We shipped FinalizationRegistry in Workers: why you should never use it

The addition of the FinalizationRegistry API in Cloudflare Workers allows developers to request a callback when a JavaScript object is garbage-collected, which can be useful for managing external resources like memory allocated by WebAssembly. However, using it directly is not recommended due to its non-deterministic nature and potential risks. Instead, developers should use explicit resource management features like the `using` syntax and deterministic cleanup logic to manage critical resources safely and reliably. The Explicit Resource Management proposal provides a more predictable way to handle resources needing manual cleanup, and its adoption is expected to become widespread in the JavaScript ecosystem. While FinalizationRegistry may not be obsolete, it remains a valuable fallback for specific use cases where explicit disposal isn't practical. By using both ERM and FinalizationRegistry together, developers can create a more reliable foundation for managing memory across the JavaScript and WebAssembly boundary.

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