ARES_PARSE_SRV_REPLY(3)

💅 ares_parse_srv_reply — the <ares.h> girlies know

okay so bestie, you know ares_parse_srv_reply? it lives in the Library Functions Manual section of the c-ares docs, and it is literally the moment your DNS SRV query results turn into actual usable data. we're parsing, we're linking lists, we're freeing memory like responsible icons. let's get into it 🎀

✨ NAME ✨

ares_parse_srv_reply — parse a reply to a DNS query of type SRV. that's it, that's the whole job, and she does it beautifully 🦋

🌸 SYNOPSIS 🌸

#include <ares.h>

int ares_parse_srv_reply(const unsigned char* abuf, int alen,
                         struct ares_srv_reply** srv_out);

💖 DESCRIPTION 💖

so what's the vibe? ares_parse_srv_reply takes the response to a query of type SRV and parses it into a linked list of struct ares_srv_reply. yes, a linked list, we're being fancy 💅

the parameters abuf and alen give the contents of the response. don't overthink them, they're just the bytes and how many bytes.

the result gets stored in allocated memory, and a pointer to it gets stored into the variable pointed to by srv_out. 👑

bestie, listen. it is the caller's responsibility to free the resulting srv_out structure when it is no longer needed, using the function ares_free_data(3). no cap. memory leaks are NOT the aesthetic. 🙈

and the structure ares_srv_reply contains the following fields, exactly these, no more no less:

struct ares_srv_reply {
    struct ares_srv_reply  *next;
    unsigned short weight;
    unsigned short priority;
    unsigned short port;
    char *host;
};

look at her. next, weight, priority, port, and host. iconic lineup honestly ⭐

🔥 RETURN VALUES 🔥

ares_parse_srv_reply can return any of the following values, and you will be checking them, because we're that kind of developer:

• ARES_SUCCESS — the response was successfully parsed. slay! everything worked, go be free 🫶
• ARES_EBADRESP — the response was malformatted. it's giving broken. 💀
• ARES_ENODATA — the response did not contain an answer to the query. so empty. so nothing. 😭
• ARES_ENOMEM — memory was exhausted. she ran out of room bestie, tragic.

🌈 AVAILABILITY 🌈

this function was first introduced in c-ares version 1.7.0. a true legend of her era 👑

🦋 SEE ALSO 🦋

• ares_query(3)
• ares_free_data(3)

go read those too, i'm literally begging you, especially ares_free_data(3) because of the whole freeing thing we talked about 🎀

okay that's the whole page, mwah 💜 this was the ARES_PARSE_SRV_REPLY(3) page from the Library Functions Manual, dated 4 August 2009, and it's been a pleasure. go parse some SRV records responsibly, free your memory, and drink water. periodt. ✨