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· May 17, 2022

What's better: Local Variable Arrays or Process Private Globals

#ObjectScript #Caché #InterSystems IRIS

In various tests I used both and found no real reason to prefer the one or the other.
Eventually I missed some limits. At least I didn't hit any.
What is the general opinion?
Where to use the one or the other?

Discussion (11)3
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Bernardo Linarez · Jul 11, 2019

Hi !

In my experience, if you process a lot of nodes into your array, is better "Process Private Globals", because it can use disk resource after complete all the RAM resource asigned to the particular process, like a normal global. In the case of  "Local Variable Arrays" you only use RAM.

If you don't need many nodes and your nodes save a small data, is better "Local Arrays". But if you have a lot of nodes and each one save large data (like xml content or csv file ) is better  "Process Private Globals".

Best Regards.

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John Murray · Jul 12, 2019

Bear in mind that local variable arrays can hold orefs but PPGs cannot:


SAMPLES>w $zv
Cache for Windows (x86-32) 2017.2.2 (Build 865U) Mon Jun 25 2018 11:10:00 EDT
SAMPLES>
 
SAMPLES>s oP=##class(Sample.Person).%OpenId(1)
 
SAMPLES>w oP.Name
Gallant,Yan N.
SAMPLES>
 
SAMPLES>s LocalArray(1)=oP
 
SAMPLES>s ^||PPG(1)=oP
 
SAMPLES>w LocalArray(1).Name
Gallant,Yan N.
SAMPLES>w ^||PPG(1).Name
 
W ^||PPG(1).Name
^
<INVALID OREF>
SAMPLES>w $isobject(^||PPG(1))
0
SAMPLES>w ^||PPG(1)
1@Sample.Person
SAMPLES>
 
SAMPLES>w LocalArray(1)
1@Sample.Person
SAMPLES>w $isobject(LocalArray(1))
1
SAMPLES>
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Steven Hobbs · May 18, 2022

In particular,  an object is garbage collected when there are no ways to access that object using oref values starting from an oref-type value stored in a local variable.  When an oref is converted to an integer (or to a string) then that does not count as an object reference.  Store that integer/string in a PPG and then do KILLs (or otherwise make changes) of oref-type values referring to an object then that object will be deleted despite the fact a PPG (or any other variable) contains an integer/string reference to the object.

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Erin Dolson · Jul 12, 2019

Hi, I'm very new to the world of InterSystems, I'm an intern at a hospital who has taken 1.5 years of CS classes. I could be misunderstanding but this seems like a 'local variable vs global variable' argument specific to InterSystems. In my classes I have always been told to stay away from global variables and to use local variables. They say it keeps the program from getting to intertwined/ tightly coupled, and makes it easier to keep your data from being modified when you don't want it to be. It supposedly makes the code easier for everyone to understand and easier to fix bugs. I found it interesting that no one mentioned this when it is mentioned a lot in school. Is this something students are told early on in their education to practice good coding or is it just not a concern in this case?

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