refcount_dec_and_lock(9)

💖 NAME 💖

okay so welcome to refcount_dec_and_lock(9), straight out of the Kernel API Manual — the manual page, the moment, the icon. The function is refcount_dec_and_lock, and its official NAME vibe is: return holding spinlock if able to decrement refcount to 0. That's the whole thesis, bestie. 💅

✨ SYNOPSIS ✨

bool refcount_dec_and_lock (refcount_t *r , spinlock_t *lock );

🎀 ARGUMENTS 🎀

• r — the refcount. literally the counter in question.
• lock — the spinlock to be locked. yes ma'am.

🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

Similar to atomic_dec_and_lock, it will WARN on underflow 😭 and fail to decrement when saturated at REFCOUNT_SATURATED.

It provides release memory ordering, such that prior loads and stores are done before, and provides a control dependency such that free must come after. See the comment on top for the full lore. 👑

🌸 RETURN 🌸

• true — and hold spinlock if able to decrement refcount to 0. slay.
• false — otherwise. no spinlock-holding moment for you, bestie.

🌈 SEE ALSO 🌈

• Kernel file ./lib/refcount.c
• refcount_dec_if_one(9)
• refcount_dec_not_one(9)
• refcount_dec_and_mutex_lock(9)
• refcount_dec_and_lock_irqsave(9)

source/version: ./lib · date: October 2026 · manual name: refcount_dec_and_lock(9). that's the cute little footer flex, and yes, you may screenshot it. 🫶✨