dirname(3) [mojave man page]
DIRNAME(3) BSD Library Functions Manual DIRNAME(3) NAME
dirname -- extract the directory part of a pathname SYNOPSIS
#include <libgen.h> char * dirname(char *path); char * dirname_r(const char *path, char *dname); DESCRIPTION
The dirname() function is the converse of basename(3); it returns a pointer to the parent directory of the pathname pointed to by path. Any trailing '/' characters are not counted as part of the directory name. If path is a null pointer, the empty string, or contains no '/' char- acters, dirname() returns a pointer to the string ".", signifying the current directory. IMPLEMENTATION NOTES
The dirname() function returns a pointer to internal storage space allocated on the first call that will be overwritten by subsequent calls. dirname_r() is therefore preferred for threaded applications. Other vendor implementations of dirname() may modify the contents of the string passed to dirname(); if portability is desired, this should be taken into account when writing code which calls this function. LEGACY SYNOPSIS
#include <libgen.h> char * dirname(const char *path); In legacy mode, path will not be changed. RETURN VALUES
On successful completion, dirname() returns a pointer to the parent directory of path. If dirname() fails, a null pointer is returned and the global variable errno is set to indicate the error. ERRORS
The following error codes may be set in errno: [ENAMETOOLONG] The path component to be returned was larger than MAXPATHLEN. [ENOMEM] The static buffer used for storing the path in dirname() could not be allocated. SEE ALSO
basename(1), dirname(1), basename(3), compat(5) STANDARDS
The dirname() function conforms to X/Open Portability Guide Issue 4, Version 2 (``XPG4.2''). HISTORY
The dirname() function first appeared in OpenBSD 2.2 and FreeBSD 4.2. The dirname_r() function first appeared in OS X 10.12. AUTHORS
Todd C. Miller BSD
October 12, 2006 BSD
Check Out this Related Man Page
BASENAME(3) BSD Library Functions Manual BASENAME(3) NAME
basename -- extract the base portion of a pathname SYNOPSIS
#include <libgen.h> char * basename(char *path); char * basename_r(const char *path, char *bname); DESCRIPTION
The basename() function returns the last component from the pathname pointed to by path, deleting any trailing '/' characters. If path con- sists entirely of '/' characters, a pointer to the string "/" is returned. If path is a null pointer or the empty string, a pointer to the string "." is returned. The basename_r() variation accepts a buffer of at least MAXPATHLEN bytes in which to store the resulting component. IMPLEMENTATION NOTES
The basename() function returns a pointer to internal storage space allocated on the first call that will be overwritten by subsequent calls. basename_r() is therefore preferred for threaded applications. RETURN VALUES
On successful completion, basename() and basename_r() return pointers to the last component of path. If they fail, a null pointer is returned and the global variable errno is set to indicate the error. ERRORS
The following error codes may be set in errno: [ENAMETOOLONG] The path component to be returned was larger than MAXPATHLEN. SEE ALSO
basename(1), dirname(1), dirname(3) STANDARDS
The basename() function conforms to X/Open Portability Guide Issue 4, Version 2 (``XPG4.2''). HISTORY
The basename() function first appeared in OpenBSD 2.2 and FreeBSD 4.2. The basename_r() function first appeared in OS X 10.12. AUTHORS
Todd C. Miller CAVEATS
basename() returns a pointer to internal static storage space that will be overwritten by subsequent calls. Other vendor implementations of basename() may modify the contents of the string passed to basename(); this should be taken into account when writing code which calls this function if portability is desired. BSD
March 31, 2010 BSD