C (programming language): Difference between revisions

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Memory allocated by <code>malloc</code> and <code>calloc</code> are on the heap and should be deallocated by <code>free</code> when no longer used to avoid memory leaks.
Memory allocated by <code>malloc</code> and <code>calloc</code> are on the heap and should be deallocated by <code>free</code> when no longer used to avoid memory leaks.


{{ hidden | <code>_malloca</code> |
{{ hidden | <code>alloca</code> |
There is also a way to allocate memory on the stack.
There is also a way to dynamically allocate memory on the stack.
* <code>alloca(bytes)</code> Usage is [https://stackoverflow.com/questions/1018853/why-is-the-use-of-alloca-not-considered-good-practice Discouraged]
* <code>alloca(bytes)</code> Usage is [https://stackoverflow.com/questions/1018853/why-is-the-use-of-alloca-not-considered-good-practice Discouraged]
Memory allocated by <code>alloca</code> is allocated on the stack and will automatically be freed. Do not call <code>free</code> on this memory. Do not allocate more than a few bytes using <code>alloca</code> or you will risk a stack overflow leading to undefined behavior.<br>
Memory allocated by <code>alloca</code> is allocated on the stack and will automatically be freed. Do not call <code>free</code> on this memory. Do not allocate more than a few bytes using <code>alloca</code> or you will risk a stack overflow leading to undefined behavior.<br>