NAME | SYNOPSIS | DESCRIPTION | NOTES | SEE ALSO | COLOPHON

SYSCALLS(2)               Linux Programmer's Manual              SYSCALLS(2)

NAME         top

       syscalls - Linux system calls

SYNOPSIS         top

       Linux system calls.

DESCRIPTION         top

       The system call is the fundamental interface between an application
       and the Linux kernel.

   System calls and library wrapper functions
       System calls are generally not invoked directly, but rather via
       wrapper functions in glibc (or perhaps some other library).  For
       details of direct invocation of a system call, see intro(2).  Often,
       but not always, the name of the wrapper function is the same as the
       name of the system call that it invokes.  For example, glibc contains
       a function chdir() which invokes the underlying "chdir" system call.

       Often the glibc wrapper function is quite thin, doing little work
       other than copying arguments to the right registers before invoking
       the system call, and then setting errno appropriately after the
       system call has returned.  (These are the same steps that are
       performed by syscall(2), which can be used to invoke system calls for
       which no wrapper function is provided.)  Note: system calls indicate
       a failure by returning a negative error number to the caller on
       architectures without a separate error register/flag, as noted in
       syscall(2); when this happens, the wrapper function negates the
       returned error number (to make it positive), copies it to errno, and
       returns -1 to the caller of the wrapper.

       Sometimes, however, the wrapper function does some extra work before
       invoking the system call.  For example, nowadays there are (for
       reasons described below) two related system calls, truncate(2) and
       truncate64(2), and the glibc truncate() wrapper function checks which
       of those system calls are provided by the kernel and determines which
       should be employed.

   System call list
       Below is a list of the Linux system calls.  In the list, the Kernel
       column indicates the kernel version for those system calls that were
       new in Linux 2.2, or have appeared since that kernel version.  Note
       the following points:

       *  Where no kernel version is indicated, the system call appeared in
          kernel 1.0 or earlier.

       *  Where a system call is marked "1.2" this means the system call
          probably appeared in a 1.1.x kernel version, and first appeared in
          a stable kernel with 1.2.  (Development of the 1.2 kernel was
          initiated from a branch of kernel 1.0.6 via the 1.1.x unstable
          kernel series.)

       *  Where a system call is marked "2.0" this means the system call
          probably appeared in a 1.3.x kernel version, and first appeared in
          a stable kernel with 2.0.  (Development of the 2.0 kernel was
          initiated from a branch of kernel 1.2.x, somewhere around 1.2.10,
          via the 1.3.x unstable kernel series.)

       *  Where a system call is marked "2.2" this means the system call
          probably appeared in a 2.1.x kernel version, and first appeared in
          a stable kernel with 2.2.0.  (Development of the 2.2 kernel was
          initiated from a branch of kernel 2.0.21 via the 2.1.x unstable
          kernel series.)

       *  Where a system call is marked "2.4" this means the system call
          probably appeared in a 2.3.x kernel version, and first appeared in
          a stable kernel with 2.4.0.  (Development of the 2.4 kernel was
          initiated from a branch of kernel 2.2.8 via the 2.3.x unstable
          kernel series.)

       *  Where a system call is marked "2.6" this means the system call
          probably appeared in a 2.5.x kernel version, and first appeared in
          a stable kernel with 2.6.0.  (Development of kernel 2.6 was
          initiated from a branch of kernel 2.4.15 via the 2.5.x unstable
          kernel series.)

       *  Starting with kernel 2.6.0, the development model changed, and new
          system calls may appear in each 2.6.x release.  In this case, the
          exact version number where the system call appeared is shown.
          This convention continues with the 3.x kernel series, which
          followed on from kernel 2.6.39, and the 4.x kernel series, which
          followed on from kernel 3.19.

       *  In some cases, a system call was added to a stable kernel series
          after it branched from the previous stable kernel series, and then
          backported into the earlier stable kernel series.  For example
          some system calls that appeared in 2.6.x were also backported into
          a 2.4.x release after 2.4.15.  When this is so, the version where
          the system call appeared in both of the major kernel series is
          listed.

       The list of system calls that are available as at kernel 4.19 (or in
       a few cases only on older kernels) is as follows:

       System call                Kernel        Notes
       ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────

       _llseek(2)                 1.2
       _newselect(2)              2.0
       _sysctl(2)                 2.0
       accept(2)                  2.0           See notes on socketcall(2)
       accept4(2)                 2.6.28
       access(2)                  1.0
       acct(2)                    1.0
       add_key(2)                 2.6.10
       adjtimex(2)                1.0
       alarm(2)                   1.0
       alloc_hugepages(2)         2.5.36        Removed in 2.5.44
       arc_gettls(2)              3.9           ARC only
       arc_settls(2)              3.9           ARC only
       arc_usr_cmpxchg(2)         4.9           ARC only
       arch_prctl(2)              2.6           x86_64, x86 since 4.12
       atomic_barrier(2)          2.6.34        m68k only
       atomic_cmpxchg_32(2)       2.6.34        m68k only
       bdflush(2)                 1.2           Deprecated (does nothing)
                                                since 2.6
       bfin_spinlock(2)           2.6.22        Blackfin only (port removed
                                                in Linux 4.17)
       bind(2)                    2.0           See notes on socketcall(2)
       bpf(2)                     3.18
       brk(2)                     1.0
       breakpoint(2)              2.2           ARM OABI only, defined with
                                                __ARM_NR prefix
       cacheflush(2)              1.2           Not on x86
       capget(2)                  2.2
       capset(2)                  2.2
       chdir(2)                   1.0

       chmod(2)                   1.0
       chown(2)                   2.2           See chown(2) for
                                                version details
       chown32(2)                 2.4
       chroot(2)                  1.0
       clock_adjtime(2)           2.6.39
       clock_getres(2)            2.6
       clock_gettime(2)           2.6
       clock_nanosleep(2)         2.6
       clock_settime(2)           2.6
       clone2(2)                  2.4           IA-64 only
       clone(2)                   1.0
       clone3(2)                  5.3
       close(2)                   1.0
       cmpxchg_badaddr(2)         2.6.36        Tile only (port removed
                                                in Linux 4.17)
       connect(2)                 2.0           See notes on socketcall(2)
       copy_file_range(2)         4.5
       creat(2)                   1.0
       create_module(2)           1.0           Removed in 2.6
       delete_module(2)           1.0
       dma_memcpy(2)              2.6.22        Blackfin only (port removed
                                                in Linux 4.17)
       dup(2)                     1.0
       dup2(2)                    1.0
       dup3(2)                    2.6.27
       epoll_create(2)            2.6
       epoll_create1(2)           2.6.27
       epoll_ctl(2)               2.6
       epoll_pwait(2)             2.6.19
       epoll_wait(2)              2.6
       eventfd(2)                 2.6.22
       eventfd2(2)                2.6.27
       execv(2)                   2.0           SPARC/SPARC64 only, for
                                                compatibility with SunOS
       execve(2)                  1.0
       execveat(2)                3.19
       exit(2)                    1.0
       exit_group(2)              2.6
       faccessat(2)               2.6.16
       fadvise64(2)               2.6
       fadvise64_64(2)            2.6
       fallocate(2)               2.6.23
       fanotify_init(2)           2.6.37
       fanotify_mark(2)           2.6.37
       fchdir(2)                  1.0
       fchmod(2)                  1.0
       fchmodat(2)                2.6.16
       fchown(2)                  1.0
       fchown32(2)                2.4
       fchownat(2)                2.6.16
       fcntl(2)                   1.0
       fcntl64(2)                 2.4
       fdatasync(2)               2.0
       fgetxattr(2)               2.6; 2.4.18
       finit_module(2)            3.8
       flistxattr(2)              2.6; 2.4.18
       flock(2)                   2.0
       fork(2)                    1.0
       free_hugepages(2)          2.5.36        Removed in 2.5.44
       fremovexattr(2)            2.6; 2.4.18
       fsconfig(2)                5.2
       fsetxattr(2)               2.6; 2.4.18
       fsmount(2)                 5.2
       fsopen(2)                  5.2

       fspick(2)                  5.2
       fstat(2)                   1.0
       fstat64(2)                 2.4
       fstatat64(2)               2.6.16
       fstatfs(2)                 1.0
       fstatfs64(2)               2.6
       fsync(2)                   1.0
       ftruncate(2)               1.0
       ftruncate64(2)             2.4
       futex(2)                   2.6
       futimesat(2)               2.6.16
       get_kernel_syms(2)         1.0           Removed in 2.6
       get_mempolicy(2)           2.6.6
       get_robust_list(2)         2.6.17
       get_thread_area(2)         2.6
       get_tls(2)                 4.15          ARM OABI only, has
                                                __ARM_NR prefix
       getcpu(2)                  2.6.19
       getcwd(2)                  2.2
       getdents(2)                2.0
       getdents64(2)              2.4
       getdomainname(2)           2.2           SPARC, SPARC64; available
                                                as osf_getdomainname(2)
                                                on Alpha since Linux 2.0
       getdtablesize(2)           2.0           SPARC (removed in 2.6.26),
                                                available since Linux 2.0 on
                                                Alpha as osf_getdtablesize(2)
       getegid(2)                 1.0
       getegid32(2)               2.4
       geteuid(2)                 1.0
       geteuid32(2)               2.4
       getgid(2)                  1.0
       getgid32(2)                2.4
       getgroups(2)               1.0
       getgroups32(2)             2.4
       gethostname(2)             2.0           Alpha, was available on
                                                SPARC up to Linux 2.6.26
       getitimer(2)               1.0
       getpeername(2)             2.0           See notes on socketcall(2)
       getpagesize(2)             2.0           Not on x86
       getpgid(2)                 1.0
       getpgrp(2)                 1.0
       getpid(2)                  1.0
       getppid(2)                 1.0
       getpriority(2)             1.0
       getrandom(2)               3.17
       getresgid(2)               2.2
       getresgid32(2)             2.4
       getresuid(2)               2.2
       getresuid32(2)             2.4
       getrlimit(2)               1.0
       getrusage(2)               1.0
       getsid(2)                  2.0
       getsockname(2)             2.0           See notes on socketcall(2)
       getsockopt(2)              2.0           See notes on socketcall(2)
       gettid(2)                  2.4.11
       gettimeofday(2)            1.0
       getuid(2)                  1.0
       getuid32(2)                2.4
       getunwind(2)               2.4.8         IA-64 only; deprecated
       getxattr(2)                2.6; 2.4.18
       getxgid(2)                 2.0           Alpha only; see NOTES
       getxpid(2)                 2.0           Alpha only; see NOTES
       getxuid(2)                 2.0           Alpha only; see NOTES
       init_module(2)             1.0

       inotify_add_watch(2)       2.6.13
       inotify_init(2)            2.6.13
       inotify_init1(2)           2.6.27
       inotify_rm_watch(2)        2.6.13
       io_cancel(2)               2.6
       io_destroy(2)              2.6
       io_getevents(2)            2.6
       io_pgetevents(2)           4.18
       io_setup(2)                2.6
       io_submit(2)               2.6
       io_uring_enter(2)          5.1
       io_uring_register(2)       5.1
       io_uring_setup(2)          5.1
       ioctl(2)                   1.0
       ioperm(2)                  1.0
       iopl(2)                    1.0
       ioprio_get(2)              2.6.13
       ioprio_set(2)              2.6.13
       ipc(2)                     1.0
       kcmp(2)                    3.5
       kern_features(2)           3.7           SPARC64 only
       kexec_file_load(2)         3.17
       kexec_load(2)              2.6.13
       keyctl(2)                  2.6.10
       kill(2)                    1.0
       lchown(2)                  1.0           See chown(2) for
                                                version details
       lchown32(2)                2.4
       lgetxattr(2)               2.6; 2.4.18
       link(2)                    1.0
       linkat(2)                  2.6.16
       listen(2)                  2.0           See notes on socketcall(2)
       listxattr(2)               2.6; 2.4.18
       llistxattr(2)              2.6; 2.4.18
       lookup_dcookie(2)          2.6
       lremovexattr(2)            2.6; 2.4.18
       lseek(2)                   1.0
       lsetxattr(2)               2.6; 2.4.18
       lstat(2)                   1.0
       lstat64(2)                 2.4
       madvise(2)                 2.4
       mbind(2)                   2.6.6
       memory_ordering(2)         2.2           SPARC64 only
       metag_get_tls(2)           3.9           Metag only (port removed
                                                in Linux 4.17)
       metag_set_fpu_flags(2)     3.9           Metag only (port removed
                                                in Linux 4.17)
       metag_set_tls(2)           3.9           Metag only (port removed
                                                in Linux 4.17)
       metag_setglobalbit(2)      3.9           Metag only (port removed
                                                in Linux 4.17)
       membarrier(2)              3.17
       memfd_create(2)            3.17
       migrate_pages(2)           2.6.16
       mincore(2)                 2.4
       mkdir(2)                   1.0
       mkdirat(2)                 2.6.16
       mknod(2)                   1.0
       mknodat(2)                 2.6.16
       mlock(2)                   2.0
       mlock2(2)                  4.4
       mlockall(2)                2.0
       mmap(2)                    1.0
       mmap2(2)                   2.4
       modify_ldt(2)              1.0

       mount(2)                   1.0
       move_mount(2)              5.2
       move_pages(2)              2.6.18
       mprotect(2)                1.0
       mq_getsetattr(2)           2.6.6
       mq_notify(2)               2.6.6
       mq_open(2)                 2.6.6
       mq_timedreceive(2)         2.6.6
       mq_timedsend(2)            2.6.6
       mq_unlink(2)               2.6.6
       mremap(2)                  2.0
       msgctl(2)                  2.0           See notes on ipc(2)
       msgget(2)                  2.0           See notes on ipc(2)
       msgrcv(2)                  2.0           See notes on ipc(2)
       msgsnd(2)                  2.0           See notes on ipc(2)
       msync(2)                   2.0
       munlock(2)                 2.0
       munlockall(2)              2.0
       munmap(2)                  1.0
       name_to_handle_at(2)       2.6.39
       nanosleep(2)               2.0
       newfstatat(2)              2.6.16        See stat(2)
       nfsservctl(2)              2.2           Removed in 3.1
       nice(2)                    1.0
       old_adjtimex(2)            2.0           Alpha only; see NOTES
       old_getrlimit(2)           2.4           Old variant of getrlimit(2)
                                                that used a different value
                                                for RLIM_INFINITY
       oldfstat(2)                1.0
       oldlstat(2)                1.0
       oldolduname(2)             1.0
       oldstat(2)                 1.0
       oldumount(2)               2.4.116       Name of the old umount(2)
                                                syscall on Alpha
       olduname(2)                1.0
       open(2)                    1.0
       open_by_handle_at(2)       2.6.39
       open_tree(2)               5.2
       openat(2)                  2.6.16
       or1k_atomic(2)             3.1           OpenRISC 1000 only
       pause(2)                   1.0
       pciconfig_iobase(2)        2.2.15; 2.4   Not on x86
       pciconfig_read(2)          2.0.26; 2.2   Not on x86
       pciconfig_write(2)         2.0.26; 2.2   Not on x86
       perf_event_open(2)         2.6.31        Was perf_counter_open() in
                                                2.6.31; renamed in 2.6.32
       personality(2)             1.2
       perfctr(2)                 2.2           SPARC only; removed in 2.6.34
       perfmonctl(2)              2.4           IA-64 only
       pidfd_send_signal(2)       5.1
       pidfd_open(2)              5.3
       pipe(2)                    1.0
       pipe2(2)                   2.6.27
       pivot_root(2)              2.4
       pkey_alloc(2)              4.8
       pkey_free(2)               4.8
       pkey_mprotect(2)           4.8
       poll(2)                    2.0.36; 2.2
       ppoll(2)                   2.6.16
       prctl(2)                   2.2
       pread(2)                                 Used for pread64(2) on AVR32
                                                (port removed in Linux 4.12)
                                                and Blackfin (port removed
                                                in Linux 4.17)

       pread64(2)                               Added as "pread" in 2.2;
                                                renamed "pread64" in 2.6
       preadv(2)                  2.6.30
       preadv2(2)                 4.6
       prlimit64(2)               2.6.36
       process_vm_readv(2)        3.2
       process_vm_writev(2)       3.2
       pselect6(2)                2.6.16
       ptrace(2)                  1.0
       pwrite(2)                                Used for pwrite64(2) on AVR32
                                                (port removed in Linux 4.12)
                                                and Blackfin (port removed in
                                                Linux 4.17)
       pwrite64(2)                              Added as "pwrite" in 2.2;
                                                renamed "pwrite64" in 2.6
       pwritev(2)                 2.6.30
       pwritev2(2)                4.6
       query_module(2)            2.2           Removed in 2.6
       quotactl(2)                1.0
       read(2)                    1.0
       readahead(2)               2.4.13
       readdir(2)                 1.0
       readlink(2)                1.0
       readlinkat(2)              2.6.16
       readv(2)                   2.0
       reboot(2)                  1.0
       recv(2)                    2.0           See notes on socketcall(2)
       recvfrom(2)                2.0           See notes on socketcall(2)
       recvmsg(2)                 2.0           See notes on socketcall(2)
       recvmmsg(2)                2.6.33
       remap_file_pages(2)        2.6           Deprecated since 3.16
       removexattr(2)             2.6; 2.4.18
       rename(2)                  1.0
       renameat(2)                2.6.16
       renameat2(2)               3.15
       request_key(2)             2.6.10
       restart_syscall(2)         2.6
       riscv_flush_icache(2)      4.15          RISC-V only
       rmdir(2)                   1.0
       rseq(2)                    4.18
       rt_sigaction(2)            2.2
       rt_sigpending(2)           2.2
       rt_sigprocmask(2)          2.2
       rt_sigqueueinfo(2)         2.2
       rt_sigreturn(2)            2.2
       rt_sigsuspend(2)           2.2
       rt_sigtimedwait(2)         2.2
       rt_tgsigqueueinfo(2)       2.6.31
       rtas(2)                    2.6.2         PowerPC/PowerPC64 only
       s390_runtime_instr(2)      3.7           s390 only
       s390_pci_mmio_read(2)      3.19          s390 only
       s390_pci_mmio_write(2)     3.19          s390 only
       s390_sthyi(2)              4.15          s390 only
       s390_guarded_storage(2)    4.12          s390 only
       sched_get_affinity(2)      2.6           Name of sched_getaffinity(2)
                                                on SPARC and SPARC64
       sched_get_priority_max(2)  2.0
       sched_get_priority_min(2)  2.0
       sched_getaffinity(2)       2.6
       sched_getattr(2)           3.14
       sched_getparam(2)          2.0
       sched_getscheduler(2)      2.0
       sched_rr_get_interval(2)   2.0
       sched_set_affinity(2)      2.6           Name of sched_setaffinity(2)
                                                on SPARC and SPARC64

       sched_setaffinity(2)       2.6
       sched_setattr(2)           3.14
       sched_setparam(2)          2.0
       sched_setscheduler(2)      2.0
       sched_yield(2)             2.0
       seccomp(2)                 3.17
       select(2)                  1.0
       semctl(2)                  2.0           See notes on ipc(2)
       semget(2)                  2.0           See notes on ipc(2)
       semop(2)                   2.0           See notes on ipc(2)
       semtimedop(2)              2.6; 2.4.22
       send(2)                    2.0           See notes on socketcall(2)
       sendfile(2)                2.2
       sendfile64(2)              2.6; 2.4.19
       sendmmsg(2)                3.0
       sendmsg(2)                 2.0           See notes on socketcall(2)
       sendto(2)                  2.0           See notes on socketcall(2)
       set_mempolicy(2)           2.6.6
       set_robust_list(2)         2.6.17
       set_thread_area(2)         2.6
       set_tid_address(2)         2.6
       set_tls(2)                 2.6.11        ARM OABI/EABI only (constant
                                                has __ARM_NR prefix)
       setdomainname(2)           1.0
       setfsgid(2)                1.2
       setfsgid32(2)              2.4
       setfsuid(2)                1.2
       setfsuid32(2)              2.4
       setgid(2)                  1.0
       setgid32(2)                2.4
       setgroups(2)               1.0
       setgroups32(2)             2.4
       sethae(2)                  2.0           Alpha only; see NOTES
       sethostname(2)             1.0
       setitimer(2)               1.0
       setns(2)                   3.0
       setpgid(2)                 1.0
       setpgrp(2)                 2.0           Alternative name for
                                                setpgid(2) on Alpha
       setpriority(2)             1.0
       setregid(2)                1.0
       setregid32(2)              2.4
       setresgid(2)               2.2
       setresgid32(2)             2.4
       setresuid(2)               2.2
       setresuid32(2)             2.4
       setreuid(2)                1.0
       setreuid32(2)              2.4
       setrlimit(2)               1.0
       setsid(2)                  1.0
       setsockopt(2)              2.0           See notes on socketcall(2)
       settimeofday(2)            1.0
       setuid(2)                  1.0
       setuid32(2)                2.4
       setup(2)                   1.0           Removed in 2.2
       setxattr(2)                2.6; 2.4.18
       sgetmask(2)                1.0
       shmat(2)                   2.0           See notes on ipc(2)
       shmctl(2)                  2.0           See notes on ipc(2)
       shmdt(2)                   2.0           See notes on ipc(2)
       shmget(2)                  2.0           See notes on ipc(2)
       shutdown(2)                2.0           See notes on socketcall(2)
       sigaction(2)               1.0
       sigaltstack(2)             2.2
       signal(2)                  1.0

       signalfd(2)                2.6.22
       signalfd4(2)               2.6.27
       sigpending(2)              1.0
       sigprocmask(2)             1.0
       sigreturn(2)               1.0
       sigsuspend(2)              1.0
       socket(2)                  2.0           See notes on socketcall(2)
       socketcall(2)              1.0
       socketpair(2)              2.0           See notes on socketcall(2)
       spill(2)                   2.6.13        Xtensa only
       splice(2)                  2.6.17
       spu_create(2)              2.6.16        PowerPC/PowerPC64 only
       spu_run(2)                 2.6.16        PowerPC/PowerPC64 only
       sram_alloc(2)              2.6.22        Blackfin (port removed
                                                in Linux 4.17)
       sram_free(2)               2.6.22        Blackfin (port removed
                                                in Linux 4.17)
       ssetmask(2)                1.0
       stat(2)                    1.0
       stat64(2)                  2.4
       statfs(2)                  1.0
       statfs64(2)                2.6
       statx(2)                   4.11
       stime(2)                   1.0
       subpage_prot(2)            2.6.25        PowerPC/PowerPC64 only
       swapcontext(2)             2.6.3         PowerPC/PowerPC64 only
       switch_endian(2)           4.1           PowerPC64 only
       swapcontext(2)             2.6.3         PowerPC only
       swapoff(2)                 1.0
       swapon(2)                  1.0
       symlink(2)                 1.0
       symlinkat(2)               2.6.16
       sync(2)                    1.0
       sync_file_range(2)         2.6.17
       sync_file_range2(2)        2.6.22
       syncfs(2)                  2.6.39
       sys_debug_setcontext(2)    2.6.11        PowerPC only
       syscall(2)                 1.0           Still available on ARM OABI
                                                and MIPS O32 ABI
       sysfs(2)                   1.2
       sysinfo(2)                 1.0
       syslog(2)                  1.0
       sysmips(2)                 2.6.0         MIPS only
       tee(2)                     2.6.17
       tgkill(2)                  2.6
       time(2)                    1.0
       timer_create(2)            2.6
       timer_delete(2)            2.6
       timer_getoverrun(2)        2.6
       timer_gettime(2)           2.6
       timer_settime(2)           2.6
       timerfd_create(2)          2.6.25
       timerfd_gettime(2)         2.6.25
       timerfd_settime(2)         2.6.25
       times(2)                   1.0
       tkill(2)                   2.6; 2.4.22
       truncate(2)                1.0
       truncate64(2)              2.4
       ugetrlimit(2)              2.4
       umask(2)                   1.0
       umount(2)                  1.0
       umount2(2)                 2.2
       uname(2)                   1.0
       unlink(2)                  1.0
       unlinkat(2)                2.6.16

       unshare(2)                 2.6.16
       uselib(2)                  1.0
       ustat(2)                   1.0
       userfaultfd(2)             4.3
       usr26(2)                   2.4.8.1       ARM OABI only
       usr32(2)                   2.4.8.1       ARM OABI only
       utime(2)                   1.0
       utimensat(2)               2.6.22
       utimes(2)                  2.2
       utrap_install(2)           2.2           SPARC64 only
       vfork(2)                   2.2
       vhangup(2)                 1.0
       vm86old(2)                 1.0           Was "vm86"; renamed in
                                                2.0.28/2.2
       vm86(2)                    2.0.28; 2.2
       vmsplice(2)                2.6.17
       wait4(2)                   1.0
       waitid(2)                  2.6.10
       waitpid(2)                 1.0
       write(2)                   1.0
       writev(2)                  2.0
       xtensa(2)                  2.6.13        Xtensa only

       On many platforms, including x86-32, socket calls are all multiplexed
       (via glibc wrapper functions)  through  socketcall(2)  and  similarly
       System V IPC calls are multiplexed through ipc(2).

       Although  slots  are  reserved for them in the system call table, the
       following system calls are not implemented in  the  standard  kernel:
       afs_syscall(2),  break(2),  ftime(2),  getpmsg(2),  gtty(2), idle(2),
       lock(2),   madvise1(2),   mpx(2),   phys(2),   prof(2),    profil(2),
       putpmsg(2),   security(2),   stty(2),   tuxcall(2),   ulimit(2),  and
       vserver(2)   (see   also   unimplemented(2)).    However,   ftime(3),
       profil(3),  and  ulimit(3)  exist  as library routines.  The slot for
       phys(2) is in use since kernel 2.1.116 for  umount(2);  phys(2)  will
       never  be  implemented.   The getpmsg(2) and putpmsg(2) calls are for
       kernels patched to support STREAMS, and may never be in the  standard
       kernel.

       There  was  briefly  set_zone_reclaim(2),  added in Linux 2.6.13, and
       removed in 2.6.16; this system  call  was  never  available  to  user
       space.

NOTES         top

       Roughly speaking, the code belonging to the system call with number
       __NR_xxx defined in /usr/include/asm/unistd.h can be found in the
       Linux kernel source in the routine sys_xxx().  There are many
       exceptions, however, mostly because older system calls were
       superseded by newer ones, and this has been treated somewhat
       unsystematically.  On platforms with proprietary operating-system
       emulation, such as sparc, sparc64, and alpha, there are many
       additional system calls; mips64 also contains a full set of 32-bit
       system calls.

       Over time, changes to the interfaces of some system calls have been
       necessary.  One reason for such changes was the need to increase the
       size of structures or scalar values passed to the system call.
       Because of these changes, certain architectures (notably,
       longstanding 32-bit architectures such as i386) now have various
       groups of related system calls (e.g., truncate(2) and truncate64(2))
       which perform similar tasks, but which vary in details such as the
       size of their arguments.  (As noted earlier, applications are
       generally unaware of this: the glibc wrapper functions do some work
       to ensure that the right system call is invoked, and that ABI
       compatibility is preserved for old binaries.)  Examples of systems
       calls that exist in multiple versions are the following:

       *  By now there are three different versions of stat(2): sys_stat()
          (slot __NR_oldstat), sys_newstat() (slot __NR_stat), and
          sys_stat64() (slot __NR_stat64), with the last being the most
          current.  A similar story applies for lstat(2) and fstat(2).

       *  Similarly, the defines __NR_oldolduname, __NR_olduname, and
          __NR_uname refer to the routines sys_olduname(), sys_uname() and
          sys_newuname().

       *  In Linux 2.0, a new version of vm86(2) appeared, with the old and
          the new kernel routines being named sys_vm86old() and sys_vm86().

       *  In Linux 2.4, a new version of getrlimit(2) appeared, with the old
          and the new kernel routines being named sys_old_getrlimit() (slot
          __NR_getrlimit) and sys_getrlimit() (slot __NR_ugetrlimit).

       *  Linux 2.4 increased the size of user and group IDs from 16 to 32
          bits.  To support this change, a range of system calls were added
          (e.g., chown32(2), getuid32(2), getgroups32(2), setresuid32(2)),
          superseding earlier calls of the same name without the "32"
          suffix.

       *  Linux 2.4 added support for applications on 32-bit architectures
          to access large files (i.e., files for which the sizes and file
          offsets can't be represented in 32 bits.)  To support this change,
          replacements were required for system calls that deal with file
          offsets and sizes.  Thus the following system calls were added:
          fcntl64(2), getdents64(2), stat64(2), statfs64(2), truncate64(2),
          and their analogs that work with file descriptors or symbolic
          links.  These system calls supersede the older system calls which,
          except in the case of the "stat" calls, have the same name without
          the "64" suffix.

          On newer platforms that only have 64-bit file access and 32-bit
          UIDs/GIDs (e.g., alpha, ia64, s390x, x86-64), there is just a
          single version of the UID/GID and file access system calls.  On
          platforms (typically, 32-bit platforms) where the *64 and *32
          calls exist, the other versions are obsolete.

       *  The rt_sig* calls were added in kernel 2.2 to support the addition
          of real-time signals (see signal(7)).  These system calls
          supersede the older system calls of the same name without the
          "rt_" prefix.

       *  The select(2) and mmap(2) system calls use five or more arguments,
          which caused problems in the way argument passing on the i386 used
          to be set up.  Thus, while other architectures have sys_select()
          and sys_mmap() corresponding to __NR_select and __NR_mmap, on i386
          one finds old_select() and old_mmap() (routines that use a pointer
          to an argument block) instead.  These days passing five arguments
          is not a problem any more, and there is a __NR__newselect that
          corresponds directly to sys_select() and similarly __NR_mmap2.
          s390x is the only 64-bit architecture that has old_mmap().

   Architecture-specific details: Alpha
       *  getxgid(2) returns a pair of GID and effective GID via registers
          r0 and r20; it is provided instead of getgid(2) and getegid(2).

       *  getxpid(2) returns a pair of PID and parent PID via registers r0
          and r20; it is provided instead of getpid(2) and getppid(2).

       *  old_adjtimex(2) is a variant of adjtimex(2) that uses struct
          timeval32, for compatibility with OSF/1.

       *  getxuid(2) returns a pair of GID and effective GID via registers
          r0 and r20; it is provided instead of getuid(2) and geteuid(2).

       *  sethae(2) is used for configuring the Host Address Extension
          register on low-cost Alphas in order to access address space
          beyond first 27 bits.

SEE ALSO         top

       intro(2), syscall(2), unimplemented(2), errno(3), libc(7), vdso(7)

COLOPHON         top

       This page is part of release 5.04 of the Linux man-pages project.  A
       description of the project, information about reporting bugs, and the
       latest version of this page, can be found at
       https://www.kernel.org/doc/man-pages/.

Linux                            2019-10-10                      SYSCALLS(2)

Pages that refer to this page: intro(2)syscall(2)unimplemented(2)stapprobes(3stap)libc(7)man-pages(7)vdso(7)