msg_ptr in mq_timedsend

from:

http://stackoverflow.com/questions/20890817/posix-mq-timedsend-what-happens-to-msg-ptr

 

I am trying to debug a potential memory leak. I can see that the msg_ptr is not freed manually after the call to mq_timedsend.

My question is does mq_timedsend free the message after sending it to the queue?

 

No, it does not free the message, and neither should it - for any number of reasons! 

• The object referenced may not have been dynamically allocated in the first instance.       

• It cannot safely assume that the caller is no longer using the object pointed to by msg_ptr.

• It cannot know that it is not a pointer to a C++ object requiring a destructor to to be called, rather than simply freeing the memory block.

In short it would be inappropriate and dangerous for any library function to behave in the way you suggest.  As a general principle, dynamically allocated memory should be deleted by its owner unless there is some clear and documented protocol for ceding ownership - which is not a common pattern.

In this case the data is copied to the message queue, so you are free to modify or release whatever msg_ptr references after sending.