xref: /netbsd-src/lib/libc/stdio/fread.3 (revision 3b01aba77a7a698587faaae455bbfe740923c1f5)
1.\"	$NetBSD: fread.3,v 1.8 2001/01/25 02:06:25 lukem Exp $
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38.\"     @(#)fread.3	8.2 (Berkeley) 3/8/94
39.\"
40.Dd March 8, 1994
41.Dt FREAD 3
42.Os
43.Sh NAME
44.Nm fread ,
45.Nm fwrite
46.Nd binary stream input/output
47.Sh LIBRARY
48.Lb libc
49.Sh SYNOPSIS
50.Fd #include <stdio.h>
51.Ft size_t
52.Fn fread "void * restrict ptr" "size_t size" "size_t nmemb" "FILE * restrict stream"
53.Ft size_t
54.Fn fwrite "const void * restrict ptr" "size_t size" "size_t nmemb" "FILE * restrict stream"
55.Sh DESCRIPTION
56The function
57.Fn fread
58reads
59.Fa nmemb
60objects, each
61.Fa size
62bytes long, from the stream pointed to by
63.Fa stream ,
64storing them at the location given by
65.Fa ptr .
66.Pp
67The function
68.Fn fwrite
69writes
70.Fa nmemb
71objects, each
72.Fa size
73bytes long, to the stream pointed to by
74.Fa stream ,
75obtaining them from the location given by
76.Fa ptr .
77.Sh RETURN VALUES
78The functions
79.Fn fread
80and
81.Fn fwrite
82advance the file position indicator for the stream
83by the number of bytes read or written.
84They return the number of objects read or written.
85If
86.Fa size
87or
88.Fa nmemb
89is 0, the functions return 0 and the state of
90.Fa stream
91remains unchanged.
92If an error occurs, or the end-of-file is reached,
93the return value is a short object count (or zero).
94.Pp
95The function
96.Fn fread
97does not distinguish between end-of-file and error, and callers
98must use
99.Xr feof 3
100and
101.Xr ferror 3
102to determine which occurred.
103The function
104.Fn fwrite
105returns a value less than
106.Fa nmemb
107only if a write error has occurred.
108.Sh SEE ALSO
109.Xr read 2 ,
110.Xr write 2
111.Sh STANDARDS
112The functions
113.Fn fread
114and
115.Fn fwrite
116conform to
117.St -ansiC .
118