jdk/src/share/classes/java/util/concurrent/package-info.java
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+/*
+ * DO NOT ALTER OR REMOVE COPYRIGHT NOTICES OR THIS FILE HEADER.
+ *
+ * This code is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it
+ * under the terms of the GNU General Public License version 2 only, as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation.  Sun designates this
+ * particular file as subject to the "Classpath" exception as provided
+ * by Sun in the LICENSE file that accompanied this code.
+ *
+ * This code is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT
+ * ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or
+ * FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the GNU General Public License
+ * version 2 for more details (a copy is included in the LICENSE file that
+ * accompanied this code).
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License version
+ * 2 along with this work; if not, write to the Free Software Foundation,
+ * Inc., 51 Franklin St, Fifth Floor, Boston, MA 02110-1301 USA.
+ *
+ * Please contact Sun Microsystems, Inc., 4150 Network Circle, Santa Clara,
+ * CA 95054 USA or visit www.sun.com if you need additional information or
+ * have any questions.
+ */
+
+/*
+ * This file is available under and governed by the GNU General Public
+ * License version 2 only, as published by the Free Software Foundation.
+ * However, the following notice accompanied the original version of this
+ * file:
+ *
+ * Written by Doug Lea with assistance from members of JCP JSR-166
+ * Expert Group and released to the public domain, as explained at
+ * http://creativecommons.org/licenses/publicdomain
+ */
+
+/**
+ * Utility classes commonly useful in concurrent programming.  This
+ * package includes a few small standardized extensible frameworks, as
+ * well as some classes that provide useful functionality and are
+ * otherwise tedious or difficult to implement.  Here are brief
+ * descriptions of the main components.  See also the
+ * {@link java.util.concurrent.locks} and
+ * {@link java.util.concurrent.atomic} packages.
+ *
+ * <h2>Executors</h2>
+ *
+ * <b>Interfaces.</b>
+ *
+ * {@link java.util.concurrent.Executor} is a simple standardized
+ * interface for defining custom thread-like subsystems, including
+ * thread pools, asynchronous IO, and lightweight task frameworks.
+ * Depending on which concrete Executor class is being used, tasks may
+ * execute in a newly created thread, an existing task-execution thread,
+ * or the thread calling {@link java.util.concurrent.Executor#execute
+ * execute}, and may execute sequentially or concurrently.
+ *
+ * {@link java.util.concurrent.ExecutorService} provides a more
+ * complete asynchronous task execution framework.  An
+ * ExecutorService manages queuing and scheduling of tasks,
+ * and allows controlled shutdown.
+ *
+ * The {@link java.util.concurrent.ScheduledExecutorService}
+ * subinterface and associated interfaces add support for
+ * delayed and periodic task execution.  ExecutorServices
+ * provide methods arranging asynchronous execution of any
+ * function expressed as {@link java.util.concurrent.Callable},
+ * the result-bearing analog of {@link java.lang.Runnable}.
+ *
+ * A {@link java.util.concurrent.Future} returns the results of
+ * a function, allows determination of whether execution has
+ * completed, and provides a means to cancel execution.
+ *
+ * A {@link java.util.concurrent.RunnableFuture} is a {@code Future}
+ * that possesses a {@code run} method that upon execution,
+ * sets its results.
+ *
+ * <p>
+ *
+ * <b>Implementations.</b>
+ *
+ * Classes {@link java.util.concurrent.ThreadPoolExecutor} and
+ * {@link java.util.concurrent.ScheduledThreadPoolExecutor}
+ * provide tunable, flexible thread pools.
+ *
+ * The {@link java.util.concurrent.Executors} class provides
+ * factory methods for the most common kinds and configurations
+ * of Executors, as well as a few utility methods for using
+ * them.  Other utilities based on {@code Executors} include the
+ * concrete class {@link java.util.concurrent.FutureTask}
+ * providing a common extensible implementation of Futures, and
+ * {@link java.util.concurrent.ExecutorCompletionService}, that
+ * assists in coordinating the processing of groups of
+ * asynchronous tasks.
+ *
+ * <h2>Queues</h2>
+ *
+ * The {@link java.util.concurrent.ConcurrentLinkedQueue} class
+ * supplies an efficient scalable thread-safe non-blocking FIFO
+ * queue.
+ *
+ * <p>Five implementations in {@code java.util.concurrent} support
+ * the extended {@link java.util.concurrent.BlockingQueue}
+ * interface, that defines blocking versions of put and take:
+ * {@link java.util.concurrent.LinkedBlockingQueue},
+ * {@link java.util.concurrent.ArrayBlockingQueue},
+ * {@link java.util.concurrent.SynchronousQueue},
+ * {@link java.util.concurrent.PriorityBlockingQueue}, and
+ * {@link java.util.concurrent.DelayQueue}.
+ * The different classes cover the most common usage contexts
+ * for producer-consumer, messaging, parallel tasking, and
+ * related concurrent designs.
+ *
+ * <p>The {@link java.util.concurrent.BlockingDeque} interface
+ * extends {@code BlockingQueue} to support both FIFO and LIFO
+ * (stack-based) operations.
+ * Class {@link java.util.concurrent.LinkedBlockingDeque}
+ * provides an implementation.
+ *
+ * <h2>Timing</h2>
+ *
+ * The {@link java.util.concurrent.TimeUnit} class provides
+ * multiple granularities (including nanoseconds) for
+ * specifying and controlling time-out based operations.  Most
+ * classes in the package contain operations based on time-outs
+ * in addition to indefinite waits.  In all cases that
+ * time-outs are used, the time-out specifies the minimum time
+ * that the method should wait before indicating that it
+ * timed-out.  Implementations make a &quot;best effort&quot;
+ * to detect time-outs as soon as possible after they occur.
+ * However, an indefinite amount of time may elapse between a
+ * time-out being detected and a thread actually executing
+ * again after that time-out.  All methods that accept timeout
+ * parameters treat values less than or equal to zero to mean
+ * not to wait at all.  To wait "forever", you can use a value
+ * of {@code Long.MAX_VALUE}.
+ *
+ * <h2>Synchronizers</h2>
+ *
+ * Four classes aid common special-purpose synchronization idioms.
+ * {@link java.util.concurrent.Semaphore} is a classic concurrency tool.
+ * {@link java.util.concurrent.CountDownLatch} is a very simple yet very
+ * common utility for blocking until a given number of signals, events,
+ * or conditions hold.  A {@link java.util.concurrent.CyclicBarrier} is a
+ * resettable multiway synchronization point useful in some styles of
+ * parallel programming.  An {@link java.util.concurrent.Exchanger} allows
+ * two threads to exchange objects at a rendezvous point, and is useful
+ * in several pipeline designs.
+ *
+ * <h2>Concurrent Collections</h2>
+ *
+ * Besides Queues, this package supplies Collection implementations
+ * designed for use in multithreaded contexts:
+ * {@link java.util.concurrent.ConcurrentHashMap},
+ * {@link java.util.concurrent.ConcurrentSkipListMap},
+ * {@link java.util.concurrent.ConcurrentSkipListSet},
+ * {@link java.util.concurrent.CopyOnWriteArrayList}, and
+ * {@link java.util.concurrent.CopyOnWriteArraySet}.
+ * When many threads are expected to access a given collection, a
+ * {@code ConcurrentHashMap} is normally preferable to a synchronized
+ * {@code HashMap}, and a {@code ConcurrentSkipListMap} is normally
+ * preferable to a synchronized {@code TreeMap}.
+ * A {@code CopyOnWriteArrayList} is preferable to a synchronized
+ * {@code ArrayList} when the expected number of reads and traversals
+ * greatly outnumber the number of updates to a list.
+
+ * <p>The "Concurrent" prefix used with some classes in this package
+ * is a shorthand indicating several differences from similar
+ * "synchronized" classes.  For example {@code java.util.Hashtable} and
+ * {@code Collections.synchronizedMap(new HashMap())} are
+ * synchronized.  But {@link
+ * java.util.concurrent.ConcurrentHashMap} is "concurrent".  A
+ * concurrent collection is thread-safe, but not governed by a
+ * single exclusion lock.  In the particular case of
+ * ConcurrentHashMap, it safely permits any number of
+ * concurrent reads as well as a tunable number of concurrent
+ * writes.  "Synchronized" classes can be useful when you need
+ * to prevent all access to a collection via a single lock, at
+ * the expense of poorer scalability.  In other cases in which
+ * multiple threads are expected to access a common collection,
+ * "concurrent" versions are normally preferable.  And
+ * unsynchronized collections are preferable when either
+ * collections are unshared, or are accessible only when
+ * holding other locks.
+ *
+ * <p>Most concurrent Collection implementations (including most
+ * Queues) also differ from the usual java.util conventions in that
+ * their Iterators provide <em>weakly consistent</em> rather than
+ * fast-fail traversal.  A weakly consistent iterator is thread-safe,
+ * but does not necessarily freeze the collection while iterating, so
+ * it may (or may not) reflect any updates since the iterator was
+ * created.
+ *
+ * <h2><a name="MemoryVisibility">Memory Consistency Properties</a></h2>
+ *
+ * <a href="http://java.sun.com/docs/books/jls/third_edition/html/memory.html">
+ * Chapter 17 of the Java Language Specification</a> defines the
+ * <i>happens-before</i> relation on memory operations such as reads and
+ * writes of shared variables.  The results of a write by one thread are
+ * guaranteed to be visible to a read by another thread only if the write
+ * operation <i>happens-before</i> the read operation.  The
+ * {@code synchronized} and {@code volatile} constructs, as well as the
+ * {@code Thread.start()} and {@code Thread.join()} methods, can form
+ * <i>happens-before</i> relationships.  In particular:
+ *
+ * <ul>
+ *   <li>Each action in a thread <i>happens-before</i> every action in that
+ *   thread that comes later in the program's order.
+ *
+ *   <li>An unlock ({@code synchronized} block or method exit) of a
+ *   monitor <i>happens-before</i> every subsequent lock ({@code synchronized}
+ *   block or method entry) of that same monitor.  And because
+ *   the <i>happens-before</i> relation is transitive, all actions
+ *   of a thread prior to unlocking <i>happen-before</i> all actions
+ *   subsequent to any thread locking that monitor.
+ *
+ *   <li>A write to a {@code volatile} field <i>happens-before</i> every
+ *   subsequent read of that same field.  Writes and reads of
+ *   {@code volatile} fields have similar memory consistency effects
+ *   as entering and exiting monitors, but do <em>not</em> entail
+ *   mutual exclusion locking.
+ *
+ *   <li>A call to {@code start} on a thread <i>happens-before</i> any
+ *   action in the started thread.
+ *
+ *   <li>All actions in a thread <i>happen-before</i> any other thread
+ *   successfully returns from a {@code join} on that thread.
+ *
+ * </ul>
+ *
+ *
+ * The methods of all classes in {@code java.util.concurrent} and its
+ * subpackages extend these guarantees to higher-level
+ * synchronization.  In particular:
+ *
+ * <ul>
+ *
+ *   <li>Actions in a thread prior to placing an object into any concurrent
+ *   collection <i>happen-before</i> actions subsequent to the access or
+ *   removal of that element from the collection in another thread.
+ *
+ *   <li>Actions in a thread prior to the submission of a {@code Runnable}
+ *   to an {@code Executor} <i>happen-before</i> its execution begins.
+ *   Similarly for {@code Callables} submitted to an {@code ExecutorService}.
+ *
+ *   <li>Actions taken by the asynchronous computation represented by a
+ *   {@code Future} <i>happen-before</i> actions subsequent to the
+ *   retrieval of the result via {@code Future.get()} in another thread.
+ *
+ *   <li>Actions prior to "releasing" synchronizer methods such as
+ *   {@code Lock.unlock}, {@code Semaphore.release}, and
+ *   {@code CountDownLatch.countDown} <i>happen-before</i> actions
+ *   subsequent to a successful "acquiring" method such as
+ *   {@code Lock.lock}, {@code Semaphore.acquire},
+ *   {@code Condition.await}, and {@code CountDownLatch.await} on the
+ *   same synchronizer object in another thread.
+ *
+ *   <li>For each pair of threads that successfully exchange objects via
+ *   an {@code Exchanger}, actions prior to the {@code exchange()}
+ *   in each thread <i>happen-before</i> those subsequent to the
+ *   corresponding {@code exchange()} in another thread.
+ *
+ *   <li>Actions prior to calling {@code CyclicBarrier.await}
+ *   <i>happen-before</i> actions performed by the barrier action, and
+ *   actions performed by the barrier action <i>happen-before</i> actions
+ *   subsequent to a successful return from the corresponding {@code await}
+ *   in other threads.
+ *
+ * </ul>
+ *
+ * @since 1.5
+ */
+package java.util.concurrent;