unix_socks

UnixSocks 🧦🧦

Description

A Ruby library for handling Unix socket-based communication.

Features

• Message Handling: Simplify sending and receiving messages over Unix sockets.
• Dynamic Method Access: Access message body values using method names (e.g., message.key).
• Background Processing: Run the server in a background thread to avoid blocking main execution.
• Robust Error Handling: Gracefully handle socket disconnections and JSON parsing errors.

Installation

Add this gem to your Gemfile:

gem 'unix_socks'

And install it using Bundler:

bundle install

Or install the gem directly:

gem install unix_socks

Usage

1. Server Setup

Create a server instance and start listening for connections:

require 'unix_socks'

server = UnixSocks::Server.new(socket_name: 'my_socket')

# Run the server in the background to avoid blocking
thread = server.receive_in_background(force: true) do |message|
  puts "Received message: #{message.inspect}"
end

thread.join

2. Sending Messages

Transmit messages to connected clients:

client = UnixSocks::Server.new(socket_name: 'my_socket')

# Prepare your message
message = { status: 'success', data: [1, 2, 3] }

# Send the message
client.transmit(message)

3. Responding to Messages

Handle incoming messages and send responses:

require 'unix_socks'

server = UnixSocks::Server.new(socket_name: 'my_socket')

def handle_message(message)
  # Access message body values using method names
  puts "Received status: #{message.status}"
  
  # Send a response
  message.respond({ status: 'acknowledged' })
end

# Use in your server setup
thread = server.receive_in_background(force: true) do |message|
  handle_message(message)
end

thread.join

And in the client:

client = UnixSocks::Server.new(socket_name: 'my_socket')

# Prepare your message
message = { status: 'success', data: [1, 2, 3] }

# Send the message
response = client.transmit_with_response(message)

# Receive the response
puts "Received server response status: #{response.status}"

4. Message Object Features

• Dynamic Access: Methods like message.status automatically map to the message body.
• Disconnect Handling: Safely close socket connections using disconnect.
• Error Resilience: The respond method handles disconnections gracefully.

Author

Florian Frank

License

MIT License