IDLE(2)

NAME
idle - make process 0 idle

SYNOPSIS
#include <unistd.h>

int idle(void);

DESCRIPTION
idle() is an internal system call used during bootstrap. It marks the process's pages as swappable, lowers its priority, and enters the main scheduling loop. idle() never returns.

Only process 0 may call idle(). Any user process, even a process with superuser permission, will receive EPERM.

RETURN VALUE
idle() never returns for process 0, and always returns -1 for a user process.

ERRORS

EPERM
    Always, for a user process.

VERSIONS
Since Linux 2.3.13, this system call does not exist anymore.

CONFORMING TO
This function is Linux-specific, and should not be used in programs intended to be portable.

COLOPHON
This page is part of release 4.16 of the Linux man-pages project. A description of the project, information about reporting bugs, and the latest version of this page, can be found at https://www.kernel.org/doc/man-pages/.