socket.accept()

[sismex01 at hebmex.com]

> From: marco [mailto:marco.rossini at gmx.ch]
> Sent: Monday, February 10, 2003 5:44 PM
> 
> very much simplified a function looks like this:
> 
> def run():
>   mysocket = socket.socket(blabla)
>   mysocket.bind(blabla)
>   mysocket.listen(1)
>   while 1:
>     newsocket, addr = mysocket.accept()
>     # and so on...
> 
> now this loop is in a thread which, once started, will
> never die. since a thread must (?) be killed at the
> end of the program i do have a problem, because the
> program just doesn't exit
> how can i stopp the .accept()?
> 
> any help would be appreciated
> 
> ->marco

Gweepnings Marco, I've had the same problem but not
anymore :-)

Instead of looping through a "while 1:", use a flag
object, which evaluates as true.  Simple classes are
nice:


class FlagObject(object):
    def __init__(self, value):
        self.value = not not value
        self.lock = thread.allocate_lock()

    def __nonzero__(self):
        self.lock.acquire()
        try:
            return self.value
        finally:
            self.lock.release()

    def set(self):
        self.lock.acquire()
        try:
            self.value = 1
        finally:
            self.lock.release()

    def clear(self):
        self.lock.acquire()
        try:
            self.value = None
        finally:
            self.lock.release()



Of course, some will say that the locking stuff is
excessive for such a small class, and maybe they're
right, but let's keep things (mildly) threadsafe.
So, you can evaluate an object's state just by
using it as a boolean expression:



def ThreadFunction(flag):
    ....
    .... setuf stuff
    ....
    while flag:
        ....
        .... socket stuff
        ....
    ...
    ... shutdown stuff
    ...

In the controller thread, when you want to signal the
thread that it must exit, you change the object so that
now it evaluates as false.  Remember that it must be
a reference to the same object you ran the function
with:

    # Start thread.
    ContinueRunning = FlagObject(1)
    thread.start_new_thread(ThreadFunction, (ContinueRunning,))

    # Do s'more stuff.
    ....

    # Time to shutdown the thread.
    ContinueRunning.clear()


and wait for the thread to exit. Presto!

Good luck :-)

-gustavo

pd: and no, I don't like the threading module.
    Call me "primitive" ;-)