get_next_line is a powerful C function designed for efficiently reading text files line by line. It's particularly valuable for handling large files due to its smart memory management:
- Minimal Memory Footprint: Caches only the data needed for the current line, making it ideal for large files or resource-constrained systems.
- Customizable Buffer Size: The
BUFFER_SIZEmacro allows you to tailor how much data is read in each operation.
-
Configure and Build:
meson setup build meson compile -C build
-
Install (Optional):
meson install -C build
-
Link in Your Project:
gcc main.c -lgnl
Add
-L <path_to_build_dir>if the library is not installed.
#include "get_next_line.h"
int main() {
int fd = open("your_file.txt", O_RDONLY);
char *line;
while ((line = get_next_line(fd)) != NULL) {
printf("%s\n", line);
free(line); // Important: Prevent memory leaks
}
close(fd);
return 0;
}-
Functional Tests (
simple.c):meson test -C build -
Speed Test (
speed.c):./build/tests/speed <your_file.txt>
- Multiple Files: When reading from multiple files sequentially, ensure all lines are consumed from the current file (until
get_next_linereturnsNULL) before switching to the next. Alternatively, clear the internal buffer by reading from/dev/null.
This project is licensed under the MIT License. See the LICENSE file for details.