[Python-Dev] GIL required for all Python calls? (original) (raw)

"Martin v. Löwis" martin at v.loewis.de
Thu Jan 7 22:11:36 CET 2010

I don't think that's possible. The regex engine can also operate on objects whose representation may move in memory when you don't hold the GIL (e.g. buffers that get mutated). Why is it a problem? If we get a buffer through the new buffer API, the object should ensure that the representation isn't moved away until the buffer is released.

In 2.7, we currently get the buffer with bf_getreadbuffer. In 3.x, we have

/* Release the buffer immediately --- possibly dangerous
   but doing something else would require some re-factoring
*/
PyBuffer_Release(&view);

Even if we do use the new API, and correctly, it still might be confusing if the contents of the buffer changes underneath.

Regards, Martin

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