What does file descriptor mean?

Definitions for file descriptor
file de·scrip·tor

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word file descriptor.

Wikipedia

  1. File descriptor

    In Unix and Unix-like computer operating systems, a file descriptor (FD, less frequently fildes) is a process-unique identifier (handle) for a file or other input/output resource, such as a pipe or network socket. File descriptors typically have non-negative integer values, with negative values being reserved to indicate "no value" or error conditions. File descriptors are a part of the POSIX API. Each Unix process (except perhaps daemons) should have three standard POSIX file descriptors, corresponding to the three standard streams:

Wikidata

  1. File descriptor

    In computer programming, a file descriptor is an abstract indicator for accessing a file. The term is generally used in POSIX operating systems. In POSIX, a file descriptor is an integer, specifically of the C type int. There are three standard POSIX file descriptors, corresponding to the three standard streams, which presumably every process should expect to have: Generally, a file descriptor is an index for an entry in a kernel-resident array data structure containing the details of open files. In POSIX this data structure is called a file descriptor table, and each process has its own file descriptor table. The process passes the file descriptor to the kernel through a system call, and the kernel will access the file on behalf of the process. The process itself cannot read or write the file descriptor table directly. On Linux, the set of file descriptors open in a process can be accessed under the path /proc/PID/fd/, where PID is the process identifier. In Unix-like systems, file descriptors can refer to any Unix file type named in a file system. As well as regular files, this includes directories, block and character devices, Unix domain sockets, and named pipes. File descriptors can also refer to other objects that do not normally exist in the file system, such as anonymous pipes and network sockets.

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Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of file descriptor in Chaldean Numerology is: 2

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of file descriptor in Pythagorean Numerology is: 6

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"file descriptor." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 25 Apr. 2024. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/file+descriptor>.

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