add first version of the solution proposal

Signed-off-by: Nico Schottelius <nico@kr.ethz.ch>
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Nico Schottelius 2010-05-01 22:40:00 +02:00
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[[!meta title="Solution proposal for the io select/poll problem]]
## The situation
If you have used select(2) or poll(2) more than time, you may have noticed
the regular pattern that arrives again and again:
* The main task of a program is to listen and react on multiple input/output connections.
* For each i/o connection (file descriptor, **fd**), you have
* a function that opens the **fd** (Let's call it ***conn_open***.)
* another function to be executed if an event happens on the **fd** (***conn_handle***)
* After ***conn_handle*** has been called, the number of connections may have changed:
***conn_handle*** may
* add (think of accept(2))
* or remove (think of close(2)) connections
* ***conn_open*** and ***conn_handle*** are closely related (**conn_object**)
## The problem
Each and every time this situation occurs, you have to (re-)write
code to handle that case. I have seen it in some applications I have
been writing, for instance [[software/ceofhack]] or
[[software/fui]].
## The solution proposal
Write a solution to the problem
[once and only once](http://c2.com/xp/OnceAndOnlyOnce.html),
so you and me
[don't reapeat ourselves](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don%27t_repeat_yourself)?
First of all, begin with the obvious part:
### What do we have?
We have to bring together n times
* open functions
* file descriptors
* handle functions
Furthermore, we have
* one main loop that listens for events
### How to connect them properly?
If every **conn_object** supports the following interface, it's
very easy to write a generic main loop:
conn_object.open(connection_list)
Where ***connection_list*** consists of ***connection_entries*** like this:
struct connection_entry {
fd,
handler,
type,
}
The type attribute describes, which events to wait for:
* input
* output
* errors
The ***conn_object.open*** function can add or remove entries from the list.
Whether the list is an array, hash, or whatever may be implementation specific.
### The main loop
Before launching the main listener loop, we probably need to initialise
the list, but afterwards it's all up to the handlers:
connection_list = init_connection_list()
# connect all conn_objects like this, which implicits opening the fd
conn_object.open(connection_list)
while(true) {
events_list = wait_for_event(connection_list)
for(every_event_in(event_list)) {
call_corresponding_handler_for_event_from_connection_list(fd, connection_list)
}
}
Firstly we pass the **fd**, because one handler may be registered for more
one connection.
Secondly we add the connection_list, because the handler may decide to add
more connections or remove itself.