CFREE(3)						     Linux Programmer's Manual							  CFREE(3)

NAME

       cfree - free allocated memory

SYNOPSIS

       #include <stdlib.h>

       /* In SunOS 4 */
       int cfree(void *ptr);

       /* In glibc or FreeBSD libcompat */
       void cfree(void *ptr);

       /* In SCO OpenServer */
       void cfree(char *ptr, unsigned num, unsigned size);

       /* In Solaris watchmalloc.so.1 */
       void cfree(void *ptr, size_t nelem, size_t elsize);

   Feature Test Macro Requirements for glibc (see feature_test_macros(7)):

       cfree(): _BSD_SOURCE || _SVID_SOURCE

DESCRIPTION

       This function should never be used.  Use free(3) instead.

   1-arg cfree
       In glibc, the function cfree() is a synonym for free(3), "added for compatibility with SunOS".

       Other systems have other functions with this name.  The declaration is sometimes in <stdlib.h> and sometimes in <malloc.h>.

   3-arg cfree
       Some SCO and Solaris versions have malloc libraries with a 3-argument cfree(), apparently as an analog to calloc(3).

       If you need it while porting something, add

	   #define cfree(p, n, s) free((p))

       to your file.

       A frequently asked question is "Can I use free(3) to free memory allocated with calloc(3), or do I need cfree()?"  Answer: use free(3).

       An  SCO	manual writes: "The cfree routine is provided for compliance to the iBCSe2 standard and simply calls free.  The num and size argu-
       ments to cfree are not used."

RETURN VALUE

       The SunOS version of cfree() (which is a synonym for free(3)) returns 1 on success and 0 on failure.  In case of error,	errno  is  set	to
       EINVAL: the value of ptr was not a pointer to a block previously allocated by one of the routines in the malloc(3) family.

CONFORMING TO

       The 3-argument version of cfree() as used by SCO conforms to the iBCSe2 standard: Intel386 Binary Compatibility Specification, Edition 2.

SEE ALSO

       malloc(3)

COLOPHON

       This  page is part of release 3.27 of the Linux man-pages project.  A description of the project, and information about reporting bugs, can
       be found at http://www.kernel.org/doc/man-pages/.

								    2007-07-26								  CFREE(3)