C: differences between char pointer and array [dup

Question

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• Why do I get a segmentation fault when writing to a string initialized with “char *s” but not “char s[]”? 16 answers

Consider:

char amessage[] = "now is the time";
char *pmessage = "now is the time";

I read from The C Programming Language, 2nd Edition that the above two statements don't do the same thing.

I always thought that an array is an convenient way to manipulate pointers to store some data, but this is clearly not the case... What are the "non-trivial" differences between arrays and pointers in C?

Answer 1

For this line: char amessage[] = "now is the time";

the compiler will evaluate uses of amessage as a pointer to the start of the array holding the characters "now is the time". The compiler allocates memory for "now is the time" and initializes it with the string "now is the time". You know where that message is stored because amessage always refers to the start of that message. amessage may not be given a new value- it is not a variable, it is the name of the string "now is the time".

This line: char *pmessage = "now is the time";

declares a variable, pmessage which is initialized (given an initial value) of the starting address of the string "now is the time". Unlike amessage, pmessage can be given a new value. In this case, as in the previous case, the compiler also stores "now is the time" elsewhere in memory. For example, this will cause pmessage to point to the 'i' which begins "is the time". pmessage = pmessage + 4;

Answer 2

If an array is defined so that its size is available at declaration time, sizeof(p)/sizeof(type-of-array) will return the number of elements in the array.

Answer 3

differences between char pointer and array

C99 N1256 draft

There are two different uses of character string literals:

1. Initialize char[]:

   char c[] = "abc";      
   

   This is "more magic", and described at 6.7.8/14 "Initialization":

   An array of character type may be initialized by a character string literal, optionally enclosed in braces. Successive characters of the character string literal (including the terminating null character if there is room or if the array is of unknown size) initialize the elements of the array.

   So this is just a shortcut for:

   char c[] = {'a', 'b', 'c', '\0'};
   

   Like any other regular array, c can be modified.

2. Everywhere else: it generates an:

   • unnamed
   • array of char What is the type of string literals in C and C++?
   • with static storage
   • that gives UB if modified

   So when you write:

   char *c = "abc";
   

   This is similar to:

   /* __unnamed is magic because modifying it gives UB. */
   static char __unnamed[] = "abc";
   char *c = __unnamed;
   

   Note the implicit cast from char[] to char *, which is always legal.

   Then if you modify c[0], you also modify __unnamed, which is UB.

   This is documented at 6.4.5 "String literals":

   5 In translation phase 7, a byte or code of value zero is appended to each multibyte character sequence that results from a string literal or literals. The multibyte character sequence is then used to initialize an array of static storage duration and length just sufficient to contain the sequence. For character string literals, the array elements have type char, and are initialized with the individual bytes of the multibyte character sequence [...]

   6 It is unspecified whether these arrays are distinct provided their elements have the appropriate values. If the program attempts to modify such an array, the behavior is undefined.

6.7.8/32 "Initialization" gives a direct example:

EXAMPLE 8: The declaration

char s[] = "abc", t[3] = "abc";

defines "plain" char array objects s and t whose elements are initialized with character string literals.

This declaration is identical to

char s[] = { 'a', 'b', 'c', '\0' },
t[] = { 'a', 'b', 'c' };

The contents of the arrays are modifiable. On the other hand, the declaration

char *p = "abc";

defines p with type "pointer to char" and initializes it to point to an object with type "array of char" with length 4 whose elements are initialized with a character string literal. If an attempt is made to use p to modify the contents of the array, the behavior is undefined.

GCC 4.8 x86-64 ELF implementation

Program:

#include <stdio.h>

int main(void) {
    char *s = "abc";
    printf("%s\n", s);
    return 0;
}

Compile and decompile:

gcc -ggdb -std=c99 -c main.c
objdump -Sr main.o

Output contains:

 char *s = "abc";
8:  48 c7 45 f8 00 00 00    movq   $0x0,-0x8(%rbp)
f:  00 
        c: R_X86_64_32S .rodata

Conclusion: GCC stores char* it in .rodata section, not in .text.

If we do the same for char[]:

 char s[] = "abc";

we obtain:

17:   c7 45 f0 61 62 63 00    movl   $0x636261,-0x10(%rbp)

so it gets stored in the stack (relative to %rbp).

Note however that the default linker script puts .rodata and .text in the same segment, which has execute but no write permission. This can be observed with:

readelf -l a.out

which contains:

 Section to Segment mapping:
  Segment Sections...
   02     .text .rodata

Answer 4

Along with the memory for the string "now is the time" being allocated in two different places, you should also keep in mind that the array name acts as a pointer value as opposed to a pointer variable which pmessage is. The main difference being that the pointer variable can be modified to point somewhere else and the array cannot.

char arr[] = "now is the time";
char *pchar = "later is the time";

char arr2[] = "Another String";

pchar = arr2; //Ok, pchar now points at "Another String"

arr = arr2; //Compiler Error! The array name can be used as a pointer VALUE
            //not a pointer VARIABLE

Answer 5

Here is my summary of key differences between arrays and pointers, which I made for myself:

//ATTENTION:
    //Pointer depth 1
     int    marr[]  =  {1,13,25,37,45,56};      // array is implemented as a Pointer TO THE FIRST ARRAY ELEMENT
     int*   pmarr   =  marr;                    // don't use & for assignment, because same pointer depth. Assigning Pointer = Pointer makes them equal. So pmarr points to the first ArrayElement.

     int*   point   = (marr + 1);               // ATTENTION: moves the array-pointer in memory, but by sizeof(TYPE) and not by 1 byte. The steps are equal to the type of the array-elements (here sizeof(int))

    //Pointer depth 2
     int**  ppmarr  = &pmarr;                   // use & because going one level deeper. So use the address of the pointer.

//TYPES
    //array and pointer are different, which can be seen by checking their types
    std::cout << "type of  marr is: "       << typeid(marr).name()          << std::endl;   // int*         so marr  gives a pointer to the first array element
    std::cout << "type of &marr is: "       << typeid(&marr).name()         << std::endl;   // int (*)[6]   so &marr gives a pointer to the whole array

    std::cout << "type of  pmarr is: "      << typeid(pmarr).name()         << std::endl;   // int*         so pmarr  gives a pointer to the first array element
    std::cout << "type of &pmarr is: "      << typeid(&pmarr).name()        << std::endl;   // int**        so &pmarr gives a pointer to to pointer to the first array elelemt. Because & gets us one level deeper.

Answer 6

An array contains the elements. A pointer points to them.

The first is a short form of saying

char amessage[16];
amessage[0] = 'n';
amessage[1] = 'o';
...
amessage[15] = '\0';

That is, it is an array that contains all the characters. The special initialization initializes it for you, and determines it size automatically. The array elements are modifiable - you may overwrite characters in it.

The second form is a pointer, that just points to the characters. It stores the characters not directly. Since the array is a string literal, you cannot take the pointer and write to where it points

char *pmessage = "now is the time";
*pmessage = 'p'; /* undefined behavior! */

This code would probably crash on your box. But it may do anything it likes, because its behavior is undefined.