NAME

POE::Component::Client::TCP - a simplified TCP client

SYNOPSIS

  #!perl

  use warnings;
  use strict;

  use POE qw(Component::Client::TCP);

  POE::Component::Client::TCP->new(
    RemoteAddress => "yahoo.com",
    RemotePort    => 80,
    Connected     => sub {
      $_[HEAP]{server}->put("HEAD /");
    },
    ServerInput   => sub {
      my $input = $_[ARG0];
      print "from server: $input\n";
    },
  );

  POE::Kernel->run();
  exit;

-><- OLD SYNOPSIS BEGINS HERE

  # Complete usage.

  my $session_id = POE::Component::Client::TCP->new
    ( RemoteAddress  => "127.0.0.1",
      RemotePort     => "chargen",
      BindAddress    => "127.0.0.1",
      BindPort       => 8192,
      Domain         => AF_INET,        # Optional.
      Alias          => $session_alias  # Optional.
      ConnectTimeout => 5,              # Seconds; optional.

      SessionType   => "POE::Session::Abc",           # Optional.
      SessionParams => [ options => { debug => 1 } ], # Optional.

      Started        => \&handle_starting,   # Optional.
      Args           => [ "arg0", "arg1" ],  # Optional.  Start args.

      Connected      => \&handle_connect,
      ConnectError   => \&handle_connect_error,
      Disconnected   => \&handle_disconnect,

      ServerInput    => \&handle_server_input,
      ServerError    => \&handle_server_error,
      ServerFlushed  => \&handle_server_flush,

      Filter         => "POE::Filter::Something",

      InlineStates   => { ... },
      PackageStates  => [ ... ],
      ObjectStates   => [ ... ],
    );

  # Sample callbacks.

  sub handle_start {
    my @args = @_[ARG0..$#_];
  }

  sub handle_connect {
    my ($socket, $peer_address, $peer_port) = @_[ARG0, ARG1, ARG2];
  }

  sub handle_connect_error {
    my ($syscall_name, $error_number, $error_string) = @_[ARG0, ARG1, ARG2];
  }

  sub handle_disconnect {
    # no special parameters
  }

  sub handle_server_input {
    my $input_record = $_[ARG0];
  }

  sub handle_server_error {
    my ($syscall_name, $error_number, $error_string) = @_[ARG0, ARG1, ARG2];
  }

  sub handle_server_flush {
    # no special parameters
  }

  # Reserved HEAP variables:

  $heap->{server}    = ReadWrite wheel representing the server.
  $heap->{shutdown}  = Shutdown flag (check to see if shutting down).
  $heap->{connected} = Connected flag (check to see if session is connected).
  $heap->{shutdown_on_error} = Automatically disconnect on error.

  # Accepted public events.

  $kernel->yield( "connect", $host, $port )  # connect to a new host/port
  $kernel->yield( "reconnect" )  # reconnect to the previous host/port
  $kernel->yield( "shutdown" )   # shut down a connection gracefully

  # Responding to a server.

  $heap->{server}->put(@things_to_send);

DESCRIPTION

POE::Component::Client::TCP implements a generic single-Session client. Internally it uses POE::Wheel::SocketFactory to establish the connection and POE::Wheel::ReadWrite to interact with the server.

POE::Component::Cilent::TCP is customized by providing callbacks for common operations. Most operations have sensible default callbacks, so clients may be created with as little work as possible.

Performance Considerations

POE::Component::Client::TCP's ease of use comes at a price. The component is generic, so it's not tuned to perform well for any particular application.

If performance is your primary goal, POE::Kernel's select_read() and select_write() perform about the same as IO::Select, but your code will be portable across every event loop POE supports.

PUBLIC METHODS

new

new() starts a client based on POE::Component::Client::TCP and returns the ID of the session that will handle server interaction.

new() returns immediately, which may be before the client has established its connection. It is always reliable to wait for the Connected callback to fire before transmitting data to the server.

The client's constructor may seem to take a daunting number of parameters. As with most POE modules, POE::Component::Client::TCP tries to do as much work in its constructor so that the runtime code path is relatively light.

Constructor Parameters Affecting the Session

The parameters in this section affect how the client's POE::Session object will be created.

Alias

Alias is an optional symbolic name for the client's Session. It allows other sessions to post events to the client, such as "shutdown" and "reconnect". The client itself may yield() these events, so an alias isn't usually needed.

  Alias => "client",

Args

Args is optional. When specified, it holds an ARRAYREF that will be passed to the Started callback via @_[ARG0..$#_]. This allows a program to pass extra information into the client session.

InlineStates

InlineStates is optional. If specified, it must hold a hashref of named callbacks. Its syntax is that of POE:Session->create()'s inline_states parameter.

ObjectStates

If ObjectStates is specified, it must holde an arrayref of objects and the events they will handle. The arrayref must follow the syntax for POE::Session->create()'s object_states parameter.

PackageStates

When the optional PackageStates is set, it must hold an arrayref of package names and the events they will handle The arrayref must follow the syntax for POE::Session->create()'s package_states parameter.

SessionType

Each client is created within its own Session. SessionType names the class that will be used to create the session.

  SessionType => "POE::Session::MultiDispatch",

SessionType is optional. The component will use "POE::Session" by default.

SessionParams

SessionParams specifies additional parameters that will be passed to the SessionType constructor at creation time. It must be an array reference.

  SessionParams => [ options => { debug => 1, trace => 1 } ],

Note: POE::Component::Client::TCP supplies its own POE::Session constructor parameters. Conflicts between them and SessionParams may cause the component to behave erratically. To avoid such problems, please limit SessionParams to the options hash. See POE::Session for an known options.

We may enable other options later. Please let us know if you need something.

Started

Started sets an optional callback that will be invoked within the client session has been started. The callback's parameters are the usual for the session's _start handler.

Args may be used to pass additional parameters to Started. This can be used to bypass issues introduced by closures. The values from Args will be included in the @_[ARG0..$#_] parameters.

POE::Wheel::SocketFactory Constructor Parameters

The constructor parameters in this section affect how the client's POE::Wheel::SocketFactory object will be created.

BindAddress

BindAddress specifies the local interface address to bind to before starting to connect. This allows the client to connect from a specific address when multiple interfaces are available.

BindAddress is optional. If specified, its value will be passed directly to POE::Wheel::SocketFactory's BindAddress constructor parameter.

BindPort

BindPort sets the local socket port that the client will be bound to before starting to connect. This allows the client to connect from a specific port.

It's not usually necessary to bind to a particular port, so BindPort is optional and disabled by default.

If specified, the value in BindPort is passed directly to POE::Wheel::SocketFactory's own BindPort constructor parameter.

ConnectError

ConnectError is an optional callback to handle errors from POE::Wheel::SocketFactory. These errors happen when a socket can't be created or has trouble connecting to the remote host.

The following parameters will be passed to the callback along with the usual POE event parameters: $_[ARG0] will describe what was happening at the time of failure. $_[ARG1] and $_[ARG2] will contain the numeric and string versions of $!, respectively.

Depending on the nature of the error and the type of client, it may be useful to reconnect from the ConnectError callback.

  ConnectError => sub {
    $_[KERNEL]->delay( reconnect => 60 );
  },

POE::Component::Client::TCP will shut down after ConnectError if a reconnect isn't requested.

Connected

Connections are asynchronously set up and may take some time to complete. Connected is an optional callback that notifies a program when the connection has finally been made.

This is an advisory callback that occurs after a POE::Wheel::ReadWrite object has already been created. Programs should not need to create their own.

Connected is called in response to POE::Wheel::SocketFactory's SuccessEvent. In addition to the usual POE event parameters, it includes a copy of the established socket handle in $_[ARG0]. POE::Component::Client::TCP will manage the socket, so an application should rarely need to save a copy of it. $_[ARG1] and $_[ARG2] contain the remote address and port as returned from getpeername().

ConnectTimeout

ConnectTimeout is the maximum number of seconds to wait for a connection to be established. If it is omitted, Client::TCP relies on the operating system to abort stalled connect() calls.

The application will be notified of a timeout via the ConnectError callback. In the case of a timeout, $_[ARG0] will contain "connect", and $_[ARG1] and $_[ARG2] will contain the numeric and string representations of the ETIMEDOUT error.

Domain

Domain sets the address or protocol family within which to operate. The Domain may be any value that POE::Wheel::SocketFactory supports. AF_INET (Internet address space) is used by default.

Use AF_INET6 for IPv6 support. This constant is exported by Socket6, which must be loaded before POE::Component::Client::TCP.

RemoteAddress

RemoteAddress contains the address of the server to connect to. It is required and may contain a host name ("poe.perl.org"), a dot- or colon-separated numeric address (depending on the Domain), or a packed socket address. Pretty much anything POE::Wheel::SocketFactory's RemoteAddress parameter does.

RemotePort

RemotePort contains the port of the server to connect to. It is required and may be a service name ("echo") or number (7).

POE::Wheel::ReadWrite Constructor Parameters

Parameters in this section control configuration of the client's POE::Wheel::ReadWrite object.

Disconnected

Disconnected is an optional callback to notify a program that an established socket has been disconnected. It includes no special parameters.

It may be useful to reconnect from the Disconnected callback, in the case of MUD bots or long-running services. For example:

  Disconnected => {
    $_[KERNEL]->delay( reconnect => 60 );
  },

The component will shut down if the connection ceases without being reconnected.

Filter

Filter specifies the type of POE::Filter object that will parse input from and serialize output to a server. It may either be a scalar, an array reference, or a POE::Filter object.

If Filter is a scalar, it will be expected to contain a POE::Filter class name:

  Filter => "POE::Filter::Line",

Filter is optional. In most cases, the default "POE::Filter::Line" is fine.

If Filter is an array reference, the first item in the array will be treated as a POE::Filter class name. The remaining items will be passed to the filter's constructor. In this example, the vertical bar will be used as POE::Filter::Line's record terminator:

  Filter => [ "POE::Filter::Line", Literal => "|" ],

If it is an object, it will be cloned every time the client connects:

  Filter => POE::Filter::Line->new(Literal => "|"),

Be sure to use the appropriate POE::Filter subclass when specifying a Filter other than the default.

ServerError

ServerError is an optional callback that will be invoked when an established server connection has encountered some kind of error. It is triggered by POE::Wheel::ReadWrite's ErrorEvent.

As with ConnectError, it is invoked with the customary error parameters: $_[ARG0] will contain the name of the operation that failed. $_[ARG1] and $_[ARG2] will hold the numeric and string forms of $!, respectively.

Components usually disconnect on error. POE::Component::Client::TCP will shut down if the socket disconnects without being reconnected.

ServerFlushed

ServerFlushed is an optional callback to notify a program that ReadWrite's output buffers have completely flushed. It has no special parameters.

The component will shut down after a server flush if $heap->{shutdown} is set.

ServerInput

ServerInput is a requried callback. It is called for each fully parsed input record received by POE::Wheel::ReadWrite. $_[ARG0] contains the input record, the format of which is determined by the Filter constructor parameter.

SeverInput will stop being called when $_[HEAP]{shutdown} is true. The most reliable way to set the "shutdown" member is to call $_[KERNEL]->yield("shutdown").

Public Events

POE::Component::Client::TCP handles a small number of public "command" messages. These may be posted into the client from an external session, or yielded from within the client.

connect

The connect event causes POE::Component::Client::TCP to begin connecting to a server. It optionally provides a new RemoteHost and RemotePort, both of which will be used for subsequent reconnections.

  $_[KERNEL]->post(alias => connect => "127.0.0.1", 80);

If the client is already connected to a server, it will disconnect immediately before beginning the new connection procedure. Buffered input and output will be lost.

reconnect

The reconnect command causes POE::Component::Client::TCP to immediately disconnect its current connection and begin reconnecting to its most recently set RemoteHost and RemotePort. Any buffered input and output will be lost.

shutdown

The shutdown command tells POE::Component::Client::TCP to flush its buffers, disconnect, and begin DESTROY procedures.

All input will be discarded after receipt of "shutdown". All pending output will be written to the server socket before disconnecting and destructing.

CAVEATS

This looks nothing like what Ann envisioned.

POE::Component::Client::TCP is a generic client. As such, it's not tuned for any particular task. While it handles the common cases well and with a minimum of code, it may not be suitable for everything.

AUTHORS & COPYRIGHTS

POE::Component::Client::TCP is Copyright 2001-2009 by Rocco Caputo. All rights are reserved. POE::Component::Client::TCP is free software, and it may be redistributed and/or modified under the same terms as Perl itself.

POE::Component::Client::TCP is based on code, used with permission, from Ann Barcomb <kudra@domaintje.com>.

POE::Component::Client::TCP is based on code, used with permission, from Jos Boumans <kane@cpan.org>.

To install POE, copy and paste the appropriate command in to your terminal.

cpanm

cpanm POE

CPAN shell

perl -MCPAN -e shell
install POE

For more information on module installation, please visit the detailed CPAN module installation guide.

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