abs_diff(9)

📦 version 7.3.1, in nixpkgs unstable

💖 abs_diff(9) — Kernel API Manual 💖

okay so bestie, welcome to the abs_diff page ✨ it's short, it's sweet, it's literally just math but make it kernel. let's get into it 🎀

🌸 NAME 🌸

abs_diff — return the absolute value of the difference between the arguments 💅

✨ SYNOPSIS ✨

abs_diff (a , b );

yes that's the whole thing. no cap, it's giving minimalism 👑

🫶 ARGUMENTS 🫶

  • a — the first argument 🌈
  • b — the second argument 🦋

💜 DESCRIPTION 💜

okay so here's the vibe check: a and b have to be of the same type. like, that's not optional, that's the rule 🙈 with that restriction in place, we compare signed to signed and unsigned to unsigned — fr fr, no mixing, it's not that kind of function 💀

the result is the subtraction of the smaller of the two from the bigger, hence the result is always a positive value ✨ so like, whichever one is smaller just gets yeeted out of the bigger one, and you always come out with something positive. iconic behavior honestly 🌟

⭐ RETURN ⭐

an absolute value of the difference between a and b 💖

🦋 SEE ALSO 🦋

kernel file ./include/linux/math.h — and bestie, please go say hi to the whole math.h friend group, they're all so sweet:

and that's the page!! 🎀 mwah 💋

little sign-off from your girl: this one lives in ./include/linux, dated October 2026 — that's the source and the version-date situation, and yes i remembered it for you 🫶💜
📦 where this page comes from