timerfd_create()

timerfd_create() creates a new timer object, and returns a file descriptor that refers to that timer. The clockid argument specifies the clock that is used to mark the progress of the timer, and must be either CLOCK_REALTIME or CLOCK_MONOTONIC. CLOCK_REALTIME is a settable system-wide clock. CLOCK_MONOTONIC is a nonsettable clock that is not affected by discontinuous changes in the system clock (e.g., manual changes to system time). The current value of each of these clocks can be retrieved using clock_gettime(2).

Starting with Linux 2.6.27, the following values may be bitwise ORed in flags to change the behavior of timerfd_create():

In Linux versions up to and including 2.6.26, flags must be specified as zero.

timerfd_settime()

timerfd_settime() arms (starts) or disarms (stops) the timer referred to by the file descriptor fd.

The new_value argument specifies the initial expiration and interval for the timer. The itimer structure used for this argument contains two fields, each of which is in turn a structure of type timespec:

new_value.it_value specifies the initial expiration of the timer, in seconds and nanoseconds. Setting either field of new_value.it_value to a nonzero value arms the timer. Setting both fields of new_value.it_value to zero disarms the timer.

Setting one or both fields of new_value.it_interval to nonzero values specifies the period, in seconds and nanoseconds, for repeated timer expirations after the initial expiration. If both fields of new_value.it_interval are zero, the timer expires just once, at the time specified by new_value.it_value.

The flags argument is either 0, to start a relative timer (new_value.it_value specifies a time relative to the current value of the clock specified by clockid), or TFD_TIMER_ABSTIME, to start an absolute timer (new_value.it_value specifies an absolute time for the clock specified by clockid; that is, the timer will expire when the value of that clock reaches the value specified in new_value.it_value).

If the old_value argument is not NULL, then the itimerspec structure that it points to is used to return the setting of the timer that was current at the time of the call; see the description of timerfd_gettime() following.

timerfd_gettime()

timerfd_gettime() returns, in curr_value, an itimerspec structure that contains the current setting of the timer referred to by the file descriptor fd.

The it_value field returns the amount of time until the timer will next expire. If both fields of this structure are zero, then the timer is currently disarmed. This field always contains a relative value, regardless of whether the TFD_TIMER_ABSTIME flag was specified when setting the timer.

The it_interval field returns the interval of the timer. If both fields of this structure are zero, then the timer is set to expire just once, at the time specified by curr_value.it_value.

Operating on a timer file descriptor

The file descriptor returned by timerfd_create() supports the following operations:

fork(2) semantics

After a fork(2), the child inherits a copy of the file descriptor created by timerfd_create(). The file descriptor refers to the same underlying timer object as the corresponding file descriptor in the parent, and read(2)s in the child will return information about expirations of the timer.

execve(2) semantics

A file descriptor created by timerfd_create() is preserved across execve(2), and continues to generate timer expirations if the timer was armed.

Program source

#include <sys/timerfd.h>
#include <time.h>
#include <unistd.h>
#include <stdlib.h>
#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdint.h>        /* Definition of uint64_t */

#define handle_error(msg) \
        do { perror(msg); exit(EXIT_FAILURE); } while (0)

static void
print_elapsed_time(void)
{
    static struct timespec start;
    struct timespec curr;
    static int first_call = 1;
    int secs, nsecs;

    if (first_call) {
        first_call = 0;
        if (clock_gettime(CLOCK_MONOTONIC, &start) == −1)
            handle_error("clock_gettime");
    }

    if (clock_gettime(CLOCK_MONOTONIC, &curr) == −1)
        handle_error("clock_gettime");

    secs = curr.tv_sec − start.tv_sec;
    nsecs = curr.tv_nsec − start.tv_nsec;
    if (nsecs < 0) {
        secs−−;
        nsecs += 1000000000;
    }
    printf("%d.%03d: ", secs, (nsecs + 500000) / 1000000);
}

int
main(int argc, char *argv[])
{
    struct itimerspec new_value;
    int max_exp, fd;
    struct timespec now;
    uint64_t exp, tot_exp;
    ssize_t s;

    if ((argc != 2) && (argc != 4)) {
        fprintf(stderr, "%s init−secs [interval−secs max−exp]\n",
                argv[0]);
        exit(EXIT_FAILURE);
    }

    if (clock_gettime(CLOCK_REALTIME, &now) == −1)
        handle_error("clock_gettime");

    /* Create a CLOCK_REALTIME absolute timer with initial
       expiration and interval as specified in command line */

    new_value.it_value.tv_sec = now.tv_sec + atoi(argv[1]);
    new_value.it_value.tv_nsec = now.tv_nsec;
    if (argc == 2) {
        new_value.it_interval.tv_sec = 0;
        max_exp = 1;
    } else {
        new_value.it_interval.tv_sec = atoi(argv[2]);
        max_exp = atoi(argv[3]);
    }
    new_value.it_interval.tv_nsec = 0;

    fd = timerfd_create(CLOCK_REALTIME, 0);
    if (fd == −1)
        handle_error("timerfd_create");

    if (timerfd_settime(fd, TFD_TIMER_ABSTIME, &new_value, NULL) == −1)
        handle_error("timerfd_settime");

    print_elapsed_time();
    printf("timer started\n");

    for (tot_exp = 0; tot_exp < max_exp;) {
        s = read(fd, &exp, sizeof(uint64_t));
        if (s != sizeof(uint64_t))
            handle_error("read");

        tot_exp += exp;
        print_elapsed_time();
        printf("read: %llu; total=%llu\n",
                (unsigned long long) exp,
                (unsigned long long) tot_exp);
    }

    exit(EXIT_SUCCESS);
}