Timestamp Functions

Two functions provide timestamps. The gettimeofday(3C) function provides the current time in a timeval structure, representing the time in seconds and microseconds since midnight, Greenwich Mean Time, on January 1, 1970. The clock_gettime(3R) function, with a clockid of CLOCK_REALTIME, provides the current time in a timespec structure, representing in seconds and nanoseconds the same time interval returned by gettimeofday(3C).

SunOS 5.0 through 5.7 uses a hardware periodic timer. For some workstations, this is the sole timing information, and the accuracy of timestamps is limited to the resolution of that periodic timer. For other platforms, a timer register with a resolution of one microsecond allows SunOS 5.0 through 5.7 to provide timestamps accurate to one microsecond.