How To Use Ruby Disposable

When working with resources such as files, sockets, or database connections, it’s important to clean up after yourself to avoid resource leaks and other issues. The Ruby disposable gem is a great solution for this problem, providing an easy way to work with temporary resources that need to be disposed of after use. In this blog post, we’ll show you how to use the disposable gem to simplify working with temporary resources in your Ruby applications.

Getting Started

Before you can use the disposable gem, you’ll need to install it. Simply add the following line to your Gemfile and run bundle install:

gem 'disposable'

Once the gem is installed, you can start using it in your Ruby code.

Using Disposable

The primary feature of the disposable gem is the Disposable::Tempfile class, which is a drop-in replacement for Ruby’s built-in Tempfile class. The main difference is that Disposable::Tempfile automatically deletes the temporary file when it is garbage collected. This makes it ideal for use with temporary resources that need to be cleaned up automatically.

Here’s a simple example of how to use Disposable::Tempfile to create and use a temporary file:

    require 'disposable'

    def write_to_tempfile(contents)
        tempfile = Disposable::Tempfile.new
        tempfile.write(contents)
        tempfile.close
        tempfile.path
    end

    def read_from_tempfile(path)
        File.read(path)
    end

    path = write_to_tempfile("Hello, Disposable!")
    puts read_from_tempfile(path)
    

In this example, we define two methods: write_to_tempfile, which creates a new temporary file, writes the given contents to it, and returns the file’s path; and read_from_tempfile, which reads the contents of the file at the given path. When we call write_to_tempfile, it creates a new Disposable::Tempfile instance, writes the contents to it, and closes the file. The temporary file will be automatically deleted when the Disposable::Tempfile instance is garbage collected.

Using Disposable with Blocks

Another useful feature of the disposable gem is the ability to use blocks to work with temporary resources. This allows you to easily scope the usage of the resource and ensure it is properly disposed of when the block is exited. Here’s an example of how to use a block with Disposable::Tempfile:

    require 'disposable'

    Disposable::Tempfile.open do |tempfile|
        tempfile.write("Hello, Disposable!")
        tempfile.rewind
        puts tempfile.read
    end
    

In this example, we use the Disposable::Tempfile.open method, which takes a block and yields a new Disposable::Tempfile instance. When the block is exited, the Disposable::Tempfile instance is automatically closed and deleted. This makes it easy to work with temporary resources in a clean, well-structured way.

Conclusion

The Ruby disposable gem simplifies working with temporary resources by providing a clean API and automatic cleanup of temporary files. With just a few lines of code, you can easily manage the lifecycle of temporary resources in your Ruby applications, helping to prevent resource leaks and other issues.