What are the most appropriate boost::asio read/write methods to use for a game server? [closed]

Closed. This question is opinion-based. It is not currently accepting answers.

---

Want to improve this question? Update the question so it can be answered with facts and citations by editing this post.

Closed 9 years ago.

Improve this question

I am using boost::asio to make a socket network. The library has a number of different methods for sending and receiving data, each of which perfor开发者_如何学Pythonm a similar task with a slight difference.

For sending data, boost provides the following functions:

boost::asio::basic_stream_socket::async_send()

boost::asio::basic_stream_socket::async_write_some()

boost::asio::basic_stream_socket::async_write()

And for receiving data, boost provides these functions:

boost::asio::basic_stream_socket::async_receive()

boost::asio::basic_stream_socket::async_read_some()

boost::asio::basic_stream_socket::async_read()

Out of these, which one(s) are the most appropriate to use for a game server, and why?

---

The async_read() and async_write() free functions are composed operations. They are implemented in terms of zero or more calls to the stream's async_read_some() or async_write_some() methods.

The member functions may not transmit or receive all data before the asynchronous operation completes. You should use the free functions if you desire that behavior.

---

The question's already been answered, but it's also worth mentioning that async_write_some is exactly the same function as async_send, the naming is just there for consistency since "send" applies to sockets and "write" applies to streams.

Another important point to note is that the async_write free function is what Chris Kohlhoff calls a "composed operation", and this means that even though it returns immediately, it's not safe to call another async_write until the associated handler has been called - this can cause all sorts of problems if not anticipated. The async_write_some function is lower level, and doesn't suffer from this.

Further reading: http://blog.think-async.com/2009/08/composed-operations-coroutines-and-code.html