[mod_python] apache.SERVER_RETURN and chunked encoding

On 1/2/08, Graham Dumpleton <graham.dumpleton at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> On 03/01/2008, Matthew Dennis <mdennis at merfer.net> wrote:
> > I have a handler that streams large amounts of data.  Using chunked
> encoding
> > in necessary as the total size is not known upfront.  If there is an
> error
> > during the generation, I raise a apache.SERVER_RETURN (with
> > HTTP_PARTIAL_RESPONSE I believe).  The problem is that it looks like
> > mod_python and/or apache just appends some error html to the output
> stream
> > and continues with the chunked encoding like there was no error.  In
> other
> > words, some data chunks come from the server, then a chunk with the
> error
> > html in it, then the last chunk.  Thus, the client has no way of knowing
>
> > that the data is incomplete (not all of it was generated) and corrupt
> > (random html appended onto the end).  Am I just missing something, or is
> > this a bug?
>
> A HTTP status code can only be returned/raised before any data has
> been sent as that information is at the beginning of the response. If
> you are trying to raise the HTTP response status after data has been
> sent then your code is wrong.
>
> What do you think HTTP_PARTIAL_RESPONSE is meant to be used for? Maybe
> you understanding is not complete, or you don't understand how HTTP
> responses are put together.
>
> Graham
>

Sorry, it was INTERNAL_SERVER_ERROR.  I don't know where I got
PARTIAL_RESPONSE from, there is no such thing.  There is a PARTIAL_CONTENT
status, but it's not even an error (it's a 200 status for range requests)
In any case, I would not expect that raising apache.SERVER_RETURN to
continue processing the request as if nothing happened.  SERVER_RETURN
requires a status/error code to be passed in, but I wasn't actually
expecting the status code to be sent to the client.  I was trying to have
apache/mod_python signal the client that the generation failed.

Let me approach this from a different direction, as it sounds like my
understanding of raising SERVER_RETURN is wrong.  I thought raising
SERVER_RETURN was the correct way to inform apache and/or mod_python that an
error occurred and that the handler can not continue - is that incorrect?
I'm starting to assume from the name that my understanding is wrong...

The real question is if a handler is in the middle of sending a chunked
response, how does it inform apache and/or mod_python that it can not
continue?
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