.TH LIBCONTACTS_GET_PATH 3 LIBCONTACTS
.SH NAME
libcontacts_get_path \- Get the file information for a contact is or would be stored in
.SH SYNOPSIS
.nf
#include <libcontacts.h>

char *libcontacts_get_path(const char *\fIid\fP, const struct passwd *\fIuser\fP);
.fi
.PP
Link with
.IR -lcontacts .

.SH DESCRIPTION
The
.BR libcontacts_get_path ()
function get the path to the file for the contact with
the ID specified in the
.I id
parameter, neither this file nor its directory need exist
for successful completion to the place. If
.I id
is the empty string, the directory where all contacts is
returned with a trailing slash
.RB ( / ).
.PP
.I user
shall be the user's entry in the password database (not
the shadow database). This is used for the get user's
home directory.

.SH RETURN VALUE
The
.BR libcontacts_get_path ()
function returns the path the file where the information
for the specified contact is stored (or if requested,
the directory where contact files are stored) upon successful
completion; on failure
.I NULL
is returned and
.I errno
is set appropriately to indicate the error.

.SH ERRORS
The
.BR libcontacts_get_path ()
function will fail if:
.TP
.B EINVAL
Either parameter is
.I NULL
or the home directory field in
.I user
is
.I NULL
or the empty string.
.PP
The
.BR libcontacts_get_path ()
function may also fail for any reason specified for the
.BR malloc (3)
function.

.SH EXTENDED DESCRIPTION
All contact file shall be stored in
.I .config/contacts/
within the user's home directory. All environment variables
shall be ignored.
.PP
The contact ID
.RI ( id )
must not contain slashes, and should ideally only contain
lower case ASCII letters, ASCII digits, and ASCII hyphens.
Contact ID's starting with a dot have special meaning,
currently define ones are:
.TP
.B .me
Contact information for the user.
.TP
.B .nobody
Pseudo-contact where groups that how no members can be
stored.
.PP
The contact ID
.RI ( id )
must end with a tilde, these are used to write to until
file system synchronisation has takes place for the file,
and the file is subsequently renamed.

.SH SEE ALSO
.BR libcontacts.h (0),
.BR libcontacts (7),
.BR libcontacts_load_contact (7),
.BR libcontacts_save_contact (7)