NAME

       cfree - free allocated memory

LIBRARY

       Standard C library (libc, -lc)

SYNOPSIS

       #include <stdlib.h>

       /* In SunOS 4 */
       int cfree(void *ptr);

       /* In glibc or FreeBSD libcompat */
       void cfree(void *ptr);

       /* In SCO OpenServer */
       void cfree(unsigned int n, unsigned int size;
                  char ptr[size * n], unsigned int n, unsigned int size);

       /* In Solaris watchmalloc.so.1 */
       void cfree(size_t n, size_t size;
                  void ptr[size * n], size_t n, size_t size);

   Feature Test Macro Requirements for glibc (see feature_test_macros(7)):

       cfree():
           Since glibc 2.19:
               _DEFAULT_SOURCE
           glibc 2.19 and earlier:
               _BSD_SOURCE || _SVID_SOURCE

DESCRIPTION

       This  function should never be used.  Use free(3) instead.  Starting with glibc 2.26, it has been removed
       from glibc.

   1-arg cfree
       In glibc, the function cfree() is a synonym for free(3), "added for compatibility with SunOS".

       Other systems have other functions with this name.   The  declaration  is  sometimes  in  <stdlib.h>  and
       sometimes in <malloc.h>.

   3-arg cfree
       Some SCO and Solaris versions have malloc libraries with a 3-argument cfree(), apparently as an analog to
       calloc(3).

       If you need it while porting something, add

           #define cfree(p, n, s) free((p))

       to your file.

       A  frequently  asked question is "Can I use free(3) to free memory allocated with calloc(3), or do I need
       cfree()?".  Answer: use free(3).

       An SCO manual writes: "The cfree routine is provided for compliance to the  iBCSe2  standard  and  simply
       calls free.  The n and size arguments to cfree are not used."

RETURN VALUE

       The  SunOS version of cfree() (which is a synonym for free(3)) returns 1 on success and 0 on failure.  In
       case of error, errno is set to EINVAL: the value of ptr was not a pointer to a block previously allocated
       by one of the routines in the malloc(3) family.

ATTRIBUTES

       For an explanation of the terms used in this section, see attributes(7).
       ┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┬───────────────┬────────────────────────┐
       │ Interface                                                    │ Attribute     │ Value                  │
       ├──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┼───────────────┼────────────────────────┤
       │ cfree()                                                      │ Thread safety │ MT-Safe /* In glibc */ │
       └──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┴───────────────┴────────────────────────┘

VERSIONS

       The 3-argument version of cfree() as used by  SCO  conforms  to  the  iBCSe2  standard:  Intel386  Binary
       Compatibility Specification, Edition 2.

STANDARDS

       None.

HISTORY

       Removed in glibc 2.26.

SEE ALSO

       malloc(3)

Linux man-pages 6.16                               2025-09-07                                           cfree(3)