MPI_INFO_FREE(3)

💖 MPI_Info_free — Open MPI man page, section 3 💖

MPI_Info_free — frees an info object. That's the whole mission, bestie. 🫶

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✨ SYNTAX ✨

🌸 C Syntax 🌸

#include <mpi.h>

int MPI_Info_free(MPI_Info *info)

🎀 Fortran Syntax 🎀

USE MPI
! or the older form: INCLUDE 'mpif.h'
MPI_INFO_FREE(INFO, IERROR)
     INTEGER         INFO, IERROR

🦋 Fortran 2008 Syntax 🦋

USE mpi_f08
MPI_Info_free(info, ierror)
     TYPE(MPI_Info), INTENT(INOUT) :: info
     INTEGER, OPTIONAL, INTENT(OUT) :: ierror

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🫶 INPUT/OUTPUT PARAMETER 🫶

• info — info object (handle). This is the one getting freed, so yes, it's kind of the main character. 💅

🌟 OUTPUT PARAMETER 🌟

• ierror — Fortran only: error status (integer). That's it. That's the whole parameter. ✨

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💫 DESCRIPTION 💫

MPI_Info_free frees info and sets it to MPI_INFO_NULL. No cap, that's literally the description. ✅

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🚨 ERRORS 🚨

Almost all MPI routines return an error value; C routines as the return result of the function and Fortran routines in the last argument. So in C, look at the return result; in Fortran, check the last argument. That's the tea. 💅

Before the error value is returned, the current MPI error handler associated with the communication object (e.g., communicator, window, file) is called. If no communication object is associated with the MPI call, then the call is considered attached to MPI_COMM_SELF and will call the associated MPI error handler. When MPI_COMM_SELF is not initialized (i.e., before MPI_Init/MPI_Init_thread, after MPI_Finalize, or when using the Sessions Model exclusively) the error raises the initial error handler. The initial error handler can be changed by calling MPI_Comm_set_errhandler on MPI_COMM_SELF when using the World model, or the mpi_initial_errhandler CLI argument to mpiexec or info key to MPI_Comm_spawn/MPI_Comm_spawn_multiple. If no other appropriate error handler has been set, then the MPI_ERRORS_RETURN error handler is called for MPI I/O functions and the MPI_ERRORS_ABORT error handler is called for all other MPI functions.

Open MPI includes three predefined error handlers that can be used:

• MPI_ERRORS_ARE_FATAL — causes the program to abort all connected MPI processes. Dramatic? Yes. Accurate? Also yes. 💀
• MPI_ERRORS_ABORT — an error handler that can be invoked on a communicator, window, file, or session. When called on a communicator, it acts as if MPI_Abort was called on that communicator. If called on a window or file, acts as if MPI_Abort was called on a communicator containing the group of processes in the corresponding window or file. If called on a session, aborts only the local process.
• MPI_ERRORS_RETURN — returns an error code to the application. Simple as that. 🫶

MPI applications can also implement their own error handlers by calling:

• MPI_Comm_create_errhandler then MPI_Comm_set_errhandler
• MPI_File_create_errhandler then MPI_File_set_errhandler
• MPI_Session_create_errhandler then MPI_Session_set_errhandler or at MPI_Session_init
• MPI_Win_create_errhandler then MPI_Win_set_errhandler

⚠️ Important caveat: MPI does not guarantee that an MPI program can continue past an error. Like, do not assume you can just keep it moving after an error. Nope. 💀

See the MPI man page for a full list of MPI error codes.

See the Error Handling section of the MPI-3.1 standard for more information.

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👀 SEE ALSO 👀

• MPI_Info_create
• MPI_Info_delete
• MPI_Info_dup
• MPI_Info_get
• MPI_Info_set

Go read these too, bestie. iykyk. 🦋

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💌 COPYRIGHT 💌

2003-2026, The Open MPI Community — that's the copyright line, preserved with love. 🫶

Signed off with Open MPI sparkle: page MPI_INFO_FREE(3), dated Sep 11, 2026. ✨💖🎀