explain_remove(3)

💖 NAME 💖

okay so bestie, welcome to explain_remove(3) — this page is literally all about how you get explanations for the errors that come back from the remove(2) system call. that's the whole gig. she explains. you understand. we move. ✨

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🦋 SYNOPSIS 🦋

#include <libexplain/remove.h>
const char *explain_remove(const char *pathname);
const char *explain_errno_remove(int errnum, const char *pathname);
void explain_message_remove(char *message, int message_size, const char *pathname);
void explain_message_errno_remove(char *message, int message_size, int errnum, const char *pathname);

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🌸 DESCRIPTION 🌸

so these functions?? they're your little translators. you use them to get explanations for the errors that the remove(2) system call hands back to you. that's it. that's the job. 💅

✨ explain_remove ✨

const char *explain_remove(const char *pathname);

the explain_remove function describes errors returned by the remove() system call. the least the message is gonna contain is the value of strerror(errno) — but ngl it usually does so much better than that, and tells you the actual underlying cause in more detail. it's giving detective energy 🔍

the errno global variable is what gets used to obtain the error value that's gonna be decoded. periodt.

this function is meant to be used in a fashion similar to this example, bestie:

if (remove(pathname) < 0)
{
    fprintf(stderr, "%s\n", explain_remove(pathname));
    exit(EXIT_FAILURE);
}

pathname

• the original pathname, exactly as passed to the remove(2) system call. no edits, no glow-ups, exactly as it was. 🫶

Returns:

• the message explaining the error. this message buffer is shared by all libexplain functions that don't supply a buffer in their argument list. it's gonna get overwritten by the next call to any libexplain function that shares this buffer — including calls from other threads. 😭

Note: this function is not thread safe, because it shares a return buffer across all threads, and many other functions in this library do the same. so like… be aware. 💀

✨ explain_errno_remove ✨

const char *explain_errno_remove(int errnum, const char *pathname);

the explain_errno_remove function describes errors returned by the remove() system call. the least the message will contain is the value of strerror(errnum), but usually it does way better and shows you the underlying cause in more detail. iconic behaviour, honestly.

this function is intended to be used in a fashion similar to this example:

if (remove(pathname) < 0)
{
    int err = errno;
    fprintf(stderr, "%s\n", explain_remove(err, pathname));
    exit(EXIT_FAILURE);
}

errnum

• the error value to be decoded, usually grabbed from the errno global variable right before this function is called. you need to do this if you have to run any code between the system call being explained and this function, because a whole bunch of libc functions will alter the value of errno on you. sneaky. 🙈

pathname

• the original pathname, exactly as passed to the remove(2) system call.

Returns:

• the message explaining the error. this message buffer is shared by all libexplain functions which don't supply a buffer in their argument list, and it will be overwritten by the next call to any libexplain function that shares this buffer, including other threads. 🌈

Note: not thread safe, bestie. it shares a return buffer across all threads, and so do many other functions in this library.

✨ explain_message_remove ✨

void explain_message_remove(char *message, int message_size, const char *pathname);

the explain_message_remove function describes errors returned by the remove() system call. the least the message will contain is the value of strerror(errno), but usually it goes way harder and indicates the underlying cause in more detail. 🎀

the errno global variable will be used to obtain the error value to be decoded.

this function is intended to be used in a fashion similar to this example:

if (remove(pathname) < 0)
{
    char message[3000];
    explain_message_remove(message, sizeof(message), pathname);
    fprintf(stderr, "%s\n", message);
    exit(EXIT_FAILURE);
}

message

• the location in which to store the returned message. if you supply a suitable message return buffer, this function is thread safe. slay. 💅

message_size

• the size in bytes of the location in which to store the returned message.

pathname

• the original pathname, exactly as passed to the remove(2) system call.

✨ explain_message_errno_remove ✨

void explain_message_errno_remove(char *message, int message_size, int errnum, const char *pathname);

the explain_message_errno_remove function describes errors returned by the remove() system call. the least the message will contain is the value of strerror(errnum), but usually it does much better and indicates the underlying cause in more detail. no cap. 🦋

this function is intended to be used in a fashion similar to this example:

if (remove(pathname) < 0)
{
    int err = errno;
    char message[3000];
    explain_message_errno_remove(message, sizeof(message), err, pathname);
    fprintf(stderr, "%s\n", message);
    exit(EXIT_FAILURE);
}

message

• the location in which to store the returned message. if a suitable message return buffer is supplied, this function is thread safe.

message_size

• the size in bytes of the location in which to store the returned message.

errnum

• the error value to be decoded, usually obtained from the errno global variable just before this function is called. this is necessary if you need to call any code between the system call to be explained and this function, because many libc functions will alter the value of errno. 💀

pathname

• the original pathname, exactly as passed to the remove(2) system call.

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👑 SEE ALSO 👑

• remove — delete a name and possibly the file it refers to
• explain_remove_or_die — delete a file and report errors

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🌈 COPYRIGHT 🌈

libexplain version 1.4 Copyright (C) 2008 Peter Miller

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and that's the page, bestie!! go forth and let your errors be explained to you in full detail. you got this. mwah. 💖✨

this was explain_remove(3) from libexplain version 1.4, copyright (C) 2008 Peter Miller — thanks for reading the whole thing, you're literally the main character. 🫶🌸