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NAME

       setenv - change or add an environment variable

SYNOPSIS

       #include <stdlib.h>

       int setenv(const char *name, const char *value, int overwrite);

       int unsetenv(const char *name);

   Feature Test Macro Requirements for glibc (see feature_test_macros(7)):

       setenv(), unsetenv(): _BSD_SOURCE || _POSIX_C_SOURCE >= 200112L ||
       _XOPEN_SOURCE >= 600

DESCRIPTION

       The setenv() function adds the variable name to  the  environment  with
       the value value, if name does not already exist.  If name does exist in
       the environment, then its value is changed to  value  if  overwrite  is
       nonzero;  if  overwrite is zero, then the value of name is not changed.
       This function makes copies of the strings pointed to by name and  value
       (by contrast with putenv(3)).

       The unsetenv() function deletes the variable name from the environment.
       If name does not exist in the environment, then the function  succeeds,
       and the environment is unchanged.

RETURN VALUE

       The  setenv()  function  returns  zero on success, or -1 on error, with
       errno set to indicate the cause of the error.

       The unsetenv() function returns zero on success, or -1 on  error,  with
       errno set to indicate the cause of the error.

ERRORS

       EINVAL name is NULL, points to a string of length 0, or contains an '='
              character.

       ENOMEM Insufficient memory to add a new variable to the environment.

CONFORMING TO

       4.3BSD, POSIX.1-2001.

NOTES

       POSIX.1-2001 does not require setenv() or unsetenv() to be reentrant.

       Prior to glibc 2.2.2, unsetenv() was prototyped as returning void; more
       recent glibc versions follow the POSIX.1-2001-compliant prototype shown
       in the SYNOPSIS.

BUGS

       POSIX.1-2001 specifies that if name contains  an  '='  character,  then
       setenv()  should fail with the error EINVAL; however, versions of glibc
       before 2.3.4 allowed an '=' sign in name.

SEE ALSO

       clearenv(3), getenv(3), putenv(3), environ(7)

COLOPHON

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