Ubuntu Manpage: IPC::Shareable - Use shared memory backed variables across processes

Provided by: libipc-shareable-perl_1.13-1_all

NAME

       IPC::Shareable - Use shared memory backed variables across processes

SYNOPSIS

           use IPC::Shareable qw(:lock);

           my $href = IPC::Shareable->new(%options);

           # ...or

           tie SCALAR, 'IPC::Shareable', OPTIONS;
           tie ARRAY,  'IPC::Shareable', OPTIONS;
           tie HASH,   'IPC::Shareable', OPTIONS;

           tied(VARIABLE)->lock;
           tied(VARIABLE)->unlock;

           tied(VARIABLE)->lock(LOCK_SH|LOCK_NB)
               or print "Resource unavailable\n";

           my $segment   = tied(VARIABLE)->seg;
           my $semaphore = tied(VARIABLE)->sem;

           tied(VARIABLE)->remove;

           IPC::Shareable::clean_up;
           IPC::Shareable::clean_up_all;
           IPC::Shareable::clean_up_protected;

           # Ensure only one instance of a script can be run at any time

           IPC::Shareable->singleton('UNIQUE SCRIPT LOCK STRING');

           # Get the actual IPC::Shareable tied object

           my $knot = tied(VARIABLE); # Dereference first if using a tied reference

DESCRIPTION

IPC::Shareable allows you to tie a variable to shared memory making it easy to share the
contents of that variable with other Perl processes and scripts.

Scalars, arrays, hashes and even objects can be tied. The variable being tied may contain
arbitrarily complex data structures - including references to arrays, hashes of hashes,
etc.

The association between variables in distinct processes is provided by GLUE (aka "key").
This is any arbitrary string or integer that serves as a common identifier for data across
process space. Hence the statement:

tie my $scalar, 'IPC::Shareable', { key => 'GLUE STRING', create => 1 };

...in program one and the statement

tie my $variable, 'IPC::Shareable', { key => 'GLUE STRING' };

...in program two will create and bind $scalar the shared memory in program one and bind
it to $variable in program two.

There is no pre-set limit to the number of processes that can bind to data; nor is there a
pre-set limit to the complexity of the underlying data of the tied variables. The amount
of data that can be shared within a single bound variable is limited by the system's
maximum size for a shared memory segment (the exact value is system-dependent).

The bound data structures are all linearized (using Raphael Manfredi's Storable module or
optionally JSON) before being slurped into shared memory. Upon retrieval, the original
format of the data structure is recovered. Semaphore flags can be used for locking data
between competing processes.

OPTIONS

Options are specified by passing a reference to a hash as the third argument to the
"tie()" function that enchants a variable.

The following fields are recognized in the options hash:

key
key is the GLUE that is a direct reference to the shared memory segment that's to be tied
to the variable.

If this option is missing, we'll default to using "IPC_PRIVATE". This default key will not
allow sharing of the variable between processes.

Default: IPC_PRIVATE

create
create is used to control whether the process creates a new shared memory segment or not.
If create is set to a true value, IPC::Shareable will create a new binding associated with
GLUE as needed. If create is false, IPC::Shareable will not attempt to create a new
shared memory segment associated with GLUE. In this case, a shared memory segment
associated with GLUE must already exist or we'll "croak()".

Defult: false

exclusive
If exclusive field is set to a true value, we will "croak()" if the data binding
associated with GLUE already exists. If set to a false value, calls to "tie()" will
succeed even if a shared memory segment associated with GLUE already exists.

See "graceful" for a silent, non-exception exit if a second process attempts to obtain an
in-use "exclusive" segment.

Default: false

graceful
If exclusive is set to a true value, we normally "croak()" if a second process attempts to
obtain the same shared memory segment. Set graceful to true and we'll "exit" silently and
gracefully. This option does nothing if "exclusive" isn't set.

Useful for ensuring only a single process is running at a time.

Default: false

warn
When set to a true value, graceful will output a warning if there are process collisions.

Default: false

mode
The mode argument is an octal number specifying the access permissions when a new data
binding is being created. These access permission are the same as file access permissions
in that 0666 is world readable, 0600 is readable only by the effective UID of the process
creating the shared variable, etc.

Default: 0666 (world read and writeable)

size
This field may be used to specify the size of the shared memory segment allocated.

The maximum size we allow by default is ~1GB. See the "limit" option to override this
default.

Default: "IPC::Shareable::SHM_BUFSIZ()" (ie. 65536)

protected
If set, the "clean_up()" and "clean_up_all()" routines will not remove the segments or
semaphores related to the tied object.

Set this to a specific integer so we can pass the value to any child objects created under
the main one.

To clean up protected objects, call "(tied %object)->clean_up_protected(integer)", where
'integer' is the value you set the "protected" option to. You can call this cleanup
routine in the script you created the segment, or anywhere else, at any time.

Default: 0

limit
This field will allow you to set a segment size larger than the default maximum which is
1,073,741,824 bytes (approximately 1 GB). If set, we will "croak()" if a size specified is
larger than the maximum. If it's set to a false value, we'll "croak()" if you send in a
size larger than the total system RAM.

Default: true

destroy
If set to a true value, the shared memory segment underlying the data binding will be
removed when the process that initialized the shared memory segment exits (gracefully)[1].

Only those memory segments that were created by the current process will be removed.

Use this option with care. In particular you should not use this option in a program that
will fork after binding the data. On the other hand, shared memory is a finite resource
and should be released if it is not needed.

NOTE: If the segment was created with its "protected" attribute set, it will not be
removed upon program completion, even if "destroy" is set.

Default: false

tidy
For long running processes, set this to a true value to clean up unneeded segments from
nested data structures. Comes with a slight performance hit.

Default: false

serializer
By default, we use Storable as the data serializer when writing to or reading from the
shared memory segments we create. For cross-platform and cross-language purposes, you can
optionally use JSON for this task.

Send in either "json" or "storable" as the value to use the respective serializer.

Default: storable

Default Option Values
Default values for options are:

key => IPC_PRIVATE, # 0
create => 0,
exclusive => 0,
mode => 0666,
size => IPC::Shareable::SHM_BUFSIZ(), # 65536
protected => 0,
limit => 1,
destroy => 0,
graceful => 0,
warn => 0,
tidy => 0,
serializer => 'storable',

METHODS

   new
       Instantiates and returns a reference to a hash backed by shared memory.

           my $href = IPC::Shareable->new(key => "testing", create => 1);

           $href=>{a} = 1;

           # Call tied() on the dereferenced variable to access object methods
           # and information

           tied(%$href)->ipcs;

       Parameters:

       Hash, Optional: See the "OPTIONS" section for a list of all available options.  Most
       often, you'll want to send in the key and create options.

       It is possible to get a reference to an array or scalar as well. Simply send in either
       "var = > 'ARRAY'" or "var => 'SCALAR'" to do so.

       Return: A reference to a hash (or array or scalar) which is backed by shared memory.

   singleton($glue, $warn)
       Class method that ensures that only a single instance of a script can be run at any given
       time.

       Parameters:

           $glue

       Mandatory, String: The key/glue that identifies the shared memory segment.

           $warn

       Optional, Bool: Send in a true value to have subsequent processes throw a warning that
       there's been a shared memory violation and that it will exit.

       Default: false

   ipcs
       Returns the number of instantiated shared memory segments that currently exist on the
       system. This isn't precise; it simply does a "wc -l" line count on your system's "ipcs -m"
       call. It is guaranteed though to produce reliable results.

       Return: Integer

   lock($flags)
       Obtains a lock on the shared memory. $flags specifies the type of lock to acquire.  If
       $flags is not specified, an exclusive read/write lock is obtained.  Acceptable values for
       $flags are the same as for the "flock()" system call.

       Returns "true" on success, and "undef" on error. For non-blocking calls (see below), the
       method returns 0 if it would have blocked.

       Obtain an exclusive lock like this:

               tied(%var)->lock(LOCK_EX); # same as default

       Only one process can hold an exclusive lock on the shared memory at a given time.

       Obtain a shared (read) lock:

               tied(%var)->lock(LOCK_SH);

       Multiple processes can hold a shared (read) lock at a given time.  If a process attempts
       to obtain an exclusive lock while one or more processes hold shared locks, it will be
       blocked until they have all finished.

       Either of the locks may be specified as non-blocking:

               tied(%var)->lock( LOCK_EX|LOCK_NB );
               tied(%var)->lock( LOCK_SH|LOCK_NB );

       A non-blocking lock request will return 0 if it would have had to wait to obtain the lock.

       Note that these locks are advisory (just like flock), meaning that all cooperating
       processes must coordinate their accesses to shared memory using these calls in order for
       locking to work.  See the "flock()" call for details.

       Locks are inherited through forks, which means that two processes actually can possess an
       exclusive lock at the same time. Don't do that.

       The constants "LOCK_EX", "LOCK_SH", "LOCK_NB", and "LOCK_UN" are available for import
       using any of the following export tags:

               use IPC::Shareable qw(:lock);
               use IPC::Shareable qw(:flock);
               use IPC::Shareable qw(:all);

       Or, just use the flock constants available in the Fcntl module.

       See "LOCKING" for further details.

   unlock
       Removes a lock. Takes no parameters, returns "true" on success.

       This is equivalent of calling "shlock(LOCK_UN)".

       See "LOCKING" for further details.

   seg
       Called on either the tied variable or the tie object, returns the shared memory segment
       object currently in use.

   sem
       Called on either the tied variable or the tie object, returns the semaphore object related
       to the memory segment currently in use.

   attributes
       Retrieves the list of attributes that drive the IPC::Shareable object.

       Parameters:

           $attribute

       Optional, String: The name of the attribute. If sent in, we'll return the value of this
       specific attribute. Returns "undef" if the attribute isn't found.

       Attributes are the "OPTIONS" that were used to create the object.

       Returns: A hash reference of all attributes if $attributes isn't sent in, the value of the
       specific attribute if it is.

   global_register
       Returns a hash reference of hashes of all in-use shared memory segments across all
       processes. The key is the memory segment ID, and the value is the segment and semaphore
       objects.

   process_register
       Returns a hash reference of hashes of all in-use shared memory segments created by the
       calling process. The key is the memory segment ID, and the value is the segment and
       semaphore objects.

LOCKING

       IPC::Shareable provides methods to implement application-level advisory locking of the
       shared data structures.  These methods are called "lock()" and "unlock()". To use them you
       must first get the object underlying the tied variable, either by saving the return value
       of the original call to "tie()" or by using the built-in "tied()" function.

       To lock and subsequently unlock a variable, do this:

           my $knot = tie my %hash, 'IPC::Shareable', { %options };

           $knot->lock;
           $hash{a} = 'foo';
           $knot->unlock;

       or equivalently, if you've decided to throw away the return of "tie()":

           tie my %hash, 'IPC::Shareable', { %options };

           tied(%hash)->lock;
           $hash{a} = 'foo';
           tied(%hash)->unlock;

       This will place an exclusive lock on the data of $scalar.  You can also get shared locks
       or attempt to get a lock without blocking.

       IPC::Shareable makes the constants "LOCK_EX", "LOCK_SH", "LOCK_UN", and "LOCK_NB"
       exportable to your address space with the export tags ":lock", ":flock", or ":all".  The
       values should be the same as the standard "flock" option arguments.

           if (tied(%hash)->lock(LOCK_SH|LOCK_NB)){
               print "The value is $hash{a}\n";
               tied(%hash)->unlock;
           } else {
               print "Another process has an exclusive lock.\n";
           }

       If no argument is provided to "lock", it defaults to "LOCK_EX".

       There are some pitfalls regarding locking and signals about which you should make yourself
       aware; these are discussed in "NOTES".

       Note that in the background, we perform lock optimization when reading and writing to the
       shared storage even if the advisory locks aren't being used.

       Using the advisory locks can speed up processes that are doing several writes/ reads at
       the same time.

DESTRUCTION

       perl(1) will destroy the object underlying a tied variable when then tied variable goes
       out of scope.  Unfortunately for IPC::Shareable, this may not be desirable: other
       processes may still need a handle on the relevant shared memory segment.

       IPC::Shareable therefore provides several options to control the timing of removal of
       shared memory segments.

   destroy Option
       As described in "OPTIONS", specifying the destroy option when "tie()"ing a variable
       coerces IPC::Shareable to remove the underlying shared memory segment when the process
       calling "tie()" exits gracefully.

       NOTE: The destruction is handled in an "END" block. Only those memory segments that are
       tied to the current process will be removed.

       NOTE: If the segment was created with its "protected" attribute set, it will not be
       removed in the "END" block, even if "destroy" is set.

   remove
           tied($var)->remove;

           # or

           $knot->remove;

       Calling "remove()" on the object underlying a "tie()"d variable removes the associated
       shared memory segments.  The segment is removed irrespective of whether it has the destroy
       option set or not and irrespective of whether the calling process created the segment.

   clean_up
           IPC::Shareable->clean_up;

           # or

           tied($var)->clean_up;

           # or

           $knot->clean_up;

       This is a class method that provokes IPC::Shareable to remove all shared memory segments
       created by the process.  Segments not created by the calling process are not removed.

       This method will not clean up segments created with the "protected" option.

   clean_up_all
           IPC::Shareable->clean_up_all;

           # or

           tied($var)->clean_up_all;

           # or

           $knot->clean_up_all

       This is a class method that provokes IPC::Shareable to remove all shared memory segments
       encountered by the process.  Segments are removed even if they were not created by the
       calling process.

       This method will not clean up segments created with the "protected" option.

   clean_up_protected($protect_key)
       If a segment is created with the "protected" option, it, nor its children will be removed
       during calls of "clean_up()" or "clean_up_all()".

       When setting "protected", you specified a lock key integer. When calling this method, you
       must send that integer in as a parameter so we know which segments to clean up.

           my $protect_key = 93432;

           IPC::Shareable->clean_up_protected($protect_key);

           # or

           tied($var)->clean_up_protected($protect_key;

           # or

           $knot->clean_up_protected($protect_key)

       Parameters:

           $protect_key

       Mandatory, Integer: The integer protect key you assigned wit the "protected" option

RETURN VALUES

       Calls to "tie()" that try to implement IPC::Shareable will return an instance of
       "IPC::Shareable" on success, and "undef" otherwise.

AUTHOR

       Benjamin Sugars <bsugars@canoe.ca>

MAINTAINED BY

       Steve Bertrand <steveb@cpan.org>

NOTES

Footnotes from the above sections
1. If the process has been smoked by an untrapped signal, the binding will remain in
shared memory. If you're cautious, you might try:

$SIG{INT} = \&catch_int;
sub catch_int {
die;
}
...
tie $variable, IPC::Shareable, { key => 'GLUE', create => 1, 'destroy' => 1 };

which will at least clean up after your user hits CTRL-C because IPC::Shareable's END
method will be called. Or, maybe you'd like to leave the binding in shared memory, so
subsequent process can recover the data...

General Notes
o When using "lock()" to lock a variable, be careful to guard against signals. Under
normal circumstances, "IPC::Shareable"'s "END" method unlocks any locked variables
when the process exits. However, if an untrapped signal is received while a process
holds an exclusive lock, "END" will not be called and the lock may be maintained even
though the process has exited. If this scares you, you might be better off
implementing your own locking methods.

One advantage of using "flock" on some known file instead of the locking implemented
with semaphores in "IPC::Shareable" is that when a process dies, it automatically
releases any locks. This only happens with "IPC::Shareable" if the process dies
gracefully.

The alternative is to attempt to account for every possible calamitous ending for your
process (robust signal handling in Perl is a source of much debate, though it usually
works just fine) or to become familiar with your system's tools for removing shared
memory and semaphores. This concern should be balanced against the significant
performance improvements you can gain for larger data structures by using the locking
mechanism implemented in IPC::Shareable.

o There is a program called "ipcs"(1/8) (and "ipcrm"(1/8)) that is available on at least
Solaris and Linux that might be useful for cleaning moribund shared memory segments or
semaphore sets produced by bugs in either IPC::Shareable or applications using it.

Examples:

# List all semaphores and memory segments in use on the system

ipcs -a

# List all memory segments and semaphores along with each one's associated process ID

ipcs -ap

# List just the shared memory segments

ipcs -m

# List the details of an individual memory segment

ipcs -i 12345678

# Remove *all* semaphores and memory segments

ipcrm -a

o This version of IPC::Shareable does not understand the format of shared memory
segments created by versions prior to 0.60. If you try to tie to such segments, you
will get an error. The only work around is to clear the shared memory segments and
start with a fresh set.

o Iterating over a hash causes a special optimization if you have not obtained a lock
(it is better to obtain a read (or write) lock before iterating over a hash tied to
IPC::Shareable, but we attempt this optimization if you do not).

For tied hashes, the "fetch"/"thaw" operation is performed when the first key is
accessed. Subsequent key and and value accesses are done without accessing shared
memory. Doing an assignment to the hash or fetching another value between key
accesses causes the hash to be replaced from shared memory. The state of the iterator
in this case is not defined by the Perl documentation. Caveat Emptor.

CREDITS

       Thanks to all those with comments or bug fixes, especially

           Maurice Aubrey      <maurice@hevanet.com>
           Stephane Bortzmeyer <bortzmeyer@pasteur.fr>
           Doug MacEachern     <dougm@telebusiness.co.nz>
           Robert Emmery       <roberte@netscape.com>
           Mohammed J. Kabir   <kabir@intevo.com>
           Terry Ewing         <terry@intevo.com>
           Tim Fries           <timf@dicecorp.com>
           Joe Thomas          <jthomas@women.com>
           Paul Makepeace      <Paul.Makepeace@realprogrammers.com>
           Raphael Manfredi    <Raphael_Manfredi@pobox.com>
           Lee Lindley         <Lee.Lindley@bigfoot.com>
           Dave Rolsky         <autarch@urth.org>
           Steve Bertrand      <steveb@cpan.org>

NAME

SYNOPSIS

DESCRIPTION

OPTIONS

METHODS

LOCKING

DESTRUCTION

RETURN VALUES

AUTHOR

MAINTAINED BY

NOTES

CREDITS

SEE ALSO