GETCONF(1)                BSD General Commands Manual               GETCONF(1)

NAME
     getconf -- retrieve standard configuration variables

SYNOPSIS
     getconf [-v environment] pathvar file
     getconf [-v environment] systemvar

DESCRIPTION
     The getconf utility prints the value of a POSIX or X/Open path or system
     configuration variable to the standard output.  If the specified variable
     is undefined, the string ``undefined'' is output.

     The first form of the command, with two mandatory arguments, retrieves
     file- and file system-specific configuration variables using pathconf(2).
     The second form, with a single argument, retrieves system configuration
     variables using confstr(3) and sysconf(3), depending on the type of vari-
     able.  As an extension, the second form can also be used to query static
     limits from .

     All sysconf(3) and pathconf(2) variables use the same name as the mani-
     fest constants defined in the relevant standard C-language bindings,
     including any leading underscore or prefix.  That is to say, systemvar
     might be ARGMAX or POSIXVERSION, as opposed to the sysconf(3) names
     SCARGMAX or SCPOSIXVERSION.  Variables retrieved from confstr(3)
     have the leading `CS' stripped off; thus, CSPATH is queried by a
     systemvar of ``PATH''.

   Programming Environments
     The -v environment option specifies a IE Std 1003.1-2001 (``POSIX.1'')
     programming environment under which the values are to be queried.  This
     option currently does nothing, but may in the future be used to select
     between 32-bit and 64-bit execution environments on platforms which sup-
     port both.  Specifying an environment which is not supported on the cur-
     rent execution platform gives undefined results.

     The standard programming environments are as follows:

           POSIXV6ILP32OF32   Exactly 32-bit integer, long, pointer, and
                                  file offset.  Supported platforms: None.

           POSIXV6ILP32OFBIG  Exactly 32-bit integer, long, and pointer;
                                  at least 64-bit file offset.  Supported
                                  platforms: IA32, PowerPC.

           POSIXV6LP64OF64    Exactly 32-bit integer; exactly 64-bit long,
                                  pointer, and file offset.  Supported
                                  platforms: Alpha, SPARC64.

           POSIXV6LPBIGOFBIG  At least 32-bit integer; at least 64-bit
                                  long, pointer, and file offset.  Supported
                                  platforms: None.

     The command:

           getconf POSIXV6WIDTHRESTRICTEDENVS

     returns a newline-separated list of environments in which the width of
     certain fundamental types is no greater than the width of the native C
     type long.  At present, all programming environments supported by FreeBSD
     have this property.  Several of the confstr(3) variables provide informa-
     tion on the necessary compiler and linker flags to use the standard pro-
     gramming environments described above.

DIAGNOSTICS
     The getconf utility exits 0 on success, and >0 if an error occurs.  Use
     of a systemvar or pathvar which is completely unrecognized is consid-
     ered an error, causing a diagnostic message to be written to standard
     error.  One which is known but merely undefined does not result in an
     error indication.  The getconf utility recognizes all of the variables
     defined for IE Std 1003.1-2001 (``POSIX.1''), including those which are
     not currently implemented.

EXAMPLES
     The command:

           getconf PATH

     will display the system default setting for the PATH environment vari-
     able.

     The command:

           getconf NAMEMAX /tmp

     will display the maximum length of a filename in the /tmp directory.

     The command:

           getconf -v POSIXV6LPBIGOFBIG LONGMAX

     will display the maximum value of the C type long in the
     POSIXV6LPBIGOFBIG programming environment, if the system supports
     that environment.

SEE ALSO
     pathconf(2), confstr(3), sysconf(3)

STANDARDS
     The getconf utility is expected to be compliant with IE Std 1003.1-2001
     (``POSIX.1'').

HISTORY
     The getconf utility first appeared in FreeBSD 5.0.

AUTHORS
     Garrett A. Wollman 

BSD                           September 18, 2002                           BSD