(RADIATOR) Using databases (efficiently) in Hooks

[Orcon Network Coordinator, Mark Mackay]

I've no doubt been coding messily to date - but am trying to tidy up and
optimise our Radiator code.

At the moment we (I) use code like: (as an excerpt from a Hook)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
    my $dbh = DBI->connect("DBI:mysql:xxxx:xxxxx","radius","xxxxxxx");

    my $query = $dbh->prepare("select visp, plannow from users where
login='$USERNAME' ");
       $query->execute

    if (my @q1 = $query->fetchrow_array) {
        my $visp            = @q1[0];
        my $plannow            = @q1[1];


         if ( $visp eq "our.virtual.isp" ) {
              $reply->add_attr('PoolHint', "VISPPOOL");
        }

        if ( plannow eq "budget" ) {
              $reply->add_attr('PoolHint', "CHEAPPOOL");
        }

    }

    $query = "";
    $dbh->disconnect || warn $dbh->errstr;

----------------------------------------------------------------------

This works, but is obviously very inefficient in terms of database connects,
etc.  Is there a way to connect in a Startup Hook and disconnect in a
Shutdown Hook and then use this database object throughout all our hooks
(there's about 5 of them which use database lookups) ?

[Forgive the question if it's simple -- i'm not that up to the play with
perl object handling, and tend to be a code-duplicator and refiner]



Also -- is there a "programmers" guide (wishlist!) on how to programme
within Hooks?  [or do bits of the "addingcustom AuthBy modules" apply - and
if so which bits?]


.........................................................................

Mark Mackay,
Network Coordinator,
Orcon Internet.


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