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NAME
zmaloc -- allocate memory
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SYNOPSIS
.nf
zmaloc (buffer, nbytes, status)
int buffer # address of buffer
int nbytes # size of buffer
int status
.fi
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DESCRIPTION
An uninitialized region of memory at least \fInbytes\fR in size is dynamically
allocated. The address of the newly allocated buffer in units of SPP chars
is returned in \fIbuffer\fR.
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RETURN VALUE
XERR is returned in \fIstatus\fR if the buffer cannot be allocated.
XOK is returned if the operation is successful.
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NOTES
The integer \fIbuffer\fR is a memory address in SPP char units with an
arbitrary zero point, i.e., the type of address returned by \fBzlocva\fR.
The high level code converts the buffer address into an offset into \fBMem\fR,
i.e., into an SPP pointer.
.nf
char_pointer_into_Mem = buffer - zlocva(Memc) + 1
Memc[char_pointer] = first char of buffer
.fi
Since the buffer address is returned in char units the buffer must be aligned
to at least the size of a char; no greater degree of alignment is guaranteed
nor required. See the specifications of \fBzlocva\fR for additional information
about addresses and address arithmetic.
If the host system does not provide buffer management primitives (heap
management facilities), but can dynamically allocate memory to a process,
it will be necessary to build a memory allocator. This is normally done
by dynamically changing the top of the process address space. The region
between the highest address allocated at process creation time and the
current top of the process address space is the region used by the heap.
A simple and adequate heap management technique is to implement the heap
as a circular singly linked list of buffers. Each buffer is preceded by
a pointer to the next buffer and a flag telling whether or not the buffer
is currently allocated. Successive unused buffers are periodically collected
together into a single large buffer to minimize fragmentation. A buffer is
allocated by searching around the circular list for either the first fit
or the best fit. If an unused buffer of sufficient size is not found,
additional physical memory is allocated to the process and linked into the
list.
On a system which cannot dynamically allocate memory to a process it will be
necessary to statically allocate a large \fBMem\fR common. The heap
management algorithm described above will work just as effectively for a
static array as for a dynamic region. If a heap manager has to be coded for
more than one machine we should add a semi-portable version to the system
(all current IRAF target machines provide heap management facilities at the
host level so we have not coded a portable memory allocator).
Dynamic memory allocation may be used in the kernel implementation as well
as in the portable system and applications code. In general it is necessary
to use the same memory allocator in both the kernel and the high level
code to avoid trashing memory.
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SEE ALSO
zmfree, zraloc, zlocva
.endhelp
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