farolero

farolero masc. n.

Historical Spanish, meaning "lamplighter", e.g. "A lamplighter claimed to have seen Jack the Ripper on this street last night."

Error handling in Clojure is not yet a solved problem. Each method of handling errors commonly used comes with downsides. Representing error states with nil is convenient for code structure, but prevents detailed error information from being conveyed to the program outside of logs. The either monad requires special syntax to be convenient for use and offers no options for error recovery. Exceptions are the default way to handle errors in the JVM, but Clojure has no easy way to extend the exception mechanism with new types, limiting how much control you have over which errors you handle without re-throwing. Condition libraries like special give the programmer tools for reporting errors but limited options in recovery, or break in multithreaded contexts.

This library implements an improved version of these conditions, very close to the spec defined for Common Lisp's conditions and restarts. This method of handling errors follows the Clojure philosophy of decomplection by separating error handling into three parts: reporting, reconciliation, and recovery.

Installation

The library is available on Clojars. Just add the following to your deps.edn file in the :deps key.

{org.suskalo/farolero {:mvn/version "1.0.1"}}

Because this library relies on gen-class, it requires that you run the :build alias if you wish to use it locally. Unfortunately this means you can't use it as a git dependency, although you can download it locally, run the alias, and use a local dependency.

Usage

In this library there are three major components: conditions, handlers, and restarts. Each one represents one of the three parts error handling is split into when using this library. In places where an error might arise, you bind restarts, named sections of code which provide ways to recover from an error.

If you're an experienced Common Lisper, then most of this should be review, but you may wish to skim further ahead to the code examples to see the few places where the syntax differs.

Handlers

Handlers are functions that are run when an error is encountered to decide how to recover from the situation.

(handler-case (signal ::signal)
  (::signal [condition]
    (println condition)
    (println "Handled the signal!")
    :result))
;; :user/signal
;; Handled the signal!
;; => :result

The macro handler-case executes the expression it's passed in a context where the handlers below are called when a condition is signaled. In general, handler-case is used when you can replace the entire expression wholesale with the result from the handler. When a condition with a handler is signaled, control flow is immediately passed out of the expression and to the handler.

(handler-case (do (signal ::signal)
                  (println "Never reached"))
  (::signal [condition]
    (println "Handled the signal!")
    :result))
;; Handled the signal!
;; => :result

This construct acts very similarly to Java's throw and catch. However, additional arguments beyond the condition can be passed to the handler.

(handler-case (signal ::signal "world" :other-argument)
  (::signal [condition s v]
    (println "Hello," s)
    (prn v)))
;; Hello, world
;; :other-argument
;; => nil

This works through the entire dynamic scope of the expression passed, so the signal may be made arbitrarily deep in the stack.

(defn f
  []
  (signal ::signal :result))

(defn g
  []
  (f))

(handler-case (g)
  (::signal [condition res]
    res))
;; => :result

If a condition is signaled and there's no handler bound, then signal will return nil.

(signal ::signal)
;; => nil

Conditions

Conditions are the values that get signaled. Namespaced keywords are used for the default signals, but they aren't the only values which can be used. Any object except for an un-namespaced keyword may be used as a signal.

(handler-case (signal (RuntimeException. "An exception"))
  (Exception [ex]
    (println (.getMessage ex))
    :result))
;; An exception
;; => :result

This example also shows that handlers are applied with regard for inheritance. This inheritance is both through Java's inheritance hierarchy, and also by Clojure's default hierarchy.

(handler-case (signal :farolero.core/simple-condition)
  (:farolero.core/condition [condition]
    :result))
;; => :result

When you call signal with any value, farolero will ensure that it derives from :farolero.core/condition, at least indirectly. If the value derives from :farolero.core/condition indirectly, then nothing changes.

(contains? (ancestors ::random-condition) :farolero.core/condition)
;;  => false
(handler-case (signal ::random-condition)
  (:farolero.core/condition [condition]
    :result))
;; => :result
(contains? (ancestors ::random-condition) :farolero.core/condition)
;; => true

There are multiple ways to signal conditions with farolero. The way to signal conditions we've used so far is signal. In addition there are warn, error, and cerror (we'll talk about cerror when we discuss restarts).

(handler-case (error ::random-error)
  (:farolero.core/error [condition]
    :result))

Conditions used for warn are made to derive :farolero.core/warning, and for error and cerror the conditions derive :farolero.core/error. All Java classes that extend from Exception also derive :farolero.core/error, and the same for js/Error in ClojureScript.

When you know the return value to be used as a replacement for the whole expression, handler-case is the way to bind a handler. However, in some cases you may not want to abort execution of the expression in order to handle the condition. In these cases, handler-bind is more appropriate.

(handler-bind [::signal (fn [condition]
                          (println "In the condition handler."))]
  (signal ::signal))
;; In the condition handler.
;; => nil

If a handler bound in this way returns normally (rather than via e.g. throw), then signal (and the other condition signaling functions) will keep searching for another handler which applies.

(handler-bind [:farolero.core/condition (fn [condition]
                                          (println "In outer handler"))]
  (handler-bind [::signal (fn [condition]
                            (println "In inner handler"))]
    (signal ::signal)))
;; In inner handler
;; In outer handler
;; => nil

If calling warn and all the handlers return normally, or no handler is found, then the condition is printed to *err*.

(warn "something went weird")
;; WARNING: :semaphore.core/simple-warning signaled with arguments "something went weird"
;; => nil

Restarts

Handlers give you a method of reacting to conditions when they are signaled. Restarts provide a method of resuming the computation based on what environment it's executing in. The macro restart-case mirrors handler-case, but with invoke-restart taking the place of signal.

(restart-case (invoke-restart ::restart)
  (::restart []
    (println "Invoked the restart!")
    :result))
;; Invoked the restart!
;; => :result

Unlike handlers, there is no inheritance between different restarts. Jumping to a particular restart must be done by exact name, and only keywords can be used as restart names.

Just like handler-case, invoking a restart in restart-case immediately unwinds to outside of the expression and invokes the restart.

(restart-case (do (invoke-restart ::restart)
                  (println "Never reached"))
  (::restart []
    (println "Invoked the restart!")
    :result))
;; Invoked the restart!
;; => :result

The warn and cerror functions each bind a restart that can be used by handlers for the condition which gets signaled. The warn function binds :farolero.core/muffle-warning (which can be called by the muffle-warning function) which prevents the warning from being printed and continues execution of the program.

(handler-bind [::warning (fn [condition]
                           (muffle-warning))]
  (warn ::warning))
;; => nil

The cerror function binds a :farolero.core/continue restart (which can be called by the continue function) which continues as if the error never happened.

(handler-bind [::error (fn [condition]
                         (continue))]
  (cerror ::error))
;; => nil

When binding restarts, a test function can be provided that will be called to test if the restart should be visible at any given time. This function must take optional rest arguments for a condition the restart is being searched for in the context of and its arguments.

(restart-case (find-restart ::some-restart)
  (::some-restart [] :test (constantly nil)
    (println "Impossible to reach")))
;; => nil

As demonstrated above, find-restart may be called to find the first applicable restart with a given name. You can call invoke-restart directly with its return value instead of with the restart name to prevent the need to look it up again.

The function compute-restarts returns a list of visible restarts, each value of which includes a :farolero.core/restart-name key containing the restart's name.

One restart is always bound, named :farolero.core/throw. It immediately throws the condition using ex-info.

A dual to restart-case and mirror to handler-bind is restart-bind. It has the same syntax as handler-bind, and when a restart is invoked, it is invoked as a normal function and does not unwind the stack. This is generally not particularly useful as if non-local transfer of control does not occur in the restart, it will return to the code calling it, likely meaning that further handlers will be invoked. The primary use of this macro is in the implementation of additional facilities built atop restarts, such as restart-case.

The Debugger

When error or cerror is called and no handler is bound for the condition being signaled, the debugger is invoked using the function invoke-debugger.

(restart-case (error ::ayy)
  (::some-restart [])
  (::some-other-restart []))
;; => throws an ex-info "Unhandled condition"

By default, the debugger will just throw the condition (wrapping it if it's not already an exception). This enables library developers to use conditions without requiring their users to learn farolero. For code that wants to use an interactive debugger however, the following line should be included.

(alter-var-root #'farolero.core/*debugger-hook* nil)

This will deactivate the debugger that throws exceptions, and allow farolero to use the "system debugger" that is built in. This can, for example, be done either at the top level or at runtime for an application, or in a namespace loaded only during development (like user) for a library.

(restart-case (error ::ayy)
  (::some-restart [])
  (::some-other-restart []))
;; Debugger level 1 entered on :user/ayy
;; :user/ayy was signaled with arguments nil
;; 0 [:user/some-restart] :user/some-restart
;; 1 [:user/some-other-restart] :user/some-other-restart
;; 2 [:farolero.core/throw] Throw the condition as an exception
;; user> 0
;; Provide an expression that evaluates to the argument list for the restart
;; user> nil
;; => nil

When the system debugger is invoked, it reports the condition which triggered it, and lists the restarts available in the current context. If you enter a simple number that's an index of one of the available restarts, then that restart will be invoked interactively, prompting the user for input. If the restart has no special handling for being invoked interactively, as the restarts above, a default interactive handler will be used.

Instead of using a number, arbitrary expressions may be evaluated at the debugger before providing a restart to continue with. This may be used to get the program into a state where the error may be continued from without issues.

If any more unhandled errors arise during the debugger's evaluation, then an additional recursive layer of the debugger is invoked.

(error ::ayy)
;; Debugger level 1 entered on :user/ayy
;; :user/ayy was signaled with arguments nil
;; 0 [:farolero.core/throw] Throw the condition as an exception
;; user> (error "oy")
;; Debugger level 2 entered on :farolero.core/simple-error
;; oy
;; 0 [:farolero.core/abort] Return to level 1 of the debugger
;; 1 [:farolero.core/throw] Throw the condition as an exception
;; user>

When inside recursive layers of the debugger, the :farolero.core/abort restart is bound, allowing you to return to higher levels of the debugger and work from there.

The debugger and interactive restarts use *in* and *out* for input and output.

In some contexts, it may be desirable to have alternative behavior when conditions are raised without an applicable handler, rather than invoking the default interactive debugger (e.g. writing a custom GUI debugger). The dynamic variable *debugger-hook* can be bound to change the behavior of invoke-debugger. The default value for the hook is throwing-debugger, which is a function that will throw any conditions it is invoked with.

When making custom debuggers, the user binds a function to the hook. The bound function must take two arguments, first a list of the condition and its arguments, and the second is the currently bound debugger hook, which should be used to invoke the debugger again rather than calling invoke-debugger directly, or to bind *debugger-hook* again before calling other code, as invoke-debugger unbinds the hook before calling it, so that if an error is raised in it the system debugger will be invoked instead.

If the *debugger-hook* is bound to nil, it will invoke the system debugger, which by default is the debugger described above. The *system-debugger* dynamic variable contains the debugger to be called in this situation. This variable should never be bound to nil.

The break function can be used to create breakpoints in your code. When called, it binds *debugger-hook* to nil before calling invoke-debugger, ensuring the system debugger is used. This allows the primary debugger to be one which automatically handles errors, such as throwing-debugger, but when break is called, the system debugger will be invoked, allowing the user to interactively debug the application before resuming execution.

When binding restarts, additional information can be provided for use with the debugger. A report function can be provided, as well as a function invoked to interactively request any needed arguments to the restart function.

(restart-case (error ::ayy)
  (::some-restart []
    :report (fn [restart] (str "Value for some restart"))
    :interactive (constantly nil)
    :result))
;; Debugger level 1 entered on :user/ayy
;; :user/ayy was signaled with arguments nil
;; 0 [:user/some-restart] Value for some restart
;; 1 [:farolero.core/throw] Throw the condition as an exception
;; user> 0
;; => :result

Applications

The primary use of restarts is to provide ways to continue a computation after a condition has been signaled. When writing code that could potentially fail or run into an unexpected situation, bind restarts for each potential method of recovery. Handlers further up the stack can then choose which recovery method based on the condition which is raised and the context.

TODO: Describe an example application making use of conditions and restarts to demonstrate their usefulness.

Library Developers

TODO: Describe ways that library developers can use farolero without making their interfaces more complicated.

Laziness and Dynamic Scope

Condition handlers and restarts are bound only inside a particular dynamic scope. Clojure provides facilities for deferring calculations to a later time with things like delay and laziness. In order for a function which produces a lazy sequence or other deferred calculation which relies on conditions to work properly, you must ensure that any part of the calculation which is realized must do so with handlers bound for the conditions it might signal, and restarts bound for what it may invoke. The easiest way to ensure this is to fully realize any data returned from functions which use conditions. A quick and dirty way to do this which should work on any immutable Clojure data is to call pr-str on the data, discarding the resulting string. This is the method used by special, but it may fail when using Java types or types which do not fully realize their values when printed. This library does not attempt to force all of your functions to return fully-realized data structures, but instead gives you the flexibility to realize things as you like. Just be aware that if you are consistently receiving errors about unhandled conditions when working from the repl, you may be having problems with laziness.

Multithreading

Both handlers and restarts are bound thread-locally, and do not carry over into futures or core.async/go blocks, even with dynamic variable conveyance. This is intentional. The semantics of a restart moving across thread boundaries is difficult to determine in any case where a non-local return might occur, and any handlers bound in a given dynamic context may attempt to invoke restarts without awareness of which thread is calling them, and as a result, farolero simply disallows handlers and restarts crossing thread boundaries.

When using libraries which add forms of concurrency besides simple threads (core.async, promesa, manifold, etc.), care must be taken to ensure that code run in the context of handlers and restarts is run on the same thread that bound them. This means that, for example, in a core.async go block, you must not park inside the dynamic scope of restarts or handlers if they are to be used.

In a case where you attempt to access a restart or handler which is not bound in the current thread, a :farolero.core/control-error will be signaled.

The system debugger included with farolero also supports multithreaded contexts. If the debugger is invoked from a thread while it is already active, it will be queued for later use. If the user wishes to switch which debugger is active while debugging, they may enter :switch-debugger at the repl, followed by the index of the debugger they wish to switch to. If something other than a number is read, a control error is signaled with restarts bound to retry and to abort and go back to the debugger you started from.

user=> (error "Error from thread 1")
;; Debugger level 1 entered on :farolero.core/simple-error
;; Error from thread 1
;; 0 [:farolero.core/throw] Throw the condition as an exception
;; user> (future (error "Error from thread 2"))
;; #object[clojure.core$future_call$reify__8477 0x646c0a67 {:status :pending, :val nil}]
;; user> :switch-debugger
;; Debuggers from other threads
;; 0 [clojure-agent-send-off-pool-0] Error from thread 2
;; Debugger to activate: 0
;; Debugger level 1 entered on :farolero.core/simple-error
;; Error from thread 2
;; 0 [:farolero.core/throw] Throw the condition as an exception
;; user> 0
;; Debugger level 1 entered on :farolero.core/simple-error
;; Error from thread 1
;; 0 [:farolero.core/throw] Throw the condition as an exception
;; user> 0
;; Execution error (ExceptionInfo) at farolero.core/fn (core.cljc:315).
;; Condition was thrown
user=>

Other Control Flow

In addition to the core functions and macros required to make conditions and restarts, farolero provides a few more control flow operators inspired by the Common Lisp spec.

The block macro (and its paired block* function) provides a way to perform an early return from a named block.

(block the-block
  (return-from the-block :hello)
  :goodbye)
;; => :hello

Passing no second argument to return-from results in the block returning nil.

(block the-block
  (return-from the-block)
  :goodbye)
;; => nil

This return works anywhere within the dynamic scope of the block, not just within its current stack frame.

(defn some-func
  [f]
  (f :hello)
  :goodbye)

(block the-block
  (some-func #(return-from the-block %))
  :goodbye)
;; => :hello

If you use a keyword instead of a symbol, then return-from will unwind the stack until the first block which uses the same keyword. This is equivalent to Common Lisp's throw and catch.

(defn throwing-func
  []
  (return-from :the-block :goodbye))

(block :the-block
  (block :the-block
    (throwing-func)) ;; => :goodbye
  :hello)
;; => :hello

The block* function calls a closure in the context of such a block with the given keyword as the block name.

(block* :the-block
  #(do (return-from :the-block :hello)
       :goodbye))
;; => :hello

If you want to uniquely specify a block name for use with block*, the make-jump-target function is provided.

(let [the-block (make-jump-target)]
  (block* the-block
    #(do (return-from the-block :hello)
         :goodbye)))
;; => :hello

Any extra arguments passed to block* are passed as arguments to the closure.

(block* :the-block
  #(do (return-from :the-block %)
       :goodbye)
  :hello)
;; => :hello

If you attempt to return-from a block that isn't in the current thread's dynamic scope, then a :farolero.core/control-error is signaled.

(return-from :error nil)
;; => Entered the debugger on :farolero.core/control-error

An additional facility is tagbody, which binds labels for its dynamic scope which can be jumped to with go. This is more or less an imperative letfn, but can be used to implement more complex control flow than the other operators in Clojure.

(let [x (volatile! 0)]
  (tagbody
    (println "Entered tagbody!")
    loop
    (when (> @x 5)
      (go exit))
    (vswap! x inc)
    (go loop)
    exit
    (println "Exiting tagbody!"))
  @x)
;; => 6

The tagbody clause always returns nil.

Just like block and return-from, go may be used anywhere within the dynamic scope of the tagbody.

(defn call-if-greater
  [v f]
  (when (> v 5)
    (f)))

(let [x (volatile! 0)]
  (tagbody
    (println "Entered tagbody!")
    loop
    (call-if-greater @x #(go exit))
    (vswap! x inc)
    (go loop)
    exit
    (println "Exiting tagbody!"))
  @x)
;; => 6

This can be combined with block to add a return value.

(let [x (volatile! 0)]
  (block the-block
    (tagbody
      (println "Entered tagbody!")
      loop
      (when (> @x 5)
        (go exit))
      (vswap! x inc)
      (go loop)
      exit
      (println "Exiting tagbody!")
      (return-from the-block @x))))
;; => 6

When using restart-case, tagbody can be used to provide a way to retry items from the restarts.

(block exit
  (tagbody
    retry
    (return-from exit
      (restart-case (if (some-condition?)
                      (invoke-restart :farolero.core/continue)
                      :eventual-result)
        (:farolero.core/continue []
          (go retry))))))

The above code will either loop infinitely as some-condition? returns true repeatedly, or it will eventually return :eventual-result if it ever returns false.

Known Issues

You may run into one of the issues below. I am aware of them and have plans to fix them. If you know how to fix them or have the time, pull requests are always welcome!

• In ClojureScript, warn and cerror do not correctly establish restarts (help is wanted on this one).

License

Copyright © 2021 Joshua Suskalo

Distributed under the Eclipse Public License version 1.0.