_lock(Id) -> boolean()
set_lock(Id, Nodes) -> boolean()
set_lock(Id, Nodes, Retries) -> boolean()
Types:
Id = id()
Nodes = [node()]
Retries = retries()
id() = {ResourceId :: term(), LockRequesterId :: term()}
retries() = integer() >= 0 | infinity
Sets a lock on the specified nodes (or on all nodes if none are specified) on ResourceId for
LockRequesterId. If a lock already exists on ResourceId for another requester than
LockRequesterId, and Retries is not equal to 0, the process sleeps for a while and tries to
execute the action later. When Retries attempts have been made, false is returned, otherwise true.
If Retries is infinity, true is eventually returned (unless the lock is never released).
If no value for Retries is specified, infinity is used.
This function is completely synchronous.
If a process that holds a lock dies, or the node goes down, the locks held by the process are
deleted.
The global name server keeps track of all processes sharing the same lock, that is, if two
processes set the same lock, both processes must delete the lock.
This function does not address the problem of a deadlock. A deadlock can never occur as long as
processes only lock one resource at a time. A deadlock can occur if some processes try to lock two
or more resources. It is up to the application to detect and rectify a deadlock.
Note:
Avoid the following values of ResourceId, otherwise Erlang/OTP does not work properly:
* dist_ac
* global
* mnesia_adjust_log_writes
* mnesia_table_lock
* pg2
sync() -> ok | {error, Reason :: term()}
Synchronizes the global name server with all nodes known to this node. These are the nodes that
are returned from erlang:nodes(). When this function returns, the global name server receives
global information from all nodes. This function can be called when new nodes are added to the
network.
The only possible error reason Reason is {"global_groups definition error", Error}.
trans(Id, Fun) -> Res | aborted
trans(Id, Fun, Nodes) -> Res | aborted
trans(Id, Fun, Nodes, Retries) -> Res | aborted
Types:
Id = id()
Fun = trans_fun()
Nodes = [node()]
Retries = retries()
Res = term()
retries() = integer() >= 0 | infinity
trans_fun() = function() | {module(), atom()}
Sets a lock on Id (using set_lock/3). If this succeeds, Fun() is evaluated and the result Res is
returned. Returns aborted if the lock attempt fails. If Retries is set to infinity, the
transaction does not abort.
infinity is the default setting and is used if no value is specified for Retries.
unregister_name(Name) -> term()
Types:
Name = term()
Removes the globally registered name Name from the network of Erlang nodes.
whereis_name(Name) -> pid() | undefined
Types:
Name = term()
Returns the pid with the globally registered name Name. Returns undefined if the name is not
globally registered.
SEE ALSO
global_group(3erl), net_kernel(3erl)