Programming Issues With exacct Files

• Memory management

  • Use the same allocation flags for ea_free_object() and ea_unpack_object().

  • For string objects, an ea_set_item() results in allocation, and should be followed by ea_free_item(obj, EUP_ALLOC) to free internal storage.

  • ea_pack_object() and getacct() use zero size. To get size. getacct() should be called twice: first time with NULL buffer to size buffer to be passed in the second call. See Example 3-1 in C Code Examples for Accessing exacct Files.

• Applications should skip unknown exacct records in exacct files produced by the system, to be robust in the face of changes to exacct file content.

• Use EXC_LOCAL for customized accounting. Application-specific records can be created using EXC_LOCAL. Use libexacct as general tracing or debugging facility.

  • See <sys/exacct_catalog.h>.

  • Data id field of ea_catalog_t can be customized.