guint8

guint8 is an unsigned 8-bit integer type defined by GLib, the core utility library used by the GNOME project. It is part of GLib’s fixed-width integer family, alongside types such as gint8, guint16, guint32, and guint64. The width is eight bits, giving a value range of 0 to 255. guint8 is designed to provide portable, platform-independent byte-sized integers for APIs that handle binary data, file I/O, network protocols, and other byte-oriented operations.

Implementation notes: In most environments, guint8 is defined as an alias for an unsigned char, although the important characteristic is its 8-bit width. GLib provides these typedefs in its headers to ensure consistent type names across platforms, reducing reliance on platform-specific types such as those from stdint.h.

Typical usage: guint8 is commonly used for buffers and binary data. For example, GByteArray is a dynamic array whose elements are guint8, making it suitable for storing raw bytes. Many GLib APIs accept or return pointers to guint8 when dealing with memory blocks, byte streams, or protocol payloads. The 8-bit unsigned nature makes arithmetic and comparison straightforward for byte-wise processing.

See also: GByteArray, guint16, guint32, gint8, guchar. These types form GLib’s cross-platform approach to fixed-width integers and are used throughout GLib and related libraries to promote portability and consistency in C code.