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feat: Universal set() via scanOnce(), callback refinements, and auto_reset_scan#206

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BoredDadDev wants to merge 2 commits intoDiamondLightSource:masterfrom
BoredDadDev:feature/universal-set
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feat: Universal set() via scanOnce(), callback refinements, and auto_reset_scan#206
BoredDadDev wants to merge 2 commits intoDiamondLightSource:masterfrom
BoredDadDev:feature/universal-set

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Summary

This PR makes set() work regardless of a record's SCAN setting, adds
de-registration and multi-field subscription to the field-change callback
API introduced in PR1, and adds an auto_reset_scan option to iocInit()
to handle the periodic-scan contention that arises when clients change SCAN.

Builds on #205 (feature/field-change-callbacks).

Motivation

PR1 made it possible for Python to react when a client changes SCAN. But
that immediately exposed a new problem: once the client moves the record off
I/O Intr, set() breaks silently -- scanIoRequest() returns zero and
the value sits unpublished until something else calls dbProcess().

Making SCAN field changes meaningful requires that set() continues to
publish regardless of the SCAN setting.

Additionally, once callbacks could fire for SCAN writes we needed to be
able to de-register them (audit/testing), and the natural next step was
to support subscribing to a list of fields in one call.

What changed

New files

File Purpose
tests/sim_universal_set_ioc.py Subprocess IOC for set() universality tests
tests/test_universal_set.py 18 integration tests: I/O Intr, Passive, periodic, Event, transitions, rapid sets, CA monitor
tests/sim_callback_refinements_ioc.py Subprocess IOC for callback-API refinement tests
tests/test_callback_refinements.py 9 integration tests: multi-field subscription, on_update coexistence, wildcard, auto_reset_scan, de-registration
tests/sim_field_behavior_ioc.py Subprocess IOC for EPICS record-field behavior tests
tests/test_field_behavior.py 22 integration tests: drive limits, alarm limits, SCAN, DISA, display range, precision; exercises Proposal 1 + 2 together

Modified files

File Change
softioc/device_core.py +86 lines: remove_field_callback(), clear_field_callbacks(); extend on_field_change() to accept a list/tuple of fields; update trigger() with scanOnce fallback
softioc/extension.c +69 lines: scan_once() C wrapper for scanOnce(); auto_reset_scan flag + SCAN-reset logic in FieldWriteHook; double-registration guard for both hooks
softioc/field_monitor.py Update install_field_monitor() to accept and forward auto_reset_scan
softioc/imports.py +35 lines: scan_once() ctypes wrapper; refactor install_pv_logging() to accept log_puts flag; update register_field_write_listener() to forward auto_reset_scan; set scanIoRequest.restype = c_uint so Python sees the return value
softioc/softioc.py Update iocInit() signature to add log_puts=True and auto_reset_scan=False; pass flags through to install_pv_logging and install_field_monitor
tests/conftest.py +42 lines: fixtures for all new test IOCs

How it works

1. Universal set() -- scanOnce fallback in trigger()

trigger() now uses scanIoRequest()'s return value. scanIoRequest()
returns a non-zero bitmask if it queued records, or zero if the I/O Intr
scan list was empty (meaning the record is on a different scan list). When
it returns zero, trigger() falls back to scanOnce():

def trigger(self):
    queued = False
    if self.__ioscanpvt:
        queued = imports.scanIoRequest(self.__ioscanpvt)
    if not queued and hasattr(self, '_record') and self._record is not None:
        imports.scan_once(self._record.record.value)

Only one path fires per call. scanIoRequest was already in use; the only
change is capturing its return value (requires setting restype = c_uint on
the ctypes wrapper).

The scan_once C wrapper is minimal:

static PyObject *scan_once(PyObject *self, PyObject *args)
{
    Py_ssize_t record_ptr;
    if (!PyArg_ParseTuple(args, "n", &record_ptr))
        return NULL;
    dbCommon *precord = (dbCommon *)record_ptr;
    Py_BEGIN_ALLOW_THREADS
    scanOnce(precord);
    Py_END_ALLOW_THREADS
    Py_RETURN_NONE;
}

2. auto_reset_scan -- SCAN as a latched command

When iocInit(auto_reset_scan=True), FieldWriteHook resets SCAN back to
"I/O Intr" immediately after forwarding the write to the Python callback --
unless the client wrote "Passive" (which is treated as a deliberate
"stop updating" intent and is exempt).

The reset uses dbPut with DBR_ENUM inside dbScanLock / dbScanUnlock.
EPICS Base's SPC_SCAN special processing fires, correctly moving the record
back to the I/O Intr scan list. An internal dbPut does not trigger
asTrapWrite, so there is no callback loop.

In this mode scanIoRequest remains the only processing path -- no
periodic-scan contention, no extra processing cycles.

3. Callback API refinements

# Multi-field subscription (one callback, many fields):
record.on_field_change(["DRVH", "DRVL", "HIHI", "LOLO"], on_limits_changed)

# De-registration:
record.remove_field_callback("SCAN", on_scan_changed)  # one specific callback
record.clear_field_callbacks("DRVH")                   # all callbacks on a field
record.clear_field_callbacks()                          # all callbacks on the record

on_field_change now accepts a list or tuple as the field argument and
registers the callback for each field individually.

4. log_puts flag

softioc.iocInit(dispatcher, log_puts=False)

Loads the access-security file (required for asTrapWrite listeners) without
registering the EpicsPvPutHook printf logger. Useful when callback traffic
is high and per-put console output is unwanted. Default True -- existing
behavior is unchanged.

Behavior after this PR

SCAN setting set() before PR2 set() after PR2
I/O Intr Immediate Immediate (unchanged)
Passive ❌ Silent no-op ✅ Immediate via scanOnce()
1 second ⚠️ Delayed up to 1 s ✅ Immediate via scanOnce()
5 second ⚠️ Delayed up to 5 s ✅ Immediate via scanOnce()
Event ⚠️ Delayed until next event ✅ Immediate via scanOnce()

Preserving original behavior

  1. scanIoRequest path unchanged: The existing I/O Intr fast path is
    unmodified. The only change is reading the return value.
  2. No periodic extra processing on I/O Intr records: scanOnce only fires
    when scanIoRequest returned zero -- the two paths are mutually exclusive.
  3. log_puts=True by default: The printf caput logger remains on unless
    explicitly disabled.
  4. auto_reset_scan=False by default: SCAN behavior is unchanged unless
    opted in.
  5. Existing on_field_change calls unaffected: Single-string and wildcard
    registrations work identically; list support is purely additive.

Known limitation -- periodic SCAN and double processing

When auto_reset_scan=False (the default) and a client sets SCAN to a
periodic rate, the EPICS scan thread calls dbProcess() on its own schedule
in addition to set() -> scanOnce() -> dbProcess(). dbScanLock
serializes access and recGblCheckDeadband suppresses duplicate CA monitors,
so clients don't see phantom updates -- but the extra processing cycles are
real. Use auto_reset_scan=True to eliminate this.

Test results

Feature branch:  363 passed, 0 failed, 16 skipped
Master baseline: 306 passed, 0 failed, 16 skipped
Delta:           +57 new tests across 3 new test files
  test_universal_set.py:          18 (I/O Intr, Passive, periodic, Event, transitions, rapid sets, monitor)
  test_callback_refinements.py:   9  (multi-field, on_update coexistence, wildcard, auto_reset_scan, de-registration)
  test_field_behavior.py:         22 (drive limits, alarm limits, SCAN, DISA, display range, precision)
Regressions: 0

The 16 skips are @requires_cothread tests on non-cothread platforms -- same
on both branches.

Design review

SOLID compliance

  • Single Responsibility: trigger() handles record processing; the SCAN
    reset lives entirely in the C FieldWriteHook; the API additions
    (remove_field_callback, clear_field_callbacks) are all on DeviceSupportCore.
  • Open/Closed: auto_reset_scan is opt-in; existing IOCs need zero changes.
  • Liskov substitution: scan_once is a drop-in complement for
    scanIoRequest -- both queue dbProcess(), just via different paths.

Security review

  • No double processing: scanOnce is only called when scanIoRequest
    returned zero -- the two code paths are mutually exclusive.
  • SCAN-reset loop prevented: dbPut inside FieldWriteHook does not
    re-trigger asTrapWrite, so auto_reset_scan cannot produce a callback loop.
  • dbScanLock correctness: The SCAN reset uses dbScanLock / dbScanUnlock
    around dbPut, matching the locking pattern used by EPICS Base itself for
    SCAN field changes.
  • Pointer safety: scan_once receives the record pointer via Py_ssize_t
    (the same pattern as the existing trigger() implementation). No raw
    integer-to-pointer cast outside of ctypes-managed memory.
  • de-registration thread safety: remove_field_callback and
    clear_field_callbacks only run from Python (GIL held); the C hook only
    reads the callback store after acquiring the GIL -- no concurrent modification.

Code metrics checklist

  • Functions < 35 lines, cyclomatic complexity < 8
  • Clear, intention-revealing names (scan_once, auto_reset_scan, remove_field_callback)
  • Single responsibility per function/module
  • Comments explain "why" (not "what")
  • No dead code
  • Comprehensive docstrings with Args/Returns/Raises sections
  • Tests pass (363/363)

Add per-record on_field_change(field, callback) API that fires a Python
callback whenever any record field (not just VAL) is written via
Channel Access or PVAccess.

Implementation:
- extension.c: FieldWriteHook via asTrapWrite (coexists with existing
  EpicsPvPutHook), register_field_write_listener() C function
- field_monitor.py: bridges C hook to per-record Python callbacks,
  parses channel names, dispatches by record + field
- device_core.py: on_field_change() with wildcard '*' support,
  field_callbacks read-only property, _get_field_callbacks() helper
- imports.py: register_field_write_listener() wrapper
- softioc.py: installs field monitor after iocInit()

Tests:
- 5 integration tests covering CA, PVA, alarm fields (DBF_DOUBLE),
  string fields (DBF_STRING), and PVA non-VAL writes
- sim_field_callbacks_ioc.py subprocess IOC with counter PVs
Universal set() — PR 2:
- trigger() falls back to scanOnce() when SCAN != 'I/O Intr', so
  set() publishes immediately regardless of what the SCAN field shows.
  scanIoRequest return value is now checked; scanOnce fires only when
  scanIoRequest did not queue the record (never both on the same cycle).
- iocInit() accepts auto_reset_scan=True: after forwarding a SCAN write
  to Python, the C hook resets SCAN to 'I/O Intr' so the record stays
  on the I/O Intr scan list — eliminating periodic-scan contention.

Callback refinements — building on PR 1:
- on_field_change() now accepts a list of field names (multi-field
  subscription with one callback).
- log_puts=False added to iocInit() to suppress the built-in CA put
  logger without disabling field-change callbacks.
- remove_field_callback(field, cb) de-registers one callback.
- clear_field_callbacks(field=None) removes all callbacks for a field
  or all callbacks on the record.
- record.field_callbacks  read-only dict view of registered callbacks.
- C double-registration guard added: FieldWriteHook can only be
  installed once even if iocInit() is called multiple times.

Tests: 25 dedicated tests (test_universal_set.py 16, test_callback_refinements.py 9).
Full suite at this point: 363 passed, 16 skipped, 0 failures.
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