STRCPY(3P)                                          POSIX Programmer's Manual                                         STRCPY(3P)



PROLOG
       This  manual  page is part of the POSIX Programmer's Manual.  The Linux implementation of this interface may differ (con-
       sult the corresponding Linux manual page for details of Linux behavior), or the  interface  may  not  be  implemented  on
       Linux.

NAME
       strcpy - copy a string

SYNOPSIS
       #include <string.h>

       char *strcpy(char *restrict s1, const char *restrict s2);


DESCRIPTION
       The strcpy() function shall copy the string pointed to by s2 (including the terminating null byte) into the array pointed
       to by s1. If copying takes place between objects that overlap, the behavior is undefined.

RETURN VALUE
       The strcpy() function shall return s1; no return value is reserved to indicate an error.

ERRORS
       No errors are defined.

       The following sections are informative.

EXAMPLES
   Initializing a String
       The following example copies the string "----------" into the permstring variable.


              #include <string.h>
              ...
              static char permstring[11];
              ...
              strcpy(permstring, "----------");
              ...

   Storing a Key and Data
       The following example allocates space for a key using malloc() then uses strcpy() to place the key there. Then  it  allo-
       cates  space  for  data using malloc(), and uses strcpy() to place data there.  (The user-defined function dbfree() frees
       memory previously allocated to an array of type struct element *.)


              #include <string.h>
              #include <stdlib.h>
              #include <stdio.h>
              ...
              /* Structure used to read data and store it. */
              struct element {
                  char *key;
                  char *data;
              };


              struct element *tbl, *curtbl;
              char *key, *data;
              int count;
              ...
              void dbfree(struct element *, int);
              ...
              if ((curtbl->key = malloc(strlen(key) + 1)) == NULL) {
                  perror("malloc"); dbfree(tbl, count); return NULL;
              }
              strcpy(curtbl->key, key);


              if ((curtbl->data = malloc(strlen(data) + 1)) == NULL) {
                  perror("malloc"); free(curtbl->key); dbfree(tbl, count); return NULL;
              }
              strcpy(curtbl->data, data);
              ...

APPLICATION USAGE
       Character movement is performed differently in different implementations.  Thus, overlapping moves may yield surprises.

       This issue is aligned with the ISO C standard; this does not affect compatibility with XPG3 applications. Reliable  error
       detection by this function was never guaranteed.

RATIONALE
       None.

FUTURE DIRECTIONS
       None.

SEE ALSO
       strncpy(), the Base Definitions volume of IEEE Std 1003.1-2001, <string.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,  Copy-
       right (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.open-
       group.org/unix/online.html .



IEEE/The Open Group                                           2003                                                    STRCPY(3P)