Cancel deadline_timer, call callback anyway

Show a reproducible problem first:

Live On Coliru (code below)

As you can see, I am running it as

./a.out | grep -C5 false

      

        
        
        
      

    

This filters the output for records that are printed from the C1 completion handler when indeed c1_active

is false (and the completion handler should not have run)

The problem, in a nutshell, is the "logical" race condition.

This is a bit of a clever bend because there is only one strand (visible on the surface). But it really isn't too difficult.

What's happening:

• when the C1 clock expires, it will send the completion handler to the task queue io_service
  
  . This means it may not work right away.

• imagine C2 expired too, and the completion handler now gets scheduled execution and executes before C1 just pressed. Imagine that for some big match this time C2 decides to call stop()
  
  C1.

• After the C2 completion handler is executed, the C1 completion handler is called.

  OOPS

  It still has ec
  
  it saying "no error" ... Hence the deadline timer for C1 is rescheduled. Unfortunately.

Background

For a deeper look at the guarantees that Asio (doesn't) do for the execution order of completion handlers, see

• When are handlers for handlers canceled by boost :: asio executed?

Solutions?

The simplest solution is to understand what m_enabled

could be false

. Let's just add a check:

void tick(const boost::system::error_code &ec) {
    if (!ec && m_enabled) {
        m_timer.expires_at(m_timer.expires_at() + m_duration);
        m_timer.async_wait(boost::bind(&Clock::tick, this, _1));

        if (m_callback)
            m_callback(++m_count, *this);
    }
}

      

        
        
        
      

    

On my system, it no longer reproduces the problem :)

Loudspeaker

Live On Coliru

#include <boost/asio.hpp>
#include <boost/bind.hpp>
#include <boost/date_time/posix_time/posix_time_io.hpp>

static boost::posix_time::time_duration elapsed() {
    using namespace boost::posix_time;
    static ptime const t0 = microsec_clock::local_time();
    return (microsec_clock::local_time() - t0);
}

class Clock {
  public:
    using callback_t = std::function<void(int, Clock &)>;
    using duration_t = boost::posix_time::time_duration;

  public:
    Clock(boost::asio::io_service &io, callback_t callback = nullptr,
          duration_t duration = boost::posix_time::seconds(1), bool enable = true)
            : m_timer(io), m_duration(duration), m_callback(callback), m_enabled(false), m_count(0ul) 
    {
        if (enable)
            start();
    }

    void start() {
        if (!m_enabled) {
            m_enabled = true;
            m_timer.expires_from_now(m_duration);
            m_timer.async_wait(boost::bind(&Clock::tick, this, _1)); // std::bind _1 issue ?
        }
    }

    void stop() {
        if (m_enabled) {
            m_enabled = false;
            size_t c_cnt = m_timer.cancel();
#ifdef DEBUG
            printf("[DEBUG@%p] timer::stop : %lu ops cancelled\n", this, c_cnt);
#endif
        }
    }

    void tick(const boost::system::error_code &ec) {
        if (ec != boost::asio::error::operation_aborted) {
            m_timer.expires_at(m_timer.expires_at() + m_duration);
            m_timer.async_wait(boost::bind(&Clock::tick, this, _1));
            if (m_callback)
                m_callback(++m_count, *this);
        }
    }

    void reset_count()                     { m_count = 0ul;         } 
    size_t get_count() const               { return m_count;        } 

    void set_duration(duration_t duration) { m_duration = duration; } 
    const duration_t &get_duration() const { return m_duration;     } 

    void set_callback(callback_t callback) { m_callback = callback; } 
    const callback_t &get_callback() const { return m_callback;     } 

  private:
    boost::asio::deadline_timer m_timer;
    duration_t m_duration;
    callback_t m_callback;
    bool m_enabled;
    size_t m_count;
};

#include <iostream>

int main() {
    boost::asio::io_service ios;

    bool c1_active = true;

    Clock c1(ios, [&](int i, Clock& self)
            { 
                std::cout << elapsed() << "\t[C1 - fast] tick" << i << " (c1 active? " << std::boolalpha << c1_active << ")\n";
            },
            boost::posix_time::millisec(1)
            );

#if 1
    Clock c2(ios, [&](int i, Clock& self)
            {
                std::cout << elapsed() << "\t[C2 - slow] tick" << i << "\n";
                c1_active = (i % 2 == 0);

                if (c1_active)
                    c1.start();
                else
                    c1.stop();
            },
            boost::posix_time::millisec(10)
        );
#endif

    ios.run();
}