Java -- Thread-Local Variables

For example, the "SimpleDateFormat" class is not thread safe. Suppose we have a static variable:

public static final SimpleDateFormat dateFormat = new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-MM-dd");

If two thread execute the operation:

String dateStamp = dateFormat.format(new Date());

then the result can be garbage since the internal data structures used by the "dateFormat" can be corrupted by concurrent access. You could use synchronization, which is expensive, or you could construct a local "SimpleDateFormat" object whenever you need it, but that is also wasteful.

To construct one instance per thread, use the following code:

public static final ThreadLocal<SimpleDateFormat> dateFormat =
        ThreadLocal.withInitial(() -> new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-MM-dd"));

To access the actual formatter, call

String dateStamp = dateFormat.get().format(new Date());