plibc: win32 related, socket
[oweals/gnunet.git] / src / util / helper.c
index c47b201c575832cb33bfd62a2ba72affaa27c473..f0892a485cf18cbd3651a23851ad678cccdb4dd7 100644 (file)
@@ -1,54 +1,59 @@
 /*
      This file is part of GNUnet.
-     (C) 2011, 2012 Christian Grothoff
+     Copyright (C) 2011, 2012 Christian Grothoff
 
-     GNUnet is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify
-     it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published
-     by the Free Software Foundation; either version 3, or (at your
-     option) any later version.
+     GNUnet is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify it
+     under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as published
+     by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License,
+     or (at your option) any later version.
 
      GNUnet is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but
      WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
      MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the GNU
-     General Public License for more details.
+     Affero General Public License for more details.
 
-     You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
-     along with GNUnet; see the file COPYING.  If not, write to the
-     Free Software Foundation, Inc., 59 Temple Place - Suite 330,
-     Boston, MA 02111-1307, USA.
-*/
+     You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+     along with this program.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+
+     SPDX-License-Identifier: AGPL3.0-or-later
+ */
 
 /**
  * @file util/helper.c
- * @brief API for dealing with (SUID) helper processes that communicate via GNUNET_MessageHeaders on stdin/stdout
+ * @brief API for dealing with (SUID) helper processes that communicate via
+ *          GNUNET_MessageHeaders on stdin/stdout
  * @author Philipp Toelke
  * @author Christian Grothoff
  */
 #include "platform.h"
 #include "gnunet_util_lib.h"
+#include "gnunet_mst_lib.h"
 
 
 /**
  * Entry in the queue of messages we need to transmit to the helper.
  */
-struct HelperMessageQueueEntry
-{
-
+struct GNUNET_HELPER_SendHandle {
   /**
    * This is an entry in a DLL.
    */
-  struct HelperMessageQueueEntry *next;
+  struct GNUNET_HELPER_SendHandle *next;
 
   /**
    * This is an entry in a DLL.
    */
-  struct HelperMessageQueueEntry *prev;
+  struct GNUNET_HELPER_SendHandle *prev;
 
   /**
    * Message to transmit (allocated at the end of this struct)
    */
   const struct GNUNET_MessageHeader *msg;
-  
+
+  /**
+   * The handle to a helper process.
+   */
+  struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle *h;
+
   /**
    * Function to call upon completion.
    */
@@ -63,36 +68,33 @@ struct HelperMessageQueueEntry
    * Current write position.
    */
   unsigned int wpos;
-
 };
 
 
 /**
  * The handle to a helper process.
  */
-struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle
-{
-
+struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle {
   /**
    * PipeHandle to receive data from the helper
    */
   struct GNUNET_DISK_PipeHandle *helper_in;
-  
+
   /**
    * PipeHandle to send data to the helper
    */
   struct GNUNET_DISK_PipeHandle *helper_out;
-  
+
   /**
    * FileHandle to receive data from the helper
    */
   const struct GNUNET_DISK_FileHandle *fh_from_helper;
-  
+
   /**
    * FileHandle to send data to the helper
    */
   const struct GNUNET_DISK_FileHandle *fh_to_helper;
-  
+
   /**
    * The process id of the helper
    */
@@ -101,99 +103,191 @@ struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle
   /**
    * The Message-Tokenizer that tokenizes the messages comming from the helper
    */
-  struct GNUNET_SERVER_MessageStreamTokenizer *mst;
+  struct GNUNET_MessageStreamTokenizer *mst;
+
+  /**
+   * The exception callback
+   */
+  GNUNET_HELPER_ExceptionCallback exp_cb;
+
+  /**
+   * The closure for callbacks
+   */
+  void *cb_cls;
 
   /**
    * First message queued for transmission to helper.
    */
-  struct HelperMessageQueueEntry *mq_head;
+  struct GNUNET_HELPER_SendHandle *sh_head;
 
   /**
    * Last message queued for transmission to helper.
    */
-  struct HelperMessageQueueEntry *mq_tail;
+  struct GNUNET_HELPER_SendHandle *sh_tail;
 
   /**
    * Binary to run.
    */
-  const char *binary_name;
+  char *binary_name;
 
   /**
    * NULL-terminated list of command-line arguments.
    */
-  char *const *binary_argv;
-                   
+  char **binary_argv;
+
   /**
    * Task to read from the helper.
    */
-  GNUNET_SCHEDULER_TaskIdentifier read_task;
+  struct GNUNET_SCHEDULER_Task *read_task;
 
   /**
    * Task to read from the helper.
    */
-  GNUNET_SCHEDULER_TaskIdentifier write_task;
+  struct GNUNET_SCHEDULER_Task *write_task;
 
   /**
    * Restart task.
    */
-  GNUNET_SCHEDULER_TaskIdentifier restart_task;
+  struct GNUNET_SCHEDULER_Task *restart_task;
+
+  /**
+   * Does the helper support the use of a control pipe for signalling?
+   */
+  int with_control_pipe;
+
+  /**
+   * Count start attempts to increase linear back off
+   */
+  unsigned int retry_back_off;
 };
 
 
 /**
- * Stop the helper process, we're closing down or had an error.
+ * Sends termination signal to the helper process.  The helper process is not
+ * reaped; call GNUNET_HELPER_wait() for reaping the dead helper process.
  *
- * @param h handle to the helper process
+ * @param h the helper handle
+ * @param soft_kill if GNUNET_YES, signals termination by closing the helper's
+ *          stdin; GNUNET_NO to signal termination by sending SIGTERM to helper
+ * @return #GNUNET_OK on success; #GNUNET_SYSERR on error
  */
-static void
-stop_helper (struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle *h)
+int
+GNUNET_HELPER_kill(struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle *h, int soft_kill)
+{
+  struct GNUNET_HELPER_SendHandle *sh;
+  int ret;
+
+  while (NULL != (sh = h->sh_head))
+    {
+      GNUNET_CONTAINER_DLL_remove(h->sh_head, h->sh_tail, sh);
+      if (NULL != sh->cont)
+        sh->cont(sh->cont_cls, GNUNET_NO);
+      GNUNET_free(sh);
+    }
+  if (NULL != h->restart_task)
+    {
+      GNUNET_SCHEDULER_cancel(h->restart_task);
+      h->restart_task = NULL;
+    }
+  if (NULL != h->read_task)
+    {
+      GNUNET_SCHEDULER_cancel(h->read_task);
+      h->read_task = NULL;
+    }
+  if (NULL == h->helper_proc)
+    return GNUNET_SYSERR;
+  if (GNUNET_YES == soft_kill)
+    {
+      /* soft-kill only possible with pipes */
+      GNUNET_assert(NULL != h->helper_in);
+      ret = GNUNET_DISK_pipe_close(h->helper_in);
+      h->helper_in = NULL;
+      h->fh_to_helper = NULL;
+      return ret;
+    }
+  if (0 != GNUNET_OS_process_kill(h->helper_proc, GNUNET_TERM_SIG))
+    return GNUNET_SYSERR;
+  return GNUNET_OK;
+}
+
+
+/**
+ * Reap the helper process.  This call is blocking(!).  The helper process
+ * should either be sent a termination signal before or should be dead before
+ * calling this function
+ *
+ * @param h the helper handle
+ * @return #GNUNET_OK on success; #GNUNET_SYSERR on error
+ */
+int
+GNUNET_HELPER_wait(struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle *h)
 {
-  struct HelperMessageQueueEntry *qe;
+  struct GNUNET_HELPER_SendHandle *sh;
+  int ret;
 
+  ret = GNUNET_SYSERR;
   if (NULL != h->helper_proc)
-  {
-    GNUNET_OS_process_kill (h->helper_proc, SIGKILL);
-    GNUNET_OS_process_wait (h->helper_proc);
-    GNUNET_OS_process_close (h->helper_proc);
-    h->helper_proc = NULL;
-  }
-  if (GNUNET_SCHEDULER_NO_TASK != h->restart_task)
-  {
-    GNUNET_SCHEDULER_cancel (h->restart_task);
-    h->restart_task = GNUNET_SCHEDULER_NO_TASK;
-  }
-  if (GNUNET_SCHEDULER_NO_TASK != h->read_task)
-  {
-    GNUNET_SCHEDULER_cancel (h->read_task);
-    h->read_task = GNUNET_SCHEDULER_NO_TASK;
-  }
-  if (GNUNET_SCHEDULER_NO_TASK != h->write_task)
-  {
-    GNUNET_SCHEDULER_cancel (h->write_task);
-    h->write_task = GNUNET_SCHEDULER_NO_TASK;
-  }
+    {
+      ret = GNUNET_OS_process_wait(h->helper_proc);
+      GNUNET_OS_process_destroy(h->helper_proc);
+      h->helper_proc = NULL;
+    }
+  if (NULL != h->read_task)
+    {
+      GNUNET_SCHEDULER_cancel(h->read_task);
+      h->read_task = NULL;
+    }
+  if (NULL != h->write_task)
+    {
+      GNUNET_SCHEDULER_cancel(h->write_task);
+      h->write_task = NULL;
+    }
   if (NULL != h->helper_in)
-  {
-    GNUNET_DISK_pipe_close (h->helper_in);
-    h->helper_in = NULL;
-    h->fh_to_helper = NULL;
-  }
+    {
+      GNUNET_DISK_pipe_close(h->helper_in);
+      h->helper_in = NULL;
+      h->fh_to_helper = NULL;
+    }
   if (NULL != h->helper_out)
-  {
-    GNUNET_DISK_pipe_close (h->helper_out);
-    h->helper_out = NULL;
-    h->fh_from_helper = NULL;
-  }
-  while (NULL != (qe = h->mq_head))
-  {
-    GNUNET_CONTAINER_DLL_remove (h->mq_head,
-                                h->mq_tail,
-                                qe);
-    qe->cont (qe->cont_cls, GNUNET_NO);
-    GNUNET_free (qe);
-  }
+    {
+      GNUNET_DISK_pipe_close(h->helper_out);
+      h->helper_out = NULL;
+      h->fh_from_helper = NULL;
+    }
+  while (NULL != (sh = h->sh_head))
+    {
+      GNUNET_CONTAINER_DLL_remove(h->sh_head, h->sh_tail, sh);
+      if (NULL != sh->cont)
+        sh->cont(sh->cont_cls, GNUNET_NO);
+      GNUNET_free(sh);
+    }
   /* purge MST buffer */
-  GNUNET_SERVER_mst_receive (h->mst, NULL, NULL, 0, GNUNET_YES, GNUNET_NO);
+  if (NULL != h->mst)
+    (void)GNUNET_MST_from_buffer(h->mst, NULL, 0, GNUNET_YES, GNUNET_NO);
+  return ret;
+}
+
+
+/**
+ * Stop the helper process, we're closing down or had an error.
+ *
+ * @param h handle to the helper process
+ * @param soft_kill if #GNUNET_YES, signals termination by closing the helper's
+ *          stdin; #GNUNET_NO to signal termination by sending SIGTERM to helper
+ */
+static void
+stop_helper(struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle *h, int soft_kill)
+{
+  if (NULL != h->restart_task)
+    {
+      GNUNET_SCHEDULER_cancel(h->restart_task);
+      h->restart_task = NULL;
+    }
+  else
+    {
+      GNUNET_break(GNUNET_OK == GNUNET_HELPER_kill(h, soft_kill));
+      GNUNET_break(GNUNET_OK == GNUNET_HELPER_wait(h));
+    }
 }
 
 
@@ -201,66 +295,98 @@ stop_helper (struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle *h)
  * Restart the helper process.
  *
  * @param cls handle to the helper process
- * @param tc scheduler context
  */
 static void
-restart_task (void *cls,
-             const struct GNUNET_SCHEDULER_TaskContext *tc);
+restart_task(void *cls);
 
 
 /**
  * Read from the helper-process
  *
  * @param cls handle to the helper process
- * @param tc scheduler context
  */
 static void
-helper_read (void *cls,
-            const struct GNUNET_SCHEDULER_TaskContext *tsdkctx)
+helper_read(void *cls)
 {
-  struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle*h = cls;
-  char buf[GNUNET_SERVER_MAX_MESSAGE_SIZE];
+  struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle *h = cls;
+  char buf[GNUNET_MAX_MESSAGE_SIZE] GNUNET_ALIGN;
   ssize_t t;
 
-  h->read_task = GNUNET_SCHEDULER_NO_TASK;
-  if (0 != (tsdkctx->reason & GNUNET_SCHEDULER_REASON_SHUTDOWN))
-  {
-    /* try again */
-    h->read_task = GNUNET_SCHEDULER_add_read_file (GNUNET_TIME_UNIT_FOREVER_REL,
-                                                  h->fh_from_helper, &helper_read, h);
-    return;
-  }
-  t = GNUNET_DISK_file_read (h->fh_from_helper, &buf, sizeof (buf));
-  if (t <= 0)
-  {
-    /* On read-error, restart the helper */
-    GNUNET_log (GNUNET_ERROR_TYPE_WARNING,
-                _("Error reading from `%s': %s\n"),
-               h->binary_name,
-               STRERROR (errno));
-    stop_helper (h);
-    /* Restart the helper */
-    h->restart_task =
-      GNUNET_SCHEDULER_add_delayed (GNUNET_TIME_UNIT_SECONDS,
-                                   &restart_task, h);
-    return;
-  }
+  h->read_task = NULL;
+  t = GNUNET_DISK_file_read(h->fh_from_helper, &buf, sizeof(buf));
+  if (t < 0)
+    {
+      /* On read-error, restart the helper */
+      GNUNET_log(GNUNET_ERROR_TYPE_WARNING,
+                 _("Error reading from `%s': %s\n"),
+                 h->binary_name,
+                 strerror(errno));
+      if (NULL != h->exp_cb)
+        {
+          h->exp_cb(h->cb_cls);
+          GNUNET_HELPER_stop(h, GNUNET_NO);
+          return;
+        }
+      stop_helper(h, GNUNET_NO);
+      /* Restart the helper */
+      h->restart_task = GNUNET_SCHEDULER_add_delayed(
+        GNUNET_TIME_relative_multiply(GNUNET_TIME_UNIT_SECONDS,
+                                      h->retry_back_off),
+        &restart_task,
+        h);
+      return;
+    }
+  if (0 == t)
+    {
+      /* this happens if the helper is shut down via a
+         signal, so it is not a "hard" error */
+      GNUNET_log(GNUNET_ERROR_TYPE_DEBUG,
+                 "Got 0 bytes from helper `%s' (EOF)\n",
+                 h->binary_name);
+      if (NULL != h->exp_cb)
+        {
+          h->exp_cb(h->cb_cls);
+          GNUNET_HELPER_stop(h, GNUNET_NO);
+          return;
+        }
+      stop_helper(h, GNUNET_NO);
+      /* Restart the helper */
+      h->restart_task = GNUNET_SCHEDULER_add_delayed(
+        GNUNET_TIME_relative_multiply(GNUNET_TIME_UNIT_SECONDS,
+                                      h->retry_back_off),
+        &restart_task,
+        h);
+      return;
+    }
+  GNUNET_log(GNUNET_ERROR_TYPE_DEBUG,
+             "Got %u bytes from helper `%s'\n",
+             (unsigned int)t,
+             h->binary_name);
+  h->read_task = GNUNET_SCHEDULER_add_read_file(GNUNET_TIME_UNIT_FOREVER_REL,
+                                                h->fh_from_helper,
+                                                &helper_read,
+                                                h);
   if (GNUNET_SYSERR ==
-      GNUNET_SERVER_mst_receive (h->mst, NULL, buf, t, GNUNET_NO, GNUNET_NO))
-  {
-    GNUNET_log (GNUNET_ERROR_TYPE_WARNING, 
-               _("Failed to parse inbound message from helper `%s'\n"),
-               h->binary_name);
-    stop_helper (h);
-    /* Restart the helper */
-    h->restart_task =
-        GNUNET_SCHEDULER_add_delayed (GNUNET_TIME_UNIT_SECONDS,
-                                      &restart_task, h);
-    return;
-
-  }
-  h->read_task = GNUNET_SCHEDULER_add_read_file (GNUNET_TIME_UNIT_FOREVER_REL,
-                                                h->fh_from_helper, &helper_read, h);
+      GNUNET_MST_from_buffer(h->mst, buf, t, GNUNET_NO, GNUNET_NO))
+    {
+      GNUNET_log(GNUNET_ERROR_TYPE_WARNING,
+                 _("Failed to parse inbound message from helper `%s'\n"),
+                 h->binary_name);
+      if (NULL != h->exp_cb)
+        {
+          h->exp_cb(h->cb_cls);
+          GNUNET_HELPER_stop(h, GNUNET_NO);
+          return;
+        }
+      stop_helper(h, GNUNET_NO);
+      /* Restart the helper */
+      h->restart_task = GNUNET_SCHEDULER_add_delayed(
+        GNUNET_TIME_relative_multiply(GNUNET_TIME_UNIT_SECONDS,
+                                      h->retry_back_off),
+        &restart_task,
+        h);
+      return;
+    }
 }
 
 
@@ -270,42 +396,55 @@ helper_read (void *cls,
  * @param h handle to the helper process
  */
 static void
-start_helper (struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle *h)
+start_helper(struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle *h)
 {
-  h->helper_in = GNUNET_DISK_pipe (GNUNET_YES, GNUNET_YES, GNUNET_NO);
-  h->helper_out = GNUNET_DISK_pipe (GNUNET_YES, GNUNET_NO, GNUNET_YES);
-  if ( (h->helper_in == NULL) || (h->helper_out == NULL))
-  {
-    /* out of file descriptors? try again later... */
-    stop_helper (h);
-    h->restart_task =
-      GNUNET_SCHEDULER_add_delayed (GNUNET_TIME_UNIT_SECONDS,
-                                   &restart_task, h);    
-    return;
-  }
+  h->helper_in =
+    GNUNET_DISK_pipe(GNUNET_YES, GNUNET_YES, GNUNET_YES, GNUNET_NO);
+  h->helper_out =
+    GNUNET_DISK_pipe(GNUNET_YES, GNUNET_YES, GNUNET_NO, GNUNET_YES);
+  if ((h->helper_in == NULL) || (h->helper_out == NULL))
+    {
+      /* out of file descriptors? try again later... */
+      stop_helper(h, GNUNET_NO);
+      h->restart_task = GNUNET_SCHEDULER_add_delayed(
+        GNUNET_TIME_relative_multiply(GNUNET_TIME_UNIT_SECONDS,
+                                      h->retry_back_off),
+        &restart_task,
+        h);
+      return;
+    }
+  GNUNET_log(GNUNET_ERROR_TYPE_DEBUG,
+             "Starting HELPER process `%s'\n",
+             h->binary_name);
   h->fh_from_helper =
-      GNUNET_DISK_pipe_handle (h->helper_out, GNUNET_DISK_PIPE_END_READ);
-  GNUNET_DISK_pipe_close_end (h->helper_out, GNUNET_DISK_PIPE_END_WRITE);
+    GNUNET_DISK_pipe_handle(h->helper_out, GNUNET_DISK_PIPE_END_READ);
   h->fh_to_helper =
-      GNUNET_DISK_pipe_handle (h->helper_in, GNUNET_DISK_PIPE_END_WRITE);
-  GNUNET_DISK_pipe_close_end (h->helper_in, GNUNET_DISK_PIPE_END_READ);
-  h->helper_proc =
-      GNUNET_OS_start_process_vap (h->helper_in, h->helper_out,
-                                  h->binary_name,
-                                  h->binary_argv);
+    GNUNET_DISK_pipe_handle(h->helper_in, GNUNET_DISK_PIPE_END_WRITE);
+  h->helper_proc = GNUNET_OS_start_process_vap(h->with_control_pipe,
+                                               GNUNET_OS_INHERIT_STD_ERR,
+                                               h->helper_in,
+                                               h->helper_out,
+                                               NULL,
+                                               h->binary_name,
+                                               h->binary_argv);
   if (NULL == h->helper_proc)
-  {
-    /* failed to start process? try again later... */
-    stop_helper (h);
-    h->restart_task =
-      GNUNET_SCHEDULER_add_delayed (GNUNET_TIME_UNIT_SECONDS,
-                                   &restart_task, h);    
-    return;
-  }
-  h->read_task = GNUNET_SCHEDULER_add_read_file (GNUNET_TIME_UNIT_FOREVER_REL,
-                                                h->fh_from_helper, 
-                                                &helper_read, 
-                                                h);
+    {
+      /* failed to start process? try again later... */
+      stop_helper(h, GNUNET_NO);
+      h->restart_task = GNUNET_SCHEDULER_add_delayed(
+        GNUNET_TIME_relative_multiply(GNUNET_TIME_UNIT_SECONDS,
+                                      h->retry_back_off),
+        &restart_task,
+        h);
+      return;
+    }
+  GNUNET_DISK_pipe_close_end(h->helper_out, GNUNET_DISK_PIPE_END_WRITE);
+  GNUNET_DISK_pipe_close_end(h->helper_in, GNUNET_DISK_PIPE_END_READ);
+  if (NULL != h->mst)
+    h->read_task = GNUNET_SCHEDULER_add_read_file(GNUNET_TIME_UNIT_FOREVER_REL,
+                                                  h->fh_from_helper,
+                                                  &helper_read,
+                                                  h);
 }
 
 
@@ -313,68 +452,119 @@ start_helper (struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle *h)
  * Restart the helper process.
  *
  * @param cls handle to the helper process
- * @param tc scheduler context
  */
 static void
-restart_task (void *cls,
-             const struct GNUNET_SCHEDULER_TaskContext *tc)
+restart_task(void *cls)
 {
-  struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle*h = cls;
+  struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle *h = cls;
 
-  h->restart_task = GNUNET_SCHEDULER_NO_TASK;
-  start_helper (h);
+  h->restart_task = NULL;
+  h->retry_back_off++;
+  GNUNET_log(GNUNET_ERROR_TYPE_INFO,
+             "Restarting helper with back-off %u\n",
+             h->retry_back_off);
+  start_helper(h);
 }
 
 
 /**
- * @brief Starts a helper and begins reading from it
+ * Starts a helper and begins reading from it. The helper process is
+ * restarted when it dies except when it is stopped using GNUNET_HELPER_stop()
+ * or when the exp_cb callback is not NULL.
  *
+ * @param with_control_pipe does the helper support the use of a control pipe for signalling?
  * @param binary_name name of the binary to run
  * @param binary_argv NULL-terminated list of arguments to give when starting the binary (this
  *                    argument must not be modified by the client for
- *                     the lifetime of the helper h)
+ *                     the lifetime of the helper handle)
  * @param cb function to call if we get messages from the helper
- * @param cb_cls Closure for the callback
- * @return the new H, NULL on error
+ * @param exp_cb the exception callback to call. Set this to NULL if the helper
+ *          process has to be restarted automatically when it dies/crashes
+ * @param cb_cls closure for the above callback
+ * @return the new Handle, NULL on error
  */
-struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle*
-GNUNET_HELPER_start (const char *binary_name,
-                    char *const binary_argv[],
-                    GNUNET_SERVER_MessageTokenizerCallback cb, void *cb_cls)
+struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle *
+GNUNET_HELPER_start(int with_control_pipe,
+                    const char *binary_name,
+                    char *const binary_argv[],
+                    GNUNET_MessageTokenizerCallback cb,
+                    GNUNET_HELPER_ExceptionCallback exp_cb,
+                    void *cb_cls)
 {
-  struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle*h;
-
-  h =  GNUNET_malloc (sizeof (struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle));
-  h->binary_name = binary_name;
-  h->binary_argv = binary_argv;
-  h->mst = GNUNET_SERVER_mst_create (cb, cb_cls);
-  start_helper (h);
+  struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle *h;
+  unsigned int c;
+
+  h = GNUNET_new(struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle);
+  h->with_control_pipe = with_control_pipe;
+  /* Lookup in libexec path only if we are starting gnunet helpers */
+  if (NULL != strstr(binary_name, "gnunet"))
+    h->binary_name = GNUNET_OS_get_libexec_binary_path(binary_name);
+  else
+    h->binary_name = GNUNET_strdup(binary_name);
+  for (c = 0; NULL != binary_argv[c]; c++)
+    ;
+  h->binary_argv = GNUNET_malloc(sizeof(char *) * (c + 1));
+  for (c = 0; NULL != binary_argv[c]; c++)
+    h->binary_argv[c] = GNUNET_strdup(binary_argv[c]);
+  h->binary_argv[c] = NULL;
+  h->cb_cls = cb_cls;
+  if (NULL != cb)
+    h->mst = GNUNET_MST_create(cb, h->cb_cls);
+  h->exp_cb = exp_cb;
+  h->retry_back_off = 0;
+  start_helper(h);
   return h;
 }
 
 
 /**
- * @brief Kills the helper, closes the pipe and frees the h
+ * Free's the resources occupied by the helper handle
+ *
+ * @param h the helper handle to free
+ */
+void
+GNUNET_HELPER_destroy(struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle *h)
+{
+  unsigned int c;
+  struct GNUNET_HELPER_SendHandle *sh;
+
+  if (NULL != h->write_task)
+    {
+      GNUNET_SCHEDULER_cancel(h->write_task);
+      h->write_task = NULL;
+    }
+  GNUNET_assert(NULL == h->read_task);
+  GNUNET_assert(NULL == h->restart_task);
+  while (NULL != (sh = h->sh_head))
+    {
+      GNUNET_CONTAINER_DLL_remove(h->sh_head, h->sh_tail, sh);
+      if (NULL != sh->cont)
+        sh->cont(sh->cont_cls, GNUNET_SYSERR);
+      GNUNET_free(sh);
+    }
+  if (NULL != h->mst)
+    GNUNET_MST_destroy(h->mst);
+  GNUNET_free(h->binary_name);
+  for (c = 0; h->binary_argv[c] != NULL; c++)
+    GNUNET_free(h->binary_argv[c]);
+  GNUNET_free(h->binary_argv);
+  GNUNET_free(h);
+}
+
+
+/**
+ * Kills the helper, closes the pipe and frees the handle
  *
- * @param h h to helper to stop
+ * @param h handle to helper to stop
+ * @param soft_kill if #GNUNET_YES, signals termination by closing the helper's
+ *          stdin; #GNUNET_NO to signal termination by sending SIGTERM to helper
  */
 void
-GNUNET_HELPER_stop (struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle *h)
+GNUNET_HELPER_stop(struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle *h, int soft_kill)
 {
-  struct HelperMessageQueueEntry *qe;
-
-  /* signal pending writes that we were stopped */
-  while (NULL != (qe = h->mq_head))
-  {
-    GNUNET_CONTAINER_DLL_remove (h->mq_head,
-                                h->mq_tail,
-                                qe);
-    qe->cont (qe->cont_cls, GNUNET_SYSERR);
-    GNUNET_free (qe);
-  }
-  stop_helper (h);
-  GNUNET_SERVER_mst_destroy (h->mst);
-  GNUNET_free (h);
+  h->exp_cb = NULL;
+  stop_helper(h, soft_kill);
+  GNUNET_HELPER_destroy(h);
 }
 
 
@@ -382,58 +572,67 @@ GNUNET_HELPER_stop (struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle *h)
  * Write to the helper-process
  *
  * @param cls handle to the helper process
- * @param tc scheduler context
  */
 static void
-helper_write (void *cls,
-            const struct GNUNET_SCHEDULER_TaskContext *tsdkctx)
+helper_write(void *cls)
 {
   struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle *h = cls;
-  struct HelperMessageQueueEntry *qe;
+  struct GNUNET_HELPER_SendHandle *sh;
   const char *buf;
   ssize_t t;
 
-  h->write_task = GNUNET_SCHEDULER_NO_TASK;
-  if (0 != (tsdkctx->reason & GNUNET_SCHEDULER_REASON_SHUTDOWN))
-  {
-    /* try again */
-    h->write_task = GNUNET_SCHEDULER_add_read_file (GNUNET_TIME_UNIT_FOREVER_REL,
-                                                   h->fh_to_helper, &helper_write, h);
-    return;
-  }  
-  if (NULL == (qe = h->mq_head))
-    return; /* how did this happen? */
-  buf = (const char*) qe->msg;
-  t = GNUNET_DISK_file_write (h->fh_to_helper, &buf[qe->wpos], ntohs (qe->msg->size) - qe->wpos);
-  if (t <= 0)
-  {
-    /* On write-error, restart the helper */
-    GNUNET_log (GNUNET_ERROR_TYPE_WARNING,
-                _("Error writing to `%s': %s\n"),
-               h->binary_name,
-               STRERROR (errno));
-    stop_helper (h);
-    /* Restart the helper */
-    h->restart_task =
-      GNUNET_SCHEDULER_add_delayed (GNUNET_TIME_UNIT_SECONDS,
-                                   &restart_task, h);
-    return;
-  }
-  qe->wpos += t;
-  if (qe->wpos == ntohs (qe->msg->size))
-  {
-    GNUNET_CONTAINER_DLL_remove (h->mq_head,
-                                h->mq_tail,
-                                qe);
-    if (NULL != qe->cont)
-      qe->cont (qe->cont_cls, GNUNET_YES);
-    GNUNET_free (qe);
-  }
-  if (NULL != h->mq_head)
-    h->write_task = GNUNET_SCHEDULER_add_write_file (GNUNET_TIME_UNIT_FOREVER_REL,
-                                                    h->fh_to_helper, 
-                                                    &helper_write, 
-                                                    h);
+  h->write_task = NULL;
+  if (NULL == (sh = h->sh_head))
+    {
+      GNUNET_log(GNUNET_ERROR_TYPE_DEBUG, "Helper write had no work!\n");
+      return; /* how did this happen? */
+    }
+  buf = (const char *)sh->msg;
+  t = GNUNET_DISK_file_write(h->fh_to_helper,
+                             &buf[sh->wpos],
+                             ntohs(sh->msg->size) - sh->wpos);
+  if (-1 == t)
+    {
+      /* On write-error, restart the helper */
+      GNUNET_log(GNUNET_ERROR_TYPE_WARNING,
+                 _("Error writing to `%s': %s\n"),
+                 h->binary_name,
+                 strerror(errno));
+      if (NULL != h->exp_cb)
+        {
+          h->exp_cb(h->cb_cls);
+          GNUNET_HELPER_stop(h, GNUNET_NO);
+          return;
+        }
+      GNUNET_log(GNUNET_ERROR_TYPE_DEBUG,
+                 "Stopping and restarting helper task!\n");
+      stop_helper(h, GNUNET_NO);
+      /* Restart the helper */
+      h->restart_task = GNUNET_SCHEDULER_add_delayed(
+        GNUNET_TIME_relative_multiply(GNUNET_TIME_UNIT_SECONDS,
+                                      h->retry_back_off),
+        &restart_task,
+        h);
+      return;
+    }
+  GNUNET_log(GNUNET_ERROR_TYPE_DEBUG,
+             "Transmitted %u bytes to %s\n",
+             (unsigned int)t,
+             h->binary_name);
+  sh->wpos += t;
+  if (sh->wpos == ntohs(sh->msg->size))
+    {
+      GNUNET_CONTAINER_DLL_remove(h->sh_head, h->sh_tail, sh);
+      if (NULL != sh->cont)
+        sh->cont(sh->cont_cls, GNUNET_YES);
+      GNUNET_free(sh);
+    }
+  if (NULL != h->sh_head)
+    h->write_task =
+      GNUNET_SCHEDULER_add_write_file(GNUNET_TIME_UNIT_FOREVER_REL,
+                                      h->fh_to_helper,
+                                      &helper_write,
+                                      h);
 }
 
 
@@ -443,41 +642,69 @@ helper_write (void *cls,
  * @param h helper to send message to
  * @param msg message to send
  * @param can_drop can the message be dropped if there is already one in the queue?
- * @param cont continuation to run once the message is out (PREREQ_DONE on succees, CANCEL
- *             if the helper process died, NULL during GNUNET_HELPER_stop).
- * @param cont_cls closure for 'cont'
- * @return GNUNET_YES if the message will be sent
- *         GNUNET_NO if the message was dropped
+ * @param cont continuation to run once the message is out (#GNUNET_OK on succees, #GNUNET_NO
+ *             if the helper process died, #GNUNET_SYSERR during #GNUNET_HELPER_destroy).
+ * @param cont_cls closure for @a cont
+ * @return NULL if the message was dropped,
+ *         otherwise handle to cancel *cont* (actual transmission may
+ *         not be abortable)
  */
-int
-GNUNET_HELPER_send (struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle *h, 
-                   const struct GNUNET_MessageHeader *msg,
-                   int can_drop,
-                   GNUNET_HELPER_Continuation cont,
-                   void *cont_cls)
+struct GNUNET_HELPER_SendHandle *
+GNUNET_HELPER_send(struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle *h,
+                   const struct GNUNET_MessageHeader *msg,
+                   int can_drop,
+                   GNUNET_HELPER_Continuation cont,
+                   void *cont_cls)
 {
-  struct HelperMessageQueueEntry *qe;
+  struct GNUNET_HELPER_SendHandle *sh;
   uint16_t mlen;
 
-  if ( (GNUNET_YES == can_drop) &&
-       (h->mq_head != NULL) )
-    return GNUNET_NO;
-  mlen = ntohs (msg->size);
-  qe = GNUNET_malloc (sizeof (struct HelperMessageQueueEntry) + mlen);
-  qe->msg = (const struct GNUNET_MessageHeader*) &qe[1];
-  memcpy (&qe[1], msg, mlen);
-  qe->cont = cont;
-  qe->cont_cls = cont_cls;
-  GNUNET_CONTAINER_DLL_insert_tail (h->mq_head,
-                                   h->mq_tail,
-                                   qe);
-  if (GNUNET_SCHEDULER_NO_TASK == h->write_task)
-    h->write_task = GNUNET_SCHEDULER_add_write_file (GNUNET_TIME_UNIT_FOREVER_REL,
-                                                    h->fh_to_helper, 
-                                                    &helper_write, 
-                                                    h);
-    
-  return GNUNET_YES;
+  if (NULL == h->fh_to_helper)
+    return NULL;
+  if ((GNUNET_YES == can_drop) && (NULL != h->sh_head))
+    return NULL;
+  mlen = ntohs(msg->size);
+  sh = GNUNET_malloc(sizeof(struct GNUNET_HELPER_SendHandle) + mlen);
+  sh->msg = (const struct GNUNET_MessageHeader *)&sh[1];
+  GNUNET_memcpy(&sh[1], msg, mlen);
+  sh->h = h;
+  sh->cont = cont;
+  sh->cont_cls = cont_cls;
+  GNUNET_CONTAINER_DLL_insert_tail(h->sh_head, h->sh_tail, sh);
+  if (NULL == h->write_task)
+    h->write_task =
+      GNUNET_SCHEDULER_add_write_file(GNUNET_TIME_UNIT_FOREVER_REL,
+                                      h->fh_to_helper,
+                                      &helper_write,
+                                      h);
+
+  return sh;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Cancel a #GNUNET_HELPER_send operation.  If possible, transmitting the
+ * message is also aborted, but at least 'cont' won't be
+ * called.
+ *
+ * @param sh operation to cancel
+ */
+void
+GNUNET_HELPER_send_cancel(struct GNUNET_HELPER_SendHandle *sh)
+{
+  struct GNUNET_HELPER_Handle *h = sh->h;
+
+  sh->cont = NULL;
+  sh->cont_cls = NULL;
+  if (0 == sh->wpos)
+    {
+      GNUNET_CONTAINER_DLL_remove(h->sh_head, h->sh_tail, sh);
+      GNUNET_free(sh);
+      if (NULL == h->sh_head)
+        {
+          GNUNET_SCHEDULER_cancel(h->write_task);
+          h->write_task = NULL;
+        }
+    }
 }