iconv_close(3)

💖 iconv_close(3) — the Library Functions Manual glow-up 💖

okay bestie, gather round, because today we're talking about iconv_close in section 3 of the manual (yes, that's the library-functions girlies, not the syscall ones, we're fancy). it's a whole little function and honestly? she's lowkey iconic for how much she does with so little. ✨

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🌸 NAME 🌸

iconv_close — deallocate descriptor for character set conversion

like. she closes the door on your conversion descriptor. that's the whole vibe. 🚪💅

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📚 LIBRARY 📚

Standard C library (libc, -lc)

yep, she lives in libc, so she's right there when you need her, no extra linking drama. 🫶

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✨ SYNOPSIS ✨

#include <iconv.h>

int iconv_close(iconv_t cd);

so you pull in <iconv.h>, hand her your iconv_t descriptor named cd, and she takes int as her answer. simple. clean. main character energy. 👑

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🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

The iconv_close() function deallocates a conversion descriptor cd previously allocated using iconv_open(3).

okay so real talk: you know how iconv_open(3) hands you a conversion descriptor so you can do the whole character-set-conversion thing? this is the other end of that. iconv_close() is the cleanup queen — she deallocates that conversion descriptor cd for you. no leaks, no leftover mess, just a tidy little goodbye. 🧹✨

the way i need you to remember this: descriptor in, descriptor freed. she's not doing conversions, she's clocking out and turning off the lights for the descriptor that was doing them. periodt. 💖

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👑 RETURN VALUE 👑

On success, iconv_close() returns 0; otherwise, it returns -1 and sets errno to indicate the error.

so:

• 0 = slay, we're done, everything's clean 🎀
• -1 = uh oh 😭 and she's also going to set errno so you know what went wrong. check that errno, bestie, don't just ignore her. she's telling you something.

ngl, checking return values is the most unglamorous part of C and also the most important. do not skip the vibe check. 💀

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🌈 ATTRIBUTES 🌈

For an explanation of the terms used in this section, see attributes(7).

okay here's the breakdown, and since we can't do tables here, i'm giving it to you as a list instead — same facts, cuter packaging:

• Interface: iconv_close()
• Attribute: Thread safety
• Value: MT-Safe

translation: MT-Safe means she's safe to call from multiple threads at the same time. group-chat-safe, fr fr. 🔥 (and if you wanna know how these attribute terms work, go read attributes(7), she explains it all.)

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⭐ STANDARDS ⭐

POSIX.1-2008.

certified standard, bestie. she's official. 💅

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🎀 HISTORY 🎀

glibc 2.1. POSIX.1-2001.

so she's been around since glibc 2.1, and POSIX has been rocking with her since POSIX.1-2001. an elder icon, honestly. she's seen things. 🫡

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🔥 SEE ALSO 🔥

• iconv(3)
• iconv_open(3)

(go read iconv_open(3) first if you haven't — you literally can't close a descriptor you never opened, and iconv(3) is where the actual converting happens. the trio is a package deal. 💖)

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that's the whole page, bestie!! short, sweet, and honestly a perfect palate cleanser after reading a giant manual page. deallocate, return 0, move on. 💜

⚠️ little warning-in-spirit: don't close the same descriptor twice, don't iconv(3) with a descriptor you already closed, and always check the return value. closed means closed. no cap. 🙈

toodles!! this page was brought to you by the Linux man-pages, version 6.20, dated 2026-02-08 — mwah, love that for us 💋🌸✨