WRITE(3P) - phpMan

WRITE(3P)                  POSIX Programmer's Manual                 WRITE(3P)

PROLOG
       This  manual  page is part of the POSIX Programmer's Manual.  The Linux
       implementation of this interface may differ (consult the  corresponding
       Linux  manual page for details of Linux behavior), or the interface may
       not be implemented on Linux.
NAME
       pwrite, write - write on a file
SYNOPSIS
       #include <unistd.h>

       ssize_t pwrite(int fildes, const void *buf, size_t nbyte,
              off_t offset);
       ssize_t write(int fildes, const void *buf, size_t nbyte);

DESCRIPTION
       The write() function shall attempt to write nbyte bytes from the buffer
       pointed to by buf to the file associated with the open file descriptor,
       fildes.
       Before any action described below is taken, and if nbyte  is  zero  and
       the  file is a regular file, the write() function may detect and return
       errors as described below. In the absence of errors, or if error detec-
       tion  is not performed, the write() function shall return zero and have
       no other results.  If nbyte is zero and the file is not a regular file,
       the results are unspecified.
       On  a regular file or other file capable of seeking, the actual writing
       of data shall proceed from the position in the file  indicated  by  the
       file  offset  associated  with  fildes.  Before  successful return from
       write(), the file offset shall be incremented by the  number  of  bytes
       actually written. On a regular file, if this incremented file offset is
       greater than the length of the file, the length of the  file  shall  be
       set to this file offset.
       On  a  file  not  capable  of  seeking, writing shall always take place
       starting at the current position. The value of a file offset associated
       with such a device is undefined.
       If  the  O_APPEND flag of the file status flags is set, the file offset
       shall be set to the end of the file prior to each write and  no  inter-
       vening  file  modification  operation  shall occur between changing the
       file offset and the write operation.
       If a write() requests that more bytes be written than there is room for
       (for  example,   the process' file size limit or  the physical end of a
       medium), only as many bytes as there is room for shall be written.  For
       example,  suppose  there  is  space  for 20 bytes more in a file before
       reaching a limit. A write of 512 bytes will return 20. The  next  write
       of  a  non-zero  number of bytes would give a failure return (except as
       noted below).
       If the request would cause the file size to exceed the soft  file  size
       limit for the process and there is no room for any bytes to be written,
       the request shall  fail  and  the  implementation  shall  generate  the
       SIGXFSZ signal for the thread.
       If  write()  is  interrupted  by a signal before it writes any data, it
       shall return -1 with errno set to [EINTR].
       If write() is interrupted by a signal after it successfully writes some
       data, it shall return the number of bytes written.
       If the value of nbyte is greater than {SSIZE_MAX}, the result is imple-
       mentation-defined.
       After a write() to a regular file has successfully returned:
        * Any successful read() from each byte position in the file  that  was
          modified  by  that  write  shall  return  the  data specified by the
          write() for that position until such byte positions are again  modi-
          fied.
        * Any  subsequent  successful write() to the same byte position in the
          file shall overwrite that file data.
       Write requests to a pipe or FIFO shall be handled in the same way as  a
       regular file with the following exceptions:
        * There  is  no  file  offset associated with a pipe, hence each write
          request shall append to the end of the pipe.
        * Write requests of {PIPE_BUF} bytes or less shall not be  interleaved
          with data from other processes doing writes on the same pipe. Writes
          of greater than {PIPE_BUF} bytes may have data interleaved, on arbi-
          trary boundaries, with writes by other processes, whether or not the
          O_NONBLOCK flag of the file status flags is set.
        * If the O_NONBLOCK flag is clear,  a  write  request  may  cause  the
          thread to block, but on normal completion it shall return nbyte.
        * If  the  O_NONBLOCK  flag  is set, write() requests shall be handled
          differently, in the following ways:
           * The write() function shall not block the thread.
           * A write request for {PIPE_BUF} or fewer bytes shall have the fol-
             lowing  effect:  if  there  is  sufficient space available in the
             pipe, write() shall transfer all the data and return  the  number
             of bytes requested. Otherwise, write() shall transfer no data and
             return -1 with errno set to [EAGAIN].
           * A write request for more than {PIPE_BUF} bytes shall cause one of
             the following:
              * When  at  least  one byte can be written, transfer what it can
                and return the number of bytes written. When all  data  previ-
                ously  written to the pipe is read, it shall transfer at least
                {PIPE_BUF} bytes.
              * When no data can be written, transfer no data, and  return  -1
                with errno set to [EAGAIN].
       When  attempting  to  write  to a file descriptor (other than a pipe or
       FIFO) that supports non-blocking writes  and  cannot  accept  the  data
       immediately:
        * If  the  O_NONBLOCK  flag  is clear, write() shall block the calling
          thread until the data can be accepted.
        * If the O_NONBLOCK flag is set, write() shall not block  the  thread.
          If  some  data  can  be written without blocking the thread, write()
          shall write what it can and return the number of bytes written. Oth-
          erwise, it shall return -1 and set errno to [EAGAIN].
       Upon  successful  completion,  where  nbyte  is greater than 0, write()
       shall mark for update the st_ctime and st_mtime fields of the file, and
       if the file is a regular file, the S_ISUID and S_ISGID bits of the file
       mode may be cleared.
       For regular files, no data transfer shall occur past the offset maximum
       established in the open file description associated with fildes.
       If  fildes  refers  to  a socket, write() shall be equivalent to send()
       with no flags set.
       If the O_DSYNC bit has been set,  write  I/O  operations  on  the  file
       descriptor shall complete as defined by synchronized I/O data integrity
       completion.
       If the O_SYNC bit has been  set,  write  I/O  operations  on  the  file
       descriptor shall complete as defined by synchronized I/O file integrity
       completion.
       If fildes refers to a shared memory object, the result of  the  write()
       function is unspecified.
       If  fildes  refers  to a typed memory object, the result of the write()
       function is unspecified.
       If fildes refers to a STREAM, the operation of write() shall be  deter-
       mined  by  the  values  of  the minimum and maximum nbyte range (packet
       size) accepted by the STREAM. These values are determined by  the  top-
       most  STREAM module. If nbyte falls within the packet size range, nbyte
       bytes shall be written.  If nbyte does not fall within  the  range  and
       the minimum packet size value is 0, write() shall break the buffer into
       maximum packet size segments prior to sending the data downstream  (the
       last  segment  may contain less than the maximum packet size). If nbyte
       does not fall within the range  and  the  minimum  value  is  non-zero,
       write()  shall  fail  with errno set to [ERANGE]. Writing a zero-length
       buffer ( nbyte is 0) to a STREAMS device sends 0 bytes with 0 returned.
       However,  writing  a zero-length buffer to a STREAMS-based pipe or FIFO
       sends no message and 0 is returned.  The  process  may  issue  I_SWROPT
       ioctl()  to  enable  zero-length messages to be sent across the pipe or
       FIFO.
       When writing to a STREAM, data messages are  created  with  a  priority
       band of 0. When writing to a STREAM that is not a pipe or FIFO:
        * If  O_NONBLOCK  is  clear,  and  the  STREAM cannot accept data (the
          STREAM write queue is full due to internal flow control conditions),
          write() shall block until data can be accepted.
        * If  O_NONBLOCK  is  set  and  the STREAM cannot accept data, write()
          shall return -1 and set errno to [EAGAIN].
        * If O_NONBLOCK is set and part of the buffer has been written while a
          condition  in which the STREAM cannot accept additional data occurs,
          write() shall terminate and return the number of bytes written.
       In addition, write() shall fail if the STREAM  head  has  processed  an
       asynchronous  error  before  the call. In this case, the value of errno
       does not reflect the result of write(), but reflects the prior error.
       The pwrite() function shall be equivalent to write(),  except  that  it
       writes  into  a  given  position without changing the file pointer. The
       first three arguments to pwrite() are the  same  as  write()  with  the
       addition  of  a  fourth argument offset for the desired position inside
       the file.
RETURN VALUE
       Upon successful completion, write()  and pwrite() shall return the num-
       ber  of bytes actually written to the file associated with fildes. This
       number shall never be  greater  than  nbyte.  Otherwise,  -1  shall  be
       returned and errno set to indicate the error.
ERRORS
       The write() and   pwrite()  functions shall fail if:
       EAGAIN The  O_NONBLOCK  flag  is  set  for  the file descriptor and the
              thread would be delayed in the write() operation.
       EBADF  The fildes argument is not a  valid  file  descriptor  open  for
              writing.
       EFBIG  An attempt was made to write a file that exceeds the implementa-
              tion-defined maximum file size  or the process' file size limit,
              and there was no room for any bytes to be written.
       EFBIG  The  file  is  a  regular file, nbyte is greater than 0, and the
              starting position is greater than or equal to the offset maximum
              established in the open file description associated with fildes.
       EINTR  The  write operation was terminated due to the receipt of a sig-
              nal, and no data was transferred.
       EIO    The process is a member of a background process group attempting
              to write to its controlling terminal, TOSTOP is set, the process
              is neither ignoring nor blocking SIGTTOU, and the process  group
              of  the  process  is  orphaned.  This error may also be returned
              under implementation-defined conditions.
       ENOSPC There was no free space remaining on the device  containing  the
              file.
       EPIPE  An  attempt  is made to write to a pipe or FIFO that is not open
              for reading by any process, or that only has  one  end  open.  A
              SIGPIPE signal shall also be sent to the thread.
       ERANGE The transfer request size was outside the range supported by the
              STREAMS file associated with fildes.

       The write() function shall fail if:
       EAGAIN or EWOULDBLOCK
              The file descriptor is for a socket, is marked  O_NONBLOCK,  and
              write would block.
       ECONNRESET
              A write was attempted on a socket that is not connected.
       EPIPE  A write was attempted on a socket that is shut down for writing,
              or is no longer connected. In the latter case, if the socket  is
              of  type  SOCK_STREAM,  the  SIGPIPE  signal is generated to the
              calling process.

       The write() and   pwrite()  functions may fail if:
       EINVAL The  STREAM  or  multiplexer  referenced  by  fildes  is  linked
              (directly or indirectly) downstream from a multiplexer.
       EIO    A physical I/O error has occurred.
       ENOBUFS
              Insufficient  resources  were available in the system to perform
              the operation.
       ENXIO  A request was made of a nonexistent device, or the  request  was
              outside the capabilities of the device.
       ENXIO  A hangup occurred on the STREAM being written to.

       A  write  to  a  STREAMS  file  may  fail  if an error message has been
       received at the STREAM head. In this case, errno is set  to  the  value
       included in the error message.
       The write() function may fail if:
       EACCES A  write  was attempted on a socket and the calling process does
              not have appropriate privileges.
       ENETDOWN
              A write was attempted on a socket and the local  network  inter-
              face used to reach the destination is down.
       ENETUNREACH
              A write was attempted on a socket and no route to the network is
              present.

       The pwrite() function shall fail and the file pointer remain  unchanged
       if:
       EINVAL The offset argument is invalid. The value is negative.
       ESPIPE fildes is associated with a pipe or FIFO.

       The following sections are informative.
EXAMPLES
   Writing from a Buffer
       The  following example writes data from the buffer pointed to by buf to
       the file associated with the file descriptor fd.

              #include <sys/types.h>
              #include <string.h>
              ...
              char buf[20];
              size_t nbytes;
              ssize_t bytes_written;
              int fd;
              ...
              strcpy(buf, "This is a test\n");
              nbytes = strlen(buf);

              bytes_written = write(fd, buf, nbytes);
              ...
APPLICATION USAGE
       None.
RATIONALE
       See also the RATIONALE section in read().
       An attempt to write to a pipe or FIFO has  several  major  characteris-
       tics:
        * Atomic/non-atomic:  A write is atomic if the whole amount written in
          one operation is not interleaved with data from any  other  process.
          This  is  useful  when  there are multiple writers sending data to a
          single reader. Applications need to know how large a  write  request
          can  be  expected to be performed atomically. This maximum is called
          {PIPE_BUF}. This volume of IEEE Std 1003.1-2001 does not say whether
          write  requests  for  more  than  {PIPE_BUF}  bytes  are atomic, but
          requires that writes of {PIPE_BUF} or fewer bytes shall be atomic.
        * Blocking/immediate: Blocking is only possible with O_NONBLOCK clear.
          If  there  is  enough space for all the data requested to be written
          immediately, the implementation should do so. Otherwise, the process
          may  block; that is, pause until enough space is available for writ-
          ing. The effective size of a pipe or FIFO (the maximum  amount  that
          can  be  written in one operation without blocking) may vary dynami-
          cally, depending on the implementation, so it  is  not  possible  to
          specify a fixed value for it.
        * Complete/partial/deferred: A write request:

          int fildes;
          size_t nbyte;
          ssize_t ret;
          char *buf;

          ret = write(fildes, buf, nbyte);
       may return:
       Complete
              ret=nbyte
       Partial
              ret<nbyte
              This shall never happen if nbyte<= {PIPE_BUF}. If it does happen
              (with nbyte> {PIPE_BUF}), this  volume  of  IEEE Std 1003.1-2001
              does  not guarantee atomicity, even if ret<= {PIPE_BUF}, because
              atomicity is guaranteed according to the amount  requested,  not
              the amount written.
       Deferred:
              ret=-1, errno=[EAGAIN]
              This  error  indicates that a later request may succeed. It does
              not indicate that it shall succeed, even if nbyte<=  {PIPE_BUF},
              because  if  no  process  reads from the pipe or FIFO, the write
              never succeeds. An application could usefully count  the  number
              of  times  [EAGAIN]  is  caused  by a particular value of nbyte>
              {PIPE_BUF} and perhaps do later writes with a smaller value,  on
              the  assumption  that  the  effective  size of the pipe may have
              decreased.

       Partial and deferred writes are only possible with O_NONBLOCK set.
       The relations of these properties are shown in the following tables:
                    Write to a Pipe or FIFO with O_NONBLOCK clear
      Immediately Writable:  None             Some             nbyte
      nbyte<={PIPE_BUF}      Atomic blocking  Atomic blocking  Atomic immediate
                             nbyte            nbyte            nbyte
      nbyte>{PIPE_BUF}       Blocking nbyte   Blocking nbyte   Blocking nbyte
       If the O_NONBLOCK flag is clear, a write request  shall  block  if  the
       amount writable immediately is less than that requested. If the flag is
       set (by fcntl()), a write request shall never block.
                    Write to a Pipe or FIFO with O_NONBLOCK set
         Immediately Writable:  None          Some           nbyte
         nbyte<={PIPE_BUF}      -1, [EAGAIN]  -1, [EAGAIN]   Atomic nbyte
         nbyte>{PIPE_BUF}       -1, [EAGAIN]  <nbyte or -1,  <=nbyte or -1,
                                              [EAGAIN]       [EAGAIN]
       There is no exception regarding partial writes when O_NONBLOCK is  set.
       With  the  exception  of  writing  to  an  empty  pipe,  this volume of
       IEEE Std 1003.1-2001 does not specify exactly when a partial  write  is
       performed  since  that would require specifying internal details of the
       implementation. Every application should be prepared to handle  partial
       writes  when O_NONBLOCK is set and the requested amount is greater than
       {PIPE_BUF}, just as every application should be prepared to handle par-
       tial writes on other kinds of file descriptors.
       The  intent  of forcing writing at least one byte if any can be written
       is to assure that each write makes progress if there is any room in the
       pipe.  If  the pipe is empty, {PIPE_BUF} bytes must be written; if not,
       at least some progress must have been made.
       Where this volume of IEEE Std 1003.1-2001 requires -1  to  be  returned
       and  errno set to [EAGAIN], most historical implementations return zero
       (with the O_NDELAY flag set, which is  the  historical  predecessor  of
       O_NONBLOCK,  but is not itself in this volume of IEEE Std 1003.1-2001).
       The error indications in this volume of IEEE Std 1003.1-2001 were  cho-
       sen  so  that  an  application can distinguish these cases from end-of-
       file.  While write()  cannot  receive  an  indication  of  end-of-file,
       read()  can,  and  the  two functions have similar return values. Also,
       some existing systems (for example, Eighth Edition) permit a  write  of
       zero  bytes  to  mean that the reader should get an end-of-file indica-
       tion; for those systems, a return value of zero from write()  indicates
       a successful write of an end-of-file indication.
       Implementations  are allowed, but not required, to perform error check-
       ing for write() requests of zero bytes.
       The concept of a {PIPE_MAX} limit (indicating  the  maximum  number  of
       bytes  that can be written to a pipe in a single operation) was consid-
       ered, but rejected, because  this  concept  would  unnecessarily  limit
       application writing.
       See also the discussion of O_NONBLOCK in read().
       Writes  can  be serialized with respect to other reads and writes. If a
       read() of file data can be proven (by  any  means)  to  occur  after  a
       write()  of  the  data, it must reflect that write(), even if the calls
       are made by different processes. A similar requirement applies to  mul-
       tiple  write  operations  to  the same file position. This is needed to
       guarantee the propagation of data  from  write()  calls  to  subsequent
       read()  calls.  This  requirement  is particularly significant for net-
       worked file systems, where some caching schemes  violate  these  seman-
       tics.
       Note  that  this  is specified in terms of read() and write().  The XSI
       extensions readv() and writev() also obey these semantics. A new "high-
       performance"  write  analog  that  did  not  follow these serialization
       requirements would also be permitted by this wording.  This  volume  of
       IEEE Std 1003.1-2001  is  also silent about any effects of application-
       level caching (such as that done by stdio).
       This volume of IEEE Std 1003.1-2001 does not specify the value  of  the
       file  offset  after an error is returned; there are too many cases. For
       programming errors, such as [EBADF], the concept is  meaningless  since
       no  file is involved. For errors that are detected immediately, such as
       [EAGAIN], clearly the pointer should not change. After an interrupt  or
       hardware  error,  however, an updated value would be very useful and is
       the behavior of many implementations.
       This volume of IEEE Std 1003.1-2001 does not specify behavior  of  con-
       current  writes to a file from multiple processes.  Applications should
       use some form of concurrency control.
FUTURE DIRECTIONS
       None.
SEE ALSO
       chmod(), creat(), dup(), fcntl(), getrlimit(), lseek(), open(), pipe(),
       ulimit(),     writev(),     the     Base    Definitions    volume    of
       IEEE Std 1003.1-2001, <limits.h>, <stropts.h>, <sys/uio.h>, <unistd.h>
COPYRIGHT
       Portions of this text are reprinted and reproduced in  electronic  form
       from IEEE Std 1003.1, 2003 Edition, Standard for Information Technology
       -- Portable Operating System Interface (POSIX),  The  Open  Group  Base
       Specifications  Issue  6,  Copyright  (C) 2001-2003 by the Institute of
       Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc and The Open  Group.  In  the
       event of any discrepancy between this version and the original IEEE and
       The Open Group Standard, the original IEEE and The Open Group  Standard
       is  the  referee document. The original Standard can be obtained online
       at http://www.opengroup.org/unix/online.html .

IEEE/The Open Group                  2003                            WRITE(3P)