TCP Chat Server
Build a real-time chat server using actors and streams for TCP handling.
Architecture
The chat server uses two actor types working together:
Message Broadcasting
When a user sends a message, it flows through the system:
Connection Lifecycle
Define Messages
messages.rs
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ChatServer Actor
Manages all connected clients and handles message broadcasting:
chat_server.rs
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ClientSession Actor
Handles individual TCP connections using cineyma's StreamHandler:
client_session.rs
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Main Entry Point
main.rs
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Running the Example
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The full example is available in the cineyma repository under examples/chat/.
Key Concepts
StreamHandler
Automatically processes items from async streams (like TCP lines) as actor messages.
Actor per Connection
Each TCP connection gets its own actor, isolating failures and state.
try_send for Fire-and-Forget
Use try_send when you don't need to wait for a response, like broadcasting.
Lifecycle Hooks
started() and stopped() hooks handle registration and cleanup automatically.