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Timers without a user-stored reference don't fire #180

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opened 2026-01-05 02:30:14 +00:00 by john · 1 comment

john commented

2026-01-05 02:30:14 +00:00

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In an object's __init__:
mcrfpy.Timer("tick", self.tick, 1000, start=True)

this timer will never fire: since the user did not store a reference to it, it's silently garbage collected.

Changing it to:
self.ticker = mcrfpy.Timer("tick", self.tick, 1000, start=True)

the timer operates as expected.

This defies expectations: mcrfpy.timers shows the timer in the second case, but omits it in the first. The timer system only stores a weak reference to the python timer object, and doesn't crash when it's garbage collected, but it forces users to maintain the object even though it has a name.

In an object's `__init__`: `mcrfpy.Timer("tick", self.tick, 1000, start=True)` this timer will never fire: since the user did not store a reference to it, it's silently garbage collected. Changing it to: `self.ticker = mcrfpy.Timer("tick", self.tick, 1000, start=True)` the timer operates as expected. This defies expectations: `mcrfpy.timers` shows the timer in the second case, but omits it in the first. The timer system only stores a weak reference to the python timer object, and doesn't crash when it's garbage collected, but it forces users to maintain the object even though it has a name.

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2026-01-05 02:30:14 +00:00

john commented

2026-01-06 20:29:45 +00:00

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Implementation Complete

Fixed the timer lifecycle so that timers without a user-stored reference continue firing.

Changes Made:

Timer.h - Added std::string name member to store timer name in C++ object
Timer.cpp - Updated constructor to accept and store name
PyTimer.cpp - Removed the dealloc cleanup that was erasing timers from game->timers when Python wrapper was GC'd
McRFPy_API.cpp - Added createTimerWrapper() helper and updated api_get_timers() to create new Python wrappers for orphaned C++ timers

New Lifecycle Behavior:

Scenario	Behavior
`Timer("t", cb, 1000)` with no stored ref	Timer runs, Python wrapper GC'd, accessible via `mcrfpy.timers`
`t = Timer("t", cb, 1000)`	Timer runs, Python wrapper kept alive by `t`
`t.stop()`	Timer removed from engine, kept alive by `t`
Timer fires with `once=True`	`testTimers()` removes from map, Timer GC'd if no Python ref
New timer with same name	Old timer bumped from map, old Timer GC'd when shared_ptr→0

Tests Added:

tests/issue_180_timer_orphan_test.py - Verifies orphan timers fire and are accessible
tests/issue_180_timer_stopped_test.py - Verifies stopped timer lifecycle

Both tests pass.

## Implementation Complete Fixed the timer lifecycle so that timers without a user-stored reference continue firing. ### Changes Made: 1. **Timer.h** - Added `std::string name` member to store timer name in C++ object 2. **Timer.cpp** - Updated constructor to accept and store name 3. **PyTimer.cpp** - Removed the `dealloc` cleanup that was erasing timers from `game->timers` when Python wrapper was GC'd 4. **McRFPy_API.cpp** - Added `createTimerWrapper()` helper and updated `api_get_timers()` to create new Python wrappers for orphaned C++ timers ### New Lifecycle Behavior: | Scenario | Behavior | |----------|----------| | `Timer("t", cb, 1000)` with no stored ref | Timer runs, Python wrapper GC'd, accessible via `mcrfpy.timers` | | `t = Timer("t", cb, 1000)` | Timer runs, Python wrapper kept alive by `t` | | `t.stop()` | Timer removed from engine, kept alive by `t` | | Timer fires with `once=True` | `testTimers()` removes from map, Timer GC'd if no Python ref | | New timer with same name | Old timer bumped from map, old Timer GC'd when shared_ptr→0 | ### Tests Added: - `tests/issue_180_timer_orphan_test.py` - Verifies orphan timers fire and are accessible - `tests/issue_180_timer_stopped_test.py` - Verifies stopped timer lifecycle Both tests pass.

john closed this issue

2026-01-07 00:57:22 +00:00

john referenced this issue from a commit

2026-01-07 01:14:04 +00:00

timer fixes: timers managed by engine can run in the background. Closes #180

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