Thread states and the global interpreter lock

Unless on a free-threaded build of CPython, the Python interpreter is generally not thread-safe. In order to support multi-threaded Python programs, there’s a global lock, called the global interpreter lock or GIL, that must be held by a thread before accessing Python objects. Without the lock, even the simplest operations could cause problems in a multi-threaded program: for example, when two threads simultaneously increment the reference count of the same object, the reference count could end up being incremented only once instead of twice.

As such, only a thread that holds the GIL may operate on Python objects or invoke Python’s C API.

In order to emulate concurrency, the interpreter regularly tries to switch threads between bytecode instructions (see sys.setswitchinterval()). This is why locks are also necessary for thread-safety in pure-Python code.

Additionally, the global interpreter lock is released around blocking I/O operations, such as reading or writing to a file. From the C API, this is done by detaching the thread state.

The Python interpreter keeps some thread-local information inside a data structure called PyThreadState, known as a thread state. Each thread has a thread-local pointer to a PyThreadState; a thread state referenced by this pointer is considered to be attached.

A thread can only have one attached thread state at a time. An attached thread state is typically analogous with holding the GIL, except on free-threaded builds. On builds with the GIL enabled, attaching a thread state will block until the GIL can be acquired. However, even on builds with the GIL disabled, it is still required to have an attached thread state, as the interpreter needs to keep track of which threads may access Python objects.

Note

Even on the free-threaded build, attaching a thread state may block, as the GIL can be re-enabled or threads might be temporarily suspended (such as during a garbage collection).

Generally, there will always be an attached thread state when using Python’s C API, including during embedding and when implementing methods, so it’s uncommon to need to set up a thread state on your own. Only in some specific cases, such as in a Py_BEGIN_ALLOW_THREADS block or in a fresh thread, will the thread not have an attached thread state. If uncertain, check if PyThreadState_GetUnchecked() returns NULL.

If it turns out that you do need to create a thread state, call PyThreadState_New() followed by PyThreadState_Swap(), or use the dangerous PyGILState_Ensure() function.

Detaching the thread state from extension code

Most extension code manipulating the thread state has the following simple structure:

Save the thread state in a local variable.
... Do some blocking I/O operation ...
Restore the thread state from the local variable.

This is so common that a pair of macros exists to simplify it:

Py_BEGIN_ALLOW_THREADS
... Do some blocking I/O operation ...
Py_END_ALLOW_THREADS

The Py_BEGIN_ALLOW_THREADS macro opens a new block and declares a hidden local variable; the Py_END_ALLOW_THREADS macro closes the block.

The block above expands to the following code:

PyThreadState *_save;

_save = PyEval_SaveThread();
... Do some blocking I/O operation ...
PyEval_RestoreThread(_save);

Here is how these functions work:

The attached thread state implies that the GIL is held for the interpreter. To detach it, PyEval_SaveThread() is called and the result is stored in a local variable.

By detaching the thread state, the GIL is released, which allows other threads to attach to the interpreter and execute while the current thread performs blocking I/O. When the I/O operation is complete, the old thread state is reattached by calling PyEval_RestoreThread(), which will wait until the GIL can be acquired.

Note

Performing blocking I/O is the most common use case for detaching the thread state, but it is also useful to call it over long-running native code that doesn’t need access to Python objects or Python’s C API. For example, the standard zlib and hashlib modules detach the thread state when compressing or hashing data.

On a free-threaded build, the GIL is usually out of the question, but detaching the thread state is still required, because the interpreter periodically needs to block all threads to get a consistent view of Python objects without the risk of race conditions. For example, CPython currently suspends all threads for a short period of time while running the garbage collector.

Warning

Detaching the thread state can lead to unexpected behavior during interpreter finalization. See Cautions regarding runtime finalization for more details.

APIs

The following macros are normally used without a trailing semicolon; look for example usage in the Python source distribution.

Note

These macros are still necessary on the free-threaded build to prevent deadlocks.

Py_BEGIN_ALLOW_THREADS: Part of the Stable ABI.
This macro expands to { PyThreadState *_save; _save = PyEval_SaveThread();. Note that it contains an opening brace; it must be matched with a following Py_END_ALLOW_THREADS macro. See above for further discussion of this macro.

Py_END_ALLOW_THREADS: Part of the Stable ABI.
This macro expands to PyEval_RestoreThread(_save); }. Note that it contains a closing brace; it must be matched with an earlier Py_BEGIN_ALLOW_THREADS macro. See above for further discussion of this macro.

Py_BLOCK_THREADS: Part of the Stable ABI.
This macro expands to PyEval_RestoreThread(_save);: it is equivalent to Py_END_ALLOW_THREADS without the closing brace.

Py_UNBLOCK_THREADS: Part of the Stable ABI.
This macro expands to _save = PyEval_SaveThread();: it is equivalent to Py_BEGIN_ALLOW_THREADS without the opening brace and variable declaration.

Non-Python created threads

When threads are created using the dedicated Python APIs (such as the threading module), a thread state is automatically associated with them, However, when a thread is created from native code (for example, by a third-party library with its own thread management), it doesn’t hold an attached thread state.

If you need to call Python code from these threads (often this will be part of a callback API provided by the aforementioned third-party library), you must first register these threads with the interpreter by creating a new thread state and attaching it.

The most robust way to do this is through PyThreadState_New() followed by PyThreadState_Swap().

Note

PyThreadState_New requires an argument pointing to the desired interpreter; such a pointer can be acquired via a call to PyInterpreterState_Get() from the code where the thread was created.

For example:

/* The return value of PyInterpreterState_Get() from the
   function that created this thread. */
PyInterpreterState *interp = thread_data->interp;

/* Create a new thread state for the interpreter. It does not start out
   attached. */
PyThreadState *tstate = PyThreadState_New(interp);

/* Attach the thread state, which will acquire the GIL. */
PyThreadState_Swap(tstate);

/* Perform Python actions here. */
result = CallSomeFunction();
/* evaluate result or handle exception */

/* Destroy the thread state. No Python API allowed beyond this point. */
PyThreadState_Clear(tstate);
PyThreadState_DeleteCurrent();

Warning

If the interpreter finalized before PyThreadState_Swap was called, then interp will be a dangling pointer!

Legacy API

Another common pattern to call Python code from a non-Python thread is to use PyGILState_Ensure() followed by a call to PyGILState_Release().

These functions do not work well when multiple interpreters exist in the Python process. If no Python interpreter has ever been used in the current thread (which is common for threads created outside Python), PyGILState_Ensure will create and attach a thread state for the “main” interpreter (the first interpreter in the Python process).

Additionally, these functions have thread-safety issues during interpreter finalization. Using PyGILState_Ensure during finalization will likely crash the process.

Usage of these functions look like such:

PyGILState_STATE gstate;
gstate = PyGILState_Ensure();

/* Perform Python actions here. */
result = CallSomeFunction();
/* evaluate result or handle exception */

/* Release the thread. No Python API allowed beyond this point. */
PyGILState_Release(gstate);

Cautions about fork()

Another important thing to note about threads is their behaviour in the face of the C fork() call. On most systems with fork(), after a process forks only the thread that issued the fork will exist. This has a concrete impact both on how locks must be handled and on all stored state in CPython’s runtime.

The fact that only the “current” thread remains means any locks held by other threads will never be released. Python solves this for os.fork() by acquiring the locks it uses internally before the fork, and releasing them afterwards. In addition, it resets any Lock objects in the child. When extending or embedding Python, there is no way to inform Python of additional (non-Python) locks that need to be acquired before or reset after a fork. OS facilities such as pthread_atfork() would need to be used to accomplish the same thing. Additionally, when extending or embedding Python, calling fork() directly rather than through os.fork() (and returning to or calling into Python) may result in a deadlock by one of Python’s internal locks being held by a thread that is defunct after the fork. PyOS_AfterFork_Child() tries to reset the necessary locks, but is not always able to.

The fact that all other threads go away also means that CPython’s runtime state there must be cleaned up properly, which os.fork() does. This means finalizing all other PyThreadState objects belonging to the current interpreter and all other PyInterpreterState objects. Due to this and the special nature of the “main” interpreter, fork() should only be called in that interpreter’s “main” thread, where the CPython global runtime was originally initialized. The only exception is if exec() will be called immediately after.

High-level APIs

These are the most commonly used types and functions when writing multi-threaded C extensions.

type PyThreadState

Part of the Limited API (as an opaque struct).

This data structure represents the state of a single thread. The only public data member is:

PyInterpreterState *interp: This thread’s interpreter state.

void PyEval_InitThreads()

Part of the Stable ABI.

Deprecated function which does nothing.

In Python 3.6 and older, this function created the GIL if it didn’t exist.

Changed in version 3.9: The function now does nothing.

Changed in version 3.7: This function is now called by Py_Initialize(), so you don’t have to call it yourself anymore.

Changed in version 3.2: This function cannot be called before Py_Initialize() anymore.

Deprecated since version 3.9.

PyThreadState *PyEval_SaveThread(): Part of the Stable ABI.
Detach the attached thread state and return it. The thread will have no thread state upon returning.

void PyEval_RestoreThread(PyThreadState *tstate): Part of the Stable ABI.
Set the attached thread state to tstate. The passed thread state should not be attached, otherwise deadlock ensues. tstate will be attached upon returning.

Note

Calling this function from a thread when the runtime is finalizing will hang the thread until the program exits, even if the thread was not created by Python. Refer to Cautions regarding runtime finalization for more details.

Changed in version 3.14: Hangs the current thread, rather than terminating it, if called while the interpreter is finalizing.

PyThreadState *PyThreadState_Get()

Part of the Stable ABI.

Return the attached thread state. If the thread has no attached thread state, (such as when inside of Py_BEGIN_ALLOW_THREADS block), then this issues a fatal error (so that the caller needn’t check for NULL).

PyThreadState *PyThreadState_GetUnchecked(): Similar to PyThreadState_Get(), but don’t kill the process with a fatal error if it is NULL. The caller is responsible to check if the result is NULL.

Added in version 3.13: In Python 3.5 to 3.12, the function was private and known as _PyThreadState_UncheckedGet().

PyThreadState *PyThreadState_Swap(PyThreadState *tstate)

Part of the Stable ABI.

Set the attached thread state to tstate, and return the thread state that was attached prior to calling.

This function is safe to call without an attached thread state; it will simply return NULL indicating that there was no prior thread state.

GIL-state APIs

The following functions use thread-local storage, and are not compatible with sub-interpreters:

type PyGILState_STATE

Part of the Stable ABI.

The type of the value returned by PyGILState_Ensure() and passed to PyGILState_Release().

enumerator PyGILState_LOCKED: The GIL was already held when PyGILState_Ensure() was called.

enumerator PyGILState_UNLOCKED: The GIL was not held when PyGILState_Ensure() was called.

PyGILState_STATE PyGILState_Ensure()

Part of the Stable ABI.

Ensure that the current thread is ready to call the Python C API regardless of the current state of Python, or of the attached thread state. This may be called as many times as desired by a thread as long as each call is matched with a call to PyGILState_Release(). In general, other thread-related APIs may be used between PyGILState_Ensure() and PyGILState_Release() calls as long as the thread state is restored to its previous state before the Release(). For example, normal usage of the Py_BEGIN_ALLOW_THREADS and Py_END_ALLOW_THREADS macros is acceptable.

The return value is an opaque “handle” to the attached thread state when PyGILState_Ensure() was called, and must be passed to PyGILState_Release() to ensure Python is left in the same state. Even though recursive calls are allowed, these handles cannot be shared - each unique call to PyGILState_Ensure() must save the handle for its call to PyGILState_Release().

When the function returns, there will be an attached thread state and the thread will be able to call arbitrary Python code. Failure is a fatal error.

Warning

Calling this function when the runtime is finalizing is unsafe. Doing so will either hang the thread until the program ends, or fully crash the interpreter in rare cases. Refer to Cautions regarding runtime finalization for more details.

Changed in version 3.14: Hangs the current thread, rather than terminating it, if called while the interpreter is finalizing.

void PyGILState_Release(PyGILState_STATE)

Part of the Stable ABI.

Release any resources previously acquired. After this call, Python’s state will be the same as it was prior to the corresponding PyGILState_Ensure() call (but generally this state will be unknown to the caller, hence the use of the GILState API).

Every call to PyGILState_Ensure() must be matched by a call to PyGILState_Release() on the same thread.

PyThreadState *PyGILState_GetThisThreadState(): Part of the Stable ABI.
Get the attached thread state for this thread. May return NULL if no GILState API has been used on the current thread. Note that the main thread always has such a thread-state, even if no auto-thread-state call has been made on the main thread. This is mainly a helper/diagnostic function.

Note

This function may return non-NULL even when the thread state is detached. Prefer PyThreadState_Get() or PyThreadState_GetUnchecked() for most cases.

See also

PyThreadState_Get()

int PyGILState_Check(): Return 1 if the current thread is holding the GIL and 0 otherwise. This function can be called from any thread at any time. Only if it has had its thread state initialized via PyGILState_Ensure() will it return 1. This is mainly a helper/diagnostic function. It can be useful for example in callback contexts or memory allocation functions when knowing that the GIL is locked can allow the caller to perform sensitive actions or otherwise behave differently.

Note

If the current Python process has ever created a subinterpreter, this function will always return 1. Prefer PyThreadState_GetUnchecked() for most cases.

Added in version 3.4.

Low-level APIs

PyThreadState *PyThreadState_New(PyInterpreterState *interp): Part of the Stable ABI.
Create a new thread state object belonging to the given interpreter object. An attached thread state is not needed.

void PyThreadState_Clear(PyThreadState *tstate): Part of the Stable ABI.
Reset all information in a thread state object. tstate must be attached

Changed in version 3.9: This function now calls the PyThreadState.on_delete callback. Previously, that happened in PyThreadState_Delete().

Changed in version 3.13: The PyThreadState.on_delete callback was removed.

void PyThreadState_Delete(PyThreadState *tstate): Part of the Stable ABI.
Destroy a thread state object. tstate should not be attached to any thread. tstate must have been reset with a previous call to PyThreadState_Clear().

void PyThreadState_DeleteCurrent(void)

Detach the attached thread state (which must have been reset with a previous call to PyThreadState_Clear()) and then destroy it.

No thread state will be attached upon returning.

PyFrameObject *PyThreadState_GetFrame(PyThreadState *tstate)

Part of the Stable ABI since version 3.10.

Get the current frame of the Python thread state tstate.

Return a strong reference. Return NULL if no frame is currently executing.