GETCWD(3)           Linux Programmer's Manual           GETCWD(3)

NAME
       getcwd,  get_current_dir_name, getwd - Get current working
       directory

SYNOPSIS
       #include <unistd.h>

       char *getcwd(char *buf, size_t size);
       char *get_current_working_dir_name(void);
       char *getwd(char *buf);

DESCRIPTION
       The getcwd() function copies the absolute pathname of  the
       current  working directory to the array pointed to by buf,
       which is of length size.

       If the current absolute path name would require  a  buffer
       longer  than size elements, NULL is returned, and errno is
       set to ERANGE; an application should check for this error,
       and allocate a larger buffer if necessary.

       As  an  extension  to the POSIX.1 standard, getcwd() allo-
       cates the buffer dynamically using malloc() if buf is NULL
       on  call.   In  this  case,  the  allocated buffer has the
       length size unless size is less than  zero,  when  buf  is
       allocated  as  big  as  necessary.   It  is possible (and,
       indeed, advisable) to free() the buffers if they have been
       obtained this way.

       get_current_dir_name,   which   is   only   prototyped  if
       __USE_GNU is defined, will malloc(3) an array  big  enough
       to  hold  the  current directory name.  If the environment
       variable PWD is set, and its value is correct,  then  that
       value will be returned.

       getwd,  which  is only prototyped if __USE_BSD is defined,
       will not malloc(3) any memory. The buf argument should  be
       a pointer to an array at least PATH_MAX bytes long.  getwd
       does only return the first PATH_MAX bytes  of  the  actual
       pathname.

RETURN VALUE
       NULL  on failure (for example, if the current directory is
       not readable), with errno set accordingly, and buf on suc-
       cess.

CONFORMING TO
       POSIX.1

SEE ALSO
       chdir(2), free(3), malloc(3).

GNU                        21 July 1993                         1