Interpretations

Answering questions that may arise related to the meaning of portions of an IEEE standard concerning specific applications.

IEEE Standards Interpretation for IEEE Std 1003.1™-1990 IEEE Standard for Information Technology--Portable Operating System Interfaces (POSIX®)

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Interpretation Request #102
Topic: posix_madvise Relevant Sections: 2.7.3 PASC

1003.1d, Section 2.7.3 clearly states that posix_madvise() is to be declared in <fcntl.h>, and no mention in that section is made of <sys/mman.h>.Yet in 20.2.1.1, the Synopsis states that the function is declared in <sys/mman.h>.

change <fcntl.h> to <sys/mman.h>

Interpretation Response
The standard is unclear on this issue, and no conformance distinction can be made between alternative implementations based on this. This is being referred to the sponsor.

Rationale for Interpretation
This is an ambiguity in the 1003.1d standard as approved and interpretations must favor the looser conformance requirement, in this case allowing either header.

Notes to Project Editor(not part of this interpretation)
The entry for posix_madvise() in the <fcntl.h> header (clause 2.7.3) is in error. posix_madvise() should be included in <sys/mman.h> and not <fcntl.h>, please correct in the revision. Forwarded to Interpretations group: 21 May 2000 Proposed resolution: 28 May 2000 Finalised Interpretation: 25 July 2000