Resource Management in Effect

Overview

Effect provides structured resource management that guarantees cleanup even when errors occur or the effect is interrupted. This is essential for:

• Database connections
• File handles
• Network sockets
• Locks and semaphores
• Any resource requiring cleanup

Core Concept: Scope

A Scope is a context that tracks resources and ensures their cleanup:

Effect<A, E, R | Scope>
//              ^^^^^ Indicates resource needs cleanup

Basic Resource Acquisition

Effect.acquireRelease

The fundamental pattern for safe resource management:

import { Effect } from "effect"

const managedFile = Effect.acquireRelease(
  Effect.sync(() => fs.openSync("file.txt", "r")),
  (fd) => Effect.sync(() => fs.closeSync(fd))
)

Using the Resource

const program = Effect.gen(function* () {
  const fd = yield* managedFile
  const content = yield* Effect.sync(() => fs.readFileSync(fd, "utf-8"))
  return content
})

// Run with automatic scope management
const result = yield* Effect.scoped(program)

Effect.scoped

Converts a scoped effect into a regular effect by managing the scope:

const runnable = Effect.scoped(program)

The scope closes when the scoped block completes, triggering all finalizers.

acquireUseRelease Pattern

For simpler cases, combine acquire/use/release in one call:

const readFile = (path: string) =>
  Effect.acquireUseRelease(
    Effect.sync(() => fs.openSync(path, "r")),
    (fd) => Effect.sync(() => fs.readFileSync(fd, "utf-8")),
    (fd) => Effect.sync(() => fs.closeSync(fd))
  )

Finalizers

Effect.addFinalizer

Add cleanup logic to the current scope:

const program = Effect.gen(function* () {
  yield* Effect.addFinalizer(() =>
    Effect.log("Cleanup running!")
  )

  // ... do work ...

  return result
})

Effect.ensuring

Run cleanup after effect completes (success or failure):

const withCleanup = someEffect.pipe(
  Effect.ensuring(
    Effect.log("Always runs after effect")
  )
)

Effect.onExit

Run different cleanup based on exit status:

const withExitHandler = someEffect.pipe(
  Effect.onExit((exit) =>
    Exit.isSuccess(exit)
      ? Effect.log("Succeeded!")
      : Effect.log("Failed or interrupted")
  )
)

Multiple Resources

Sequential Acquisition

const program = Effect.gen(function* () {
  const db = yield* acquireDbConnection
  const cache = yield* acquireRedisConnection
})

const result = yield* Effect.scoped(program)

Parallel Acquisition

const program = Effect.gen(function* () {
  const [db, cache] = yield* Effect.all([
    acquireDbConnection,
    acquireRedisConnection
  ])
})

Resource Patterns

Database Connection Pool

const DbPool = Effect.acquireRelease(
  Effect.promise(() => createPool({
    host: "localhost",
    database: "mydb",
    max: 10
  })),
  (pool) => Effect.promise(() => pool.end())
)

const query = (sql: string) =>
  Effect.gen(function* () {
    const pool = yield* DbPool
    return yield* Effect.tryPromise(() => pool.query(sql))
  })

File Handle

const withFile = <A>(
  path: string,
  use: (handle: FileHandle) => Effect.Effect<A>
) =>
  Effect.acquireUseRelease(
    Effect.promise(() => fs.promises.open(path)),
    use,
    (handle) => Effect.promise(() => handle.close())
  )

Lock/Mutex

const withLock = <A>(
  lock: Lock,
  effect: Effect.Effect<A>
) =>
  Effect.acquireUseRelease(
    lock.acquire,
    () => effect,
    () => lock.release
  )

Layered Resources

Use Layer.scoped for service-level resources:

const DatabaseLive = Layer.scoped(
  Database,
  Effect.gen(function* () {
    const pool = yield* Effect.acquireRelease(
      createPool(),
      (pool) => Effect.promise(() => pool.end())
    )

    return {
      query: (sql) => Effect.tryPromise(() => pool.query(sql))
    }
  })
)

Error Handling in Cleanup

Finalizers should not fail, but if they do:

const safeRelease = (resource: Resource) =>
  Effect.sync(() => resource.close()).pipe(
    Effect.catchAll((error) =>
      Effect.logError("Cleanup failed", error)
    )
  )

const managed = Effect.acquireRelease(
  acquire,
  safeRelease
)

Interruption Safety

Resources are cleaned up even on interruption:

const program = Effect.gen(function* () {
  const resource = yield* acquireResource

  yield* Effect.sleep("1 hour")
})

const result = yield* program.pipe(
  Effect.scoped,
  Effect.timeout("1 second")
)

Best Practices

1. Use acquireRelease for paired operations – Guarantees cleanup
2. Keep finalizers simple and infallible – Log errors instead of throwing
3. Use Effect.scoped at appropriate boundaries – Not too wide, not too narrow
4. Clean up in reverse acquisition order – Effect handles this automatically
5. Use Layer.scoped for service-level resources – Lifecycle tied to layer

Additional Resources

For comprehensive resource management documentation, consult ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/references/llms-full.txt.

Search for these sections:

• “Introduction” (Resource Management) for core concepts
• “Scope” for detailed scope mechanics
• “Managing Layers” for Layer.scoped patterns