Interpretations

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

IEEE Standards Interpretations for IEEE Std 1003.1c™-1995 IEEE Standard for Information Technology--Portable Operating System Interface (POSIX(R)) - System Application Program Interface (API) Amendment 2: Threads Extension (C Language)

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Interpretation Request #40
Topic: sigsuspend Relevant Clauses: 3.3.7.3, Page 87, Line 1203

Is the phrase “Since the sigsuspend() function suspends process execution indefinitely,” correct? It is clear from line 1190 that the function suspends the calling “thread”, but why would the “process” be suspended indefinitely? Suggested Correction: Change the phrase to “Since the sigsuspend() function suspends thread execution indefinitely,.”

Interpretation Response
The standard is clear that sigsuspend shall suspend the calling thread until the delivery of a signal. The explanatory subclause in the returns section is not a correct representation of what happens and this is being referred to the sponsor for correction as an editorial error.

Rationale for Interpretation
In the declaritive text of the description for sigsuspend(), the wording is very clear that the function will suspend the thread. The Interpretations Committee is believes that this is exactly what was intended by the working and balloting groups. The subclause in the returns section is clearly explanitory but does not match what the declaritive text states and is incorrect. During development of the standard, there were several changes made that required changing process to thread and this was one that was missed.