python / python/cpython

asyncio: SelectorEventLoop busy-loops at 100% CPU forever when the self-pipe socketpair reaches EOF

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#156,344 4 comments 0 reactions 0 assignees View on GitHub

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stdlib topic-asyncio type-bug
Dominant language
Python
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Description

Bug description

The selector-side twin of #156333. BaseSelectorEventLoop also wakes itself through a self-socket created by socket.socketpair(). On Windows this is a loopback TCP pair, and if the connection reaches a clean EOF while the loop runs, _read_from_self returns but the reader is still registered on the dead fd — select() reports it readable immediately, forever, pinning one core at 100% with nothing logged.

Lib/asyncio/selector_events.py:

def _read_from_self(self):
    while True:
        try:
            data = self._ssock.recv(4096)
            if not data:
                break
            self._process_self_data(data)
        except InterruptedError:
            continue
        except BlockingIOError:
            break

At EOF, recv() returns b'', the loop breaks, and the callback returns. But the fd is still registered via _add_reader(self._ssock.fileno(), self._read_from_self) from _make_self_pipe(). A closed-for-read socket is permanently "readable", so every select() iteration re-fires the callback — a tight spin. The loop is otherwise idle and never recovers.

The proactor half of this bug is fixed by #156343 (rebuild the pair on the empty result). The same OS teardown of the loopback pair that triggers it triggers this on any WindowsSelectorEventLoopPolicy process.

Reproducer (deterministic, Windows)
import asyncio, socket, time

calls = 0
orig = asyncio.selector_events.BaseSelectorEventLoop._read_from_self
def counting(self):
    global calls
    calls += 1
    return orig(self)
asyncio.selector_events.BaseSelectorEventLoop._read_from_self = counting

async def main():
    loop = asyncio.get_running_loop()
    await asyncio.sleep(0.1)
    loop._csock.shutdown(socket.SHUT_WR)   # graceful half-close = clean EOF
    global calls
    calls = 0
    start = time.process_time()
    await asyncio.sleep(3)
    print(f"_read_from_self calls during 3s idle: {calls}")
    print(f"CPU consumed while sleeping 3s: {time.process_time() - start:.2f}s")

loop = asyncio.SelectorEventLoop()
asyncio.set_event_loop(loop)
loop.run_until_complete(main())

Measured on Windows 11, CPython main (3.16.0a0, self-built): 582,692 callback invocations, 1.23s CPU, during a 3-second idle sleep. Expected ~0.

Note the instrumentation must patch the class before the loop is created — _make_self_pipe() captures the bound method at registration time, so patching an instance afterwards does not intercept the already-armed reader (which is also why the spin is invisible to profilers that hook late).

Environment
  • Windows 11, self-built main (3.16.0a0)
  • The proactor variant (#156333) reproduces on installed 3.12.10 / 3.13.12; the _read_from_self code path shown above is unchanged on main
Notes on scope
  • Unix loops use an AF_UNIX pair, which the OS does not tear down this way, so the organic trigger is Windows-specific; a deterministic test using shutdown(SHUT_WR) works on any platform, though.
  • Related, on the proactor side: the same teardown can also surface as ConnectionResetError from the pending recv instead of a clean EOF; that path is currently unhandled too (noted in #156343).
Suggested direction

On recv() == b'', rebuild the self-pipe the way #156343 does for the proactor loop: allocate the new pair first, move any signal wakeup fd registration (set_wakeup_fd() returns the previous fd, so it can be probed and moved only when it names the old socket — Unix loops with signal handlers), remove the old reader, close the old sockets, and register the reader on the new fd.

Linked PRs
  • gh-156345

Contributor guide

Open the contributing guide

First steps

  1. Read the whole issue, then the project's contributing guide.
  2. Comment on the issue to say you are picking it up — it saves two people doing the same work.
  3. Fork the repository and make your change on a branch.
  4. Open a pull request that references the issue number.

Research direction

Start in Lib/asyncio/selector_events.py with _read_from_self and _make_self_pipe, then compare the proactor fix in #156343 and the linked work in #156345. Reproduce the Windows self-pipe EOF case and verify that an idle selector loop no longer repeatedly invokes the reader while signal wakeup registration remains correct.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Tech stack
python
Domain
backend, operating-systems
Issue type
Bug
Difficulty
4/5
Estimated time
3-5 days
Activity status
Stale
Clarity
Clearly specified
Newbie friendliness
25/100

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