to the C<double> type in C, and when you need to do any calculations on
it, you should treat it as such.
-
=head1 GLOBAL FUNCTIONS
These functions can be called anytime, even before initialising the
=item ev_default_destroy ()
Destroys the default loop again (frees all memory and kernel state
-etc.). This stops all registered event watchers (by not touching them in
-any way whatsoever, although you cannot rely on this :).
+etc.). None of the active event watchers will be stopped in the normal
+sense, so e.g. C<ev_is_active> might still return true. It is your
+responsibility to either stop all watchers cleanly yoursef I<before>
+calling this function, or cope with the fact afterwards (which is usually
+the easiest thing, youc na just ignore the watchers and/or C<free ()> them
+for example).
=item ev_loop_destroy (loop)
=back
+
=head1 ANATOMY OF A WATCHER
A watcher is a structure that you create and register to record your
As long as your watcher is active (has been started but not stopped) you
must not touch the values stored in it. Most specifically you must never
-reinitialise it or call its set macro.
-
-You can check whether an event is active by calling the C<ev_is_active
-(watcher *)> macro. To see whether an event is outstanding (but the
-callback for it has not been called yet) you can use the C<ev_is_pending
-(watcher *)> macro.
+reinitialise it or call its C<set> macro.
Each and every callback receives the event loop pointer as first, the
registered watcher structure as second, and a bitset of received events as
The pid specified in the C<ev_child> watcher has received a status change.
+=item C<EV_STAT>
+
+The path specified in the C<ev_stat> watcher changed its attributes somehow.
+
=item C<EV_IDLE>
The C<ev_idle> watcher has determined that you have nothing better to do.
(for example, a C<ev_prepare> watcher might start an idle watcher to keep
C<ev_loop> from blocking).
+=item C<EV_EMBED>
+
+The embedded event loop specified in the C<ev_embed> watcher needs attention.
+
+=item C<EV_FORK>
+
+The event loop has been resumed in the child process after fork (see
+C<ev_fork>).
+
=item C<EV_ERROR>
An unspecified error has occured, the watcher has been stopped. This might
=back
+=head2 GENERIC WATCHER FUNCTIONS
+
+In the following description, C<TYPE> stands for the watcher type,
+e.g. C<timer> for C<ev_timer> watchers and C<io> for C<ev_io> watchers.
+
+=over 4
+
+=item C<ev_init> (ev_TYPE *watcher, callback)
+
+This macro initialises the generic portion of a watcher. The contents
+of the watcher object can be arbitrary (so C<malloc> will do). Only
+the generic parts of the watcher are initialised, you I<need> to call
+the type-specific C<ev_TYPE_set> macro afterwards to initialise the
+type-specific parts. For each type there is also a C<ev_TYPE_init> macro
+which rolls both calls into one.
+
+You can reinitialise a watcher at any time as long as it has been stopped
+(or never started) and there are no pending events outstanding.
+
+The callback is always of type C<void (*)(ev_loop *loop, ev_TYPE *watcher,
+int revents)>.
+
+=item C<ev_TYPE_set> (ev_TYPE *, [args])
+
+This macro initialises the type-specific parts of a watcher. You need to
+call C<ev_init> at least once before you call this macro, but you can
+call C<ev_TYPE_set> any number of times. You must not, however, call this
+macro on a watcher that is active (it can be pending, however, which is a
+difference to the C<ev_init> macro).
+
+Although some watcher types do not have type-specific arguments
+(e.g. C<ev_prepare>) you still need to call its C<set> macro.
+
+=item C<ev_TYPE_init> (ev_TYPE *watcher, callback, [args])
+
+This convinience macro rolls both C<ev_init> and C<ev_TYPE_set> macro
+calls into a single call. This is the most convinient method to initialise
+a watcher. The same limitations apply, of course.
+
+=item C<ev_TYPE_start> (loop *, ev_TYPE *watcher)
+
+Starts (activates) the given watcher. Only active watchers will receive
+events. If the watcher is already active nothing will happen.
+
+=item C<ev_TYPE_stop> (loop *, ev_TYPE *watcher)
+
+Stops the given watcher again (if active) and clears the pending
+status. It is possible that stopped watchers are pending (for example,
+non-repeating timers are being stopped when they become pending), but
+C<ev_TYPE_stop> ensures that the watcher is neither active nor pending. If
+you want to free or reuse the memory used by the watcher it is therefore a
+good idea to always call its C<ev_TYPE_stop> function.
+
+=item bool ev_is_active (ev_TYPE *watcher)
+
+Returns a true value iff the watcher is active (i.e. it has been started
+and not yet been stopped). As long as a watcher is active you must not modify
+it.
+
+=item bool ev_is_pending (ev_TYPE *watcher)
+
+Returns a true value iff the watcher is pending, (i.e. it has outstanding
+events but its callback has not yet been invoked). As long as a watcher
+is pending (but not active) you must not call an init function on it (but
+C<ev_TYPE_set> is safe) and you must make sure the watcher is available to
+libev (e.g. you cnanot C<free ()> it).
+
+=item callback = ev_cb (ev_TYPE *watcher)
+
+Returns the callback currently set on the watcher.
+
+=item ev_cb_set (ev_TYPE *watcher, callback)
+
+Change the callback. You can change the callback at virtually any time
+(modulo threads).
+
+=back
+
+
=head2 ASSOCIATING CUSTOM DATA WITH A WATCHER
Each watcher has, by default, a member C<void *data> that you can change
=head1 WATCHER TYPES
This section describes each watcher in detail, but will not repeat
-information given in the last section.
+information given in the last section. Any initialisation/set macros,
+functions and members specific to the watcher type are explained.
+
+Members are additionally marked with either I<[read-only]>, meaning that,
+while the watcher is active, you can look at the member and expect some
+sensible content, but you must not modify it (you can modify it while the
+watcher is stopped to your hearts content), or I<[read-write]>, which
+means you can expect it to have some sensible content while the watcher
+is active, but you can also modify it. Modifying it may not do something
+sensible or take immediate effect (or do anything at all), but libev will
+not crash or malfunction in any way.
-=head2 C<ev_io> - is this file descriptor readable or writable
+=head2 C<ev_io> - is this file descriptor readable or writable?
I/O watchers check whether a file descriptor is readable or writable
-in each iteration of the event loop (This behaviour is called
-level-triggering because you keep receiving events as long as the
-condition persists. Remember you can stop the watcher if you don't want to
-act on the event and neither want to receive future events).
+in each iteration of the event loop, or, more precisely, when reading
+would not block the process and writing would at least be able to write
+some data. This behaviour is called level-triggering because you keep
+receiving events as long as the condition persists. Remember you can stop
+the watcher if you don't want to act on the event and neither want to
+receive future events.
In general you can register as many read and/or write event watchers per
fd as you want (as long as you don't confuse yourself). Setting all file
You have to be careful with dup'ed file descriptors, though. Some backends
(the linux epoll backend is a notable example) cannot handle dup'ed file
descriptors correctly if you register interest in two or more fds pointing
-to the same underlying file/socket etc. description (that is, they share
+to the same underlying file/socket/etc. description (that is, they share
the same underlying "file open").
If you must do this, then force the use of a known-to-be-good backend
(at the time of this writing, this includes only C<EVBACKEND_SELECT> and
C<EVBACKEND_POLL>).
+Another thing you have to watch out for is that it is quite easy to
+receive "spurious" readyness notifications, that is your callback might
+be called with C<EV_READ> but a subsequent C<read>(2) will actually block
+because there is no data. Not only are some backends known to create a
+lot of those (for example solaris ports), it is very easy to get into
+this situation even with a relatively standard program structure. Thus
+it is best to always use non-blocking I/O: An extra C<read>(2) returning
+C<EAGAIN> is far preferable to a program hanging until some data arrives.
+
+If you cannot run the fd in non-blocking mode (for example you should not
+play around with an Xlib connection), then you have to seperately re-test
+wether a file descriptor is really ready with a known-to-be good interface
+such as poll (fortunately in our Xlib example, Xlib already does this on
+its own, so its quite safe to use).
+
=over 4
=item ev_io_init (ev_io *, callback, int fd, int events)
=item ev_io_set (ev_io *, int fd, int events)
-Configures an C<ev_io> watcher. The fd is the file descriptor to rceeive
-events for and events is either C<EV_READ>, C<EV_WRITE> or C<EV_READ |
-EV_WRITE> to receive the given events.
-
-Please note that most of the more scalable backend mechanisms (for example
-epoll and solaris ports) can result in spurious readyness notifications
-for file descriptors, so you practically need to use non-blocking I/O (and
-treat callback invocation as hint only), or retest separately with a safe
-interface before doing I/O (XLib can do this), or force the use of either
-C<EVBACKEND_SELECT> or C<EVBACKEND_POLL>, which don't suffer from this
-problem. Also note that it is quite easy to have your callback invoked
-when the readyness condition is no longer valid even when employing
-typical ways of handling events, so its a good idea to use non-blocking
-I/O unconditionally.
+Configures an C<ev_io> watcher. The C<fd> is the file descriptor to
+rceeive events for and events is either C<EV_READ>, C<EV_WRITE> or
+C<EV_READ | EV_WRITE> to receive the given events.
+
+=item int fd [read-only]
+
+The file descriptor being watched.
+
+=item int events [read-only]
+
+The events being watched.
=back
ev_loop (loop, 0);
-=head2 C<ev_timer> - relative and optionally recurring timeouts
+=head2 C<ev_timer> - relative and optionally repeating timeouts
Timer watchers are simple relative timers that generate an event after a
given time, and optionally repeating in regular intervals after that.
value), or reset the running timer to the repeat value.
This sounds a bit complicated, but here is a useful and typical
-example: Imagine you have a tcp connection and you want a so-called idle
-timeout, that is, you want to be called when there have been, say, 60
-seconds of inactivity on the socket. The easiest way to do this is to
-configure an C<ev_timer> with after=repeat=60 and calling ev_timer_again each
-time you successfully read or write some data. If you go into an idle
-state where you do not expect data to travel on the socket, you can stop
-the timer, and again will automatically restart it if need be.
+example: Imagine you have a tcp connection and you want a so-called
+idle timeout, that is, you want to be called when there have been,
+say, 60 seconds of inactivity on the socket. The easiest way to do
+this is to configure an C<ev_timer> with C<after>=C<repeat>=C<60> and calling
+C<ev_timer_again> each time you successfully read or write some data. If
+you go into an idle state where you do not expect data to travel on the
+socket, you can stop the timer, and again will automatically restart it if
+need be.
+
+You can also ignore the C<after> value and C<ev_timer_start> altogether
+and only ever use the C<repeat> value:
+
+ ev_timer_init (timer, callback, 0., 5.);
+ ev_timer_again (loop, timer);
+ ...
+ timer->again = 17.;
+ ev_timer_again (loop, timer);
+ ...
+ timer->again = 10.;
+ ev_timer_again (loop, timer);
+
+This is more efficient then stopping/starting the timer eahc time you want
+to modify its timeout value.
+
+=item ev_tstamp repeat [read-write]
+
+The current C<repeat> value. Will be used each time the watcher times out
+or C<ev_timer_again> is called and determines the next timeout (if any),
+which is also when any modifications are taken into account.
=back
ev_timer_again (&mytimer);
-=head2 C<ev_periodic> - to cron or not to cron
+=head2 C<ev_periodic> - to cron or not to cron?
Periodic watchers are also timers of a kind, but they are very versatile
(and unfortunately a bit complex).
Unlike C<ev_timer>'s, they are not based on real time (or relative time)
but on wallclock time (absolute time). You can tell a periodic watcher
to trigger "at" some specific point in time. For example, if you tell a
-periodic watcher to trigger in 10 seconds (by specifiying e.g. c<ev_now ()
+periodic watcher to trigger in 10 seconds (by specifiying e.g. C<ev_now ()
+ 10.>) and then reset your system clock to the last year, then it will
take a year to trigger the event (unlike an C<ev_timer>, which would trigger
roughly 10 seconds later and of course not if you reset your system time
a different time than the last time it was called (e.g. in a crond like
program when the crontabs have changed).
+=item ev_tstamp interval [read-write]
+
+The current interval value. Can be modified any time, but changes only
+take effect when the periodic timer fires or C<ev_periodic_again> is being
+called.
+
+=item ev_tstamp (*reschedule_cb)(struct ev_periodic *w, ev_tstamp now) [read-write]
+
+The current reschedule callback, or C<0>, if this functionality is
+switched off. Can be changed any time, but changes only take effect when
+the periodic timer fires or C<ev_periodic_again> is being called.
+
=back
Example: call a callback every hour, or, more precisely, whenever the
ev_periodic_start (loop, &hourly_tick);
-=head2 C<ev_signal> - signal me when a signal gets signalled
+=head2 C<ev_signal> - signal me when a signal gets signalled!
Signal watchers will trigger an event when the process receives a specific
signal one or more times. Even though signals are very asynchronous, libev
Configures the watcher to trigger on the given signal number (usually one
of the C<SIGxxx> constants).
+=item int signum [read-only]
+
+The signal the watcher watches out for.
+
=back
-=head2 C<ev_child> - wait for pid status changes
+=head2 C<ev_child> - watch out for process status changes
Child watchers trigger when your process receives a SIGCHLD in response to
some child status changes (most typically when a child of yours dies).
C<waitpid> documentation). The C<rpid> member contains the pid of the
process causing the status change.
+=item int pid [read-only]
+
+The process id this watcher watches out for, or C<0>, meaning any process id.
+
+=item int rpid [read-write]
+
+The process id that detected a status change.
+
+=item int rstatus [read-write]
+
+The process exit/trace status caused by C<rpid> (see your systems
+C<waitpid> and C<sys/wait.h> documentation for details).
+
=back
Example: try to exit cleanly on SIGINT and SIGTERM.
ev_signal_start (loop, &sigint_cb);
-=head2 C<ev_idle> - when you've got nothing better to do
+=head2 C<ev_stat> - did the file attributes just change?
+
+This watches a filesystem path for attribute changes. That is, it calls
+C<stat> regularly (or when the OS says it changed) and sees if it changed
+compared to the last time, invoking the callback if it did.
+
+The path does not need to exist: changing from "path exists" to "path does
+not exist" is a status change like any other. The condition "path does
+not exist" is signified by the C<st_nlink> field being zero (which is
+otherwise always forced to be at least one) and all the other fields of
+the stat buffer having unspecified contents.
+
+Since there is no standard to do this, the portable implementation simply
+calls C<stat (2)> regulalry on the path to see if it changed somehow. You
+can specify a recommended polling interval for this case. If you specify
+a polling interval of C<0> (highly recommended!) then a I<suitable,
+unspecified default> value will be used (which you can expect to be around
+five seconds, although this might change dynamically). Libev will also
+impose a minimum interval which is currently around C<0.1>, but thats
+usually overkill.
+
+This watcher type is not meant for massive numbers of stat watchers,
+as even with OS-supported change notifications, this can be
+resource-intensive.
+
+At the time of this writing, no specific OS backends are implemented, but
+if demand increases, at least a kqueue and inotify backend will be added.
+
+=over 4
+
+=item ev_stat_init (ev_stat *, callback, const char *path, ev_tstamp interval)
+
+=item ev_stat_set (ev_stat *, const char *path, ev_tstamp interval)
+
+Configures the watcher to wait for status changes of the given
+C<path>. The C<interval> is a hint on how quickly a change is expected to
+be detected and should normally be specified as C<0> to let libev choose
+a suitable value. The memory pointed to by C<path> must point to the same
+path for as long as the watcher is active.
+
+The callback will be receive C<EV_STAT> when a change was detected,
+relative to the attributes at the time the watcher was started (or the
+last change was detected).
+
+=item ev_stat_stat (ev_stat *)
+
+Updates the stat buffer immediately with new values. If you change the
+watched path in your callback, you could call this fucntion to avoid
+detecting this change (while introducing a race condition). Can also be
+useful simply to find out the new values.
+
+=item ev_statdata attr [read-only]
+
+The most-recently detected attributes of the file. Although the type is of
+C<ev_statdata>, this is usually the (or one of the) C<struct stat> types
+suitable for your system. If the C<st_nlink> member is C<0>, then there
+was some error while C<stat>ing the file.
+
+=item ev_statdata prev [read-only]
+
+The previous attributes of the file. The callback gets invoked whenever
+C<prev> != C<attr>.
+
+=item ev_tstamp interval [read-only]
+
+The specified interval.
+
+=item const char *path [read-only]
+
+The filesystem path that is being watched.
+
+=back
+
+Example: Watch C</etc/passwd> for attribute changes.
+
+ static void
+ passwd_cb (struct ev_loop *loop, ev_stat *w, int revents)
+ {
+ /* /etc/passwd changed in some way */
+ if (w->attr.st_nlink)
+ {
+ printf ("passwd current size %ld\n", (long)w->attr.st_size);
+ printf ("passwd current atime %ld\n", (long)w->attr.st_mtime);
+ printf ("passwd current mtime %ld\n", (long)w->attr.st_mtime);
+ }
+ else
+ /* you shalt not abuse printf for puts */
+ puts ("wow, /etc/passwd is not there, expect problems. "
+ "if this is windows, they already arrived\n");
+ }
+
+ ...
+ ev_stat passwd;
+
+ ev_stat_init (&passwd, passwd_cb, "/etc/passwd");
+ ev_stat_start (loop, &passwd);
+
+
+=head2 C<ev_idle> - when you've got nothing better to do...
Idle watchers trigger events when there are no other events are pending
(prepare, check and other idle watchers do not count). That is, as long
ev_idle_start (loop, idle_cb);
-=head2 C<ev_prepare> and C<ev_check> - customise your event loop
+=head2 C<ev_prepare> and C<ev_check> - customise your event loop!
Prepare and check watchers are usually (but not always) used in tandem:
prepare watchers get invoked before the process blocks and check watchers
afterwards.
+You I<must not> call C<ev_loop> or similar functions that enter
+the current event loop from either C<ev_prepare> or C<ev_check>
+watchers. Other loops than the current one are fine, however. The
+rationale behind this is that you do not need to check for recursion in
+those watchers, i.e. the sequence will always be C<ev_prepare>, blocking,
+C<ev_check> so if you have one watcher of each kind they will always be
+called in pairs bracketing the blocking call.
+
Their main purpose is to integrate other event mechanisms into libev and
their use is somewhat advanced. This could be used, for example, to track
variable changes, implement your own watchers, integrate net-snmp or a
-coroutine library and lots more.
+coroutine library and lots more. They are also occasionally useful if
+you cache some data and want to flush it before blocking (for example,
+in X programs you might want to do an C<XFlush ()> in an C<ev_prepare>
+watcher).
This is done by examining in each prepare call which file descriptors need
to be watched by the other library, registering C<ev_io> watchers for
=back
-Example: *TODO*.
+Example: To include a library such as adns, you would add IO watchers
+and a timeout watcher in a prepare handler, as required by libadns, and
+in a check watcher, destroy them and call into libadns. What follows is
+pseudo-code only of course:
+
+ static ev_io iow [nfd];
+ static ev_timer tw;
+ static void
+ io_cb (ev_loop *loop, ev_io *w, int revents)
+ {
+ // set the relevant poll flags
+ // could also call adns_processreadable etc. here
+ struct pollfd *fd = (struct pollfd *)w->data;
+ if (revents & EV_READ ) fd->revents |= fd->events & POLLIN;
+ if (revents & EV_WRITE) fd->revents |= fd->events & POLLOUT;
+ }
+
+ // create io watchers for each fd and a timer before blocking
+ static void
+ adns_prepare_cb (ev_loop *loop, ev_prepare *w, int revents)
+ {
+ int timeout = 3600000;truct pollfd fds [nfd];
+ // actual code will need to loop here and realloc etc.
+ adns_beforepoll (ads, fds, &nfd, &timeout, timeval_from (ev_time ()));
+
+ /* the callback is illegal, but won't be called as we stop during check */
+ ev_timer_init (&tw, 0, timeout * 1e-3);
+ ev_timer_start (loop, &tw);
+
+ // create on ev_io per pollfd
+ for (int i = 0; i < nfd; ++i)
+ {
+ ev_io_init (iow + i, io_cb, fds [i].fd,
+ ((fds [i].events & POLLIN ? EV_READ : 0)
+ | (fds [i].events & POLLOUT ? EV_WRITE : 0)));
+
+ fds [i].revents = 0;
+ iow [i].data = fds + i;
+ ev_io_start (loop, iow + i);
+ }
+ }
+
+ // stop all watchers after blocking
+ static void
+ adns_check_cb (ev_loop *loop, ev_check *w, int revents)
+ {
+ ev_timer_stop (loop, &tw);
-=head2 C<ev_embed> - when one backend isn't enough
+ for (int i = 0; i < nfd; ++i)
+ ev_io_stop (loop, iow + i);
+
+ adns_afterpoll (adns, fds, nfd, timeval_from (ev_now (loop));
+ }
+
+
+=head2 C<ev_embed> - when one backend isn't enough...
This is a rather advanced watcher type that lets you embed one event loop
-into another.
+into another (currently only C<ev_io> events are supported in the embedded
+loop, other types of watchers might be handled in a delayed or incorrect
+fashion and must not be used).
There are primarily two reasons you would want that: work around bugs and
prioritise I/O.
you would put all the high priority stuff in one loop and all the rest in
a second one, and embed the second one in the first.
+As long as the watcher is active, the callback will be invoked every time
+there might be events pending in the embedded loop. The callback must then
+call C<ev_embed_sweep (mainloop, watcher)> to make a single sweep and invoke
+their callbacks (you could also start an idle watcher to give the embedded
+loop strictly lower priority for example). You can also set the callback
+to C<0>, in which case the embed watcher will automatically execute the
+embedded loop sweep.
+
As long as the watcher is started it will automatically handle events. The
callback will be invoked whenever some events have been handled. You can
set the callback to C<0> to avoid having to specify one if you are not
=over 4
-=item ev_embed_init (ev_embed *, callback, struct ev_loop *loop)
+=item ev_embed_init (ev_embed *, callback, struct ev_loop *embedded_loop)
+
+=item ev_embed_set (ev_embed *, callback, struct ev_loop *embedded_loop)
+
+Configures the watcher to embed the given loop, which must be
+embeddable. If the callback is C<0>, then C<ev_embed_sweep> will be
+invoked automatically, otherwise it is the responsibility of the callback
+to invoke it (it will continue to be called until the sweep has been done,
+if you do not want thta, you need to temporarily stop the embed watcher).
+
+=item ev_embed_sweep (loop, ev_embed *)
+
+Make a single, non-blocking sweep over the embedded loop. This works
+similarly to C<ev_loop (embedded_loop, EVLOOP_NONBLOCK)>, but in the most
+apropriate way for embedded loops.
-=item ev_embed_set (ev_embed *, callback, struct ev_loop *loop)
+=item struct ev_loop *loop [read-only]
-Configures the watcher to embed the given loop, which must be embeddable.
+The embedded event loop.
+
+=back
+
+
+=head2 C<ev_fork> - the audacity to resume the event loop after a fork
+
+Fork watchers are called when a C<fork ()> was detected (usually because
+whoever is a good citizen cared to tell libev about it by calling
+C<ev_default_fork> or C<ev_loop_fork>). The invocation is done before the
+event loop blocks next and before C<ev_check> watchers are being called,
+and only in the child after the fork. If whoever good citizen calling
+C<ev_default_fork> cheats and calls it in the wrong process, the fork
+handlers will be invoked, too, of course.
+
+=over 4
+
+=item ev_fork_init (ev_signal *, callback)
+
+Initialises and configures the fork watcher - it has no parameters of any
+kind. There is a C<ev_fork_set> macro, but using it is utterly pointless,
+believe me.
=back
ev_once (STDIN_FILENO, EV_READ, 10., stdin_ready, 0);
-=item ev_feed_event (loop, watcher, int events)
+=item ev_feed_event (ev_loop *, watcher *, int revents)
Feeds the given event set into the event loop, as if the specified event
had happened for the specified watcher (which must be a pointer to an
initialised but not necessarily started event watcher).
-=item ev_feed_fd_event (loop, int fd, int revents)
+=item ev_feed_fd_event (ev_loop *, int fd, int revents)
Feed an event on the given fd, as if a file descriptor backend detected
the given events it.
-=item ev_feed_signal_event (loop, int signum)
+=item ev_feed_signal_event (ev_loop *loop, int signum)
-Feed an event as if the given signal occured (loop must be the default loop!).
+Feed an event as if the given signal occured (C<loop> must be the default
+loop!).
=back
=head1 C++ SUPPORT
-TBD.
+Libev comes with some simplistic wrapper classes for C++ that mainly allow
+you to use some convinience methods to start/stop watchers and also change
+the callback model to a model using method callbacks on objects.
+
+To use it,
+
+ #include <ev++.h>
+
+(it is not installed by default). This automatically includes F<ev.h>
+and puts all of its definitions (many of them macros) into the global
+namespace. All C++ specific things are put into the C<ev> namespace.
+
+It should support all the same embedding options as F<ev.h>, most notably
+C<EV_MULTIPLICITY>.
+
+Here is a list of things available in the C<ev> namespace:
+
+=over 4
+
+=item C<ev::READ>, C<ev::WRITE> etc.
+
+These are just enum values with the same values as the C<EV_READ> etc.
+macros from F<ev.h>.
+
+=item C<ev::tstamp>, C<ev::now>
+
+Aliases to the same types/functions as with the C<ev_> prefix.
+
+=item C<ev::io>, C<ev::timer>, C<ev::periodic>, C<ev::idle>, C<ev::sig> etc.
+
+For each C<ev_TYPE> watcher in F<ev.h> there is a corresponding class of
+the same name in the C<ev> namespace, with the exception of C<ev_signal>
+which is called C<ev::sig> to avoid clashes with the C<signal> macro
+defines by many implementations.
+
+All of those classes have these methods:
+
+=over 4
+
+=item ev::TYPE::TYPE (object *, object::method *)
+
+=item ev::TYPE::TYPE (object *, object::method *, struct ev_loop *)
+
+=item ev::TYPE::~TYPE
+
+The constructor takes a pointer to an object and a method pointer to
+the event handler callback to call in this class. The constructor calls
+C<ev_init> for you, which means you have to call the C<set> method
+before starting it. If you do not specify a loop then the constructor
+automatically associates the default loop with this watcher.
+
+The destructor automatically stops the watcher if it is active.
+
+=item w->set (struct ev_loop *)
+
+Associates a different C<struct ev_loop> with this watcher. You can only
+do this when the watcher is inactive (and not pending either).
+
+=item w->set ([args])
+
+Basically the same as C<ev_TYPE_set>, with the same args. Must be
+called at least once. Unlike the C counterpart, an active watcher gets
+automatically stopped and restarted.
+
+=item w->start ()
+
+Starts the watcher. Note that there is no C<loop> argument as the
+constructor already takes the loop.
+
+=item w->stop ()
+
+Stops the watcher if it is active. Again, no C<loop> argument.
+
+=item w->again () C<ev::timer>, C<ev::periodic> only
+
+For C<ev::timer> and C<ev::periodic>, this invokes the corresponding
+C<ev_TYPE_again> function.
+
+=item w->sweep () C<ev::embed> only
+
+Invokes C<ev_embed_sweep>.
+
+=item w->update () C<ev::stat> only
+
+Invokes C<ev_stat_stat>.
+
+=back
+
+=back
+
+Example: Define a class with an IO and idle watcher, start one of them in
+the constructor.
+
+ class myclass
+ {
+ ev_io io; void io_cb (ev::io &w, int revents);
+ ev_idle idle void idle_cb (ev::idle &w, int revents);
+
+ myclass ();
+ }
+
+ myclass::myclass (int fd)
+ : io (this, &myclass::io_cb),
+ idle (this, &myclass::idle_cb)
+ {
+ io.start (fd, ev::READ);
+ }
+
+
+=head1 MACRO MAGIC
+
+Libev can be compiled with a variety of options, the most fundemantal is
+C<EV_MULTIPLICITY>. This option determines wether (most) functions and
+callbacks have an initial C<struct ev_loop *> argument.
+
+To make it easier to write programs that cope with either variant, the
+following macros are defined:
+
+=over 4
+
+=item C<EV_A>, C<EV_A_>
+
+This provides the loop I<argument> for functions, if one is required ("ev
+loop argument"). The C<EV_A> form is used when this is the sole argument,
+C<EV_A_> is used when other arguments are following. Example:
+
+ ev_unref (EV_A);
+ ev_timer_add (EV_A_ watcher);
+ ev_loop (EV_A_ 0);
+
+It assumes the variable C<loop> of type C<struct ev_loop *> is in scope,
+which is often provided by the following macro.
+
+=item C<EV_P>, C<EV_P_>
+
+This provides the loop I<parameter> for functions, if one is required ("ev
+loop parameter"). The C<EV_P> form is used when this is the sole parameter,
+C<EV_P_> is used when other parameters are following. Example:
+
+ // this is how ev_unref is being declared
+ static void ev_unref (EV_P);
+
+ // this is how you can declare your typical callback
+ static void cb (EV_P_ ev_timer *w, int revents)
+
+It declares a parameter C<loop> of type C<struct ev_loop *>, quite
+suitable for use with C<EV_A>.
+
+=item C<EV_DEFAULT>, C<EV_DEFAULT_>
+
+Similar to the other two macros, this gives you the value of the default
+loop, if multiple loops are supported ("ev loop default").
+
+=back
+
+Example: Declare and initialise a check watcher, working regardless of
+wether multiple loops are supported or not.
+
+ static void
+ check_cb (EV_P_ ev_timer *w, int revents)
+ {
+ ev_check_stop (EV_A_ w);
+ }
+
+ ev_check check;
+ ev_check_init (&check, check_cb);
+ ev_check_start (EV_DEFAULT_ &check);
+ ev_loop (EV_DEFAULT_ 0);
+
+
+=head1 EMBEDDING
+
+Libev can (and often is) directly embedded into host
+applications. Examples of applications that embed it include the Deliantra
+Game Server, the EV perl module, the GNU Virtual Private Ethernet (gvpe)
+and rxvt-unicode.
+
+The goal is to enable you to just copy the neecssary files into your
+source directory without having to change even a single line in them, so
+you can easily upgrade by simply copying (or having a checked-out copy of
+libev somewhere in your source tree).
+
+=head2 FILESETS
+
+Depending on what features you need you need to include one or more sets of files
+in your app.
+
+=head3 CORE EVENT LOOP
+
+To include only the libev core (all the C<ev_*> functions), with manual
+configuration (no autoconf):
+
+ #define EV_STANDALONE 1
+ #include "ev.c"
+
+This will automatically include F<ev.h>, too, and should be done in a
+single C source file only to provide the function implementations. To use
+it, do the same for F<ev.h> in all files wishing to use this API (best
+done by writing a wrapper around F<ev.h> that you can include instead and
+where you can put other configuration options):
+
+ #define EV_STANDALONE 1
+ #include "ev.h"
+
+Both header files and implementation files can be compiled with a C++
+compiler (at least, thats a stated goal, and breakage will be treated
+as a bug).
+
+You need the following files in your source tree, or in a directory
+in your include path (e.g. in libev/ when using -Ilibev):
+
+ ev.h
+ ev.c
+ ev_vars.h
+ ev_wrap.h
+
+ ev_win32.c required on win32 platforms only
+
+ ev_select.c only when select backend is enabled (which is by default)
+ ev_poll.c only when poll backend is enabled (disabled by default)
+ ev_epoll.c only when the epoll backend is enabled (disabled by default)
+ ev_kqueue.c only when the kqueue backend is enabled (disabled by default)
+ ev_port.c only when the solaris port backend is enabled (disabled by default)
+
+F<ev.c> includes the backend files directly when enabled, so you only need
+to compile this single file.
+
+=head3 LIBEVENT COMPATIBILITY API
+
+To include the libevent compatibility API, also include:
+
+ #include "event.c"
+
+in the file including F<ev.c>, and:
+
+ #include "event.h"
+
+in the files that want to use the libevent API. This also includes F<ev.h>.
+
+You need the following additional files for this:
+
+ event.h
+ event.c
+
+=head3 AUTOCONF SUPPORT
+
+Instead of using C<EV_STANDALONE=1> and providing your config in
+whatever way you want, you can also C<m4_include([libev.m4])> in your
+F<configure.ac> and leave C<EV_STANDALONE> undefined. F<ev.c> will then
+include F<config.h> and configure itself accordingly.
+
+For this of course you need the m4 file:
+
+ libev.m4
+
+=head2 PREPROCESSOR SYMBOLS/MACROS
+
+Libev can be configured via a variety of preprocessor symbols you have to define
+before including any of its files. The default is not to build for multiplicity
+and only include the select backend.
+
+=over 4
+
+=item EV_STANDALONE
+
+Must always be C<1> if you do not use autoconf configuration, which
+keeps libev from including F<config.h>, and it also defines dummy
+implementations for some libevent functions (such as logging, which is not
+supported). It will also not define any of the structs usually found in
+F<event.h> that are not directly supported by the libev core alone.
+
+=item EV_USE_MONOTONIC
+
+If defined to be C<1>, libev will try to detect the availability of the
+monotonic clock option at both compiletime and runtime. Otherwise no use
+of the monotonic clock option will be attempted. If you enable this, you
+usually have to link against librt or something similar. Enabling it when
+the functionality isn't available is safe, though, althoguh you have
+to make sure you link against any libraries where the C<clock_gettime>
+function is hiding in (often F<-lrt>).
+
+=item EV_USE_REALTIME
+
+If defined to be C<1>, libev will try to detect the availability of the
+realtime clock option at compiletime (and assume its availability at
+runtime if successful). Otherwise no use of the realtime clock option will
+be attempted. This effectively replaces C<gettimeofday> by C<clock_get
+(CLOCK_REALTIME, ...)> and will not normally affect correctness. See tzhe note about libraries
+in the description of C<EV_USE_MONOTONIC>, though.
+
+=item EV_USE_SELECT
+
+If undefined or defined to be C<1>, libev will compile in support for the
+C<select>(2) backend. No attempt at autodetection will be done: if no
+other method takes over, select will be it. Otherwise the select backend
+will not be compiled in.
+
+=item EV_SELECT_USE_FD_SET
+
+If defined to C<1>, then the select backend will use the system C<fd_set>
+structure. This is useful if libev doesn't compile due to a missing
+C<NFDBITS> or C<fd_mask> definition or it misguesses the bitset layout on
+exotic systems. This usually limits the range of file descriptors to some
+low limit such as 1024 or might have other limitations (winsocket only
+allows 64 sockets). The C<FD_SETSIZE> macro, set before compilation, might
+influence the size of the C<fd_set> used.
+
+=item EV_SELECT_IS_WINSOCKET
+
+When defined to C<1>, the select backend will assume that
+select/socket/connect etc. don't understand file descriptors but
+wants osf handles on win32 (this is the case when the select to
+be used is the winsock select). This means that it will call
+C<_get_osfhandle> on the fd to convert it to an OS handle. Otherwise,
+it is assumed that all these functions actually work on fds, even
+on win32. Should not be defined on non-win32 platforms.
+
+=item EV_USE_POLL
+
+If defined to be C<1>, libev will compile in support for the C<poll>(2)
+backend. Otherwise it will be enabled on non-win32 platforms. It
+takes precedence over select.
+
+=item EV_USE_EPOLL
+
+If defined to be C<1>, libev will compile in support for the Linux
+C<epoll>(7) backend. Its availability will be detected at runtime,
+otherwise another method will be used as fallback. This is the
+preferred backend for GNU/Linux systems.
+
+=item EV_USE_KQUEUE
+
+If defined to be C<1>, libev will compile in support for the BSD style
+C<kqueue>(2) backend. Its actual availability will be detected at runtime,
+otherwise another method will be used as fallback. This is the preferred
+backend for BSD and BSD-like systems, although on most BSDs kqueue only
+supports some types of fds correctly (the only platform we found that
+supports ptys for example was NetBSD), so kqueue might be compiled in, but
+not be used unless explicitly requested. The best way to use it is to find
+out whether kqueue supports your type of fd properly and use an embedded
+kqueue loop.
+
+=item EV_USE_PORT
+
+If defined to be C<1>, libev will compile in support for the Solaris
+10 port style backend. Its availability will be detected at runtime,
+otherwise another method will be used as fallback. This is the preferred
+backend for Solaris 10 systems.
+
+=item EV_USE_DEVPOLL
+
+reserved for future expansion, works like the USE symbols above.
+
+=item EV_H
+
+The name of the F<ev.h> header file used to include it. The default if
+undefined is C<< <ev.h> >> in F<event.h> and C<"ev.h"> in F<ev.c>. This
+can be used to virtually rename the F<ev.h> header file in case of conflicts.
+
+=item EV_CONFIG_H
+
+If C<EV_STANDALONE> isn't C<1>, this variable can be used to override
+F<ev.c>'s idea of where to find the F<config.h> file, similarly to
+C<EV_H>, above.
+
+=item EV_EVENT_H
+
+Similarly to C<EV_H>, this macro can be used to override F<event.c>'s idea
+of how the F<event.h> header can be found.
+
+=item EV_PROTOTYPES
+
+If defined to be C<0>, then F<ev.h> will not define any function
+prototypes, but still define all the structs and other symbols. This is
+occasionally useful if you want to provide your own wrapper functions
+around libev functions.
+
+=item EV_MULTIPLICITY
+
+If undefined or defined to C<1>, then all event-loop-specific functions
+will have the C<struct ev_loop *> as first argument, and you can create
+additional independent event loops. Otherwise there will be no support
+for multiple event loops and there is no first event loop pointer
+argument. Instead, all functions act on the single default loop.
+
+=item EV_PERIODIC_ENABLE
+
+If undefined or defined to be C<1>, then periodic timers are supported. If
+defined to be C<0>, then they are not. Disabling them saves a few kB of
+code.
+
+=item EV_EMBED_ENABLE
+
+If undefined or defined to be C<1>, then embed watchers are supported. If
+defined to be C<0>, then they are not.
+
+=item EV_STAT_ENABLE
+
+If undefined or defined to be C<1>, then stat watchers are supported. If
+defined to be C<0>, then they are not.
+
+=item EV_FORK_ENABLE
+
+If undefined or defined to be C<1>, then fork watchers are supported. If
+defined to be C<0>, then they are not.
+
+=item EV_MINIMAL
+
+If you need to shave off some kilobytes of code at the expense of some
+speed, define this symbol to C<1>. Currently only used for gcc to override
+some inlining decisions, saves roughly 30% codesize of amd64.
+
+=item EV_COMMON
+
+By default, all watchers have a C<void *data> member. By redefining
+this macro to a something else you can include more and other types of
+members. You have to define it each time you include one of the files,
+though, and it must be identical each time.
+
+For example, the perl EV module uses something like this:
+
+ #define EV_COMMON \
+ SV *self; /* contains this struct */ \
+ SV *cb_sv, *fh /* note no trailing ";" */
+
+=item EV_CB_DECLARE (type)
+
+=item EV_CB_INVOKE (watcher, revents)
+
+=item ev_set_cb (ev, cb)
+
+Can be used to change the callback member declaration in each watcher,
+and the way callbacks are invoked and set. Must expand to a struct member
+definition and a statement, respectively. See the F<ev.v> header file for
+their default definitions. One possible use for overriding these is to
+avoid the C<struct ev_loop *> as first argument in all cases, or to use
+method calls instead of plain function calls in C++.
+
+=head2 EXAMPLES
+
+For a real-world example of a program the includes libev
+verbatim, you can have a look at the EV perl module
+(L<http://software.schmorp.de/pkg/EV.html>). It has the libev files in
+the F<libev/> subdirectory and includes them in the F<EV/EVAPI.h> (public
+interface) and F<EV.xs> (implementation) files. Only the F<EV.xs> file
+will be compiled. It is pretty complex because it provides its own header
+file.
+
+The usage in rxvt-unicode is simpler. It has a F<ev_cpp.h> header file
+that everybody includes and which overrides some autoconf choices:
+
+ #define EV_USE_POLL 0
+ #define EV_MULTIPLICITY 0
+ #define EV_PERIODICS 0
+ #define EV_CONFIG_H <config.h>
+
+ #include "ev++.h"
+
+And a F<ev_cpp.C> implementation file that contains libev proper and is compiled:
+
+ #include "ev_cpp.h"
+ #include "ev.c"
+
+
+=head1 COMPLEXITIES
+
+In this section the complexities of (many of) the algorithms used inside
+libev will be explained. For complexity discussions about backends see the
+documentation for C<ev_default_init>.
+
+=over 4
+
+=item Starting and stopping timer/periodic watchers: O(log skipped_other_timers)
+
+=item Changing timer/periodic watchers (by autorepeat, again): O(log skipped_other_timers)
+
+=item Starting io/check/prepare/idle/signal/child watchers: O(1)
+
+=item Stopping check/prepare/idle watchers: O(1)
+
+=item Stopping an io/signal/child watcher: O(number_of_watchers_for_this_(fd/signal/pid % 16))
+
+=item Finding the next timer per loop iteration: O(1)
+
+=item Each change on a file descriptor per loop iteration: O(number_of_watchers_for_this_fd)
+
+=item Activating one watcher: O(1)
+
+=back
+
=head1 AUTHOR
projects / software / libev.git / blobdiff