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+README.CV -- Condition Variables
+--------------------------------
+
+The original implementation of condition variables in
+pthreads-win32 was based on a discussion paper:
+
+"Strategies for Implementing POSIX Condition Variables
+on Win32": http://www.cs.wustl.edu/~schmidt/win32-cv-1.html
+
+The changes suggested below were made on Feb 6 2001. This
+file is included in the package for the benefit of anyone
+interested in understanding the pthreads-win32 implementation
+of condition variables and the (sometimes subtle) issues that
+it attempts to resolve.
+
+Thanks go to the individuals whose names appear throughout
+the following text.
+
+Ross Johnson
+
+--------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+fyi.. (more detailed problem description/demos + possible fix/patch)
+
+regards,
+alexander.
+
+
+Alexander Terekhov
+31.01.2001 17:43
+
+To: ace-bugs@cs.wustl.edu
+cc:
+From: Alexander Terekhov/Germany/IBM@IBMDE
+Subject: Implementation of POSIX CVs: spur.wakeups/lost
+ signals/deadlocks/unfairness
+
+
+
+ ACE VERSION:
+
+ 5.1.12 (pthread-win32 snapshot 2000-12-29)
+
+ HOST MACHINE and OPERATING SYSTEM:
+
+ IBM IntelliStation Z Pro, 2 x XEON 1GHz, Win2K
+
+ TARGET MACHINE and OPERATING SYSTEM, if different from HOST:
+ COMPILER NAME AND VERSION (AND PATCHLEVEL):
+
+ Microsoft Visual C++ 6.0
+
+ AREA/CLASS/EXAMPLE AFFECTED:
+
+ Implementation of POSIX condition variables - OS.cpp/.h
+
+ DOES THE PROBLEM AFFECT:
+
+ EXECUTION? YES!
+
+ SYNOPSIS:
+
+ a) spurious wakeups (minor problem)
+ b) lost signals
+ c) broadcast deadlock
+ d) unfairness (minor problem)
+
+ DESCRIPTION:
+
+ Please see attached copy of discussion thread
+ from comp.programming.threads for more details on
+ some reported problems. (i've also posted a "fyi"
+ message to ace-users a week or two ago but
+ unfortunately did not get any response so far).
+
+ It seems that current implementation suffers from
+ two essential problems:
+
+ 1) cond.waiters_count does not accurately reflect
+ number of waiters blocked on semaphore - w/o
+ proper synchronisation that could result (in the
+ time window when counter is not accurate)
+ in spurious wakeups organised by subsequent
+ _signals and _broadcasts.
+
+ 2) Always having (with no e.g. copy_and_clear/..)
+ the same queue in use (semaphore+counter)
+ neither signal nor broadcast provide 'atomic'
+ behaviour with respect to other threads/subsequent
+ calls to signal/broadcast/wait.
+
+ Each problem and combination of both could produce
+ various nasty things:
+
+ a) spurious wakeups (minor problem)
+
+ it is possible that waiter(s) which was already
+ unblocked even so is still counted as blocked
+ waiter. signal and broadcast will release
+ semaphore which will produce a spurious wakeup
+ for a 'real' waiter coming later.
+
+ b) lost signals
+
+ signalling thread ends up consuming its own
+ signal. please see demo/discussion below.
+
+ c) broadcast deadlock
+
+ last_waiter processing code does not correctly
+ handle the case with multiple threads
+ waiting for the end of broadcast.
+ please see demo/discussion below.
+
+ d) unfairness (minor problem)
+
+ without SignalObjectAndWait some waiter(s)
+ may end up consuming broadcasted signals
+ multiple times (spurious wakeups) because waiter
+ thread(s) can be preempted before they call
+ semaphore wait (but after count++ and mtx.unlock).
+
+ REPEAT BY:
+
+ See below... run problem demos programs (tennis.cpp and
+ tennisb.cpp) number of times concurrently (on multiprocessor)
+ and in multiple sessions or just add a couple of "Sleep"s
+ as described in the attached copy of discussion thread
+ from comp.programming.threads
+
+ SAMPLE FIX/WORKAROUND:
+
+ See attached patch to pthread-win32.. well, I can not
+ claim that it is completely bug free but at least my
+ test and tests provided by pthreads-win32 seem to work.
+ Perhaps that will help.
+
+ regards,
+ alexander.
+
+
+>> Forum: comp.programming.threads
+>> Thread: pthread_cond_* implementation questions
+.
+.
+.
+David Schwartz <davids@webmaster.com> wrote:
+
+> terekhov@my-deja.com wrote:
+>
+>> BTW, could you please also share your view on other perceived
+>> "problems" such as nested broadcast deadlock, spurious wakeups
+>> and (the latest one) lost signals??
+>
+>I'm not sure what you mean. The standard allows an implementation
+>to do almost whatever it likes. In fact, you could implement
+>pthread_cond_wait by releasing the mutex, sleeping a random
+>amount of time, and then reacquiring the mutex. Of course,
+>this would be a pretty poor implementation, but any code that
+>didn't work under that implementation wouldn't be strictly
+>compliant.
+
+The implementation you suggested is indeed correct
+one (yes, now I see it :). However it requires from
+signal/broadcast nothing more than to "{ return 0; }"
+That is not the case for pthread-win32 and ACE
+implementations. I do think that these implementations
+(basically the same implementation) have some serious
+problems with wait/signal/broadcast calls. I am looking
+for help to clarify whether these problems are real
+or not. I think that I can demonstrate what I mean
+using one or two small sample programs.
+.
+.
+.
+==========
+tennis.cpp
+==========
+
+#include "ace/Synch.h"
+#include "ace/Thread.h"
+
+enum GAME_STATE {
+
+ START_GAME,
+ PLAYER_A, // Player A playes the ball
+ PLAYER_B, // Player B playes the ball
+ GAME_OVER,
+ ONE_PLAYER_GONE,
+ BOTH_PLAYERS_GONE
+
+};
+
+enum GAME_STATE eGameState;
+ACE_Mutex* pmtxGameStateLock;
+ACE_Condition< ACE_Mutex >* pcndGameStateChange;
+
+void*
+ playerA(
+ void* pParm
+ )
+{
+
+ // For access to game state variable
+ pmtxGameStateLock->acquire();
+
+ // Play loop
+ while ( eGameState < GAME_OVER ) {
+
+ // Play the ball
+ cout << endl << "PLAYER-A" << endl;
+
+ // Now its PLAYER-B's turn
+ eGameState = PLAYER_B;
+
+ // Signal to PLAYER-B that now it is his turn
+ pcndGameStateChange->signal();
+
+ // Wait until PLAYER-B finishes playing the ball
+ do {
+
+ pcndGameStateChange->wait();
+
+ if ( PLAYER_B == eGameState )
+ cout << endl << "----PLAYER-A: SPURIOUS WAKEUP!!!" << endl;
+
+ } while ( PLAYER_B == eGameState );
+
+ }
+
+ // PLAYER-A gone
+ eGameState = (GAME_STATE)(eGameState+1);
+ cout << endl << "PLAYER-A GONE" << endl;
+
+ // No more access to state variable needed
+ pmtxGameStateLock->release();
+
+ // Signal PLAYER-A gone event
+ pcndGameStateChange->broadcast();
+
+ return 0;
+
+}
+
+void*
+ playerB(
+ void* pParm
+ )
+{
+
+ // For access to game state variable
+ pmtxGameStateLock->acquire();
+
+ // Play loop
+ while ( eGameState < GAME_OVER ) {
+
+ // Play the ball
+ cout << endl << "PLAYER-B" << endl;
+
+ // Now its PLAYER-A's turn
+ eGameState = PLAYER_A;
+
+ // Signal to PLAYER-A that now it is his turn
+ pcndGameStateChange->signal();
+
+ // Wait until PLAYER-A finishes playing the ball
+ do {
+
+ pcndGameStateChange->wait();
+
+ if ( PLAYER_A == eGameState )
+ cout << endl << "----PLAYER-B: SPURIOUS WAKEUP!!!" << endl;
+
+ } while ( PLAYER_A == eGameState );
+
+ }
+
+ // PLAYER-B gone
+ eGameState = (GAME_STATE)(eGameState+1);
+ cout << endl << "PLAYER-B GONE" << endl;
+
+ // No more access to state variable needed
+ pmtxGameStateLock->release();
+
+ // Signal PLAYER-B gone event
+ pcndGameStateChange->broadcast();
+
+ return 0;
+
+}
+
+
+int
+main (int, ACE_TCHAR *[])
+{
+
+ pmtxGameStateLock = new ACE_Mutex();
+ pcndGameStateChange = new ACE_Condition< ACE_Mutex >( *pmtxGameStateLock
+);
+
+ // Set initial state
+ eGameState = START_GAME;
+
+ // Create players
+ ACE_Thread::spawn( playerA );
+ ACE_Thread::spawn( playerB );
+
+ // Give them 5 sec. to play
+ Sleep( 5000 );//sleep( 5 );
+
+ // Set game over state
+ pmtxGameStateLock->acquire();
+ eGameState = GAME_OVER;
+
+ // Let them know
+ pcndGameStateChange->broadcast();
+
+ // Wait for players to stop
+ do {
+
+ pcndGameStateChange->wait();
+
+ } while ( eGameState < BOTH_PLAYERS_GONE );
+
+ // Cleanup
+ cout << endl << "GAME OVER" << endl;
+ pmtxGameStateLock->release();
+ delete pcndGameStateChange;
+ delete pmtxGameStateLock;
+
+ return 0;
+
+}
+
+===========
+tennisb.cpp
+===========
+#include "ace/Synch.h"
+#include "ace/Thread.h"
+
+enum GAME_STATE {
+
+ START_GAME,
+ PLAYER_A, // Player A playes the ball
+ PLAYER_B, // Player B playes the ball
+ GAME_OVER,
+ ONE_PLAYER_GONE,
+ BOTH_PLAYERS_GONE
+
+};
+
+enum GAME_STATE eGameState;
+ACE_Mutex* pmtxGameStateLock;
+ACE_Condition< ACE_Mutex >* pcndGameStateChange;
+
+void*
+ playerA(
+ void* pParm
+ )
+{
+
+ // For access to game state variable
+ pmtxGameStateLock->acquire();
+
+ // Play loop
+ while ( eGameState < GAME_OVER ) {
+
+ // Play the ball
+ cout << endl << "PLAYER-A" << endl;
+
+ // Now its PLAYER-B's turn
+ eGameState = PLAYER_B;
+
+ // Signal to PLAYER-B that now it is his turn
+ pcndGameStateChange->broadcast();
+
+ // Wait until PLAYER-B finishes playing the ball
+ do {
+
+ pcndGameStateChange->wait();
+
+ if ( PLAYER_B == eGameState )
+ cout << endl << "----PLAYER-A: SPURIOUS WAKEUP!!!" << endl;
+
+ } while ( PLAYER_B == eGameState );
+
+ }
+
+ // PLAYER-A gone
+ eGameState = (GAME_STATE)(eGameState+1);
+ cout << endl << "PLAYER-A GONE" << endl;
+
+ // No more access to state variable needed
+ pmtxGameStateLock->release();
+
+ // Signal PLAYER-A gone event
+ pcndGameStateChange->broadcast();
+
+ return 0;
+
+}
+
+void*
+ playerB(
+ void* pParm
+ )
+{
+
+ // For access to game state variable
+ pmtxGameStateLock->acquire();
+
+ // Play loop
+ while ( eGameState < GAME_OVER ) {
+
+ // Play the ball
+ cout << endl << "PLAYER-B" << endl;
+
+ // Now its PLAYER-A's turn
+ eGameState = PLAYER_A;
+
+ // Signal to PLAYER-A that now it is his turn
+ pcndGameStateChange->broadcast();
+
+ // Wait until PLAYER-A finishes playing the ball
+ do {
+
+ pcndGameStateChange->wait();
+
+ if ( PLAYER_A == eGameState )
+ cout << endl << "----PLAYER-B: SPURIOUS WAKEUP!!!" << endl;
+
+ } while ( PLAYER_A == eGameState );
+
+ }
+
+ // PLAYER-B gone
+ eGameState = (GAME_STATE)(eGameState+1);
+ cout << endl << "PLAYER-B GONE" << endl;
+
+ // No more access to state variable needed
+ pmtxGameStateLock->release();
+
+ // Signal PLAYER-B gone event
+ pcndGameStateChange->broadcast();
+
+ return 0;
+
+}
+
+
+int
+main (int, ACE_TCHAR *[])
+{
+
+ pmtxGameStateLock = new ACE_Mutex();
+ pcndGameStateChange = new ACE_Condition< ACE_Mutex >( *pmtxGameStateLock
+);
+
+ // Set initial state
+ eGameState = START_GAME;
+
+ // Create players
+ ACE_Thread::spawn( playerA );
+ ACE_Thread::spawn( playerB );
+
+ // Give them 5 sec. to play
+ Sleep( 5000 );//sleep( 5 );
+
+ // Make some noise
+ pmtxGameStateLock->acquire();
+ cout << endl << "---Noise ON..." << endl;
+ pmtxGameStateLock->release();
+ for ( int i = 0; i < 100000; i++ )
+ pcndGameStateChange->broadcast();
+ cout << endl << "---Noise OFF" << endl;
+
+ // Set game over state
+ pmtxGameStateLock->acquire();
+ eGameState = GAME_OVER;
+ cout << endl << "---Stopping the game..." << endl;
+
+ // Let them know
+ pcndGameStateChange->broadcast();
+
+ // Wait for players to stop
+ do {
+
+ pcndGameStateChange->wait();
+
+ } while ( eGameState < BOTH_PLAYERS_GONE );
+
+ // Cleanup
+ cout << endl << "GAME OVER" << endl;
+ pmtxGameStateLock->release();
+ delete pcndGameStateChange;
+ delete pmtxGameStateLock;
+
+ return 0;
+
+}
+.
+.
+.
+David Schwartz <davids@webmaster.com> wrote:
+>> > It's compliant
+>>
+>> That is really good.
+>
+>> Tomorrow (I have to go urgently now) I will try to
+>> demonstrate the lost-signal "problem" of current
+>> pthread-win32 and ACE-(variant w/o SingleObjectAndWait)
+>> implementations: players start suddenly drop their balls :-)
+>> (with no change in source code).
+>
+>Signals aren't lost, they're going to the main thread,
+>which isn't coded correctly to handle them. Try this:
+>
+> // Wait for players to stop
+> do {
+>
+> pthread_cond_wait( &cndGameStateChange,&mtxGameStateLock );
+>printf("Main thread stole a signal\n");
+>
+> } while ( eGameState < BOTH_PLAYERS_GONE );
+>
+>I bet everytime you thing a signal is lost, you'll see that printf.
+>The signal isn't lost, it was stolen by another thread.
+
+well, you can probably loose your bet.. it was indeed stolen
+by "another" thread but not the one you seem to think of.
+
+I think that what actually happens is the following:
+
+H:\SA\UXX\pt\PTHREADS\TESTS>tennis3.exe
+
+PLAYER-A
+
+PLAYER-B
+
+----PLAYER-B: SPURIOUS WAKEUP!!!
+
+PLAYER-A GONE
+
+PLAYER-B GONE
+
+GAME OVER
+
+H:\SA\UXX\pt\PTHREADS\TESTS>
+
+here you can see that PLAYER-B after playing his first
+ball (which came via signal from PLAYER-A) just dropped
+it down. What happened is that his signal to player A
+was consumed as spurious wakeup by himself (player B).
+
+The implementation has a problem:
+
+================
+waiting threads:
+================
+
+{ /** Critical Section
+
+ inc cond.waiters_count
+
+}
+
+ /*
+ /* Atomic only if using Win32 SignalObjectAndWait
+ /*
+ cond.mtx.release
+
+ /*** ^^-- A THREAD WHICH DID SIGNAL MAY ACQUIRE THE MUTEX,
+ /*** GO INTO WAIT ON THE SAME CONDITION AND OVERTAKE
+ /*** ORIGINAL WAITER(S) CONSUMING ITS OWN SIGNAL!
+
+ cond.sem.wait
+
+Player-A after playing game's initial ball went into
+wait (called _wait) but was pre-empted before reaching
+wait semaphore. He was counted as waiter but was not
+actually waiting/blocked yet.
+
+===============
+signal threads:
+===============
+
+{ /** Critical Section
+
+ waiters_count = cond.waiters_count
+
+}
+
+ if ( waiters_count != 0 )
+
+ sem.post 1
+
+ endif
+
+Player-B after he received signal/ball from Player A
+called _signal. The _signal did see that there was
+one waiter blocked on the condition (Player-A) and
+released the semaphore.. (but it did not unblock
+Player-A because he was not actually blocked).
+Player-B thread continued its execution, called _wait,
+was counted as second waiter BUT was allowed to slip
+through opened semaphore gate (which was opened for
+Player-B) and received his own signal. Player B remained
+blocked followed by Player A. Deadlock happened which
+lasted until main thread came in and said game over.
+
+It seems to me that the implementation fails to
+correctly implement the following statement
+from specification:
+
+http://www.opengroup.org/
+onlinepubs/007908799/xsh/pthread_cond_wait.html
+
+"These functions atomically release mutex and cause
+the calling thread to block on the condition variable
+cond; atomically here means "atomically with respect
+to access by another thread to the mutex and then the
+condition variable". That is, if another thread is
+able to acquire the mutex after the about-to-block
+thread has released it, then a subsequent call to
+pthread_cond_signal() or pthread_cond_broadcast()
+in that thread behaves as if it were issued after
+the about-to-block thread has blocked."
+
+Question: Am I right?
+
+(I produced the program output above by simply
+adding ?Sleep( 1 )?:
+
+================
+waiting threads:
+================
+
+{ /** Critical Section
+
+ inc cond.waiters_count
+
+}
+
+ /*
+ /* Atomic only if using Win32 SignalObjectAndWait
+ /*
+ cond.mtx.release
+
+Sleep( 1 ); // Win32
+
+ /*** ^^-- A THREAD WHICH DID SIGNAL MAY ACQUIRE THE MUTEX,
+ /*** GO INTO WAIT ON THE SAME CONDITION AND OVERTAKE
+ /*** ORIGINAL WAITER(S) CONSUMING ITS OWN SIGNAL!
+
+ cond.sem.wait
+
+to the source code of pthread-win32 implementation:
+
+http://sources.redhat.com/cgi-bin/cvsweb.cgi/pthreads/
+condvar.c?rev=1.36&content-type=text/
+x-cvsweb-markup&cvsroot=pthreads-win32
+
+
+ /*
+ * We keep the lock held just long enough to increment the count of
+ * waiters by one (above).
+ * Note that we can't keep it held across the
+ * call to sem_wait since that will deadlock other calls
+ * to pthread_cond_signal
+ */
+ cleanup_args.mutexPtr = mutex;
+ cleanup_args.cv = cv;
+ cleanup_args.resultPtr = &result;
+
+ pthread_cleanup_push (ptw32_cond_wait_cleanup, (void *)
+&cleanup_args);
+
+ if ((result = pthread_mutex_unlock (mutex)) == 0)
+ {((result
+Sleep( 1 ); // @AT
+
+ /*
+ * Wait to be awakened by
+ * pthread_cond_signal, or
+ * pthread_cond_broadcast, or
+ * a timeout
+ *
+ * Note:
+ * ptw32_sem_timedwait is a cancelation point,
+ * hence providing the
+ * mechanism for making pthread_cond_wait a cancelation
+ * point. We use the cleanup mechanism to ensure we
+ * re-lock the mutex and decrement the waiters count
+ * if we are canceled.
+ */
+ if (ptw32_sem_timedwait (&(cv->sema), abstime) == -1) {
+ result = errno;
+ }
+ }
+
+ pthread_cleanup_pop (1); /* Always cleanup */
+
+
+BTW, on my system (2 CPUs) I can manage to get
+signals lost even without any source code modification
+if I run the tennis program many times in different
+shell sessions.
+.
+.
+.
+David Schwartz <davids@webmaster.com> wrote:
+>terekhov@my-deja.com wrote:
+>
+>> well, it might be that the program is in fact buggy.
+>> but you did not show me any bug.
+>
+>You're right. I was close but not dead on. I was correct, however,
+>that the code is buggy because it uses 'pthread_cond_signal' even
+>though not any thread waiting on the condition variable can do the
+>job. I was wrong in which thread could be waiting on the cv but
+>unable to do the job.
+
+Okay, lets change 'pthread_cond_signal' to 'pthread_cond_broadcast'
+but also add some noise from main() right before declaring the game
+to be over (I need it in order to demonstrate another problem of
+pthread-win32/ACE implementations - broadcast deadlock)...
+.
+.
+.
+It is my understanding of POSIX conditions,
+that on correct implementation added noise
+in form of unnecessary broadcasts from main,
+should not break the tennis program. The
+only 'side effect' of added noise on correct
+implementation would be 'spurious wakeups' of
+players (in fact they are not spurious,
+players just see them as spurious) unblocked,
+not by another player but by main before
+another player had a chance to acquire the
+mutex and change the game state variable:
+.
+.
+.
+
+PLAYER-B
+
+PLAYER-A
+
+---Noise ON...
+
+PLAYER-B
+
+PLAYER-A
+
+.
+.
+.
+
+PLAYER-B
+
+PLAYER-A
+
+----PLAYER-A: SPURIOUS WAKEUP!!!
+
+PLAYER-B
+
+PLAYER-A
+
+---Noise OFF
+
+PLAYER-B
+
+---Stopping the game...
+
+PLAYER-A GONE
+
+PLAYER-B GONE
+
+GAME OVER
+
+H:\SA\UXX\pt\PTHREADS\TESTS>
+
+On pthread-win32/ACE implementations the
+program could stall:
+
+.
+.
+.
+
+PLAYER-A
+
+PLAYER-B
+
+PLAYER-A
+
+PLAYER-B
+
+PLAYER-A
+
+PLAYER-B
+
+PLAYER-A
+
+PLAYER-B
+
+---Noise ON...
+
+PLAYER-A
+
+---Noise OFF
+^C
+H:\SA\UXX\pt\PTHREADS\TESTS>
+
+
+The implementation has problems:
+
+================
+waiting threads:
+================
+
+{ /** Critical Section
+
+ inc cond.waiters_count
+
+}
+
+ /*
+ /* Atomic only if using Win32 SignalObjectAndWait
+ /*
+ cond.mtx.release
+ cond.sem.wait
+
+ /*** ^^-- WAITER CAN BE PREEMPTED AFTER BEING UNBLOCKED...
+
+{ /** Critical Section
+
+ dec cond.waiters_count
+
+ /*** ^^- ...AND BEFORE DECREMENTING THE COUNT (1)
+
+ last_waiter = ( cond.was_broadcast &&
+ cond.waiters_count == 0 )
+
+ if ( last_waiter )
+
+ cond.was_broadcast = FALSE
+
+ endif
+
+}
+
+ if ( last_waiter )
+
+ /*
+ /* Atomic only if using Win32 SignalObjectAndWait
+ /*
+ cond.auto_reset_event_or_sem.post /* Event for Win32
+ cond.mtx.acquire
+
+ /*** ^^-- ...AND BEFORE CALL TO mtx.acquire (2)
+
+ /*** ^^-- NESTED BROADCASTS RESULT IN A DEADLOCK
+
+
+ else
+
+ cond.mtx.acquire
+
+ /*** ^^-- ...AND BEFORE CALL TO mtx.acquire (3)
+
+ endif
+
+
+==================
+broadcast threads:
+==================
+
+{ /** Critical Section
+
+ waiters_count = cond.waiters_count
+
+ if ( waiters_count != 0 )
+
+ cond.was_broadcast = TRUE
+
+ endif
+
+}
+
+if ( waiters_count != 0 )
+
+ cond.sem.post waiters_count
+
+ /*** ^^^^^--- SPURIOUS WAKEUPS DUE TO (1)
+
+ cond.auto_reset_event_or_sem.wait /* Event for Win32
+
+ /*** ^^^^^--- DEADLOCK FOR FURTHER BROADCASTS IF THEY
+ HAPPEN TO GO INTO WAIT WHILE PREVIOUS
+ BROADCAST IS STILL IN PROGRESS/WAITING
+
+endif
+
+a) cond.waiters_count does not accurately reflect
+number of waiters blocked on semaphore - that could
+result (in the time window when counter is not accurate)
+in spurios wakeups organised by subsequent _signals
+and _broadcasts. From standard compliance point of view
+that is OK but that could be a real problem from
+performance/efficiency point of view.
+
+b) If subsequent broadcast happen to go into wait on
+cond.auto_reset_event_or_sem before previous
+broadcast was unblocked from cond.auto_reset_event_or_sem
+by its last waiter, one of two blocked threads will
+remain blocked because last_waiter processing code
+fails to unblock both threads.
+
+In the situation with tennisb.c the Player-B was put
+in a deadlock by noise (broadcast) coming from main
+thread. And since Player-B holds the game state
+mutex when it calls broadcast, the whole program
+stalled: Player-A was deadlocked on mutex and
+main thread after finishing with producing the noise
+was deadlocked on mutex too (needed to declare the
+game over)
+
+(I produced the program output above by simply
+adding ?Sleep( 1 )?:
+
+==================
+broadcast threads:
+==================
+
+{ /** Critical Section
+
+ waiters_count = cond.waiters_count
+
+ if ( waiters_count != 0 )
+
+ cond.was_broadcast = TRUE
+
+ endif
+
+}
+
+if ( waiters_count != 0 )
+
+Sleep( 1 ); //Win32
+
+ cond.sem.post waiters_count
+
+ /*** ^^^^^--- SPURIOUS WAKEUPS DUE TO (1)
+
+ cond.auto_reset_event_or_sem.wait /* Event for Win32
+
+ /*** ^^^^^--- DEADLOCK FOR FURTHER BROADCASTS IF THEY
+ HAPPEN TO GO INTO WAIT WHILE PREVIOUS
+ BROADCAST IS STILL IN PROGRESS/WAITING
+
+endif
+
+to the source code of pthread-win32 implementation:
+
+http://sources.redhat.com/cgi-bin/cvsweb.cgi/pthreads/
+condvar.c?rev=1.36&content-type=text/
+x-cvsweb-markup&cvsroot=pthreads-win32
+
+ if (wereWaiters)
+ {(wereWaiters)sroot=pthreads-win32eb.cgi/pthreads/Yem...m
+ /*
+ * Wake up all waiters
+ */
+
+Sleep( 1 ); //@AT
+
+#ifdef NEED_SEM
+
+ result = (ptw32_increase_semaphore( &cv->sema, cv->waiters )
+ ? 0
+ : EINVAL);
+
+#else /* NEED_SEM */
+
+ result = (ReleaseSemaphore( cv->sema, cv->waiters, NULL )
+ ? 0
+ : EINVAL);
+
+#endif /* NEED_SEM */
+
+ }
+
+ (void) pthread_mutex_unlock(&(cv->waitersLock));
+
+ if (wereWaiters && result == 0)
+ {(wereWaiters
+ /*
+ * Wait for all the awakened threads to acquire their part of
+ * the counting semaphore
+ */
+
+ if (WaitForSingleObject (cv->waitersDone, INFINITE)
+ == WAIT_OBJECT_0)
+ {
+ result = 0;
+ }
+ else
+ {
+ result = EINVAL;
+ }
+
+ }
+
+ return (result);
+
+}
+
+BTW, on my system (2 CPUs) I can manage to get
+the program stalled even without any source code
+modification if I run the tennisb program many
+times in different shell sessions.
+
+===================
+pthread-win32 patch
+===================
+struct pthread_cond_t_ {
+ long nWaitersBlocked; /* Number of threads blocked
+*/
+ long nWaitersUnblocked; /* Number of threads unblocked
+*/
+ long nWaitersToUnblock; /* Number of threads to unblock
+*/
+ sem_t semBlockQueue; /* Queue up threads waiting for the
+*/
+ /* condition to become signalled
+*/
+ sem_t semBlockLock; /* Semaphore that guards access to
+*/
+ /* | waiters blocked count/block queue
+*/
+ /* +-> Mandatory Sync.LEVEL-1
+*/
+ pthread_mutex_t mtxUnblockLock; /* Mutex that guards access to
+*/
+ /* | waiters (to)unblock(ed) counts
+*/
+ /* +-> Optional* Sync.LEVEL-2
+*/
+}; /* Opt*) for _timedwait and
+cancellation*/
+
+int
+pthread_cond_init (pthread_cond_t * cond, const pthread_condattr_t * attr)
+ int result = EAGAIN;
+ pthread_cond_t cv = NULL;
+
+ if (cond == NULL)
+ {(cond
+ return EINVAL;
+ }
+
+ if ((attr != NULL && *attr != NULL) &&
+ ((*attr)->pshared == PTHREAD_PROCESS_SHARED))
+ {
+ /*
+ * Creating condition variable that can be shared between
+ * processes.
+ */
+ result = ENOSYS;
+
+ goto FAIL0;
+ }
+
+ cv = (pthread_cond_t) calloc (1, sizeof (*cv));
+
+ if (cv == NULL)
+ {(cv
+ result = ENOMEM;
+ goto FAIL0;
+ }
+
+ cv->nWaitersBlocked = 0;
+ cv->nWaitersUnblocked = 0;
+ cv->nWaitersToUnblock = 0;
+
+ if (sem_init (&(cv->semBlockLock), 0, 1) != 0)
+ {(sem_init
+ goto FAIL0;
+ }
+
+ if (sem_init (&(cv->semBlockQueue), 0, 0) != 0)
+ {(sem_init
+ goto FAIL1;
+ }
+
+ if (pthread_mutex_init (&(cv->mtxUnblockLock), 0) != 0)
+ {(pthread_mutex_init
+ goto FAIL2;
+ }
+
+
+ result = 0;
+
+ goto DONE;
+
+ /*
+ * -------------
+ * Failed...
+ * -------------
+ */
+FAIL2:
+ (void) sem_destroy (&(cv->semBlockQueue));
+
+FAIL1:
+ (void) sem_destroy (&(cv->semBlockLock));
+
+FAIL0:
+DONE:
+ *cond = cv;
+
+ return (result);
+
+} /* pthread_cond_init */
+
+int
+pthread_cond_destroy (pthread_cond_t * cond)
+{
+ int result = 0;
+ pthread_cond_t cv;
+
+ /*
+ * Assuming any race condition here is harmless.
+ */
+ if (cond == NULL
+ || *cond == NULL)
+ {
+ return EINVAL;
+ }
+
+ if (*cond != (pthread_cond_t) PTW32_OBJECT_AUTO_INIT)
+ {(*cond
+ cv = *cond;
+
+ /*
+ * Synchronize access to waiters blocked count (LEVEL-1)
+ */
+ if (sem_wait(&(cv->semBlockLock)) != 0)
+ {(sem_wait(&(cv->semBlockLock))
+ return errno;
+ }
+
+ /*
+ * Synchronize access to waiters (to)unblock(ed) counts (LEVEL-2)
+ */
+ if ((result = pthread_mutex_lock(&(cv->mtxUnblockLock))) != 0)
+ {((result
+ (void) sem_post(&(cv->semBlockLock));
+ return result;
+ }
+
+ /*
+ * Check whether cv is still busy (still has waiters blocked)
+ */
+ if (cv->nWaitersBlocked - cv->nWaitersUnblocked > 0)
+ {(cv->nWaitersBlocked
+ (void) sem_post(&(cv->semBlockLock));
+ (void) pthread_mutex_unlock(&(cv->mtxUnblockLock));
+ return EBUSY;
+ }
+
+ /*
+ * Now it is safe to destroy
+ */
+ (void) sem_destroy (&(cv->semBlockLock));
+ (void) sem_destroy (&(cv->semBlockQueue));
+ (void) pthread_mutex_unlock (&(cv->mtxUnblockLock));
+ (void) pthread_mutex_destroy (&(cv->mtxUnblockLock));
+
+ free(cv);
+ *cond = NULL;
+ }
+ else
+ {
+ /*
+ * See notes in ptw32_cond_check_need_init() above also.
+ */
+ EnterCriticalSection(&ptw32_cond_test_init_lock);
+
+ /*
+ * Check again.
+ */
+ if (*cond == (pthread_cond_t) PTW32_OBJECT_AUTO_INIT)
+ {(*cond
+ /*
+ * This is all we need to do to destroy a statically
+ * initialised cond that has not yet been used (initialised).
+ * If we get to here, another thread
+ * waiting to initialise this cond will get an EINVAL.
+ */
+ *cond = NULL;
+ }
+ else
+ {
+ /*
+ * The cv has been initialised while we were waiting
+ * so assume it's in use.
+ */
+ result = EBUSY;
+ }
+
+ LeaveCriticalSection(&ptw32_cond_test_init_lock);
+ }
+
+ return (result);
+}
+
+/*
+ * Arguments for cond_wait_cleanup, since we can only pass a
+ * single void * to it.
+ */
+typedef struct {
+ pthread_mutex_t * mutexPtr;
+ pthread_cond_t cv;
+ int * resultPtr;
+} ptw32_cond_wait_cleanup_args_t;
+
+static void
+ptw32_cond_wait_cleanup(void * args)
+{
+ ptw32_cond_wait_cleanup_args_t * cleanup_args =
+(ptw32_cond_wait_cleanup_args_t *) args;
+ pthread_cond_t cv = cleanup_args->cv;
+ int * resultPtr = cleanup_args->resultPtr;
+ int eLastSignal; /* enum: 1=yes 0=no -1=cancelled/timedout w/o signal(s)
+*/
+ int result;
+
+ /*
+ * Whether we got here as a result of signal/broadcast or because of
+ * timeout on wait or thread cancellation we indicate that we are no
+ * longer waiting. The waiter is responsible for adjusting waiters
+ * (to)unblock(ed) counts (protected by unblock lock).
+ * Unblock lock/Sync.LEVEL-2 supports _timedwait and cancellation.
+ */
+ if ((result = pthread_mutex_lock(&(cv->mtxUnblockLock))) != 0)
+ {((result
+ *resultPtr = result;
+ return;
+ }
+
+ cv->nWaitersUnblocked++;
+
+ eLastSignal = (cv->nWaitersToUnblock == 0) ?
+ -1 : (--cv->nWaitersToUnblock == 0);
+
+ /*
+ * No more LEVEL-2 access to waiters (to)unblock(ed) counts needed
+ */
+ if ((result = pthread_mutex_unlock(&(cv->mtxUnblockLock))) != 0)
+ {((result
+ *resultPtr = result;
+ return;
+ }
+
+ /*
+ * If last signal...
+ */
+ if (eLastSignal == 1)
+ {(eLastSignal
+ /*
+ * ...it means that we have end of 'atomic' signal/broadcast
+ */
+ if (sem_post(&(cv->semBlockLock)) != 0)
+ {(sem_post(&(cv->semBlockLock))
+ *resultPtr = errno;
+ return;
+ }
+ }
+ /*
+ * If not last signal and not timed out/cancelled wait w/o signal...
+ */
+ else if (eLastSignal == 0)
+ {
+ /*
+ * ...it means that next waiter can go through semaphore
+ */
+ if (sem_post(&(cv->semBlockQueue)) != 0)
+ {(sem_post(&(cv->semBlockQueue))
+ *resultPtr = errno;
+ return;
+ }
+ }
+
+ /*
+ * XSH: Upon successful return, the mutex has been locked and is owned
+ * by the calling thread
+ */
+ if ((result = pthread_mutex_lock(cleanup_args->mutexPtr)) != 0)
+ {((result
+ *resultPtr = result;
+ }
+
+} /* ptw32_cond_wait_cleanup */
+
+static int
+ptw32_cond_timedwait (pthread_cond_t * cond,
+ pthread_mutex_t * mutex,
+ const struct timespec *abstime)
+{
+ int result = 0;
+ pthread_cond_t cv;
+ ptw32_cond_wait_cleanup_args_t cleanup_args;
+
+ if (cond == NULL || *cond == NULL)
+ {(cond
+ return EINVAL;
+ }
+
+ /*
+ * We do a quick check to see if we need to do more work
+ * to initialise a static condition variable. We check
+ * again inside the guarded section of ptw32_cond_check_need_init()
+ * to avoid race conditions.
+ */
+ if (*cond == (pthread_cond_t) PTW32_OBJECT_AUTO_INIT)
+ {(*cond
+ result = ptw32_cond_check_need_init(cond);
+ }
+
+ if (result != 0 && result != EBUSY)
+ {(result
+ return result;
+ }
+
+ cv = *cond;
+
+ /*
+ * Synchronize access to waiters blocked count (LEVEL-1)
+ */
+ if (sem_wait(&(cv->semBlockLock)) != 0)
+ {(sem_wait(&(cv->semBlockLock))
+ return errno;
+ }
+
+ cv->nWaitersBlocked++;
+
+ /*
+ * Thats it. Counted means waiting, no more access needed
+ */
+ if (sem_post(&(cv->semBlockLock)) != 0)
+ {(sem_post(&(cv->semBlockLock))
+ return errno;
+ }
+
+ /*
+ * Setup this waiter cleanup handler
+ */
+ cleanup_args.mutexPtr = mutex;
+ cleanup_args.cv = cv;
+ cleanup_args.resultPtr = &result;
+
+ pthread_cleanup_push (ptw32_cond_wait_cleanup, (void *) &cleanup_args);
+
+ /*
+ * Now we can release 'mutex' and...
+ */
+ if ((result = pthread_mutex_unlock (mutex)) == 0)
+ {((result
+
+ /*
+ * ...wait to be awakened by
+ * pthread_cond_signal, or
+ * pthread_cond_broadcast, or
+ * timeout, or
+ * thread cancellation
+ *
+ * Note:
+ *
+ * ptw32_sem_timedwait is a cancellation point,
+ * hence providing the mechanism for making
+ * pthread_cond_wait a cancellation point.
+ * We use the cleanup mechanism to ensure we
+ * re-lock the mutex and adjust (to)unblock(ed) waiters
+ * counts if we are cancelled, timed out or signalled.
+ */
+ if (ptw32_sem_timedwait (&(cv->semBlockQueue), abstime) != 0)
+ {(ptw32_sem_timedwait
+ result = errno;
+ }
+ }
+
+ /*
+ * Always cleanup
+ */
+ pthread_cleanup_pop (1);
+
+
+ /*
+ * "result" can be modified by the cleanup handler.
+ */
+ return (result);
+
+} /* ptw32_cond_timedwait */
+
+
+static int
+ptw32_cond_unblock (pthread_cond_t * cond,
+ int unblockAll)
+{
+ int result;
+ pthread_cond_t cv;
+
+ if (cond == NULL || *cond == NULL)
+ {(cond
+ return EINVAL;
+ }
+
+ cv = *cond;
+
+ /*
+ * No-op if the CV is static and hasn't been initialised yet.
+ * Assuming that any race condition is harmless.
+ */
+ if (cv == (pthread_cond_t) PTW32_OBJECT_AUTO_INIT)
+ {(cv
+ return 0;
+ }
+
+ /*
+ * Synchronize access to waiters blocked count (LEVEL-1)
+ */
+ if (sem_wait(&(cv->semBlockLock)) != 0)
+ {(sem_wait(&(cv->semBlockLock))
+ return errno;
+ }
+
+ /*
+ * Synchronize access to waiters (to)unblock(ed) counts (LEVEL-2)
+ * This sync.level supports _timedwait and cancellation
+ */
+ if ((result = pthread_mutex_lock(&(cv->mtxUnblockLock))) != 0)
+ {((result
+ return result;
+ }
+
+ /*
+ * Adjust waiters blocked and unblocked counts (collect garbage)
+ */
+ if (cv->nWaitersUnblocked != 0)
+ {(cv->nWaitersUnblocked
+ cv->nWaitersBlocked -= cv->nWaitersUnblocked;
+ cv->nWaitersUnblocked = 0;
+ }
+
+ /*
+ * If (after adjustment) there are still some waiters blocked counted...
+ */
+ if ( cv->nWaitersBlocked > 0)
+ {(
+ /*
+ * We will unblock first waiter and leave semBlockLock/LEVEL-1 locked
+ * LEVEL-1 access is left disabled until last signal/unblock
+completes
+ */
+ cv->nWaitersToUnblock = (unblockAll) ? cv->nWaitersBlocked : 1;
+
+ /*
+ * No more LEVEL-2 access to waiters (to)unblock(ed) counts needed
+ * This sync.level supports _timedwait and cancellation
+ */
+ if ((result = pthread_mutex_unlock(&(cv->mtxUnblockLock))) != 0)
+ {((result
+ return result;
+ }
+
+
+ /*
+ * Now, with LEVEL-2 lock released let first waiter go through
+semaphore
+ */
+ if (sem_post(&(cv->semBlockQueue)) != 0)
+ {(sem_post(&(cv->semBlockQueue))
+ return errno;
+ }
+ }
+ /*
+ * No waiter blocked - no more LEVEL-1 access to blocked count needed...
+ */
+ else if (sem_post(&(cv->semBlockLock)) != 0)
+ {
+ return errno;
+ }
+ /*
+ * ...and no more LEVEL-2 access to waiters (to)unblock(ed) counts needed
+too
+ * This sync.level supports _timedwait and cancellation
+ */
+ else
+ {
+ result = pthread_mutex_unlock(&(cv->mtxUnblockLock));
+ }
+
+ return(result);
+
+} /* ptw32_cond_unblock */
+
+int
+pthread_cond_wait (pthread_cond_t * cond,
+ pthread_mutex_t * mutex)
+{
+ /* The NULL abstime arg means INFINITE waiting. */
+ return(ptw32_cond_timedwait(cond, mutex, NULL));
+} /* pthread_cond_wait */
+
+
+int
+pthread_cond_timedwait (pthread_cond_t * cond,
+ pthread_mutex_t * mutex,
+ const struct timespec *abstime)
+{
+ if (abstime == NULL)
+ {(abstime
+ return EINVAL;
+ }
+
+ return(ptw32_cond_timedwait(cond, mutex, abstime));
+} /* pthread_cond_timedwait */
+
+
+int
+pthread_cond_signal (pthread_cond_t * cond)
+{
+ /* The '0'(FALSE) unblockAll arg means unblock ONE waiter. */
+ return(ptw32_cond_unblock(cond, 0));
+} /* pthread_cond_signal */
+
+int
+pthread_cond_broadcast (pthread_cond_t * cond)
+{
+ /* The '1'(TRUE) unblockAll arg means unblock ALL waiters. */
+ return(ptw32_cond_unblock(cond, 1));
+} /* pthread_cond_broadcast */
+
+
+
+
+TEREKHOV@de.ibm.com on 17.01.2001 01:00:57
+
+Please respond to TEREKHOV@de.ibm.com
+
+To: pthreads-win32@sourceware.cygnus.com
+cc: schmidt@uci.edu
+Subject: win32 conditions: sem+counter+event = broadcast_deadlock +
+ spur.wakeup/unfairness/incorrectness ??
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+Hi,
+
+Problem 1: broadcast_deadlock
+
+It seems that current implementation does not provide "atomic"
+broadcasts. That may lead to "nested" broadcasts... and it seems
+that nested case is not handled correctly -> producing a broadcast
+DEADLOCK as a result.
+
+Scenario:
+
+N (>1) waiting threads W1..N are blocked (in _wait) on condition's
+semaphore.
+
+Thread B1 calls pthread_cond_broadcast, which results in "releasing" N
+W threads via incrementing semaphore counter by N (stored in
+cv->waiters) BUT cv->waiters counter does not change!! The caller
+thread B1 remains blocked on cv->waitersDone event (auto-reset!!) BUT
+condition is not protected from starting another broadcast (when called
+on another thread) while still waiting for the "old" broadcast to
+complete on thread B1.
+
+M (>=0, <N) W threads are fast enough to go thru their _wait call and
+decrement cv->waiters counter.
+
+L (N-M) "late" waiter W threads are a) still blocked/not returned from
+their semaphore wait call or b) were preempted after sem_wait but before
+lock( &cv->waitersLock ) or c) are blocked on cv->waitersLock.
+
+cv->waiters is still > 0 (= L).
+
+Another thread B2 (or some W thread from M group) calls
+pthread_cond_broadcast and gains access to counter... neither a) nor b)
+prevent thread B2 in pthread_cond_broadcast from gaining access to
+counter and starting another broadcast ( for c) - it depends on
+cv->waitersLock scheduling rules: FIFO=OK, PRTY=PROBLEM,... )
+
+That call to pthread_cond_broadcast (on thread B2) will result in
+incrementing semaphore by cv->waiters (=L) which is INCORRECT (all
+W1..N were in fact already released by thread B1) and waiting on
+_auto-reset_ event cv->waitersDone which is DEADLY WRONG (produces a
+deadlock)...
+
+All late W1..L threads now have a chance to complete their _wait call.
+Last W_L thread sets an auto-reselt event cv->waitersDone which will
+release either B1 or B2 leaving one of B threads in a deadlock.
+
+Problem 2: spur.wakeup/unfairness/incorrectness
+
+It seems that:
+
+a) because of the same problem with counter which does not reflect the
+actual number of NOT RELEASED waiters, the signal call may increment
+a semaphore counter w/o having a waiter blocked on it. That will result
+in (best case) spurious wake ups - performance degradation due to
+unnecessary context switches and predicate re-checks and (in worth case)
+unfairness/incorrectness problem - see b)
+
+b) neither signal nor broadcast prevent other threads - "new waiters"
+(and in the case of signal, the caller thread as well) from going into
+_wait and overtaking "old" waiters (already released but still not returned
+from sem_wait on condition's semaphore). Win semaphore just [API DOC]:
+"Maintains a count between zero and some maximum value, limiting the number
+of threads that are simultaneously accessing a shared resource." Calling
+ReleaseSemaphore does not imply (at least not documented) that on return
+from ReleaseSemaphore all waiters will in fact become released (returned
+from their Wait... call) and/or that new waiters calling Wait... afterwards
+will become less importance. It is NOT documented to be an atomic release
+of
+waiters... And even if it would be there is still a problem with a thread
+being preempted after Wait on semaphore and before Wait on cv->waitersLock
+and scheduling rules for cv->waitersLock itself
+(??WaitForMultipleObjects??)
+That may result in unfairness/incorrectness problem as described
+for SetEvent impl. in "Strategies for Implementing POSIX Condition
+Variables
+on Win32": http://www.cs.wustl.edu/~schmidt/win32-cv-1.html
+
+Unfairness -- The semantics of the POSIX pthread_cond_broadcast function is
+to wake up all threads currently blocked in wait calls on the condition
+variable. The awakened threads then compete for the external_mutex. To
+ensure
+fairness, all of these threads should be released from their
+pthread_cond_wait calls and allowed to recheck their condition expressions
+before other threads can successfully complete a wait on the condition
+variable.
+
+Unfortunately, the SetEvent implementation above does not guarantee that
+all
+threads sleeping on the condition variable when cond_broadcast is called
+will
+acquire the external_mutex and check their condition expressions. Although
+the Pthreads specification does not mandate this degree of fairness, the
+lack of fairness can cause starvation.
+
+To illustrate the unfairness problem, imagine there are 2 threads, C1 and
+C2,
+that are blocked in pthread_cond_wait on condition variable not_empty_ that
+is guarding a thread-safe message queue. Another thread, P1 then places two
+messages onto the queue and calls pthread_cond_broadcast. If C1 returns
+from
+pthread_cond_wait, dequeues and processes the message, and immediately
+waits
+again then it and only it may end up acquiring both messages. Thus, C2 will
+never get a chance to dequeue a message and run.
+
+The following illustrates the sequence of events:
+
+1. Thread C1 attempts to dequeue and waits on CV non_empty_
+2. Thread C2 attempts to dequeue and waits on CV non_empty_
+3. Thread P1 enqueues 2 messages and broadcasts to CV not_empty_
+4. Thread P1 exits
+5. Thread C1 wakes up from CV not_empty_, dequeues a message and runs
+6. Thread C1 waits again on CV not_empty_, immediately dequeues the 2nd
+ message and runs
+7. Thread C1 exits
+8. Thread C2 is the only thread left and blocks forever since
+ not_empty_ will never be signaled
+
+Depending on the algorithm being implemented, this lack of fairness may
+yield
+concurrent programs that have subtle bugs. Of course, application
+developers
+should not rely on the fairness semantics of pthread_cond_broadcast.
+However,
+there are many cases where fair implementations of condition variables can
+simplify application code.
+
+Incorrectness -- A variation on the unfairness problem described above
+occurs
+when a third consumer thread, C3, is allowed to slip through even though it
+was not waiting on condition variable not_empty_ when a broadcast occurred.
+
+To illustrate this, we will use the same scenario as above: 2 threads, C1
+and
+C2, are blocked dequeuing messages from the message queue. Another thread,
+P1
+then places two messages onto the queue and calls pthread_cond_broadcast.
+C1
+returns from pthread_cond_wait, dequeues and processes the message. At this
+time, C3 acquires the external_mutex, calls pthread_cond_wait and waits on
+the events in WaitForMultipleObjects. Since C2 has not had a chance to run
+yet, the BROADCAST event is still signaled. C3 then returns from
+WaitForMultipleObjects, and dequeues and processes the message in the
+queue.
+Thus, C2 will never get a chance to dequeue a message and run.
+
+The following illustrates the sequence of events:
+
+1. Thread C1 attempts to dequeue and waits on CV non_empty_
+2. Thread C2 attempts to dequeue and waits on CV non_empty_
+3. Thread P1 enqueues 2 messages and broadcasts to CV not_empty_
+4. Thread P1 exits
+5. Thread C1 wakes up from CV not_empty_, dequeues a message and runs
+6. Thread C1 exits
+7. Thread C3 waits on CV not_empty_, immediately dequeues the 2nd
+ message and runs
+8. Thread C3 exits
+9. Thread C2 is the only thread left and blocks forever since
+ not_empty_ will never be signaled
+
+In the above case, a thread that was not waiting on the condition variable
+when a broadcast occurred was allowed to proceed. This leads to incorrect
+semantics for a condition variable.
+
+
+COMMENTS???
+
+regards,
+alexander.
+