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NAME

       shmat - XSI shared memory attach operation

SYNOPSIS

       #include <sys/shm.h>

       void *shmat(int shmid, const void *shmaddr, int shmflg);

DESCRIPTION

       The  shmat()  function  operates  on  XSI  shared  memory (see the Base
       Definitions  volume  of  IEEE Std 1003.1-2001,  Section  3.340,  Shared
       Memory  Object).  It is unspecified whether this function interoperates
       with the realtime  interprocess  communication  facilities  defined  in
       Realtime .

       The shmat() function attaches the shared memory segment associated with
       the shared memory identifier specified by shmid to the address space of
       the  calling  process. The segment is attached at the address specified
       by one of the following criteria:

        * If shmaddr is a null pointer, the segment is attached at  the  first
          available address as selected by the system.

        * If  shmaddr is not a null pointer and (shmflg &SHM_RND) is non-zero,
          the  segment  is  attached  at  the  address   given   by   (shmaddr
          -((uintptr_t)shmaddr %SHMLBA)).  The character ’%’ is the C-language
          remainder operator.

        * If shmaddr is not a null pointer and (shmflg  &SHM_RND)  is  0,  the
          segment is attached at the address given by shmaddr.

        * The  segment is attached for reading if (shmflg &SHM_RDONLY) is non-
          zero and the calling process has read permission; otherwise,  if  it
          is  0  and  the  calling  process has read and write permission, the
          segment is attached for reading and writing.

RETURN VALUE

       Upon successful  completion,  shmat()  shall  increment  the  value  of
       shm_nattch  in  the data structure associated with the shared memory ID
       of the attached shared memory segment and return  the  segment’s  start
       address.

       Otherwise,  the  shared  memory  segment shall not be attached, shmat()
       shall return -1, and errno shall be set to indicate the error.

ERRORS

       The shmat() function shall fail if:

       EACCES Operation permission is denied to the calling process;  see  XSI
              Interprocess Communication .

       EINVAL The  value of shmid is not a valid shared memory identifier, the
              shmaddr is not  a  null  pointer,  and  the  value  of  (shmaddr
              -((uintptr_t)shmaddr   %SHMLBA))   is  an  illegal  address  for
              attaching shared memory; or the shmaddr is not a  null  pointer,
              (shmflg  &SHM_RND)  is 0, and the value of shmaddr is an illegal
              address for attaching shared memory.

       EMFILE The number of shared memory segments  attached  to  the  calling
              process would exceed the system-imposed limit.

       ENOMEM The  available data space is not large enough to accommodate the
              shared memory segment.

       The following sections are informative.

EXAMPLES

       None.

APPLICATION USAGE

       The  POSIX  Realtime  Extension  defines  alternative  interfaces   for
       interprocess  communication. Application developers who need to use IPC
       should design their applications so that modules using the IPC routines
       described  in  XSI Interprocess Communication can be easily modified to
       use the alternative interfaces.

RATIONALE

       None.

FUTURE DIRECTIONS

       None.

SEE ALSO

       XSI Interprocess Communication , Realtime , exec() , exit() , fork()  ,
       shmctl()  ,  shmdt()  , shmget() , shm_open() , shm_unlink() , the Base
       Definitions volume of IEEE Std 1003.1-2001, <sys/shm.h>

COPYRIGHT

       Portions of this text are reprinted and reproduced in  electronic  form
       from IEEE Std 1003.1, 2003 Edition, Standard for Information Technology
       -- Portable Operating System Interface (POSIX),  The  Open  Group  Base
       Specifications  Issue  6,  Copyright  (C) 2001-2003 by the Institute of
       Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc and The Open  Group.  In  the
       event of any discrepancy between this version and the original IEEE and
       The Open Group Standard, the original IEEE and The Open Group  Standard
       is  the  referee document. The original Standard can be obtained online
       at http://www.opengroup.org/unix/online.html .