[ntp:hackers] Patches to reinstate rank variable and add end keyword.

Danny Mayer mayer at gis.net
Sat Aug 6 18:52:56 UTC 2005


Paul Vixie wrote:
> # > I don't care about how to implement an asynchronous resolver and forking
> # > is fine with me. That's the way the code used to do it and somebody took
> # > it out.
> # 
> # Dave, that's not true. That code is still there.
> 
> then forget my note about popen(), plz, and reenable the old fork()-based
> asynchronous resolver, and we'll proceed as though this problem was solved
> (rather than worked around).
> 
> # The current proposal is to port the ISC's BIND 8 eventlib code (though I
> # think it originated from somewhere else, Paul can tell you for sure) and
> # use that to handle the asynchonous resolver issues.
> 
> that's not the current proposal.  the current proposal is to rip select()
> out of ntpd's mainline and convert all of ntpd to use ISC eventlib so that
> ntpd's asynchrony can be portable.  at which point it's a trivial matter
> for me to come up with an asynchronous resolver that fits that framework.
> (an asynchronous resolver needs multiple file descriptors, plus the ability
> to open tcp sockets and wait for them to complete, plus multiple timers;
> ISC eventlib provides all of this, portably; ntpd's mainline provides all
> of this, non-portably.)
> 
> and ISC eventlib originated with me, not from anywhere else.  there's a huge
> API debt owed by eventlib to MIT-X11-Xt and DEC-SRC-Modula3, but no source
> code except what i wrote originally, and what bob halley rewrote, and
> various bug fixes over the years.  here's a copy of the freebsd version of
> the man page for this library.  i'll repeat my earlier offer to convert ntpd
> to this asynchrony framework, assuming that poul henning-kamp will help me.
> i'll also repeat my earlier offer to release an asynchronous resolver that
> lives within this framework, if ntpd is successfully converted to this
> framework.
> 

In my opinion we should do it. It would resolve (no pun intended) a lot 
of problems we currently have in NTP. The only issue that I would bring 
up is the fact that this code uses timers and ntp fiddles with the 
clock. Would this cause any problems with the eventlib code?

Danny




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