INTPTRMIN

INTPTR_MIN is a macro that expands to the minimum value representable by the signed integer type intptr_t. The type intptr_t is defined to be a signed integer capable of holding any pointer on the given platform. INTPTR_MIN is provided as part of the C standard library in stdint.h and is available in C++ via cstdint.

The exact numeric value of INTPTR_MIN depends on the platform’s pointer width and representation. On common 32-bit systems, it is typically -2147483648, and on common 64-bit systems, it is typically -9223372036854775808. In general, the minimum equals -(2^(N-1)) where N is the number of bits in the pointer-sized signed integer.

INTPTR_MIN is typically defined alongside INTPTR_MAX, which represents the maximum value of intptr_t, and alongside UINTPTR_MAX for the corresponding unsigned type. These macros are useful for portable code that manipulates values intended to be as large as a pointer can hold, without assuming a particular bit width.

In C++, developers can alternatively obtain the same bounds through std::numeric_limits<std::intptr_t>::min() (and max()) from the <limits> header. Printing and formatting can use the appropriate macros from inttypes when available, or rely on the numeric_limits approach for type-safe code.

See also: intptr_t, INTPTR_MAX, UINTPTR_MAX, numeric_limits, std::intptr_t.