freebsd man page for gets

FGETS(3)						   BSD Library Functions Manual 						  FGETS(3)

NAME
     fgets, gets -- get a line from a stream

LIBRARY
     Standard C Library (libc, -lc)

SYNOPSIS
     #include <stdio.h>

     char *
     fgets(char * restrict str, int size, FILE * restrict stream);

     char *
     gets(char *str);

DESCRIPTION
     The fgets() function reads at most one less than the number of characters specified by size from the given stream and stores them in the
     string str.  Reading stops when a newline character is found, at end-of-file or error.  The newline, if any, is retained.	If any characters
     are read and there is no error, a '' character is appended to end the string.

     The gets() function is equivalent to fgets() with an infinite size and a stream of stdin, except that the newline character (if any) is not
     stored in the string.  It is the caller's responsibility to ensure that the input line, if any, is sufficiently short to fit in the string.

RETURN VALUES
     Upon successful completion, fgets() and gets() return a pointer to the string.  If end-of-file occurs before any characters are read, they
     return NULL and the buffer contents remain unchanged.  If an error occurs, they return NULL and the buffer contents are indeterminate.  The
     fgets() and gets() functions do not distinguish between end-of-file and error, and callers must use feof(3) and ferror(3) to determine which
     occurred.

ERRORS
     [EBADF]		The given stream is not a readable stream.

     The function fgets() may also fail and set errno for any of the errors specified for the routines fflush(3), fstat(2), read(2), or malloc(3).

     The function gets() may also fail and set errno for any of the errors specified for the routine getchar(3).

SEE ALSO
     feof(3), ferror(3), fgetln(3), fgetws(3), getline(3)

STANDARDS
     The functions fgets() and gets() conform to ISO/IEC 9899:1999 (``ISO C99'').

SECURITY CONSIDERATIONS
     The gets() function cannot be used securely.  Because of its lack of bounds checking, and the inability for the calling program to reliably
     determine the length of the next incoming line, the use of this function enables malicious users to arbitrarily change a running program's
     functionality through a buffer overflow attack.  It is strongly suggested that the fgets() function be used in all cases.

BSD
								    May 5, 2012 							       BSD