The answer to this is that fflush(stream) is only formally defined for output streams, so fflush(stdout) is OK, but fflush(stdin) is not.
The purpose of fflush(stream) is to make the operating system flush any buffers to the underlying file. For an example of a legitimate use, students often have problems like “my prompt doesn't appear!” if they do something like:
printf("Enter a number: ");
However, they find that this works just fine:
printf("Enter a number:\n");
Of course, they don't want a newline after their prompt, so they have a bit of a problem.
The reason for this is that the output to stdout is buffered by the OS and the default behavior is (often) only to actually write the output to the terminal when a newline is encountered. Adding an fflush(stdout) after the printf() solves the problem:
printf("Enter a number: ");
fflush(stdout);
Now, working by analogy, people often think that fflush(stdin) should discard any unused input, but if you think about it a little bit that doesn't make much sense. What does it mean to “flush” an input buffer? Where is it “flushed” to? If you flush an output buffer, the output is sent to the underlying file or the terminal, where it would eventually wind up anyway, but where would input “eventually end up anyway”? There's no way of knowing! What should the behavior be if the input stream data comes from a file or a pipe or a socket? It isn't at all clear for input streams what the behavior of fflush() should be, but it's very clear for output streams in all cases. Hence, fflush() is only defined for output streams.
The reason why the erroneous use of fflush(stdin) became commonplace is that, many years ago, a few operating systems did implement a scheme where it worked as many people expected, discarding unused input. Microsoft DOS is a good example. Surprisingly, modern versions of Linux also implement fflush() for input streams.
The right thing to do with “extra” unwanted terminal input is simply to read it and do nothing with it. This is almost as easy as calling fflush(stdin), works everywhere, and doesn't rely on formally undefined behavior.
The C standard says:
If stream points to an output stream or an update stream in which the most recent operation was not input, the fflush function causes any unwritten data for that stream to be delivered to the host environment to be written to the file; otherwise, the behavior is undefined.
POSIX says (also explicitly defers to C standard):
If stream points to an output stream or an update stream in which the most recent operation was not input, fflush() shall cause any unwritten data for that stream to be written to the file, ...
But the Linux manpage says:
Answer from Emmet on Stack OverflowFor output streams, fflush() forces a write of all user-space buffered data for the given output or update stream via the stream's underlying write function. For input streams, fflush() discards any buffered data that has been fetched from the underlying file, but has not been consumed by the application. The open status of the stream is unaffected.
The answer to this is that fflush(stream) is only formally defined for output streams, so fflush(stdout) is OK, but fflush(stdin) is not.
The purpose of fflush(stream) is to make the operating system flush any buffers to the underlying file. For an example of a legitimate use, students often have problems like “my prompt doesn't appear!” if they do something like:
printf("Enter a number: ");
However, they find that this works just fine:
printf("Enter a number:\n");
Of course, they don't want a newline after their prompt, so they have a bit of a problem.
The reason for this is that the output to stdout is buffered by the OS and the default behavior is (often) only to actually write the output to the terminal when a newline is encountered. Adding an fflush(stdout) after the printf() solves the problem:
printf("Enter a number: ");
fflush(stdout);
Now, working by analogy, people often think that fflush(stdin) should discard any unused input, but if you think about it a little bit that doesn't make much sense. What does it mean to “flush” an input buffer? Where is it “flushed” to? If you flush an output buffer, the output is sent to the underlying file or the terminal, where it would eventually wind up anyway, but where would input “eventually end up anyway”? There's no way of knowing! What should the behavior be if the input stream data comes from a file or a pipe or a socket? It isn't at all clear for input streams what the behavior of fflush() should be, but it's very clear for output streams in all cases. Hence, fflush() is only defined for output streams.
The reason why the erroneous use of fflush(stdin) became commonplace is that, many years ago, a few operating systems did implement a scheme where it worked as many people expected, discarding unused input. Microsoft DOS is a good example. Surprisingly, modern versions of Linux also implement fflush() for input streams.
The right thing to do with “extra” unwanted terminal input is simply to read it and do nothing with it. This is almost as easy as calling fflush(stdin), works everywhere, and doesn't rely on formally undefined behavior.
The C standard says:
If stream points to an output stream or an update stream in which the most recent operation was not input, the fflush function causes any unwritten data for that stream to be delivered to the host environment to be written to the file; otherwise, the behavior is undefined.
POSIX says (also explicitly defers to C standard):
If stream points to an output stream or an update stream in which the most recent operation was not input, fflush() shall cause any unwritten data for that stream to be written to the file, ...
But the Linux manpage says:
For output streams, fflush() forces a write of all user-space buffered data for the given output or update stream via the stream's underlying write function. For input streams, fflush() discards any buffered data that has been fetched from the underlying file, but has not been consumed by the application. The open status of the stream is unaffected.
fflush(stdin) invokes undefined behaviour.
fflush() is defined only for output streams. You should not do it.
On Unix, Ctrl-Z sends a TSTP signal (SIGTSTP) which by default causes the process to suspend execution.
[C] Can someone please explain fflush(stdin) to me?
What is the use of fflush(stdin) in c programming? - Stack Overflow
c - Why should I use fflush(stdin) in this program? - Stack Overflow
c - Using fflush(stdin) - Stack Overflow
Videos
I understand that this command flushes out the input stream but what does it mean by "flushing the stream".
It's not in standard C, so the behavior is undefined.
Some implementation uses it to clear stdin buffer.
From C11 7.21.5.2 The fflush function, fflush works only with output/update stream, not input stream.
If stream points to an output stream or an update stream in which the most recent operation was not input, the fflush function causes any unwritten data for that stream to be delivered to the host environment to be written to the file; otherwise, the behavior is undefined.
it clears stdin buffer before reading. From the man page:
For output streams, fflush() forces a write of all user-space buffered data for the given output or update stream via the stream's underlying write function. For input streams, fflush() discards any buffered data that has been fetched from the underlying file, but has not been consumed by the application.
Note: This is Linux-specific, using fflush() on input streams is undefined by the standard, however, most implementations behave the same as in Linux.
Actually the professor is wrong if speaking of standard C. According to the standard, calling fflush on an input stream (such as stdin) is undefined behaviour.
However, in many implementations (including Linux†, OS X, various BSDs, etc.) fflush(stdin) discards any input that has been buffered but not yet consumed. This non-standard feature is used in your program to clear the trailing newline left in the input buffer by the previous scanf.
man fflush on Linux is kind enough to mention that this is non-standard (although the wording doesn't quite suggest undefined behaviour):
The standards do not specify the behavior for input streams.
Meanwhile the C11 standard under 7.21.5.2 The fflush function says:
If
streampoints to an output stream or an update stream in which the most recent operation was not input, thefflushfunction causes any unwritten data for that stream to be delivered to the host environment to be written to the file; otherwise, the behavior is undefined.
† According to comments this non-standard behaviour may not work on Linux despite man fflush claiming that it should.
You should not use
fflush(stdin)in a C program. It's not well-defined. It's not portable.You should not need to use
fflush(stdin)in a C program. The only time this need comes up, sadly, is when progammers are learning C and usingscanfa lot and getting bin by one ofscanf's notoriousl difficulties. Simply put, stop usingscanfand the "need" to flush input goes away. Or, insert extra calls togetchar, or loops that read and discard input up to a newline, as described elsewhere.
Simple: this is undefined behavior, since fflush is meant to be called on an output stream. This is an excerpt from the C standard:
int fflush(FILE *ostream);
ostream points to an output stream or an update stream in which the most recent operation was not input, the fflush function causes any unwritten data for that stream to be delivered to the host environment to be written to the file; otherwise, the behavior is undefined.
So it's not a question of "how bad" this is. fflush(stdin) is simply not portable, so you should not use it if you want your code to be portable between compilers.
Converting comments into an answer.
TL;DR — Portable code doesn't use fflush(stdin)
The rest of this answer explains why portable code does not use fflush(stdin). It is tempting to add "reliable code doesn't use fflush(stdin)", which is also generally true.
Standard C and POSIX leave fflush(stdin) as undefined behaviour
The POSIX, C and C++ standards for fflush() explicitly state that the behaviour is undefined (because stdin is an input stream), but none of them prevent a system from defining it.
ISO/IEC 9899:2011 — the C11 Standard — says:
§7.21.5.2 The fflush function
¶2 If
streampoints to an output stream or an update stream in which the most recent operation was not input, thefflushfunction causes any unwritten data for that stream to be delivered to the host environment to be written to the file; otherwise, the behavior is undefined.
POSIX mostly defers to the C standard but it does mark this text as a C extension.
[CX] ⌦ For a stream open for reading, if the file is not already at EOF, and the file is one capable of seeking, the file offset of the underlying open file description shall be set to the file position of the stream, and any characters pushed back onto the stream by
ungetc()orungetwc()that have not subsequently been read from the stream shall be discarded (without further changing the file offset). ⌫
Note that terminals are not capable of seeking; neither are pipes or sockets.
Microsoft defines the behaviour of fflush(stdin) as a no-op
In 2015, Microsoft and the Visual Studio runtime used to define the behaviour of fflush() on an input stream like this (but the link leads to different text in 2021 — and even the text in the '2015' version is different):
If the stream is open for input,
fflushclears the contents of the buffer.
M.M notes:
Cygwin is an example of a fairly common platform on which
fflush(stdin)does not clear the input.
This is why this answer version of my comment notes 'Microsoft and the Visual Studio runtime' — if you use a non-Microsoft C runtime library, the behaviour you see depends on that library.
Weather Vane pointed out to me in a comment to another question that, at some time before June 2021, Microsoft changed its description of fflush() compared with what was originally specified when this answer was written in 2015. It now says:
If the stream was opened in read mode, or if the stream has no buffer, the call to
fflushhas no effect, and any buffer is retained. A call tofflushnegates the effect of any prior call toungetcfor the stream.
Caveat Lector: it is probably best not to rely on fflush(stdin) on any platform.
Linux documentation and practice seem to contradict each other
Surprisingly, Linux nominally documents the behaviour of fflush(stdin) too, and even defines it the same way (miracle of miracles). This quote is from 2015.
For input streams,
fflush()discards any buffered data that has been fetched from the underlying file, but has not been consumed by the application.
In 2021, the quote changes to:
For input streams,
fflush()discards any buffered data that has been fetched from the underlying file, but has not been consumed by the application. The open status of the stream is unaffected.
And another source for fflush(3) on Linux agrees (give or take paragraph breaks):
For input streams associated with seekable files (e.g., disk files, but not pipes or terminals),
fflush()discards any buffered data that has been fetched from the underlying file, but has not been consumed by the application.
Neither of these explicitly addresses the points made by the POSIX specification about ungetc().
In 2021, zwol commented that the Linux documentation has been improved. It seems to me that there is still room for improvement.
In 2015, I was a bit puzzled and surprised at the Linux documentation saying that fflush(stdin) will work.
Despite that suggestion, it most usually does not work on Linux. I just checked the documentation on Ubuntu 14.04 LTS; it says what is quoted above, but empirically, it does not work — at least when the input stream is a non-seekable device such as a terminal.
demo-fflush.c
#include <stdio.h>
int main(void)
{
int c;
if ((c = getchar()) != EOF)
{
printf("Got %c; enter some new data\n", c);
fflush(stdin);
}
if ((c = getchar()) != EOF)
printf("Got %c\n", c);
return 0;
}
Example output
$ ./demo-fflush
Alliteration
Got A; enter some new data
Got l
$
This output was obtained on both Ubuntu 14.04 LTS and Mac OS X 10.11.2. To my understanding, it contradicts what the Linux manual says. If the fflush(stdin) operation worked, I would have to type a new line of text to get information for the second getchar() to read.
Given what the POSIX standard says, maybe a better demonstration is needed, and the Linux documentation should be clarified.
demo-fflush2.c
#include <stdio.h>
int main(void)
{
int c;
if ((c = getchar()) != EOF)
{
printf("Got %c\n", c);
ungetc('B', stdin);
ungetc('Z', stdin);
if ((c = getchar()) == EOF)
{
fprintf(stderr, "Huh?!\n");
return 1;
}
printf("Got %c after ungetc()\n", c);
fflush(stdin);
}
if ((c = getchar()) != EOF)
printf("Got %c\n", c);
return 0;
}
Example output
Note that /etc/passwd is a seekable file. On Ubuntu, the first line looks like:
root:x:0:0:root:/root:/bin/bash
On Mac OS X, the first 4 lines look like:
##
# User Database
#
# Note that this file is consulted directly only when the system is running
In other words, there is commentary at the top of the Mac OS X /etc/passwd file. The non-comment lines conform to the normal layout, so the root entry is:
root:*:0:0:System Administrator:/var/root:/bin/sh
Ubuntu 14.04 LTS:
$ ./demo-fflush2 < /etc/passwd
Got r
Got Z after ungetc()
Got o
$ ./demo-fflush2
Allotrope
Got A
Got Z after ungetc()
Got B
$
Mac OS X 10.11.2:
$ ./demo-fflush2 < /etc/passwd
Got #
Got Z after ungetc()
Got B
$
The Mac OS X behaviour ignores (or at least seems to ignore) the fflush(stdin) (thus not following POSIX on this issue). The Linux behaviour corresponds to the documented POSIX behaviour, but the POSIX specification is far more careful in what it says — it specifies a file capable of seeking, but terminals, of course, do not support seeking. It is also much less useful than the Microsoft specification.
Summary
Microsoft documents the behaviour of fflush(stdin), but that behaviour has changed between 2015 and 2021. Apparently, it works as documented on the Windows platform, using the native Windows compiler and C runtime support libraries.
Despite documentation to the contrary, it does not work on Linux when the standard input is a terminal, but it seems to follow the POSIX specification which is far more carefully worded. According to the C standard, the behaviour of fflush(stdin) is undefined. POSIX adds the qualifier 'unless the input file is seekable', which a terminal is not. The behaviour is not the same as Microsoft's.
Consequently, portable code does not use fflush(stdin). Code that is tied to Microsoft's platform may use it and it may work as expected, but beware of the portability issues.
POSIX way to discard unread terminal input from a file descriptor
The POSIX standard way to discard unread information from a terminal file descriptor (as opposed to a file stream like stdin) is illustrated at How can I flush unread data from a tty input queue on a Unix system. However, that is operating below the standard I/O library level.