path: root/Doc/library/asyncio.rst

:mod:`asyncio` -- Asynchronous I/O, event loop, coroutines and tasks
====================================================================

.. module:: asyncio
   :synopsis: Asynchronous I/O, event loop, coroutines and tasks.

.. versionadded:: 3.4


This module provides infrastructure for writing single-threaded concurrent
code using coroutines, multiplexing I/O access over sockets and other
resources, running network clients and servers, and other related primitives.

Here is a more detailed list of the package contents:

* a pluggable :ref:`event loop <event-loop>` with various system-specific
  implementations;

* :ref:`transport <transport>` and :ref:`protocol <protocol>` abstractions
  (similar to those in `Twisted <http://twistedmatrix.com/>`_);

* concrete support for TCP, UDP, SSL, subprocess pipes, delayed calls, and
  others (some may be system-dependent);

* a Future class that mimicks the one in the :mod:`concurrent.futures` module,
  but adapted for use with the event loop;

* coroutines and tasks based on ``yield from`` (:PEP:`380`), to help write
  concurrent code in a sequential fashion;

* cancellation support for Futures and coroutines;

* :ref:`synchronization primitives <sync>` for use between coroutines in
  a single thread, mimicking those in the :mod:`threading` module;

* an interface for passing work off to a threadpool, for times when
  you absolutely, positively have to use a library that makes blocking
  I/O calls.


Disclaimer
----------

Full documentation is not yet ready; we hope to have it written
before Python 3.4 leaves beta.  Until then, the best reference is
:PEP:`3156`.  For a motivational primer on transports and protocols,
see :PEP:`3153`.


.. XXX should the asyncio documentation come in several pages, as for logging?


.. _event-loop:

Event loops
-----------


.. _protocol:

Protocols
---------

:mod:`asyncio` provides base classes that you can subclass to implement
your network protocols.  Those classes are used in conjunction with
:ref:`transports <transport>` (see below): the protocol parses incoming
data and asks for the writing of outgoing data, while the transport is
responsible for the actual I/O and buffering.

When subclassing a protocol class, it is recommended you override certain
methods.  Those methods are callbacks: they will be called by the transport
on certain events (for example when some data is received); you shouldn't
call them yourself, unless you are implementing a transport.


Protocol classes
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

.. class:: Protocol

   The base class for implementing streaming protocols (for use with
   e.g. TCP and SSL transports).

.. class:: DatagramProtocol

   The base class for implementing datagram protocols (for use with
   e.g. UDP transports).

.. class:: SubprocessProtocol

   The base class for implementing protocols representing communication
   channels with subprocesses (i.e., the set of pipes allowing bidirectional
   data exchange between this process and the child process).


Connection callbacks
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

These callbacks may be called on :class:`Protocol` and
:class:`SubprocessProtocol` instances.  The default implementations are
empty.

.. method:: connection_made(transport)

   Called when a connection is made.

   The *transport* argument is the transport representing the
   connection.  You are responsible for storing it somewhere
   (e.g. as an attribute) if you need to.

.. method:: connection_lost(exc)

   Called when the connection is lost or closed.

   The argument is either an exception object or :const:`None`.
   The latter means a regular EOF is received, or the connection was
   aborted or closed by this side of the connection.

:meth:`connection_made` and :meth:`connection_lost` are called exactly once
per successful connection.  All other callbacks will be called between those
two methods, which allows for easier resource management in your protocol
implementation.


Data reception callbacks
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

The following callbacks are called on :class:`Protocol` instances.
The default implementations are empty.

.. method:: data_received(data)

   Called when some data is received.  *data* is a non-empty bytes object
   containing the incoming data.

   .. note::
      Whether the data is buffered, chunked or reassembled depends on
      the transport.  In general, you shouldn't rely on specific semantics
      and instead make your parsing generic and flexible enough.

      However, data always comes in the correct order.

.. method:: eof_received()

   Calls when the other end signals it won't send any more data
   (for example by calling :meth:`write_eof`, if the other end also uses
   asyncio).

   This method may return a false value (including None), in which case
   the transport will close itself.  Conversely, if this method returns a
   true value, closing the transport is up to the protocol.  Since the
   default implementation returns None, it implicitly closes the connection.

   .. note::
      Some transports such as SSL don't support half-closed connections,
      in which case returning true from this method will not prevent closing
      the connection.


:meth:`data_received` can be called an arbitrary number of times during
a connection.  However, :meth:`eof_received` is called at most once
and, if called, :meth:`data_received` won't be called after it.


Flow control callbacks
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

These callbacks may be called on :class:`Protocol` and
:class:`SubprocessProtocol`.  The default implementations are empty.

.. method:: pause_writing()

   Called when the transport's buffer goes over the high-water mark.

.. method:: resume_writing()

   Called when the transport's buffer drains below the low-water mark.


:meth:`pause_writing` and :meth:`resume_writing` calls are paired --
:meth:`pause_writing` is called once when the buffer goes strictly over
the high-water mark (even if subsequent writes increases the buffer size
even more), and eventually :meth:`resume_writing` is called once when the
buffer size reaches the low-water mark.

.. note::
   If the buffer size equals the high-water mark,
   :meth:`pause_writing` is not called -- it must go strictly over.
   Conversely, :meth:`resume_writing` is called when the buffer size is
   equal or lower than the low-water mark.  These end conditions
   are important to ensure that things go as expected when either
   mark is zero.


.. _transport:

Transports
----------


.. _sync:

Synchronization primitives
--------------------------


Examples
--------

A :class:`Protocol` implementing an echo server::

   class EchoServer(asyncio.Protocol):

       TIMEOUT = 5.0

       def timeout(self):
           print('connection timeout, closing.')
           self.transport.close()

       def connection_made(self, transport):
           print('connection made')
           self.transport = transport

           # start 5 seconds timeout timer
           self.h_timeout = asyncio.get_event_loop().call_later(
               self.TIMEOUT, self.timeout)

       def data_received(self, data):
           print('data received: ', data.decode())
           self.transport.write(b'Re: ' + data)

           # restart timeout timer
           self.h_timeout.cancel()
           self.h_timeout = asyncio.get_event_loop().call_later(
               self.TIMEOUT, self.timeout)

       def eof_received(self):
           pass

       def connection_lost(self, exc):
           print('connection lost:', exc)
           self.h_timeout.cancel()