What are some examples of cancellation tokens in programming?

Can you explain what a cancellation token is in programming?

A cancellation token is a mechanism that allows you to cancel ongoing operations in a program, especially in asynchronous tasks.

Can you give me some examples of how to use cancellation tokens?

Sure! In C#, you can use the CancellationTokenSource class to create a cancellation token. Here's a simple example:

var cts = new CancellationTokenSource();
var token = cts.Token;

Task.Run(() => {
    while (true)
    {
        if (token.IsCancellationRequested)
        {
            Console.WriteLine("Task was cancelled.");
            break;
        }
        // Simulate work
    }
}, token);

cts.Cancel(); // This will trigger the cancellation.

What happens if I don't check the cancellation token?

If you don't check the cancellation token, your task may continue running even after a cancellation request, which can lead to resource leaks or unresponsive applications.