What is the use of sizeof in c language

sizeof operator is used in C language to get the byte size of a variable, data type, or expression. It is used by following the above operand, such as sizeof(int) or sizeof(my_variable). Uses include: memory allocation, array size calculation, type compatibility checking, structure/union size retrieval, and file operations. It returns the actual memory size in bytes, taking into account type alignment and padding.

The sizeof operator in C language

What is the sizeof operator?

sizeof is an operator in C language used to obtain the byte size of a variable, data type, or expression.

How to use sizeof operator?

The sizeof operator is followed by its operand (variable, data type, or expression). For example:

sizeof(int); // 获取 int 类型的大小
sizeof(my_variable); // 获取 my_variable 变量的大小

What is the sizeof operator used for?

The sizeof operator has many uses in the C language, including:

• Memory allocation: Determine the memory required to allocate a data structure quantity.
• Array size: Calculate the number of elements in the array.
• Type Compatibility: Compare the byte sizes of different types to ensure they are compatible.
• Structure/Union Size: Get the size of a structure or union, including the size of all its members.
• File operation: Determine the byte size of the data in the file.

How the sizeof operator works

The sizeof operator returns the memory size of its operand in bytes. It takes type alignment and padding into account, which means it returns the actual memory size used, not the theoretical size of the type.

For example, if an int occupies 4 bytes on the system, but due to alignment requirements, actually uses 8 bytes, then sizeof(int) will return 8.

Example

The following code snippet demonstrates the use of the sizeof operator:

#include <stdio.h>

int main() {
    int a;
    int *ptr;
    printf("Int size: %d bytes\n", sizeof(int));
    printf("Pointer size: %d bytes\n", sizeof(ptr));
    printf("Array size: %d bytes\n", sizeof(int[10]));

    return 0;
}

Output:

<code>Int size: 4 bytes
Pointer size: 8 bytes
Array size: 40 bytes</code>

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