Is JSON::Coder intended to be thread safe ?
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- Dominant language
- Ruby
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Description
In JRuby we hit a race condition: ActiveSupport uses a single shared JSON::Coder
instance and calls #dump on it from multiple threads.
ActiveSupport creates one shared Coder:
https://github.com/rails/rails/blob/v8.1.3.1/activesupport/lib/active_support/json/encoding.rb#L152
…and reuses it on every encode:
https://github.com/rails/rails/blob/v8.1.3.1/activesupport/lib/active_support/json/encoding.rb#L188
The error we got, on a flat object was
JSON::NestingError: nesting of 100 is too deep. Did you try to serialize objects with circular references?
Question: is a single JSON::Coder instance intended to be safe to call
concurrently from multiple threads (i.e. is #dump/#generate on one Coder
intended to be thread-safe)?
Versions: json 2.21.2 (java), JRuby 10.0.5.0, activesupport 8.1.3.1.
I have a small threaded reproduction I can add if useful.
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Research direction
Start with activesupport/lib/active_support/json/encoding.rb at the shared JSON::Coder creation and reuse points, then inspect JSON::Coder#dump and #generate for concurrent behavior on JRuby. Use the reported threaded reproduction, if provided, to confirm the race; done means the thread-safety contract is decided and the behavior is documented or covered by a regression test.
Written by the indexing model from the issue text.
Assessment
- Tech stack
- json, ruby
- Domain
- backend
- Issue type
- Bug
- Difficulty
- 4/5
- Estimated time
- 3-5 days
- Activity status
- Active
- Clarity
- Mostly clear
- Newbie friendliness
- 38/100