AsyncDrop Pattern Guide
The AsyncDrop pattern enables async cleanup for types that hold resources requiring asynchronous teardown (network connections, file handles, background tasks, etc.).
Core Concept
Rust's Drop trait is synchronous, but sometimes cleanup needs to be async. The AsyncDrop pattern solves this by:
- Wrapping values in
AsyncDropGuard<T> - Requiring explicit
async_drop().awaitcalls - Panicking if cleanup is forgotten
Quick Reference
rust1// Creating 2let mut guard = AsyncDropGuard::new(my_value); 3 4// Using (transparent via Deref) 5guard.do_something(); 6 7// Cleanup (REQUIRED before dropping) 8guard.async_drop().await?;
The AsyncDrop Trait
rust1#[async_trait] 2pub trait AsyncDrop { 3 type Error: Debug; 4 async fn async_drop_impl(&mut self) -> Result<(), Self::Error>; 5}
Essential Rules
| Rule | Description |
|---|---|
| Always call async_drop() | Every AsyncDropGuard must have async_drop() called |
| Factory methods return guards | fn new() -> AsyncDropGuard<Self>, never plain Self |
| Types with guard members impl AsyncDrop | Delegate to member async_drops |
| Use the macro when possible | with_async_drop_2! handles cleanup automatically |
| Panics are exceptions | It's OK to skip async_drop on panic paths |
The with_async_drop_2! Macro
Automatically calls async_drop() on scope exit:
rust1let resource = get_resource().await?; 2with_async_drop_2!(resource, { 3 // Use resource here 4 resource.do_work().await?; 5 Ok(result) 6})
Additional References
- patterns.md - Implementation patterns and examples
- gotchas.md - Common mistakes and how to avoid them
- helpers.md - Helper types (AsyncDropArc, AsyncDropHashMap, etc.)
Location
Implementation: crates/utils/src/async_drop/
