rmdir(2)

rmdir -- remove a directory

Synopsis

   #include <unistd.h>
   
   int rmdir(const char path);

Description

rmdir removes the directory named by the path name pointed to by path. The directory must not have any entries other than ``.'' and ``..'' and must not be the calling process's current working directory.

The effective user ID of the calling process must have write permission on the directory containing the directory to be removed.

If the parent directory has the save text on execution (``sticky'') bit set [see chmod(2)], then the effective user ID of the calling process must own the parent directory or the directory in it, or else must have permission to write the directory to be removed. If none of these is true, then the calling process must have the P_OWNER privilege to delete the directory.

If the directory's link count becomes zero and no process has the directory open, the space occupied by the directory is freed and the directory is no longer accessible. If one or more processes have the directory open when the last link is removed, the ``.'' and ``..'' entries, if present, are removed before rmdir returns and no new entries may be created in the directory, but the directory is not removed until all references to the directory have been closed.

If path is a symbolic link, it is not followed.

Files

Message catalog: uxcore.abi

Return values

On success, rmdir returns 0 and marks for update the st_ctime and st_mtime fields of the parent directory. On failure, rmdir returns -1 and sets errno to identify the error.

In the following conditions, rmdir fails and sets errno to:

EACCES: Search permission is denied for a component of the path prefix.
EACCES: Write permission is denied on the directory containing the directory to be removed.
EACCES: The parent directory has the sticky bit set and the effective user ID of the caller does not own the parent directory or the file in it, the caller does not have permission to write the file, and the caller does not have the P_OWNER privilege.
EBUSY: The directory to be removed is the mount point for a mounted file system.
EBUSY: The directory to be removed is the current directory.
EBUSY: The directory to be removed is the ``.'' entry of a directory.
EEXIST: The directory contains entries other than those for ``.'' and ``..''.
EFAULT: path points outside the process's allocated address space.
EIO: An I/O error occurred while accessing the file system.
ELOOP: Too many symbolic links were encountered in translating path.
EMULTIHOP: Components of path require hopping to multiple remote machines and the file system does not allow it.
ENAMETOOLONG: The length of the path argument exceeds {PATH_MAX}, or the length of a path component exceeds {NAME_MAX} while _POSIX_NO_TRUNC is in effect.
ENOTDIR: A component of the path prefix is not a directory.
ENOENT: The named directory does not exist or is the null pathname.
EROFS: The directory entry to be removed is part of a read-only file system.
ENOLINK: path points to a remote machine, and the link to that machine is no longer active.

References

directory(3C), mkdir(1), mkdir(2), mkdirp(3G), rm(1)