Effects System Guide

This guide explains Turmeric's algebraic effects system and when to use it.

Overview

Turmeric implements algebraic effect handlers inspired by OCaml 5, enabling ergonomic asynchronous programming, custom control flow, and composable abstractions. Effects allow you to perform operations that handlers can intercept and re-route dynamically.

Core Concepts

Effects, Performs, and Handlers

Three core primitives:

• (defeffect Name [param :type ...] :return-type) -- Declares a new effect Name.
• (perform (Name arg ...)) -- Raises the effect, searching the dynamic handler stack for a matching handler.
• (handle expr (Name [p ...] k) body ...) -- Installs a handler. When the effect fires, k is the captured continuation; call (resume k value) to continue.

;; Declare an effect
(defeffect Read [] :str)

;; Perform the effect
(def name (perform (Read)))

;; Handle the effect
(handle
  (let [name (perform (Read))]
    (println (str "Hello " name)))
  (Read [] k) (resume k "World"))

;; Declare an effect
defeffect Read [] :str

;; Perform the effect
def name perform(Read())

;; Handle the effect
handle
  let [name perform(Read())]
    println(str("Hello " name))
  (Read [] k)
  resume(k "World")

One-Shot Continuations

Continuations in Turmeric are one-shot: calling (resume k v) consumes k, preventing reuse. This matches Turmeric's ownership model. (See Logic Programming Guide for cloneable continuations.)

Properties

• Effects are not in the type system -- Whether perform is handled is checked dynamically. Unhandled effects raise an exception at runtime.
• Dynamic dispatch -- The closest matching handler in the call stack handles the effect.
• Composable -- Handlers can chain; inner handlers shadow outer ones for the same effect.

Composing Handlers

Compose handlers for different effects by nesting handle forms -- the inner handler runs inside the outer one, and each effect is routed to the handler that declares it:

(defeffect Log [msg :cstr] :nil)
(defeffect Counter [] :int)

(handle
  (handle
    (do (perform (Log "tick")) (+ (perform (Counter)) 1))
    (Counter [] k) (resume k 41))
  (Log [msg] k) (do (println msg) (resume k nil)))
;; prints "tick", evaluates to 42

defeffect Log [msg :cstr] :nil
defeffect Counter [] :int

handle
  handle
    do
      perform(Log("tick"))
      +(perform(Counter()) 1)
    (Counter [] k)
    resume(k 41)
  (Log [msg] k)
  do
    println(msg)
    resume(k nil)
;; prints "tick", evaluates to 42

First-Class Handler Values

A handler is also a value: you can create one, pass it, apply it to a body, and compose two of them.

• Create a handler with the (handler (E [params] k) body) literal. It has type (handler E V R) and carries the case detached from any body.
• Apply a handler value with (with-handler hv body) -- the body runs with hv's dispatch table installed, exactly as if its case were written inline in a handle. (with-handler with case/body pairs instead of a single value argument remains the inline-handle sugar.)
• Compose two handlers over different effects with (compose-handlers h1 h2); h1 is the outer handler.

(defeffect Log [msg :cstr] :nil)
(defeffect Counter [] :int)

;; compose-handlers builds one handler value over both effects (h1 = Counter is
;; the outer handler).  Applying it is identical to the nested handle above.
(with-handler
  (compose-handlers
    (handler (Counter [] k)   (resume k 41))
    (handler (Log [msg] k)    (do (println msg) (resume k nil))))
  (do (perform (Log "tick")) (+ (perform (Counter)) 1)))
;; prints "tick", evaluates to 42

defeffect Log [msg :cstr] :nil
defeffect Counter [] :int

;; compose-handlers builds one handler value over both effects (h1 = Counter is
;; the outer handler).  Applying it is identical to the nested handle above.
with-handler
  compose-handlers
    handler (Counter [] k)
      resume(k 41)
    handler (Log [msg] k)
      do
        println(msg)
        resume(k nil)
  do
    perform(Log("tick"))
    +(perform(Counter()) 1)
;; prints "tick", evaluates to 42

Semantics (precedence, the disjoint-effect rule, answer-type agreement, and per-case continuation discipline) are specified in first-class-handlers-semantics.md.

• Overlap is rejected. Composing two handlers for the same effect is a compile error (TUR-E0251); composition is defined only for disjoint effect sets.
• Effects discharge from the row. (with-handler hv body) removes hv's handled effect(s) from the body's effect row; a leftover (unhandled) effect propagates to the enclosing function just as it does for handle.
• Continuation discipline is per case. ^linear / ^multishot / the default affine k are enforced inside a handler value identically to inline handle, and composition never blends two handlers' disciplines.

History: compose-handlers was briefly gated (TUR-E0704) while handler values had no runtime representation. That gate has been removed; handler values are now first-class. See first-class-handlers-plan.md.

Common Use Cases

Direct-Style Async

Effects enable ergonomic async/await (see Async/Await Guide):

(async
  (await (read-file "data.txt"))
  (println "done"))

async
  await(read-file("data.txt"))
  println("done")

Custom Control Flow

Implement generators, early returns, or custom exception handling:

;; Generator: yield values one at a time
(defeffect Yield [v :int] :nil)

(handle
  (do
    (perform (Yield 1))
    (perform (Yield 2)))
  (Yield [v] k) (do (println v) (resume k nil)))

;; Generator: yield values one at a time
defeffect Yield [v :int] :nil

handle
  do
    perform(Yield(1))
    perform(Yield(2))
  (Yield [v] k)
  do
    println(v)
    resume(k nil)

Dependency Injection

Mock I/O operations in tests:

(defeffect ReadFile [path :cstr] :str)

;; Production
(handle code
  (ReadFile [path] k) (resume k (read-file-real path)))

;; Tests
(handle code
  (ReadFile [path] k) (resume k "mock data"))

defeffect ReadFile [path :cstr] :str

;; Production
handle code
  ReadFile [path] k
  resume(k read-file-real(path))

;; Tests
handle code
  ReadFile [path] k
  resume(k "mock data")

Transactional Retry

Automatic conflict resolution (see STM Tutorial):

(defeffect Retry [] :nil)

(handle
  (fn []
    (when (< (read-tvar x) 10)
      (perform (Retry))))
  ;; Re-run transaction on conflict
  (Retry [] k) (resume k nil))

defeffect Retry [] :nil

handle
  fn []
    when {read-tvar(x) < 10}
      perform(Retry())
  ;; Re-run transaction on conflict
  (Retry [] k)
  resume(k nil)

Effect Rows (Typed Effects)

Effect rows track which effects a function may perform as part of its type. The compiler infers rows automatically; you can also annotate them explicitly.

Syntax

An effect row appears between the parameter list and the return type:

;; Annotated: may perform the Write effect
(defn log-msg [msg : cstr] #{Write} : nil
  (perform (Write msg)))

;; Pure: performs no effects
(defn add [a : int b : int] #{} : int
  (+ a b))

;; Row-polymorphic: propagates the row of the function argument
(defn run-twice [f :(fn [] #{e} int)] #{e} : int
  (+ (f) (f)))

;; Annotated: may perform the Write effect
defn log-msg [msg :cstr] #{Write} :nil
  perform(Write(msg))

;; Pure: performs no effects
defn add [a :int b :int] #{} :int
  {a + b}

;; Row-polymorphic: propagates the row of the function argument
defn run-twice [f :(fn [] #{e} int)] #{e} :int
  {f() + f()}

The row #fx{e} is a row variable: run-twice performs whatever effects f performs, no more.

Compiler flags

Module-level visibility

Effects can be declared ^private to prevent leakage outside their defining module:

(defeffect ^private InternalLog [msg :cstr] :nil)

defeffect ^private InternalLog [msg :cstr] :nil

A ^private effect cannot be performed or handled outside the module that declares it. Cross-module effect rows are automatically filtered: if a callee internally performs a private effect, the caller's inferred row does not include it.

To export an effect explicitly:

(defmodule MyLib
  (export (effect Write) (effect Read))
  ...)

defmodule MyLib
  export (effect Write) (effect Read)
  ...

Other modules import it with :refer [(effect Write)].

Capability effect tags (^capability)

The algebraic effects above (Write, Read, Log, ...) are performed and handled. Some side effects, though, are not expressed with perform at all -- they happen inside inline-C or extern-c calls (touching the file system, opening a socket, reading the clock). To bring those under effect-row discipline, declare a capability effect with ^capability:

(defeffect IO [] :nil ^capability)
(defeffect FS [] :nil ^extends IO ^capability)

A capability effect is a coarse authority tag rather than something you perform. It behaves differently from an ordinary effect in two ways:

• Justified by annotation alone. A function tagged #fx{FS} is never flagged as over-annotated (TUR-W0031), even though its body never performs FS -- the annotation is the justification.
• Propagated from the declared row. Capability effects are never inferred from a body, so they propagate from a callee's declared row into the caller's inferred row. A #fx{} (pure) caller of an #fx{FS}-tagged function therefore fails effect-row checking with TUR-E0009, exactly like the built-in #fx{Unsafe}.

The standard library ships five capability tags in stdlib/effects.tur, used to annotate the I/O-touching modules:

Discipline stays opt-in: a function with no effect-row annotation is never checked, so existing code that ignores effect rows keeps compiling. Only when a caller annotates its own row (e.g. declares #fx{} or #fx{Net}) does the compiler enforce that it has the capabilities of everything it calls.

(import tur/fs :refer [fs/read-text])

;; OK: declares the FS capability it relies on.
(defn load-config [path : cstr] #{FS} : cstr
  (fs/read-text path))

;; ERROR (TUR-E0009): claims purity but reaches the file system.
(defn load-config-bad [path : cstr] #{} : cstr
  (fs/read-text path))

;; OK: un-annotated, so the row is not checked at all.
(defn load-config-unchecked [path : cstr] : cstr
  (fs/read-text path))

Benefits

• Polymorphism -- row variables let higher-order functions propagate caller effects.
• Compile-time checking -- the compiler verifies that annotated functions do not perform unlisted effects (TUR-E0009).
• Capability discipline -- ^capability tags put inline-C side effects (FS, Net, Proc, Rand) under the same row checking, opt-in per caller.
• Auditing -- --dump-effects shows the full effect signature of every function.

Integration with Ownership and Defer

Effects interact with Turmeric's defer mechanism:

• defer cleanup runs correctly even when perform is inside the same do block (see Custom Effects Tutorial).
• Capturing a continuation across a defer boundary is handled: the continuation's environment is cleaned up if it crosses a defer boundary.

The Prompt Model and Unbounded Capture (CPS substrate)

Delimited control in Turmeric is moving onto a single multi-prompt substrate (the Dybvig--Peyton-Jones--Sabry model), built by cps-transform-plan.md. The operators you already use map onto prompts and sub-continuations:

Two properties of the substrate matter in practice:

• Unbounded capture. A continuation is a heap-reified closure chain, not a fixed-size native-stack snapshot. Capturing it is O(1) and works at any call depth -- the old 16-frame ceiling (tur_cont_alloc returning NULL past TUR_CONT_MAX_CAPTURED_FRAMES) does not apply on this path. This is what lets call/cc reach all the way back to the top of the program.

• Implicit root prompt. There is a prompt around program entry, so a bare call/cc with no enclosing reset still has something to capture up to and resume.

Performance is preserved by selectivity: only functions that can actually reach a control operator (shift/perform/call/cc/...) are CPS-converted (the "coloring" analysis, viewable with --dump-cps-coloring); direct-style hot code keeps its native calling convention and pays no trampoline or allocation cost. See the plan for the full model.

Continuations (call/cc, escape)

call/cc and escape capture an undelimited continuation against the implicit program-wide prompt. They are enabled by default -- no flag and no enclosing reset is required. (The old -Xcallcc gate, with its TUR-E0700 / TUR-E0701 "unsound stub" diagnostics, is retired; -Xcallcc is now a deprecated no-op.)

;; k aborts the pending (+ 100 ...) and returns 41 at the call/cc site; the
;; outer (+ 1 ...) makes 42 -- with no enclosing reset.
(defn answer [] : int
  (+ 1 (call/cc (fn [k] (+ 100 (k 41))))))   ; => 42

;; f that ignores k just returns its body value.
(defn plain [] : int
  (+ 1 (call/cc (fn [k] 10))))                ; => 11

Undelimited vs. delimited. This is the one thing call/cc adds over shift/reset: capture reaches the implicit root prompt, not the nearest reset. A nearer explicit reset does not shorten call/cc/escape's reach -- use shift/shift0 or call/cc* when you want delimited capture.

escape is the abort flavor. (escape f) hands f a continuation whose (k v) unwinds to the escape site with v without re-installing a prompt (the shift0-style behavior). It is the idiomatic early-exit:

(defn first-positive [] : int
  (escape (fn [k]
    (when (> -3 0) (k -3))
    (when (>  7 0) (k 7))     ; first positive: aborts here with 7
    -1)))                     ; default if nothing matched

Typing. f has type cont<T> -> T, where T is the prompt's answer type; the (call/cc f) / (escape f) expression itself has type T. An unannotated continuation parameter ((fn [k] ...)) defaults to the escape continuation flavor, so the (k v) application sugar lowers to the right resume runtime -- you do not have to spell :escape-cont or call tur_escape_resume by hand. Annotate explicitly (:cont, :escape-cont, :serial-cont) only when you want a non-default flavor.

One-shot. The captured k is ^unique by default (calling it more than once is TUR-E0100 / TUR-E0101). Opt into exactly-once accounting with ^linear:

(defn use-once [] : int
  (call/cc (fn [^linear k] (k 42))))   ; k must be invoked exactly once

For a multi-shot, cloneable/re-enterable continuation use call/cc* instead (captured against an enclosing cloneable-reset); see the Logic Programming Guide.

See Also

• Whole-Program CPS Transform Plan -- the prompt substrate, unbounded capture, and implicit root prompt
• Serializable Continuations Guide -- a heap-reified sub-continuation is a flat chain, directly serializable
• Async/Await Guide -- Effects-based async/await syntax
• Logic Programming Guide -- Backtracking via cloneable continuations
• STM Tutorial -- Composable transactions with effects
• Custom Effects Tutorial -- Step-by-step walkthrough of all effect patterns
• Effects vs. Monads -- Why effects replace monadic chaining in Turmeric