Documentation / technical / api-sigchain.txton commit Merge branch 'ta/user-manual' (8fbb07e)
   1sigchain API
   2============
   3
   4Code often wants to set a signal handler to clean up temporary files or
   5other work-in-progress when we die unexpectedly. For multiple pieces of
   6code to do this without conflicting, each piece of code must remember
   7the old value of the handler and restore it either when:
   8
   9  1. The work-in-progress is finished, and the handler is no longer
  10     necessary. The handler should revert to the original behavior
  11     (either another handler, SIG_DFL, or SIG_IGN).
  12
  13  2. The signal is received. We should then do our cleanup, then chain
  14     to the next handler (or die if it is SIG_DFL).
  15
  16Sigchain is a tiny library for keeping a stack of handlers. Your handler
  17and installation code should look something like:
  18
  19------------------------------------------
  20  void clean_foo_on_signal(int sig)
  21  {
  22          clean_foo();
  23          sigchain_pop(sig);
  24          raise(sig);
  25  }
  26
  27  void other_func()
  28  {
  29          sigchain_push_common(clean_foo_on_signal);
  30          mess_up_foo();
  31          clean_foo();
  32  }
  33------------------------------------------
  34
  35Handlers are given the typedef of sigchain_fun. This is the same type
  36that is given to signal() or sigaction(). It is perfectly reasonable to
  37push SIG_DFL or SIG_IGN onto the stack.
  38
  39You can sigchain_push and sigchain_pop individual signals. For
  40convenience, sigchain_push_common will push the handler onto the stack
  41for many common signals.