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Manual pages, commonly known as man pages, serve as the built-in documentation for Unix-like operating systems, offering essential details on system commands and interfaces. Accessible via the man command, these pages are a vital resource for both users and developers seeking to understand system functionalities.
Section 4 of the man pages is dedicated to Special Files, which primarily encompasses files located within the /dev directory. These special files are pivotal as they symbolize hardware devices and system resources, facilitating interaction through standard file operations. The documentation in this section elucidates the characteristics of these files, their usage protocols, and the established conventions, including the assignment of major and minor device numbers.
Examples of special files detailed in this section include:
/dev/null: A file that discards all data written to it (Null device)./dev/random: A file providing random numbers generated by the system (Random number generator)./dev/zero: A file that provides a continuous stream of null (zero value) bytes (Zero device)./dev/tty: A file representing a terminal device./dev/disk: A file representing disk devices.| Name | Unix Section 4 Manual Page: Special Files |
|---|---|
| File Extension(s) | .4 |
| Category | Documents |
| Use For | Special Files; which cover information about special files, are often located in the /dev directory. |
| Developer | Dennis Ritchie and Ken Thompson under the guidance of their manager Doug McIlroy at AT&T Bell Laboratories in 1971 as part of the Unix Programmer's Manual. |
| MIME Type(s) | application/x-troff-man |
| License | freely; but check their source for the specific license. |
| File Sample(s) | N/A |