_ConnectionPool._reduce_size(): when forgetting a Connection

due to exceeding pool_size available connections, clear its
cache right away.  Because such a connection can never be in
the open state again, hanging on to resources in its cache is
just wasteful.  This was reported as "a problem" on zodb-dev
recently, although it's unclear how the poster got into a state
where it mattered so much.

NEWS.txt

@@ -80,6 +80,20 @@ Commit hooks
   ``beforeCommitHook()`` is now deprecated, and will be removed in ZODB 3.8.
   Thanks to Julien Anguenot for contributing code and tests.
 
+Connection management
+---------------------
+
+- (3.6b6) When more than ``pool_size`` connections have been closed,
+  ``DB`` forgets the excess (over ``pool_size``) connections closed first.
+  Python's cyclic garbage collection can take "a long time" to reclaim them
+  (and may in fact never reclaim them if application code keeps strong
+  references to them), but such forgotten connections can never be opened
+  again, so their caches are now cleared at the time ``DB`` forgets them.
+  Most applications won't notice a difference, but applications that open
+  many connections, and/or store many large objects in connection caches,
+  and/or store limited resources (such as RDB connections) in connection
+  caches may benefit.
+
 ZEO
 ---
 

src/ZODB/DB.py

@@ -118,6 +118,19 @@ class _ConnectionPool(object):
         while len(self.available) > target:
             c = self.available.pop(0)
             self.all.remove(c)
+            # While application code may still hold a reference to `c`,
+            # there's little useful that can be done with this Connection
+            # anymore.  Its cache may be holding on to limited resources,
+            # and we replace the cache with an empty one now so that we
+            # don't have to wait for gc to reclaim it.  Note that it's not
+            # possible for DB.open() to return `c` again:  `c` can never
+            # be in an open state again.
+            # TODO:  Perhaps it would be better to break the reference
+            # cycles between `c` and `c._cache`, so that refcounting reclaims
+            # both right now.  But if user code _does_ have a strong
+            # reference to `c` now, breaking the cycle would not reclaim `c`
+            # now, and `c` would be left in a user-visible crazy state.
+            c._resetCache()
 
     # Pop an available connection and return it, or return None if none are
     # available.  In the latter case, the caller should create a new
@@ -527,7 +540,7 @@ class DB(object):
 
             # Tell the connection it belongs to self.
             result.open(transaction_manager, mvcc, synch)
-            
+
             # A good time to do some cache cleanup.
             self._connectionMap(lambda c: c.cacheGC())
 

src/ZODB/tests/dbopen.txt

@@ -272,6 +272,54 @@ first popped:
     >>> len(pool.available), len(pool.all)
     (0, 2)
 
+Next:  when a closed Connection is removed from .available due to exceeding
+pool_size, that Connection's cache is cleared (this behavior was new in
+ZODB 3.6b6).  While user code may still hold a reference to that
+Connection, once it vanishes from .available it's really not usable for
+anything sensible (it can never be in the open state again).  Waiting for
+gc to reclaim the Connection and its cache eventually works, but that can
+take "a long time" and caches can hold on to many objects, and limited
+resources (like RDB connections), for the duration.
+
+    >>> st.close()
+    >>> st = Storage()
+    >>> db = DB(st, pool_size=2)
+    >>> conn0 = db.open()
+    >>> len(conn0._cache)  # empty now
+    0
+    >>> import transaction
+    >>> conn0.root()['a'] = 1
+    >>> transaction.commit()
+    >>> len(conn0._cache)  # but now the cache holds the root object
+    1
+
+Now open more connections so that the total exceeds pool_size (2):
+
+    >>> conn1 = db.open()
+    >>> conn2 = db.open()
+    >>> pool = db._pools['']
+    >>> len(pool.all), len(pool.available)  # all Connections are in use
+    (3, 0)
+
+Return pool_size (2) Connections to the pool:
+
+    >>> conn0.close()
+    >>> conn1.close()
+    >>> len(pool.all), len(pool.available)
+    (3, 2)
+    >>> len(conn0._cache)  # nothing relevant has changed yet
+    1
+
+When we close the third connection, conn0 will be booted from .all, and
+we expect its cache to be cleared then:
+
+    >>> conn2.close()
+    >>> len(pool.all), len(pool.available)
+    (2, 2)
+    >>> len(conn0._cache)  # conn0's cache is empty again
+    0
+    >>> del conn0, conn1, conn2
+
 Clean up.
 
     >>> st.close()