Advanced · Module 6 · Lesson 5 of 10

Inter-Process Streams: Anonymous Pipes and Named FIFOs

Stream byte payloads between processes using anonymous pipes and named FIFOs, manage descriptor closure hygiene to signal EOF, and prevent SIGPIPE faults.

ProAbout 16 minutes

By the end you can

Create unidirectional byte channels between related processes using pipe
Enforce descriptor closure hygiene in parent and child to signal End-Of-File (EOF)
Handle SIGPIPE signals and EPIPE errors when writing to orphan streams
Create filesystem-backed named FIFOs with mkfifo for communication across unrelated processes

Builds on Signal Masks, Pending Signals, and Async-Signal Safety.

01 · A question first

Why does a child process reading from an anonymous pipe hang forever waiting for EOF even after the parent process finishes writing and exits? The secret lies in how the kernel tracks open write-end descriptor references.

Make a guess before you read on.

02 · The idea

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What's inside

Start with the problem
How the idea works
Why it is correct
What it costs
Pitfalls and variations
Where it is used