03-27-2008
They are not interchangable the way pipe() and socketpair() are. Compared to FIFO's, Unix domain sockets are a minor nightmare to use. Two programs can just open a FIFO and then they are talking. With Unix domain sockets, a server has to set up one unix domain socket and go through all the networking business. A client creates a temporary unix domain socket of its own and connects to the servers socket. The server then forks() and starts a conversation with the client. There is a lot of overhead including a fork() just to get the ball rolling. Ignoring the startup overhead, I'm not sure which can send data the fastest. I would go with the FIFO anyway.
But it's good to use Unix domain sockets at least once, so maybe you should do that. That will cure you forever from considering them again.
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LEARN ABOUT OSX
socketpair
SOCKETPAIR(2) BSD System Calls Manual SOCKETPAIR(2)
NAME
socketpair -- create a pair of connected sockets
SYNOPSIS
#include <sys/socket.h>
int
socketpair(int domain, int type, int protocol, int socket_vector[2]);
DESCRIPTION
The socketpair() call creates an unnamed pair of connected sockets in the specified domain domain, of the specified type, and using the
optionally specified protocol. The descriptors used in referencing the new sockets are returned in socket_vector[0] and socket_vector[1].
The two sockets are indistinguishable.
RETURN VALUES
The socketpair() function returns the value 0 if successful; otherwise the value -1 is returned and the global variable errno is set to indi-
cate the error.
ERRORS
The call succeeds unless:
[EAFNOSUPPORT] The specified address family is not supported on this machine.
[EFAULT] The address socket_vector does not specify a valid part of the process address space.
[EMFILE] No more file descriptors are available for this process.
[ENFILE] No more file descriptors are available for the system.
[ENOBUFS] Insufficient resources were available in the system to perform the operation.
[ENOMEM] Insufficient memory was available to fulfill the request.
[EOPNOTSUPP] The specified protocol does not support creation of socket pairs.
[EPROTONOSUPPORT] The specified protocol is not supported on this machine.
[EPROTOTYPE] The socket type is not supported by the protocol.
[EACCES] The process does not have appropriate privileges to create a socket of the specified type and/or protocol.
LEGACY SYNOPSIS
#include <sys/types.h>
#include <sys/socket.h>
The include file <sys/types.h> is necessary.
SEE ALSO
socket(2), read(2), write(2), compat(5)
BUGS
This call is currently implemented only for the UNIX domain.
HISTORY
The socketpair() function call appeared in 4.2BSD.
4.2 Berkeley Distribution June 4, 1993 4.2 Berkeley Distribution