atomic_long..._dec_release(9)

📦 version 7.3.1, in nixpkgs unstable

💅 atomic_long..._dec_release(9) — the Kernel API Manual, bestie edition 🎀

Okay so this is the manual page for atomic_long..._dec_release(9) from the Kernel API Manual, and honestly? It's a little baddie with one job and she does it flawlessly. Let's get into it ✨

🌸 NAME 🌸

atomic_long_fetch_dec_release — atomic decrement, but make it release-ordered 💅

⭐ SYNOPSIS ⭐

long atomic_long_fetch_dec_release (atomic_long_t *v );

That's it. That's the whole vibe check. One pointer in, one long out 🫶

🦋 ARGUMENTS 🦋

  • v — pointer to atomic_long_t. Yeah. That's the whole argument. She's low-maintenance like that, no cap 👑

🔥 DESCRIPTION 🔥

So what does she do? Atomically updates v to (v - 1) with release ordering. The way that works is she takes the value, subtracts one, and does it atomically — nobody gets to sneak a peek at a half-finished decrement, periodt. And the release ordering is doing its whole memory-barrier main-character moment so the ordering guarantees stay intact 💖

💀 Warning, bestie, listen up: this one is unsafe to use in noinstr code. Like, do not. If you're in noinstr territory, use raw_atomic_long_fetch_dec_release there instead. That's literally what it's for. iykyk 🙈

🌈 RETURN 🌈

She returns the original value of v — the value from before the decrement. So she gives you the past and the future at the same time. Iconic behavior honestly 👑

🧚 SEE ALSO 🧚

Grab a snack, bestie, because this list is long long 😭 — it all lives in the kernel file ./include/linux/atomic/atomic-instrumented.h:

🌸 the plain atomic_* girlies

💜 the atomic64_* icons

🦋 the atomic_long_* queens (our girl's whole family)

💖 and that's the whole page, bestie 💖

This cutie lives in ./include/linux/atomic, dated October 2026 — go drink some water and decrement responsibly 🍓🫶

📦 where this page comes from