1 // Copyright (c) 2012 The Chromium Authors. All rights reserved.
2 // Use of this source code is governed by a BSD-style license that can be
3 // found in the LICENSE file.
5 // FieldTrial is a class for handling details of statistical experiments
6 // performed by actual users in the field (i.e., in a shipped or beta product).
7 // All code is called exclusively on the UI thread currently.
9 // The simplest example is an experiment to see whether one of two options
10 // produces "better" results across our user population. In that scenario, UMA
11 // data is uploaded to aggregate the test results, and this FieldTrial class
12 // manages the state of each such experiment (state == which option was
13 // pseudo-randomly selected).
15 // States are typically generated randomly, either based on a one time
16 // randomization (which will yield the same results, in terms of selecting
17 // the client for a field trial or not, for every run of the program on a
18 // given machine), or by a session randomization (generated each time the
19 // application starts up, but held constant during the duration of the
22 //------------------------------------------------------------------------------
23 // Example: Suppose we have an experiment involving memory, such as determining
24 // the impact of some pruning algorithm.
25 // We assume that we already have a histogram of memory usage, such as:
27 // HISTOGRAM_COUNTS("Memory.RendererTotal", count);
29 // Somewhere in main thread initialization code, we'd probably define an
30 // instance of a FieldTrial, with code such as:
32 // // FieldTrials are reference counted, and persist automagically until
33 // // process teardown, courtesy of their automatic registration in
35 // // Note: This field trial will run in Chrome instances compiled through
36 // // 8 July, 2015, and after that all instances will be in "StandardMem".
37 // scoped_refptr<base::FieldTrial> trial(
38 // base::FieldTrialList::FactoryGetFieldTrial(
39 // "MemoryExperiment", 1000, "StandardMem", 2015, 7, 8,
40 // base::FieldTrial::ONE_TIME_RANDOMIZED, NULL));
42 // const int high_mem_group =
43 // trial->AppendGroup("HighMem", 20); // 2% in HighMem group.
44 // const int low_mem_group =
45 // trial->AppendGroup("LowMem", 20); // 2% in LowMem group.
46 // // Take action depending of which group we randomly land in.
47 // if (trial->group() == high_mem_group)
48 // SetPruningAlgorithm(kType1); // Sample setting of browser state.
49 // else if (trial->group() == low_mem_group)
50 // SetPruningAlgorithm(kType2); // Sample alternate setting.
52 //------------------------------------------------------------------------------
54 #ifndef BASE_METRICS_FIELD_TRIAL_H_
55 #define BASE_METRICS_FIELD_TRIAL_H_
61 #include "base/base_export.h"
62 #include "base/gtest_prod_util.h"
63 #include "base/memory/ref_counted.h"
64 #include "base/observer_list_threadsafe.h"
65 #include "base/synchronization/lock.h"
66 #include "base/time/time.h"
72 class BASE_EXPORT FieldTrial
: public RefCounted
<FieldTrial
> {
74 typedef int Probability
; // Probability type for being selected in a trial.
76 // Specifies the persistence of the field trial group choice.
77 enum RandomizationType
{
78 // One time randomized trials will persist the group choice between
79 // restarts, which is recommended for most trials, especially those that
80 // change user visible behavior.
82 // Session randomized trials will roll the dice to select a group on every
87 // EntropyProvider is an interface for providing entropy for one-time
88 // randomized (persistent) field trials.
89 class BASE_EXPORT EntropyProvider
{
91 virtual ~EntropyProvider();
93 // Returns a double in the range of [0, 1) to be used for the dice roll for
94 // the specified field trial. If |randomization_seed| is not 0, it will be
95 // used in preference to |trial_name| for generating the entropy by entropy
96 // providers that support it. A given instance should always return the same
97 // value given the same input |trial_name| and |randomization_seed| values.
98 virtual double GetEntropyForTrial(const std::string
& trial_name
,
99 uint32 randomization_seed
) const = 0;
102 // A pair representing a Field Trial and its selected group.
104 std::string trial_name
;
105 std::string group_name
;
108 typedef std::vector
<ActiveGroup
> ActiveGroups
;
110 // A return value to indicate that a given instance has not yet had a group
111 // assignment (and hence is not yet participating in the trial).
112 static const int kNotFinalized
;
114 // Disables this trial, meaning it always determines the default group
115 // has been selected. May be called immediately after construction, or
116 // at any time after initialization (should not be interleaved with
117 // AppendGroup calls). Once disabled, there is no way to re-enable a
119 // TODO(mad): http://code.google.com/p/chromium/issues/detail?id=121446
120 // This doesn't properly reset to Default when a group was forced.
123 // Establish the name and probability of the next group in this trial.
124 // Sometimes, based on construction randomization, this call may cause the
125 // provided group to be *THE* group selected for use in this instance.
126 // The return value is the group number of the new group.
127 int AppendGroup(const std::string
& name
, Probability group_probability
);
129 // Return the name of the FieldTrial (excluding the group name).
130 const std::string
& trial_name() const { return trial_name_
; }
132 // Return the randomly selected group number that was assigned, and notify
133 // any/all observers that this finalized group number has presumably been used
134 // (queried), and will never change. Note that this will force an instance to
135 // participate, and make it illegal to attempt to probabilistically add any
136 // other groups to the trial.
139 // If the group's name is empty, a string version containing the group number
140 // is used as the group name. This causes a winner to be chosen if none was.
141 const std::string
& group_name();
143 // Set the field trial as forced, meaning that it was setup earlier than
144 // the hard coded registration of the field trial to override it.
145 // This allows the code that was hard coded to register the field trial to
146 // still succeed even though the field trial has already been registered.
147 // This must be called after appending all the groups, since we will make
148 // the group choice here. Note that this is a NOOP for already forced trials.
149 // And, as the rest of the FieldTrial code, this is not thread safe and must
150 // be done from the UI thread.
153 // Enable benchmarking sets field trials to a common setting.
154 static void EnableBenchmarking();
156 // Creates a FieldTrial object with the specified parameters, to be used for
157 // simulation of group assignment without actually affecting global field
158 // trial state in the running process. Group assignment will be done based on
159 // |entropy_value|, which must have a range of [0, 1).
161 // Note: Using this function will not register the field trial globally in the
162 // running process - for that, use FieldTrialList::FactoryGetFieldTrial().
164 // The ownership of the returned FieldTrial is transfered to the caller which
165 // is responsible for deref'ing it (e.g. by using scoped_refptr<FieldTrial>).
166 static FieldTrial
* CreateSimulatedFieldTrial(
167 const std::string
& trial_name
,
168 Probability total_probability
,
169 const std::string
& default_group_name
,
170 double entropy_value
);
173 // Allow tests to access our innards for testing purposes.
174 FRIEND_TEST_ALL_PREFIXES(FieldTrialTest
, Registration
);
175 FRIEND_TEST_ALL_PREFIXES(FieldTrialTest
, AbsoluteProbabilities
);
176 FRIEND_TEST_ALL_PREFIXES(FieldTrialTest
, RemainingProbability
);
177 FRIEND_TEST_ALL_PREFIXES(FieldTrialTest
, FiftyFiftyProbability
);
178 FRIEND_TEST_ALL_PREFIXES(FieldTrialTest
, MiddleProbabilities
);
179 FRIEND_TEST_ALL_PREFIXES(FieldTrialTest
, OneWinner
);
180 FRIEND_TEST_ALL_PREFIXES(FieldTrialTest
, DisableProbability
);
181 FRIEND_TEST_ALL_PREFIXES(FieldTrialTest
, ActiveGroups
);
182 FRIEND_TEST_ALL_PREFIXES(FieldTrialTest
, ActiveGroupsNotFinalized
);
183 FRIEND_TEST_ALL_PREFIXES(FieldTrialTest
, Save
);
184 FRIEND_TEST_ALL_PREFIXES(FieldTrialTest
, DuplicateRestore
);
185 FRIEND_TEST_ALL_PREFIXES(FieldTrialTest
, SetForcedTurnFeatureOff
);
186 FRIEND_TEST_ALL_PREFIXES(FieldTrialTest
, SetForcedTurnFeatureOn
);
187 FRIEND_TEST_ALL_PREFIXES(FieldTrialTest
, SetForcedChangeDefault_Default
);
188 FRIEND_TEST_ALL_PREFIXES(FieldTrialTest
, SetForcedChangeDefault_NonDefault
);
189 FRIEND_TEST_ALL_PREFIXES(FieldTrialTest
, FloatBoundariesGiveEqualGroupSizes
);
190 FRIEND_TEST_ALL_PREFIXES(FieldTrialTest
, DoesNotSurpassTotalProbability
);
192 friend class base::FieldTrialList
;
194 friend class RefCounted
<FieldTrial
>;
196 // This is the group number of the 'default' group when a choice wasn't forced
197 // by a call to FieldTrialList::CreateFieldTrial. It is kept private so that
198 // consumers don't use it by mistake in cases where the group was forced.
199 static const int kDefaultGroupNumber
;
201 // Creates a field trial with the specified parameters. Group assignment will
202 // be done based on |entropy_value|, which must have a range of [0, 1).
203 FieldTrial(const std::string
& trial_name
,
204 Probability total_probability
,
205 const std::string
& default_group_name
,
206 double entropy_value
);
207 virtual ~FieldTrial();
209 // Return the default group name of the FieldTrial.
210 std::string
default_group_name() const { return default_group_name_
; }
212 // Marks this trial as having been registered with the FieldTrialList. Must be
213 // called no more than once and before any |group()| calls have occurred.
214 void SetTrialRegistered();
216 // Sets the chosen group name and number.
217 void SetGroupChoice(const std::string
& group_name
, int number
);
219 // Ensures that a group is chosen, if it hasn't yet been. The field trial
220 // might yet be disabled, so this call will *not* notify observers of the
222 void FinalizeGroupChoice();
224 // Returns the trial name and selected group name for this field trial via
225 // the output parameter |active_group|, but only if the group has already
226 // been chosen and has been externally observed via |group()| and the trial
227 // has not been disabled. In that case, true is returned and |active_group|
228 // is filled in; otherwise, the result is false and |active_group| is left
230 bool GetActiveGroup(ActiveGroup
* active_group
) const;
232 // Returns the group_name. A winner need not have been chosen.
233 std::string
group_name_internal() const { return group_name_
; }
235 // The name of the field trial, as can be found via the FieldTrialList.
236 const std::string trial_name_
;
238 // The maximum sum of all probabilities supplied, which corresponds to 100%.
239 // This is the scaling factor used to adjust supplied probabilities.
240 const Probability divisor_
;
242 // The name of the default group.
243 const std::string default_group_name_
;
245 // The randomly selected probability that is used to select a group (or have
246 // the instance not participate). It is the product of divisor_ and a random
247 // number between [0, 1).
250 // Sum of the probabilities of all appended groups.
251 Probability accumulated_group_probability_
;
253 // The number that will be returned by the next AppendGroup() call.
254 int next_group_number_
;
256 // The pseudo-randomly assigned group number.
257 // This is kNotFinalized if no group has been assigned.
260 // A textual name for the randomly selected group. Valid after |group()|
262 std::string group_name_
;
264 // When enable_field_trial_ is false, field trial reverts to the 'default'
266 bool enable_field_trial_
;
268 // When forced_ is true, we return the chosen group from AppendGroup when
272 // Specifies whether the group choice has been reported to observers.
273 bool group_reported_
;
275 // Whether this trial is registered with the global FieldTrialList and thus
276 // should notify it when its group is queried.
277 bool trial_registered_
;
279 // When benchmarking is enabled, field trials all revert to the 'default'
281 static bool enable_benchmarking_
;
283 DISALLOW_COPY_AND_ASSIGN(FieldTrial
);
286 //------------------------------------------------------------------------------
287 // Class with a list of all active field trials. A trial is active if it has
288 // been registered, which includes evaluating its state based on its probaility.
289 // Only one instance of this class exists.
290 class BASE_EXPORT FieldTrialList
{
292 // Specifies whether field trials should be activated (marked as "used"), when
293 // created using |CreateTrialsFromString()|.
294 enum FieldTrialActivationMode
{
295 DONT_ACTIVATE_TRIALS
,
299 // Define a separator character to use when creating a persistent form of an
300 // instance. This is intended for use as a command line argument, passed to a
301 // second process to mimic our state (i.e., provide the same group name).
302 static const char kPersistentStringSeparator
; // Currently a slash.
304 // Year that is guaranteed to not be expired when instantiating a field trial
305 // via |FactoryGetFieldTrial()|. Set to two years from the build date.
306 static int kNoExpirationYear
;
308 // Observer is notified when a FieldTrial's group is selected.
309 class BASE_EXPORT Observer
{
311 // Notify observers when FieldTrials's group is selected.
312 virtual void OnFieldTrialGroupFinalized(const std::string
& trial_name
,
313 const std::string
& group_name
) = 0;
319 // This singleton holds the global list of registered FieldTrials.
321 // To support one-time randomized field trials, specify a non-NULL
322 // |entropy_provider| which should be a source of uniformly distributed
323 // entropy values. Takes ownership of |entropy_provider|. If one time
324 // randomization is not desired, pass in NULL for |entropy_provider|.
325 explicit FieldTrialList(const FieldTrial::EntropyProvider
* entropy_provider
);
327 // Destructor Release()'s references to all registered FieldTrial instances.
330 // Get a FieldTrial instance from the factory.
332 // |name| is used to register the instance with the FieldTrialList class,
333 // and can be used to find the trial (only one trial can be present for each
334 // name). |default_group_name| is the name of the default group which will
335 // be chosen if none of the subsequent appended groups get to be chosen.
336 // |default_group_number| can receive the group number of the default group as
337 // AppendGroup returns the number of the subsequence groups. |trial_name| and
338 // |default_group_name| may not be empty but |default_group_number| can be
339 // NULL if the value is not needed.
341 // Group probabilities that are later supplied must sum to less than or equal
342 // to the |total_probability|. Arguments |year|, |month| and |day_of_month|
343 // specify the expiration time. If the build time is after the expiration time
344 // then the field trial reverts to the 'default' group.
346 // Use this static method to get a startup-randomized FieldTrial or a
347 // previously created forced FieldTrial.
348 static FieldTrial
* FactoryGetFieldTrial(
349 const std::string
& trial_name
,
350 FieldTrial::Probability total_probability
,
351 const std::string
& default_group_name
,
354 const int day_of_month
,
355 FieldTrial::RandomizationType randomization_type
,
356 int* default_group_number
);
358 // Same as FactoryGetFieldTrial(), but allows specifying a custom seed to be
359 // used on one-time randomized field trials (instead of a hash of the trial
360 // name, which is used otherwise or if |randomization_seed| has value 0). The
361 // |randomization_seed| value (other than 0) should never be the same for two
362 // trials, else this would result in correlated group assignments.
363 // Note: Using a custom randomization seed is only supported by the
364 // PermutedEntropyProvider (which is used when UMA is not enabled).
365 static FieldTrial
* FactoryGetFieldTrialWithRandomizationSeed(
366 const std::string
& trial_name
,
367 FieldTrial::Probability total_probability
,
368 const std::string
& default_group_name
,
371 const int day_of_month
,
372 FieldTrial::RandomizationType randomization_type
,
373 uint32 randomization_seed
,
374 int* default_group_number
);
376 // The Find() method can be used to test to see if a named Trial was already
377 // registered, or to retrieve a pointer to it from the global map.
378 static FieldTrial
* Find(const std::string
& name
);
380 // Returns the group number chosen for the named trial, or
381 // FieldTrial::kNotFinalized if the trial does not exist.
382 static int FindValue(const std::string
& name
);
384 // Returns the group name chosen for the named trial, or the
385 // empty string if the trial does not exist.
386 static std::string
FindFullName(const std::string
& name
);
388 // Returns true if the named trial has been registered.
389 static bool TrialExists(const std::string
& name
);
391 // Creates a persistent representation of active FieldTrial instances for
392 // resurrection in another process. This allows randomization to be done in
393 // one process, and secondary processes can be synchronized on the result.
394 // The resulting string contains the name and group name pairs of all
395 // registered FieldTrials for which the group has been chosen and externally
396 // observed (via |group()|) and which have not been disabled, with "/" used
397 // to separate all names and to terminate the string. This string is parsed
398 // by |CreateTrialsFromString()|.
399 static void StatesToString(std::string
* output
);
401 // Fills in the supplied vector |active_groups| (which must be empty when
402 // called) with a snapshot of all registered FieldTrials for which the group
403 // has been chosen and externally observed (via |group()|) and which have
404 // not been disabled.
405 static void GetActiveFieldTrialGroups(
406 FieldTrial::ActiveGroups
* active_groups
);
408 // Use a state string (re: StatesToString()) to augment the current list of
409 // field trials to include the supplied trials, and using a 100% probability
410 // for each trial, force them to have the same group string. This is commonly
411 // used in a non-browser process, to carry randomly selected state in a
412 // browser process into this non-browser process, but could also be invoked
413 // through a command line argument to the browser process. The created field
414 // trials are marked as "used" for the purposes of active trial reporting if
415 // |mode| is ACTIVATE_TRIALS.
416 static bool CreateTrialsFromString(const std::string
& prior_trials
,
417 FieldTrialActivationMode mode
);
419 // Create a FieldTrial with the given |name| and using 100% probability for
420 // the FieldTrial, force FieldTrial to have the same group string as
421 // |group_name|. This is commonly used in a non-browser process, to carry
422 // randomly selected state in a browser process into this non-browser process.
423 // It returns NULL if there is a FieldTrial that is already registered with
424 // the same |name| but has different finalized group string (|group_name|).
425 static FieldTrial
* CreateFieldTrial(const std::string
& name
,
426 const std::string
& group_name
);
428 // Add an observer to be notified when a field trial is irrevocably committed
429 // to being part of some specific field_group (and hence the group_name is
430 // also finalized for that field_trial).
431 static void AddObserver(Observer
* observer
);
433 // Remove an observer.
434 static void RemoveObserver(Observer
* observer
);
436 // Notify all observers that a group has been finalized for |field_trial|.
437 static void NotifyFieldTrialGroupSelection(FieldTrial
* field_trial
);
439 // Return the number of active field trials.
440 static size_t GetFieldTrialCount();
443 // A map from FieldTrial names to the actual instances.
444 typedef std::map
<std::string
, FieldTrial
*> RegistrationList
;
446 // If one-time randomization is enabled, returns a weak pointer to the
447 // corresponding EntropyProvider. Otherwise, returns NULL.
448 static const FieldTrial::EntropyProvider
*
449 GetEntropyProviderForOneTimeRandomization();
451 // Helper function should be called only while holding lock_.
452 FieldTrial
* PreLockedFind(const std::string
& name
);
454 // Register() stores a pointer to the given trial in a global map.
455 // This method also AddRef's the indicated trial.
456 // This should always be called after creating a new FieldTrial instance.
457 static void Register(FieldTrial
* trial
);
459 static FieldTrialList
* global_
; // The singleton of this class.
461 // This will tell us if there is an attempt to register a field
462 // trial or check if one-time randomization is enabled without
463 // creating the FieldTrialList. This is not an error, unless a
464 // FieldTrialList is created after that.
465 static bool used_without_global_
;
467 // Lock for access to registered_.
469 RegistrationList registered_
;
471 // Entropy provider to be used for one-time randomized field trials. If NULL,
472 // one-time randomization is not supported.
473 scoped_ptr
<const FieldTrial::EntropyProvider
> entropy_provider_
;
475 // List of observers to be notified when a group is selected for a FieldTrial.
476 scoped_refptr
<ObserverListThreadSafe
<Observer
> > observer_list_
;
478 DISALLOW_COPY_AND_ASSIGN(FieldTrialList
);
483 #endif // BASE_METRICS_FIELD_TRIAL_H_