REVOKE(2)                   BSD System Calls Manual                  REVOKE(2)

NAME
     revoke -- revoke file access

SYNOPSIS
     #include <unistd.h>

     int
     revoke(const char *path);

DESCRIPTION
     The revoke function invalidates all current open file descriptors in the
     system for the file named by path.  Subsequent operations on any such
     descriptors fail, with the exceptions that a read() from a character
     device file which has been revoked returns a count of zero (end of file),
     and a close() call will succeed.  If the file is a special file for a
     device which is open, the device close function is called as if all open
     references to the file had been closed.

     Access to a file may be revoked only by its owner or the super user.  The
     revoke function is currently supported only for block and character spe-
     cial device files.  It is normally used to prepare a terminal device for
     a new login session, preventing any access by a previous user of the ter-
     minal.

RETURN VALUES
     A 0 value indicated that the call succeeded.  A -1 return value indicates
     an error occurred and errno is set to indicated the reason.

ERRORS
     Access to the named file is revoked unless one of the following:

     [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 1024 characters.

     [ENOENT]           The named file or a component of the path name does
                        not exist.

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

     [ELOOP]            Too many symbolic links were encountered in translat-
                        ing the pathname.

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

     [EINVAL]           The named file is neither a character special or block
                        special file.

     [EPERM]            The caller is neither the owner of the file nor the
                        super user.

     [ENOTSUP]          The path does not represent a block or character
                        device.

     [EBUSY]            The path represents a block device which is providing
                        the backing for a mounted volume.

SEE ALSO
     close(2)

HISTORY
     The revoke function was introduced in 4.3BSD-Reno.

BSD                              June 4, 1993                              BSD