mkfifo

mkfifo creates named pipes, also called FIFOs.

mkfifo [options] name...

$ mkfifo events

A named pipe is a file that two programs use to pass a stream of data: one writes into it, the other reads from it, and the data flows through in order — first in, first out, which is what "FIFO" stands for. Unlike an ordinary pipe between two commands, a named pipe has a name on the file system, so the two programs do not have to be started together or be related to each other.

Setting the new pipe's security #

A FIFO is a file, and a new file needs a security descriptor. By default a new FIFO inherits its descriptor from the directory it is created in.

mkfifo accepts the shared creation flags — --owner, --group, --label, --no-inherit, and --sddl — to set that descriptor explicitly instead. They behave exactly as they do for mkdir; the full reference is on the mkdir page.

Exit status #