Module: ChronoForge::Executor::Methods::DurablyRepeat

Included in:
ChronoForge::Executor::Methods
Defined in:
lib/chrono_forge/executor/methods/durably_repeat.rb

Instance Method Summary collapse

Instance Method Details

#durably_repeat(method, every:, till:, start_at: nil, max_attempts: 3, timeout: 1.hour, on_error: :continue, name: nil) ⇒ nil

Schedules a method to be called repeatedly at specified intervals until a condition is met.

This method provides durable, idempotent periodic task execution with automatic catch-up for missed executions using timeout-based fast-forwarding. Each repetition gets its own execution log, ensuring proper tracking and retry behavior.

Behavior

Method Parameters

Your periodic method can optionally receive the scheduled execution time:

  • Method with no parameters: ‘def my_task; end` - called as `my_task()`

  • Method with parameter: ‘def my_task(next_execution_at); end` - called as `my_task(scheduled_time)`

This allows methods to:

  • Log lateness/timing information

  • Perform time-based calculations

  • Include scheduled time in notifications

  • Generate reports for specific time periods

Idempotency

Each execution gets a unique step name based on the scheduled execution time, ensuring that workflow replays don’t create duplicate tasks.

Catch-up Mechanism

If a workflow is paused and resumes later, the timeout parameter handles catch-up:

  • Executions older than ‘timeout` are automatically skipped

  • The periodic schedule integrity is maintained

  • Eventually reaches current/future execution times

Error Handling

  • Individual execution failures are retried up to ‘max_attempts` with exponential backoff

  • After max attempts, behavior depends on ‘on_error` parameter:

    • ‘:continue`: Failed execution is logged, next execution is scheduled

    • ‘:fail_workflow`: ExecutionFailedError is raised, failing the entire workflow

  • Timeouts are not considered errors and always continue to the next execution

Execution Logs

Creates two types of execution logs:

  • Coordination log: ‘durably_repeat$#name` - tracks overall periodic task state

  • Repetition logs: ‘durably_repeat$#name$#timestamp` - tracks individual executions

Examples:

Basic usage

durably_repeat :send_reminder_email, every: 3.days, till: :user_onboarded?

Method with scheduled execution time parameter

def send_reminder_email(next_execution_at)
  # Can access the scheduled execution time
  lateness = Time.current - next_execution_at
  Rails.logger.info "Email scheduled for #{next_execution_at}, running #{lateness.to_i}s late"
  UserMailer.reminder_email(user_id, scheduled_for: next_execution_at).deliver_now
end

durably_repeat :send_reminder_email, every: 3.days, till: :user_onboarded?

Resilient background task (default)

durably_repeat :cleanup_temp_files,
  every: 1.day,
  till: :cleanup_complete?,
  on_error: :continue

Critical task that should fail workflow on error

durably_repeat :process_payments,
  every: 1.hour,
  till: :all_payments_processed?,
  on_error: :fail_workflow

Advanced usage with all options

def generate_daily_report(scheduled_time)
  report_date = scheduled_time.to_date
  DailyReportService.new(date: report_date).generate
end

durably_repeat :generate_daily_report,
  every: 1.day,
  till: :reports_complete?,
  start_at: Date.tomorrow.beginning_of_day,
  max_attempts: 5,
  timeout: 2.hours,
  on_error: :fail_workflow,
  name: "daily_reports"

Parameters:

  • method (Symbol) —

    The name of the instance method to execute repeatedly. The method can optionally accept the scheduled execution time as its first argument.

  • every (ActiveSupport::Duration) —

    The interval between executions (e.g., 3.days, 1.hour)

  • till (Symbol, Proc) —

    The condition to check for stopping repetition. Should return true when repetition should stop. Can be a symbol for instance methods or a callable.

  • start_at (Time, nil) (defaults to: nil) —

    When to start the periodic task. Defaults to coordination_log.created_at + every

  • max_attempts (Integer) (defaults to: 3) —

    Maximum retry attempts per individual execution (default: 3)

  • timeout (ActiveSupport::Duration) (defaults to: 1.hour) —

    How long after scheduled time an execution is considered stale and skipped (default: 1.hour). This enables catch-up behavior.

  • on_error (Symbol) (defaults to: :continue) —

    How to handle repetition failures after max_attempts. Options:

    • :continue (default): Log failure and continue with next scheduled execution

    • :fail_workflow: Raise ExecutionFailedError to fail the entire workflow

  • name (String, nil) (defaults to: nil) —

    Custom name for the periodic task. Defaults to method name. Used to create unique step names for execution logs.

Returns:

  • (nil) 


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# File 'lib/chrono_forge/executor/methods/durably_repeat.rb', line 103

def durably_repeat(method, every:, till:, start_at: nil, max_attempts: 3, timeout: 1.hour, on_error: :continue, name: nil)
  step_name = "durably_repeat$#{name || method}"

  # Get or create the main coordination log for this periodic task
  coordination_log = ExecutionLog.create_or_find_by!(
    workflow: @workflow,
    step_name: step_name
  ) do |log|
    log.started_at = Time.current
    log.metadata = {last_execution_at: nil}
  end

  # Return if already completed
  return if coordination_log.completed?

  # Update coordination log attempt tracking
  coordination_log.update!(
    attempts: coordination_log.attempts + 1,
    last_executed_at: Time.current
  )

  # Check if we should stop repeating
  condition_met = if till.is_a?(Symbol)
    send(till)
  else
    till.call(context)
  end
  if condition_met
    coordination_log.update!(
      state: :completed,
      completed_at: Time.current
    )
    return
  end

  # Calculate next execution time
  metadata = coordination_log.metadata
  last_execution_at = metadata["last_execution_at"] ? Time.parse(metadata["last_execution_at"]) : nil

  next_execution_at = if last_execution_at
    last_execution_at + every
  elsif start_at
    start_at
  else
    coordination_log.created_at + every
  end

  execute_or_schedule_repetition(method, coordination_log, next_execution_at, every, max_attempts, timeout, on_error)
  nil
end