3.2.5 types.h: basic machine-independent types

   

DESCRIPTION

This header file defines a few basic types which are used throughout many of the OSKit's COM interfaces. These types correspond to standard POSIX types traditionally defined in sys/types.h; however, this does not mean that the client OS must use these types as its standard definitions for the corresponding POSIX symbols; it only means that the client must use these types when interacting with OSKit components through the OSKit's COM interfaces. All of the type names are prefixed by oskit_, for exactly this reason.

oskit_dev_t

Type representing a device number; used in the oskit_stat structure in the OSKit's file system interfaces. Note that the OSKit's file system components themselves don't know or care about the actual assignment or meaning of device numbers; it is up to the client OS to determine how these device numbers are used, if at all.

oskit_ino_t

Type representing a file serial number (``inode'' number), again used in the OSKit's file system interfaces.

oskit_nlink_t

Type representing the link count of a file.

oskit_pid_t

Type representing a process ID. This type is used in a few COM interfaces, such as the oskit_ttystream interface which includes POSIX-like job control methods. Currently the OSKit currently does not include any process management facilities, but this type and the related methods that use it are included in case such a facility is added in the future.

oskit_uid_t

Type representing a traditional POSIX user ID. The current OSKit components do not know or care about POSIX security, but for example the NetBSD file system component knows how to store and retrieve user IDs in BSD file system partitions.

oskit_gid_t

Type representing a traditional POSIX group ID. The same considerations apply as for oskit_uid_t.

oskit_mode_t

Type representing a file type and access permissions bit mask; again used in the file system interface.

oskit_off_t

Type representing a 64-bit file offset; used in the file system interface.

oskit_wchar_t

Unicode ``wide'' character.