This document describes the object behavioral chain of responsibility pattern. It explains that the pattern avoids coupling the sender of a request to its receiver by allowing more than one object to handle the request. A chain is formed by connecting the receiving objects, and a request is passed along the chain until an object handles it. Participants include handlers that define the request interface and can implement the successor link, and concrete handlers that handle requests or forward them to their successor. The chain of responsibility reduces coupling and increases flexibility by allowing the chain structure and responsibilities to change at runtime.

1. Object Behavioral Pattern

2. Motivation
 Ever tried help.desk@ua.edu
 A central starting point for UA members to get help
about all subjects.
 You can ask questions about many things
(academic, registrar, actioncard, IT…)
 Your question will be solved by the related
department and a reply will be sent.
 That means you can ask a question, and do not care
which department will answer it.
 You just need the answer, and you will get it.
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3. Intuitive Solution
 There will be a manager, who receives all mails
those are sent to help.desk@ua.edu
 The manager will process every mail and redirects it
to the appropriate department.
 In this case, the manager must have references to
all departments.
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4. An Efficient Solution
 You send the mail to help.desk@ua.edu
 Your mail will be forwarded to the first department to
be answered.
 If that department do not have the answer, it will
forward the mail to next department.
 Forward chain will go on until a department will
answer your question.
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5. Chain of Responsibility Pattern
 Avoid coupling the sender of a request to its receiver
by giving more than one object to handle the
request.
 Chain the receiving objects and pass the request
along the chain until an object handles it.
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6. Participants
 Handler
 Defines the interface for handling requests
 Can implement the successor link
 Concrete Handler
 Handles requests it is responsible for
 Can access its successor
 If can handle request, it does so; else forwards the
request to its successor
 Client
 Initiates the request to a ConcreteHandler object on the
chain.
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7. Collaboration
 In this sequence diagram, two requests are sent to
c1 and one is replied by c2, other one is replied by
c3. We can see request is passed from one another
in chain.
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8. Consequences
 Reduced Coupling:
 The sender does not know which other object will handle
the request.
 It only has to know that the request will be handled
appropriately.
 A request in the chain also does not have any info about
the chain structure.
 Flexibility
 The chain structure and the responsibilities of chain
members can be modified at run time (Adding new
handlers etc.)
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9. Consequences – cont’d
 Receipt:
 Since a request is not targeting an explicit receiver,
handling it is not guaranteed.
 The request can pass through from all chain members
without being handled and can fall off the end of chain.
 The chain must be configured properly.
 What if two concrete handlers try to handle the same
request?
 An approach is introduced on next slide!
 What do you think?
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10. Request Structure
 If we only have one execution method for the
request, in the previous scenario (multiple
handlers), one of the handlers may never handle the
request!
 Solution:
 We can have a Request class and may have many
methods inside it. (Command Pattern?)
 Each handler handles the request’s some part.
 And passes the request along the chain.
 In normal version of pattern, a request is not
forwarded to the other handler in the chain after
processed.
But this time, it MUST be forwarded even after
 10

11. Implementation Issues
 Default handler method may be implemented in two
way:
 First one is: leaving the method totally abstract that every
concrete handler have to implement that function and
pass the request to successor if will not handle it.
 Second is: the handler method will implement the passing
the request to successor, and a concrete handler will
override the handler method only if it will handle a
request.
 PseudoCode examples of two variations on next
slide!
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12. Default Handler Behavior
 First method Second method
abstract class Handler { abstract class Handler {
Handler successor = null; Handler successor = null;
abstract void handleRequest(r); abstract void handleRequest(r) {
} if(successor != null)
successor.handleRequest(r);
// a class handling the request }
class ConcHandler1 extends Handler { }
void handleRequest(r) {
process(r); // a class handling the request
if(successor != null) class ConcHandler1 extends Handler {
successor.handleRequest(r); void handleRequest(r) {
} process(r);
} if(successor != null)
successor.handleRequest(r);
// a class not handling the request }
class ConcHandler2 extends Handler { }
void handleRequest(r) {
if(successor != null) // a class not handling the request
successor.handleRequest(r); class ConcHandler2 extends Handler {
} }
}
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13. Implementation Issues – cont’d
 Can you see the Chain of Responsibility in the
Composite Pattern?
 What is different than classic Chain of Responsibility?
 You can just add a handle function to Component here
and you can use children link to provide the successor
effect.
 You have to process the request in composite nodes and
after processing, you should deliver it to right child to be
handled.
 Not a single link chain, but a tree chain! Path of a request
handle(Request r)
handle(Request r)
handle(Request r)
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14. «Exception Handling» Example
 Exception handling uses Chain of Responsibility
pattern.
 When an exception occurs, the program will start to
search for a handler from the class which exception
occurs through super classes.
 If an appropriate handler is found in one of
superclasses, ok. If not, it will be handled globally.
 Class Diagram Object Diagram
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15. «Cache» Example
 Think of a processor with level 3 cache
 CPU will first look up level1 cache, then level2 and
then level3, at last data will be read from main
memory.
 Not a concrete example of the pattern, but the logic.
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16. «Email Handler» Example
 You have a big company and you are receiving lots
of email from customers.
 Fan emails, spams, complaints, or a request of new
location.
 Here’s what you have to do:
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17. Pipes and Filters Pattern
 Email handling example looks like filtering, right?
 It is also an example of architechtural pattern called
Pipes and Filters.
 We can use this pattern to divide a larger processing
task, into a sequence of smaller and independent
steps (filters) that are connected by channels
(pipes).
 Here is an example of order handling steps:
*Receive Order 1-Decrypt the secure order 2-
Authenticate customer 3-Remove duplicate orders
*Process
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18. Non-software Example
 Coin sorter of a bank ATM
 When we drop coin to ATM, the ATM will try to put
the coin to correct location, will start trying from
quarter until cent.
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19. Brainstorm
 handleRequest method always accepted ONE
request as parameter till now, how can we change it
to handle a request list? What has to change?
 Inside the method, we will handle the appropriate requests,
remove them out from the list, and pass remaining list to
successor.
 What if we configure the chain wrong and started
forwarding requests not from the first handler but from
the third or fourth one?
 We can set the successor of the last handler in the chain to
the first one. But we must ensure, the request is handled or
it may cause with a loop.
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20. Brainstorm – cont’d
 If each handler modifies some part of the request
(partially handles) and passes the request to
successor, will it again be chain of responsibility?
 What do you think?
 I think YES.
 Chain of Responsibility vs Pipes and Filters
 Don’t worry, you don’t have to select one of them. Pipes
and Filters is a subclass of Chain of Responsibility.
(variant to be used in architectural purposes)
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21. Demo
 It is demo time!
 First demo is implemented by me.
 Second demo is totally taken from a webpage.
 You can find it in references.
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22. Questions
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23. References
 GoF Design Patterns Book
 http://www.javacamp.org/designPattern/chains.html
 http://www.unilim.fr/sci/wiki/_media/cali/cpumemory.p
df
 Oreilly Head First: Design Patterns Book
 Fry of Futurama for Questions Picture
 http://eaipatterns.com/PipesAndFilters.html
 Non-Software Examples of Software Design
Patterns by Michael Duell
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