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PAUSE(3P)                  POSIX Programmer's Manual                 PAUSE(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
       pause - suspend the thread until a signal is received
SYNOPSIS
       #include <unistd.h>
       int pause(void);

DESCRIPTION
       The pause() function shall suspend the calling thread until delivery of
       a  signal  whose action is either to execute a signal-catching function
       or to terminate the process.
       If the action is to terminate the process, pause() shall not return.
       If the action is to execute a signal-catching function,  pause()  shall
       return after the signal-catching function returns.
RETURN VALUE
       Since pause() suspends thread execution indefinitely unless interrupted
       by a signal, there is no successful completion return value. A value of
       -1 shall be returned and errno set to indicate the error.
ERRORS
       The pause() function shall fail if:
       EINTR  A  signal  is  caught  by  the  calling  process  and control is
              returned from the signal-catching function.

       The following sections are informative.
EXAMPLES
       None.
APPLICATION USAGE
       Many common uses of pause() have timing windows. The scenario  involves
       checking  a  condition  related  to a signal and, if the signal has not
       occurred, calling pause(). When the signal occurs between the check and
       the  call  to  pause(), the process often blocks indefinitely. The sig-
       procmask() and sigsuspend() functions can be used to avoid this type of
       problem.
RATIONALE
       None.
FUTURE DIRECTIONS
       None.
SEE ALSO
       sigsuspend(),  the  Base  Definitions  volume  of IEEE Std 1003.1-2001,
       <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                            PAUSE(3P)