POSIX_FADVISE(3P)

PROLOG
This manual page is part of the POSIX Programmer's Manual. The Linux implementation of this interface may differ (consult the corresponding Linux manual page for details of Linux behavior), or the interface may not be implemented on Linux.

NAME
posix_fadvise - file advisory information (ADVANCED REALTIME)

SYNOPSIS

#include <fcntl.h>

int posix_fadvise(int fd, off_t offset, size_t len, int advice);

DESCRIPTION

The posix_fadvise() function shall advise the implementation on the expected behavior of the application with respect to the data in the file associated with the open file descriptor, fd, starting at offset and continuing for len bytes. The specified range need not currently exist in the file. If len is zero, all data following offset is specified. The implementation may use this information to optimize handling of the specified data. The posix_fadvise() function shall have no effect on the semantics of other operations on the specified data, although it may affect the performance of other operations.

The advice to be applied to the data is specified by the advice parameter and may be one of the following values:

POSIX_FADV_NORMAL

    Specifies that the application has no advice to give on its behavior with respect to the specified data. It is the default characteristic if no advice is given for an open file.

POSIX_FADV_SEQUENTIAL

    Specifies that the application expects to access the specified data sequentially from lower offsets to higher offsets.

POSIX_FADV_RANDOM

    Specifies that the application expects to access the specified data in a random order.

POSIX_FADV_WILLNEED

    Specifies that the application expects to access the specified data in the near future.

POSIX_FADV_DONTNEED

    Specifies that the application expects that it will not access the specified data in the near future.

POSIX_FADV_NOREUSE

    Specifies that the application expects to access the specified data once and then not reuse it thereafter.

These values are defined in <fcntl.h>.

RETURN VALUE

Upon successful completion, posix_fadvise() shall return zero; otherwise, an error number shall be returned to indicate the error.

ERRORS

The posix_fadvise() function shall fail if:

EBADF
    The fd argument is not a valid file descriptor.

EINVAL
    The value of advice is invalid.

ESPIPE
    The fd argument is associated with a pipe or FIFO.

The following sections are informative.

EXAMPLES

None.

APPLICATION USAGE

The posix_fadvise() function is part of the Advisory Information option and need not be provided on all implementations.

RATIONALE

None.

FUTURE DIRECTIONS

None.

SEE ALSO

posix_madvise(), the Base Definitions volume of IEEE Std 1003.1-2001, <fcntl.h>

COPYRIGHT
Portions of this text are reprinted and reproduced in electronic form from IEEE Std 1003.1, 2003 Edition, Standard for Information Technology -- Portable Operating System Interface (POSIX), The Open Group Base Specifications Issue 6, Copyright (C) 2001-2003 by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc and The Open Group. In the event of any discrepancy between this version and the original IEEE and The Open Group Standard, the original IEEE and The Open Group Standard is the referee document. The original Standard can be obtained online at http://www.opengroup.org/unix/online.html .