explain_chmod_or_die(3)

✨ explain_chmod_or_die — the manual page bestie 💅

okay so this is from the Library Functions Manual, section 3, and it's literally the glow-up version of "change permissions and don't be weird about it". sit down, grab a strawberry 🍓, we're doing this.

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🌸 NAME 🌸

explain_chmod_or_die — change permissions of a file and report errors

like... it changes the perms, and if that flops, it tells you why instead of ghosting you. iconic behaviour honestly. 👑

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✨ SYNOPSIS ✨

#include <libexplain/chmod.h>
void explain_chmod_or_die(const char *pathname, int mode);

that's it. two args. no cap. 🎀

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🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

so the explain_chmod_or_die function is what you call when you wanna hit the chmod(2) system call, but make it ✨communicative✨. the way it works: if things go wrong, an explanation gets printed to stderr, and that explanation comes from explain_chmod(3). then the process terminates by calling exit(EXIT_FAILURE). not a vibe, but it is the point. 💀

this function is meant to be used in a fashion similar to the following example:

explain_chmod_or_die(pathname, mode);

now let's meet the cast 💖:

• pathname — the pathname, exactly as to be passed to the chmod(2) system call. like, don't get creative with it, pass it through as-is.
• mode — the mode, exactly as to be passed to the chmod(2) system call. same energy. straight through, untouched, no notes.

Returns: 🫶 this function only returns on success. on failure it prints an explanation and exit(EXIT_FAILURE)s. so if you get your return value back, congrats, main character moment. if not... you're not coming back. 😭

fr fr: there is no "on failure it returns an error code" arc here. failure means the process is done. plan accordingly, bestie. 🌈

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🎀 COPYRIGHT 🎀

libexplain version 1.4 Copyright (C) 2008 Peter Miller

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💜 AUTHOR 💜

Written by Peter Miller <pmiller@opensource.org.au>

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and that's the whole page, no crumbs left behind ✨ the source is libexplain version 1.4, and the copyright belongs to Peter Miller, 2008 — and yeah, explain_chmod_or_die(3) is the manual page name, in case the header up top didn't already scream it. go forth and chmod responsibly, my love. 🧚💅🌸