vzalloc(9)

📦 version 7.3.1, in nixpkgs unstable

✨ vzalloc(9) ✨

okay so bestie, welcome to the Kernel API Manual page for vzalloc — this is the one that hands you a big block of memory that's all zeros already, so you don't have to do the whole "memset it yourself" ritual 🎀

🌸 SYNOPSIS 🌸

void * vzalloc (unsigned long size );

💖 ARGUMENTS 💖

  • size — the allocation size. like, how much you want. that's it, that's the whole argument, she's not complicated 💅

🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

So what she does: she allocates enough pages to cover size from the page level allocator, and then she maps them into contiguous kernel virtual space. yes, contiguous in virtual space — that's literally the whole sell, iykyk ✨

And the memory she gives you back is set to zero. free zeroing, no cap. you don't have to clean it up, she already did 🫶

but like — if you want tight control over the page level allocator and the protection flags, use __vmalloc instead. vzalloc is the girl who picks the defaults for you; __vmalloc is you doing it yourself with full customisation energy 👑

⭐ RETURN ⭐

  • a pointer to the allocated memory — slay 💚
  • or NULL on error — sad girl hours 😭

🌈 SEE ALSO 🌈

Kernel file ./mm/vmalloc.c — plus literally the entire friend group:

and that's the page, bestie 💜 this drop came from the ./mm girlies, October 2026 edition, and honestly? iconic of them. go forth and allocate zeroed virtually-contiguous memory responsibly 🌸🎀🦋

📦 where this page comes from