asyncmachine-go

flowchart LR
    c1-RemoteWorker -- aRPC --> w1-rpcPub
    c1-RemoteSupervisor -- aRPC --> s1-rpcPub

    subgraph Client 1
        c1-Client[Client]
        c1-RemoteWorker[RemoteWorker]
        c1-RemoteSupervisor[RemoteSupervisor]
        c1-Client --> c1-RemoteWorker
        c1-Client --> c1-RemoteSupervisor
    end

    subgraph Client 2
        c2-Client[Client]
        c2-RemoteWorker[RemoteWorker]
        c2-RemoteSupervisor[RemoteSupervisor]
        c2-Client --> c2-RemoteWorker
        c2-Client --> c2-RemoteSupervisor
    end

    subgraph Node Host

        subgraph Worker Pool
            w1-rpcPub --> Worker1
            w1-rpcPub([Public aRPC])
            w1-rpcPriv --> Worker1
            w1-rpcPriv([Private aRPC])
            w2-rpcPub --> Worker2
            w2-rpcPub([Public aRPC])
            w2-rpcPriv --> Worker2
            w2-rpcPriv([Private aRPC])
            w3-rpcPub --> Worker3
            w3-rpcPub([Public aRPC])
            w3-rpcPriv --> Worker3
            w3-rpcPriv([Private aRPC])
        end

        s1-rpcPub([Public aRPC])
        s1-rpcPub --> Supervisor1
        Supervisor1 --> RemoteWorker1
        Supervisor1[Supervisor]
        RemoteWorker1 -- aRPC --> w1-rpcPriv
        Supervisor1 -- fork --> Worker1
        Supervisor1 --> RemoteWorker2
        RemoteWorker2 -- aRPC --> w2-rpcPriv
        Supervisor1 -- fork --> Worker2
        Supervisor1 --> RemoteWorker3
        RemoteWorker3 -- aRPC --> w3-rpcPriv
        Supervisor1 -- fork --> Worker3
    end

    c2-RemoteWorker -- aRPC --> w2-rpcPub
    c2-RemoteSupervisor -- aRPC --> s1-rpcPub

[!NOTE] State machines communicate through states (mutations, checking and waiting).

Asyncmachine-go is an AOP Actor Model library for distributed workflows, built on top of a lightweight state machine (nondeterministic, multi-state, clock-based, relational, optionally-accepting, and non-blocking). It has atomic transitions, RPC, logging, TUI debugger, metrics, tracing, and soon diagrams.

Use cases depend on the layer of the stack used, and range from goroutine synchronization and state synchronization to worker synchronization, bots, consensus algos, etc. Asyncmachine-go can precisely target a specific scenario and bring order, structure, and resiliency to event-based systems.

Stack

Samples

Minimal - an untyped definition of 2 states and 1 relation, then 1 mutation and a check.

import am "github.com/pancsta/asyncmachine-go/pkg/machine"
// ...
mach := am.New(nil, am.Struct{
    "Foo": {Require: am.S{"Bar"}},
    "Bar": {},
}, nil)
mach.Add1("Foo", nil)
mach.Is1("Foo") // false

Complicated - wait on a multi state (event) with 1s timeout, and mutate with typed args, on top of a state context.

// state ctx is a non-err ctx
ctx := client.Mach.NewStateCtx(ssC.WorkerReady)
// time-based subscription
whenPayload := client.Mach.WhenTicks(ssC.WorkerPayload, 1, ctx)
// mutation
client.WorkerRpc.Worker.Add1(ssW.WorkRequested, Pass(&A{
    Input: 2}))
// WaitFor replaces select statements
err := amhelp.WaitForAll(ctx, 1*time.Second, whenPayload)
if ctx.Err() != nil {
    // state ctx expired
    return
}
if err != nil {
    // mutation
    client.Mach.AddErr(err, nil)
    return
}
// WorkerPayload activated

Schema - states of a node worker.

type WorkerStatesDef struct {
    ErrWork        string
    ErrWorkTimeout string
    ErrClient      string
    ErrSupervisor  string

    LocalRpcReady     string
    PublicRpcReady    string
    RpcReady          string
    SuperConnected    string
    ServeClient       string
    ClientConnected   string
    ClientSendPayload string
    SuperSendPayload  string

    Idle          string
    WorkRequested string
    Working       string
    WorkReady     string

    // inherit from rpc worker
    *ssrpc.WorkerStatesDef
}

All examples and benchmarks can be found in /examples.

Getting Started

/pkg/machine is a mandatory ready, while /pkg/node is the most interesting one. Examples in /examples and /docs/manual.md are good for a general grasp, while /docs/diagrams.md go deeper into implementation details. Reading tests is always a good idea.

Packages

• /pkg/helpers Useful functions when working with async state machines.
• /pkg/history History tracking and traversal.
• /pkg/machine State machine, the main package. Dependency free and semver compatible.
• /pkg/node Distributed worker pools with supervisors.
• /pkg/rpc Remote state machines, with the same API as local ones.
• /pkg/states Reusable state definitions and piping.
• /pkg/telemetry Telemetry exporters for metrics, traces, and logs.
• /pkg/pubsub Planned.
• /tools/cmd/am-dbg Multi-client TUI debugger.
• /tools/cmd/am-gen Generates states files and Grafana dashboards.
• /tools/cmd/am-vis Planned.

Case Studies

Bigger implementations worth reading:

• libp2p PubSub Simulator Sandbox simulator for libp2p-pubsub.
• libp2p PubSub Benchmark Benchmark of libp2p-pubsub ported to asyncmachine-go.
• am-dbg TUI Debugger Single state machine TUI app.

Documentation

• API
• diagrams | cookbook
• manual.md | manual.pdf
  • Machine and States
  • Changing State
  • Advanced Topics
  • Cheatsheet

Community

• GH discussions
• Matrix chat

Status

Under heavy development, status depends on each package. The bottom layers seem prod grade, the top ones are alpha or testing.

Development

• all PRs welcome
• before
  • ./scripts/dep-taskfile.sh
  • task install-deps
• after
  • task test
  • task format
  • task lint

FAQ

How does asyncmachine work?

It calls certain methods on a struct in a certain order (eg BarEnter, FooFoo, FooBar, BarState).

What is a "state" in asyncmachine?

State as in "status", not state as in "data". For example, not a JSON string, but "process RUNNING", or "car BROKEN".

Can asyncmachine be integrated with other frameworks?

Yes, because asyncmachine is more of a set of libraries following the same conventions, than an actual framework. It can integrate with anything via states-based APIs.

How does asyncmachine compare to Temporal?

Temporal is an all-in-one solution with data persistence, which is its limitation. Asyncmachine doesn't hold any data by itself and has progressive layers, making it usable in a wide variety of use cases (e.g. asyncmachine could do workflows for a desktop app).

How does asyncmachine compare to Ergo?

Ergo is a great framework, but leans on old ideas and has web-based tooling. It also isn't natively based on state machines. Asyncmachine provides productivity-focused TUI tooling and rich integrations, while having every component natively state-based (even the code generator).

Does aRPC auto sync data?

aRPC auto syncs only states (clock values). Mutations carry data in arguments, from client to server, while the SendPayload state passes payloads back to the client.

Does asyncmachine return data?

No, just yes/no/later (Executed, Canceled, Queued).

Does asyncmachine return errors?

No, but there's an error state (Exception). Optionally, there are also detailed error states (e.g. ErrNetwork).

Why asyncmachine avoids blocking?

The lack of blocking allows for immediate adjustment to incoming changes and is backed by solid cancellation support.

What does "clock-based" mean?

Each state has a counter of activations, and all state counters create "machine time".

What's the difference between states and events?

Same event happening in a series will cause 1 state activation, until the state becomes inactive.

How do I do X/Y/Z in asyncmachine?

Usually the answer is "make it a state".

Changes

• Changelog
• Breaking Changes
• Roadmap