5 IO::Handle - supply object methods for I/O handles
11 $io = IO::Handle->new();
12 if ($io->fdopen(fileno(STDIN),"r")) {
17 $io = IO::Handle->new();
18 if ($io->fdopen(fileno(STDOUT),"w")) {
19 $io->print("Some text\n");
22 # setvbuf is not available by default on Perls 5.8.0 and later.
23 use IO::Handle '_IOLBF';
24 $io->setvbuf($buffer_var, _IOLBF, 1024);
26 undef $io; # automatically closes the file if it's open
32 C<IO::Handle> is the base class for all other IO handle classes. It is
33 not intended that objects of C<IO::Handle> would be created directly,
34 but instead C<IO::Handle> is inherited from by several other classes
37 If you are reading this documentation, looking for a replacement for
38 the C<FileHandle> package, then I suggest you read the documentation
47 Creates a new C<IO::Handle> object.
49 =item new_from_fd ( FD, MODE )
51 Creates an C<IO::Handle> like C<new> does.
52 It requires two parameters, which are passed to the method C<fdopen>;
53 if the fdopen fails, the object is destroyed. Otherwise, it is returned
60 See L<perlfunc> for complete descriptions of each of the following
61 supported C<IO::Handle> methods, which are just front ends for the
62 corresponding built-in functions:
66 $io->fcntl( FUNCTION, SCALAR )
68 $io->format_write( [FORMAT_NAME] )
70 $io->ioctl( FUNCTION, SCALAR )
71 $io->read ( BUF, LEN, [OFFSET] )
73 $io->printf ( FMT, [ARGS] )
76 $io->sysread ( BUF, LEN, [OFFSET] )
77 $io->syswrite ( BUF, [LEN, [OFFSET]] )
80 See L<perlvar> for complete descriptions of each of the following
81 supported C<IO::Handle> methods. All of them return the previous
82 value of the attribute and takes an optional single argument that when
83 given will set the value. If no argument is given the previous value
84 is unchanged (except for $io->autoflush will actually turn ON
85 autoflush by default).
87 $io->autoflush ( [BOOL] ) $|
88 $io->format_page_number( [NUM] ) $%
89 $io->format_lines_per_page( [NUM] ) $=
90 $io->format_lines_left( [NUM] ) $-
91 $io->format_name( [STR] ) $~
92 $io->format_top_name( [STR] ) $^
93 $io->input_line_number( [NUM]) $.
95 The following methods are not supported on a per-filehandle basis.
97 IO::Handle->format_line_break_characters( [STR] ) $:
98 IO::Handle->format_formfeed( [STR]) $^L
99 IO::Handle->output_field_separator( [STR] ) $,
100 IO::Handle->output_record_separator( [STR] ) $\
102 IO::Handle->input_record_separator( [STR] ) $/
104 Furthermore, for doing normal I/O you might need these:
108 =item $io->fdopen ( FD, MODE )
110 C<fdopen> is like an ordinary C<open> except that its first parameter
111 is not a filename but rather a file handle name, an IO::Handle object,
112 or a file descriptor number. (For the documentation of the C<open>
113 method, see L<IO::File>.)
117 Returns true if the object is currently a valid file descriptor, false
122 This works like <$io> described in L<perlop/"I/O Operators">
123 except that it's more readable and can be safely called in a
124 list context but still returns just one line. If used as the conditional
125 +within a C<while> or C-style C<for> loop, however, you will need to
126 +emulate the functionality of <$io> with C<< defined($_ = $io->getline) >>.
130 This works like <$io> when called in a list context to read all
131 the remaining lines in a file, except that it's more readable.
132 It will also croak() if accidentally called in a scalar context.
134 =item $io->ungetc ( ORD )
136 Pushes a character with the given ordinal value back onto the given
137 handle's input stream. Only one character of pushback per handle is
140 =item $io->write ( BUF, LEN [, OFFSET ] )
142 This C<write> is somewhat like C<write> found in C, in that it is the
143 opposite of read. The wrapper for the perl C<write> function is
144 called C<format_write>. However, whilst the C C<write> function returns
145 the number of bytes written, this C<write> function simply returns true
146 if successful (like C<print>). A more C-like C<write> is C<syswrite>
151 Returns a true value if the given handle has experienced any errors
152 since it was opened or since the last call to C<clearerr>, or if the
153 handle is invalid. It only returns false for a valid handle with no
158 Clear the given handle's error indicator. Returns -1 if the handle is
159 invalid, 0 otherwise.
163 C<sync> synchronizes a file's in-memory state with that on the
164 physical medium. C<sync> does not operate at the perlio api level, but
165 operates on the file descriptor (similar to sysread, sysseek and
166 systell). This means that any data held at the perlio api level will not
167 be synchronized. To synchronize data that is buffered at the perlio api
168 level you must use the flush method. C<sync> is not implemented on all
169 platforms. Returns "0 but true" on success, C<undef> on error, C<undef>
170 for an invalid handle. See L<fsync(3c)>.
174 C<flush> causes perl to flush any buffered data at the perlio api level.
175 Any unread data in the buffer will be discarded, and any unwritten data
176 will be written to the underlying file descriptor. Returns "0 but true"
177 on success, C<undef> on error.
179 =item $io->printflush ( ARGS )
181 Turns on autoflush, print ARGS and then restores the autoflush status of the
182 C<IO::Handle> object. Returns the return value from print.
184 =item $io->blocking ( [ BOOL ] )
186 If called with an argument C<blocking> will turn on non-blocking IO if
187 C<BOOL> is false, and turn it off if C<BOOL> is true.
189 C<blocking> will return the value of the previous setting, or the
190 current setting if C<BOOL> is not given.
192 If an error occurs C<blocking> will return undef and C<$!> will be set.
197 If the C functions setbuf() and/or setvbuf() are available, then
198 C<IO::Handle::setbuf> and C<IO::Handle::setvbuf> set the buffering
199 policy for an IO::Handle. The calling sequences for the Perl functions
200 are the same as their C counterparts--including the constants C<_IOFBF>,
201 C<_IOLBF>, and C<_IONBF> for setvbuf()--except that the buffer parameter
202 specifies a scalar variable to use as a buffer. You should only
203 change the buffer before any I/O, or immediately after calling flush.
205 WARNING: The IO::Handle::setvbuf() is not available by default on
206 Perls 5.8.0 and later because setvbuf() is rather specific to using
207 the stdio library, while Perl prefers the new perlio subsystem instead.
209 WARNING: A variable used as a buffer by C<setbuf> or C<setvbuf> B<must not
210 be modified> in any way until the IO::Handle is closed or C<setbuf> or
211 C<setvbuf> is called again, or memory corruption may result! Remember that
212 the order of global destruction is undefined, so even if your buffer
213 variable remains in scope until program termination, it may be undefined
214 before the file IO::Handle is closed. Note that you need to import the
215 constants C<_IOFBF>, C<_IOLBF>, and C<_IONBF> explicitly. Like C, setbuf
216 returns nothing. setvbuf returns "0 but true", on success, C<undef> on
219 Lastly, there is a special method for working under B<-T> and setuid/gid
226 Marks the object as taint-clean, and as such data read from it will also
227 be considered taint-clean. Note that this is a very trusting action to
228 take, and appropriate consideration for the data source and potential
229 vulnerability should be kept in mind. Returns 0 on success, -1 if setting
230 the taint-clean flag failed. (eg invalid handle)
236 An C<IO::Handle> object is a reference to a symbol/GLOB reference (see
237 the C<Symbol> package). Some modules that
238 inherit from C<IO::Handle> may want to keep object related variables
239 in the hash table part of the GLOB. In an attempt to prevent modules
240 trampling on each other I propose the that any such module should prefix
241 its variables with its own name separated by _'s. For example the IO::Socket
242 module keeps a C<timeout> variable in 'io_socket_timeout'.
247 L<perlop/"I/O Operators">,
252 Due to backwards compatibility, all filehandles resemble objects
253 of class C<IO::Handle>, or actually classes derived from that class.
254 They actually aren't. Which means you can't derive your own
255 class from C<IO::Handle> and inherit those methods.
259 Derived from FileHandle.pm by Graham Barr E<lt>F<gbarr@pobox.com>E<gt>
265 our($VERSION, @EXPORT_OK, @ISA);
269 use IO (); # Load the XS module
275 $VERSION = eval $VERSION;
279 output_field_separator
280 output_record_separator
281 input_record_separator
284 format_lines_per_page
288 format_line_break_characters
309 ################################################
310 ## Constructors, destructors.
314 my $class = ref($_[0]) || $_[0] || "IO::Handle";
316 # Since perl will automatically require IO::File if needed, but
317 # also initialises IO::File's @ISA as part of the core we must
318 # ensure IO::File is loaded if IO::Handle is. This avoids effect-
319 # ively "half-loading" IO::File.
320 if ($] > 5.013 && $class eq 'IO::File' && !$INC{"IO/File.pm"}) {
323 return IO::File::->new(@_);
325 croak "usage: $class->new()";
332 my $class = ref($_[0]) || $_[0] || "IO::Handle";
333 @_ == 3 or croak "usage: $class->new_from_fd(FD, MODE)";
336 IO::Handle::fdopen($io, @_)
342 # There is no need for DESTROY to do anything, because when the
343 # last reference to an IO object is gone, Perl automatically
344 # closes its associated files (if any). However, to avoid any
345 # attempts to autoload DESTROY, we here define it to do nothing.
350 ################################################
354 sub _open_mode_string {
356 $mode =~ /^\+?(<|>>?)$/
357 or $mode =~ s/^r(\+?)$/$1</
358 or $mode =~ s/^w(\+?)$/$1>/
359 or $mode =~ s/^a(\+?)$/$1>>/
360 or croak "IO::Handle: bad open mode: $mode";
365 @_ == 3 or croak 'usage: $io->fdopen(FD, MODE)';
366 my ($io, $fd, $mode) = @_;
369 if (ref($fd) && "".$fd =~ /GLOB\(/o) {
370 # It's a glob reference; Alias it as we cannot get name of anon GLOBs
371 my $n = qualify(*GLOB);
374 } elsif ($fd =~ m#^\d+$#) {
375 # It's an FD number; prefix with "=".
379 open($io, _open_mode_string($mode) . '&' . $fd)
384 @_ == 1 or croak 'usage: $io->close()';
390 ################################################
391 ## Normal I/O functions.
398 @_ == 1 or croak 'usage: $io->opened()';
399 defined fileno($_[0]);
403 @_ == 1 or croak 'usage: $io->fileno()';
408 @_ == 1 or croak 'usage: $io->getc()';
413 @_ == 1 or croak 'usage: $io->eof()';
418 @_ or croak 'usage: $io->print(ARGS)';
424 @_ >= 2 or croak 'usage: $io->printf(FMT,[ARGS])';
430 @_ or croak 'usage: $io->say(ARGS)';
436 # Special XS wrapper to make them inherit lexical hints from the caller.
437 _create_getline_subs( <<'END' ) or die $@;
439 @_ == 1 or croak 'usage: $io->getline()';
441 return scalar <$this>;
445 @_ == 1 or croak 'usage: $io->getlines()';
447 croak 'Can\'t call $io->getlines in a scalar context, use $io->getline';
451 1; # return true for error checking
454 *gets = \&getline; # deprecated
457 @_ == 2 or croak 'usage: $io->truncate(LEN)';
458 truncate($_[0], $_[1]);
462 @_ == 3 || @_ == 4 or croak 'usage: $io->read(BUF, LEN [, OFFSET])';
463 read($_[0], $_[1], $_[2], $_[3] || 0);
467 @_ == 3 || @_ == 4 or croak 'usage: $io->sysread(BUF, LEN [, OFFSET])';
468 sysread($_[0], $_[1], $_[2], $_[3] || 0);
472 @_ >= 2 && @_ <= 4 or croak 'usage: $io->write(BUF [, LEN [, OFFSET]])';
474 $_[2] = length($_[1]) unless defined $_[2];
475 print { $_[0] } substr($_[1], $_[3] || 0, $_[2]);
479 @_ >= 2 && @_ <= 4 or croak 'usage: $io->syswrite(BUF [, LEN [, OFFSET]])';
480 if (defined($_[2])) {
481 syswrite($_[0], $_[1], $_[2], $_[3] || 0);
483 syswrite($_[0], $_[1]);
488 @_ == 1 or croak 'usage: $io->stat()';
492 ################################################
493 ## State modification functions.
497 my $old = new SelectSaver qualify($_[0], caller);
499 $| = @_ > 1 ? $_[1] : 1;
503 sub output_field_separator {
504 carp "output_field_separator is not supported on a per-handle basis"
507 $, = $_[1] if @_ > 1;
511 sub output_record_separator {
512 carp "output_record_separator is not supported on a per-handle basis"
515 $\ = $_[1] if @_ > 1;
519 sub input_record_separator {
520 carp "input_record_separator is not supported on a per-handle basis"
523 $/ = $_[1] if @_ > 1;
527 sub input_line_number {
529 () = tell qualify($_[0], caller) if ref($_[0]);
531 $. = $_[1] if @_ > 1;
535 sub format_page_number {
537 $old = new SelectSaver qualify($_[0], caller) if ref($_[0]);
539 $% = $_[1] if @_ > 1;
543 sub format_lines_per_page {
545 $old = new SelectSaver qualify($_[0], caller) if ref($_[0]);
547 $= = $_[1] if @_ > 1;
551 sub format_lines_left {
553 $old = new SelectSaver qualify($_[0], caller) if ref($_[0]);
555 $- = $_[1] if @_ > 1;
561 $old = new SelectSaver qualify($_[0], caller) if ref($_[0]);
563 $~ = qualify($_[1], caller) if @_ > 1;
567 sub format_top_name {
569 $old = new SelectSaver qualify($_[0], caller) if ref($_[0]);
571 $^ = qualify($_[1], caller) if @_ > 1;
575 sub format_line_break_characters {
576 carp "format_line_break_characters is not supported on a per-handle basis"
579 $: = $_[1] if @_ > 1;
583 sub format_formfeed {
584 carp "format_formfeed is not supported on a per-handle basis"
587 $^L = $_[1] if @_ > 1;
596 formline($picture, @_);
601 @_ < 3 || croak 'usage: $io->write( [FORMAT_NAME] )';
604 my $oldfmt = $io->format_name(qualify($fmt,caller));
606 $io->format_name($oldfmt);
613 @_ == 3 || croak 'usage: $io->fcntl( OP, VALUE );';
615 return fcntl($io, $op, $_[2]);
619 @_ == 3 || croak 'usage: $io->ioctl( OP, VALUE );';
621 return ioctl($io, $op, $_[2]);
624 # this sub is for compatibility with older releases of IO that used
625 # a sub called constant to determine if a constant existed -- GMB
627 # The SEEK_* and _IO?BF constants were the only constants at that time
628 # any new code should just chech defined(&CONSTANT_NAME)
633 (($name =~ /^(SEEK_(SET|CUR|END)|_IO[FLN]BF)$/) && defined &{$name})
634 ? &{$name}() : undef;
638 # so that flush.pl can be deprecated
643 $old = new SelectSaver qualify($io, caller) if ref($io);