Rux

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BSD Package ​

Direct x86-64 syscall bindings for FreeBSD, OpenBSD, NetBSD, and DragonFly BSD.

Module: BSD

The package provides raw zero-to-six-argument syscall entry points, typed wrappers for common I/O, process, memory, and time operations, and the constants and structures those wrappers require. It calls the kernel without libc and uses compiler-provided thunks where the supported BSD variants differ.

Unstable API

The BSD package is under active development and its API is not yet stable. Pin a package version when reproducible builds are required.

Requirements ​

  • FreeBSD, OpenBSD, NetBSD, or DragonFly BSD on x86-64
  • A Rux compiler with the BSD syscall thunks

The syscall ABI is platform- and architecture-specific. Prefer Std when it provides the operation you need.

Installation ​

Add the package and install project dependencies:

sh
rux add BSD
rux install

Then import the symbols you need:

rux
import BSD::{ Stdout, Write };

Platform Compatibility ​

Most exported syscall numbers are shared by the four supported BSD targets. Mmap, Nanosleep, and ClockGettime use dedicated compiler thunks because their syscall details differ by target.

The exported MAP_ANONYMOUS value is 4096 and CLOCK_MONOTONIC is 4, matching FreeBSD, NetBSD, and DragonFly BSD. OpenBSD uses 32 and 3 respectively. Use these constants with the package's typed wrappers; do not assume they are valid inputs to arbitrary raw OpenBSD syscalls.

Result Convention ​

Functions returning int64 expose the thunk result directly. The package treats values from 1 through 4095 as positive errno values; IsError performs that range check and Errno returns the value when it falls in the range.

Ambiguous positive results

The current convention overlaps legitimate small positive success values, including byte counts returned by Read and Write, and potentially process IDs. IsError can therefore misclassify success. Interpret each function's result according to its own contract instead of applying IsError blindly.

Reference ​

TopicContents
Types and constantsDescriptors, syscalls, flags, clocks, timespec.
I/ORead, write, and close file descriptors.
MemoryMap, unmap, and change the program break.
ProcessProcess ID and immediate termination.
TimeRead clocks and suspend execution.
Raw syscallsSyscall0-Syscall6 and error helpers.

Example ​

rux
import BSD::{ Stdout, Write };

func Main() -> int32 {
    let message = "hello from BSD\n";
    let result = Write(Stdout, message.data, message.length);
    return result == message.length as int64 ? 0i32 : 1i32;
}