@litfamily/litcodex 1.0.0

package/marketplace/plugins/litcodex/skills/lit-code/references/rust/concurrency.md

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+# Concurrency Primitives
+
+Locks, atomics, channels, and the loom model checker. The decision tree that keeps the agent out of soundness trouble.
+
+## The pyramid
+
+```
+Highest level          tokio::sync::mpsc / broadcast / watch
+                       (message passing — default for new code)
+
+                       Arc<Mutex<T>> / Arc<RwLock<T>>
+                       (shared mutable state — common, easy to get right)
+
+                       parking_lot::{Mutex, RwLock, Condvar}
+                       (faster sync locks, no poisoning)
+
+                       Atomics (AtomicUsize, AtomicBool, AtomicPtr)
+                       (single-word lock-free state)
+
+Lowest level           UnsafeCell + unsafe + loom + miri
+                       (custom lock-free / wait-free primitives)
+```
+
+**Always start at the top.** Drop a level only when you have measured a real bottleneck.
+
+## Decision tree
+
+```
+Need to share state between tasks?
+├── State is configuration (read-only after start)
+│   └── Arc<Config>  (no lock needed)
+├── State is a queue of work
+│   └── tokio::sync::mpsc::channel(cap)
+├── State is "latest value" published to many readers
+│   └── tokio::sync::watch::channel(initial)
+├── State is broadcast (every consumer sees every value)
+│   └── tokio::sync::broadcast::channel(cap)
+├── State is request-response within one task tree
+│   └── tokio::sync::oneshot::channel()
+├── State is a counter
+│   └── AtomicU64 (or AtomicUsize)
+├── State is a flag / set-once
+│   └── AtomicBool / OnceLock<T> / OnceCell<T>
+├── State needs mutation across many tasks/threads, cheap critical sections
+│   ├── async context           → tokio::sync::Mutex<T>
+│   └── sync context (no .await held) → parking_lot::Mutex<T>
+├── State needs mutation, many readers, few writers
+│   ├── async context           → tokio::sync::RwLock<T>
+│   └── sync context            → parking_lot::RwLock<T>
+└── State is a custom lock-free primitive (channels, hazard pointers)
+    └── UnsafeCell + atomics + loom-tested + miri-tested + a co-author
+```
+
+## Atomics — when and how
+
+Use atomics for:
+- Counters incremented from many threads (`AtomicU64`).
+- Single-shot flags (`AtomicBool`).
+- Pointer publication (`AtomicPtr<T>`).
+
+### Memory orderings
+
+```rust
+use std::sync::atomic::{AtomicUsize, Ordering};
+
+let c = AtomicUsize::new(0);
+
+// Just need a count, no synchronization with other data
+c.fetch_add(1, Ordering::Relaxed);
+
+// Reading a counter that was incremented from elsewhere
+let n = c.load(Ordering::Relaxed);
+```
+
+| Ordering | When |
+|---|---|
+| `Relaxed` | Standalone counters, no other memory needs to be synchronized. |
+| `Acquire` (loads) / `Release` (stores) | Publish/consume pattern: you write some data then release a flag, readers acquire the flag then read the data. |
+| `AcqRel` | RMW that both reads-and-publishes (e.g., `fetch_add` on a sequence number). |
+| `SeqCst` | Total ordering across all `SeqCst` ops. Strongest, slowest. Use when in doubt and switch to a weaker ordering after testing under loom. |
+
+**Default to `SeqCst` if unsure.** Performance difference is usually negligible. Going weaker requires loom.
+
+### Publish-then-load pattern
+
+```rust
+static READY: AtomicBool = AtomicBool::new(false);
+static mut DATA: Option<Config> = None;
+
+// Producer thread:
+unsafe { DATA = Some(load_config()); }
+READY.store(true, Ordering::Release);
+
+// Consumer thread:
+if READY.load(Ordering::Acquire) {
+    // SAFETY: producer's Release pairs with our Acquire; if we see READY=true,
+    // we are guaranteed to also see the DATA write that happened-before it.
+    let cfg = unsafe { DATA.as_ref().unwrap() };
+}
+```
+
+This is the canonical Release/Acquire pattern. **Use `OnceLock<Config>` instead** in new code — it encapsulates exactly this with safe API.
+
+## Std vs parking_lot vs tokio for locks
+
+| | std::sync::Mutex | parking_lot::Mutex | tokio::sync::Mutex |
+|---|---|---|---|
+| Speed | Slowest (OS futex direct) | Fastest (smarter parking) | Slow (await-aware) |
+| Poisoning | Yes (`PoisonError`) | No | No |
+| Hold across `.await` | Dangerous (deadlock under current-thread runtime) | Dangerous | Safe |
+| Drop guard releases | Yes | Yes | Yes |
+| RAII | Yes (`MutexGuard`) | Yes | Yes |
+| Const constructor | Yes (since 1.63) | Yes | No |
+| Async | No | No | Yes |
+
+**Rule of thumb:**
+
+- Hot, short critical section, no await inside → `parking_lot::Mutex`.
+- Shared state held across `.await` → `tokio::sync::Mutex`.
+- Static init / app config → `OnceLock` or `LazyLock`.
+- Avoid `std::sync::Mutex` for new code; the poisoning behavior is more annoying than useful and `parking_lot` is strictly faster.
+
+### Common deadlock — async + sync mutex
+
+```rust
+let m = std::sync::Mutex::new(0u64);
+let guard = m.lock().unwrap();
+something_async().await;  // ❌ guard is held across await
+*guard += 1;
+```
+
+Under `current_thread` runtime this deadlocks (the future suspends while holding the lock; another future on the same thread tries to acquire, blocks the executor). Under `multi_thread` it works but serializes the system.
+
+Fix:
+
+```rust
+{
+    let mut guard = m.lock().unwrap();
+    *guard += 1;
+}  // guard released
+something_async().await;
+```
+
+Or switch to `tokio::sync::Mutex` whose guard is `Send` across awaits.
+
+## Channels
+
+### Mpsc — the workhorse
+
+```rust
+let (tx, mut rx) = tokio::sync::mpsc::channel::<Job>(256);
+
+tokio::spawn(async move {
+    while let Some(job) = rx.recv().await {
+        process(job).await;
+    }
+});
+
+tx.send(Job::new()).await?;  // backpressure: awaits if full
+```
+
+Capacity is the backpressure budget. **Never `unbounded_channel()`** unless you have a hard upper bound elsewhere; otherwise it is a slow-leak memory bomb.
+
+### Watch — latest-value pubsub
+
+```rust
+let (tx, mut rx) = tokio::sync::watch::channel(Config::default());
+
+// Producer:
+tx.send(new_config)?;
+
+// Consumer:
+loop {
+    rx.changed().await?;
+    let cfg = rx.borrow();
+    apply(&cfg);
+}
+```
+
+Receivers see only the latest value (older updates are dropped). Perfect for config reload, leadership changes, "current time" propagation.
+
+### Broadcast — fanout queue
+
+```rust
+let (tx, _) = tokio::sync::broadcast::channel::<Event>(1024);
+let mut rx1 = tx.subscribe();
+let mut rx2 = tx.subscribe();
+
+while let Ok(event) = rx1.recv().await {
+    // ...
+}
+```
+
+Each subscriber has its own buffer. If a subscriber falls behind by more than the buffer size, it gets `RecvError::Lagged(n)` and skips messages. Decide explicitly: log + continue, or drop the subscriber and reconnect.
+
+### Oneshot — single value
+
+```rust
+let (tx, rx) = tokio::sync::oneshot::channel::<Response>();
+worker.send(Request { reply: tx }).await?;
+let response = rx.await?;
+```
+
+The standard request/response pattern over an actor.
+
+## Semaphores
+
+Bound concurrent operations:
+
+```rust
+let sem = Arc::new(tokio::sync::Semaphore::new(10));
+
+for task in tasks {
+    let permit = sem.clone().acquire_owned().await?;
+    tokio::spawn(async move {
+        let _hold = permit;       // released when task exits
+        process(task).await
+    });
+}
+```
+
+Use cases:
+- "Max 10 outbound HTTP requests in flight."
+- "Max 3 DB connections doing writes."
+- "Max N tokio tasks running heavy CPU."
+
+A semaphore with `permits=1` is a mutex. Use the actual `Mutex` for that — clearer intent.
+
+## Arc and Rc
+
+`Arc<T>` for cross-thread shared ownership, `Rc<T>` for single-thread (never spans threads).
+
+```rust
+let shared = Arc::new(BigData::new());
+for _ in 0..workers {
+    let s = shared.clone();
+    tokio::spawn(async move { use_data(&s).await });
+}
+```
+
+`Arc::clone(&s)` is just a reference-count increment; the data is not copied.
+
+**Do not clone in hot loops** if you can pass a reference. `&Arc<T>` is fine to pass; only call `Arc::clone` when you need to move ownership across a thread/task boundary.
+
+`Weak<T>` for back-references in graphs / parent pointers to avoid cycles.
+
+## Once-init primitives
+
+```rust
+use std::sync::{OnceLock, LazyLock};
+
+// Lazy initialization, computed on first read
+static CONFIG: LazyLock<Config> = LazyLock::new(|| Config::load_from_env().unwrap());
+
+fn get_config() -> &'static Config {
+    &CONFIG
+}
+
+// One-shot publication, set explicitly
+static DB: OnceLock<sqlx::PgPool> = OnceLock::new();
+
+#[tokio::main]
+async fn main() {
+    let pool = sqlx::PgPool::connect(&env_url()).await.unwrap();
+    DB.set(pool).expect("only set once");
+    // Now everywhere: DB.get().unwrap()
+}
+```
+
+`OnceLock` is `std::sync` and stable. `LazyLock` is in `std::sync` since 1.80. Avoid the older `once_cell` crate for new code.
+
+## Loom — model-checking lock-free code
+
+When `unsafe` participates in a concurrent algorithm, miri's single-thread model is insufficient. Loom exhaustively explores thread interleavings.
+
+`Cargo.toml`:
+
+```toml
+[target.'cfg(loom)'.dev-dependencies]
+loom = "0.7"
+```
+
+In code, switch between real and loom primitives:
+
+```rust
+#[cfg(loom)]
+use loom::sync::atomic::{AtomicUsize, Ordering};
+#[cfg(not(loom))]
+use std::sync::atomic::{AtomicUsize, Ordering};
+
+#[cfg(loom)]
+use loom::sync::Arc;
+#[cfg(not(loom))]
+use std::sync::Arc;
+```
+
+Write a test:
+
+```rust
+#[cfg(loom)]
+mod loom_tests {
+    use super::*;
+    use loom::thread;
+
+    #[test]
+    fn concurrent_push_pop_preserves_order() {
+        loom::model(|| {
+            let queue = Arc::new(MyQueue::new());
+            let q1 = queue.clone();
+            let q2 = queue.clone();
+            let h1 = thread::spawn(move || q1.push(1));
+            let h2 = thread::spawn(move || q2.pop());
+            h1.join().unwrap();
+            h2.join().unwrap();
+            // Assert the invariant: queue is in a coherent state.
+        });
+    }
+}
+```
+
+Run:
+
+```bash
+RUSTFLAGS="--cfg loom" cargo test --release -- --test-threads 1
+```
+
+Loom explores every legal scheduling of the threads, including those a real scheduler would rarely produce. If your code has a race, loom will find it deterministically.
+
+### Loom's limits
+
+- Slow. Each `loom::model` invocation explores many schedules; keep tests tiny (2-3 threads, a few operations each).
+- Single-machine only. Doesn't model distributed systems.
+- Doesn't catch UB inside `unsafe` blocks the way miri does. **Run both: miri for memory safety, loom for thread schedules.**
+- Doesn't handle `tokio` directly. Loom replaces stdlib's sync primitives; tokio's are independent.
+
+## Send and Sync — what they mean
+
+- `T: Send` — `T` can be moved between threads safely.
+- `T: Sync` — `&T` can be shared between threads safely.
+
+These are auto-derived for composite types if all components implement them. Manual `unsafe impl Send/Sync` is required only for raw pointer types and FFI handles.
+
+```rust
+struct MyHandle { raw: *mut FfiObject }
+
+// SAFETY: FfiObject's documented contract states that move-between-threads
+// is safe as long as concurrent use is externally synchronized. We do not
+// implement Sync because the FFI object is single-threaded once obtained.
+unsafe impl Send for MyHandle {}
+// Do NOT impl Sync — the FFI is not thread-safe.
+```
+
+When the compiler complains that "T: Send is not satisfied", the cause is usually a raw pointer, an `Rc` (not `Arc`), or a `RefCell` (use `Mutex`).
+
+## Common mistakes
+
+1. **Holding a `std::sync::Mutex` guard across `.await`.** Compiles, deadlocks at runtime under `current_thread`.
+2. **`Arc::clone` in a tight loop.** Refcount bump is cheap but not free; pass `&Arc<T>` when possible.
+3. **`Mutex<HashMap<K, V>>` for hot reads.** Switch to `RwLock` or `Arc<dashmap::DashMap>`.
+4. **Atomic operations with `Ordering::Relaxed` for happens-before publication.** You need `Release`/`Acquire`. Run under loom to be sure.
+5. **Unbounded channels.** Always set capacity. If you "know it won't backlog", you don't, and it will.
+6. **Spawning detached tokio tasks for fire-and-forget cleanup.** Use `JoinSet` so panics surface.
+7. **`std::mem::transmute` to fake `Send`/`Sync`.** Use `unsafe impl` with a SAFETY comment instead. Transmute breaks Stacked Borrows and miri.
+8. **Locking order inversion across two mutexes.** Always acquire in a globally consistent order. For more than three locks, switch to a single mutex around a struct.
+
+## When to escape to lock-free
+
+You should reach for atomics + `UnsafeCell` only when:
+1. The hot path is **measured** to be bottlenecked on lock contention.
+2. There is no existing library (crossbeam, atomic-queue, hazardous) that solves your problem.
+3. You can write loom tests that pass.
+4. You can write miri tests that pass.
+5. You have at least one other engineer who can review the algorithm.
+
+Practically all "I want to write a lock-free queue" projects fail (3) or (4). When in doubt, take the lock and move on.