MKNOD(2)

NAME
mknod - make a special file node

LIBRARY
libc

SYNOPSIS
#include <unistd.h>
int
mknod(const char *path, mode_t mode, dev_t dev);

DESCRIPTION
The filesystem node path is created with the file type and access permissions specified in mode. The access permissions are modified by the process's umask value.

If mode indicates a block or character special file, dev is a configuration dependent specification denoting a particular device on the system. Otherwise, dev is ignored.

Mknod() requires super-user privileges.

RETURN VALUES
Upon successful completion a value of 0 is returned. Otherwise, a value of -1 is returned and errno is set to indicate the error.

ERRORS
Mknod() will fail and the file will be not created if:

[ENOTDIR]
    A component of the path prefix is not a directory.

[ENAMETOOLONG]
    A component of a pathname exceeded 255 characters, or an entire path name exceeded 1023 characters.

[ENOENT]
    A component of the path prefix does not exist.

[EACCES]
    Search permission is denied for a component of the path prefix.

[ELOOP]
    Too many symbolic links were encountered in translating the pathname.

[EPERM]
    The process's effective user ID is not super-user.

[EIO]
    An I/O error occurred while making the directory entry or allocating the inode.

[ENOSPC]
    The directory in which the entry for the new node is being placed cannot be extended because there is no space left on the file system containing the directory.

[ENOSPC]
    There are no free inodes on the file system on which the node is being created.

[EDQUOT]
    The directory in which the entry for the new node is being placed cannot be extended because the user's quota of disk blocks on the file system containing the directory has been exhausted.

[EDQUOT]
    The user's quota of inodes on the file system on which the node is being created has been exhausted.

[EROFS]
    The named file resides on a read-only file system.

[EEXIST]
    The named file exists.

[EFAULT]
    Path points outside the process's allocated address space.

[EINVAL]
    Creating anything else than a block or character special file (or a whiteout) is not supported.

SEE ALSO
chmod(2), mkfifo(2), stat(2), umask(2)

HISTORY
A mknod() function call appeared in AT&T UNIX.