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Global Variables in C

Global variables in C are defined outside functions and can be accessed by any function. They hold their value throughout a program's lifetime. While they can simplify programming logic, using too many global variables is discouraged as it can make programs more difficult to debug and maintain.

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20 views5 pages

Global Variables in C

Global variables in C are defined outside functions and can be accessed by any function. They hold their value throughout a program's lifetime. While they can simplify programming logic, using too many global variables is discouraged as it can make programs more difficult to debug and maintain.

Uploaded by

michal hana
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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6/16/24, 12:40 PM Global Variables in C

Global Variables in C
Global variables are defined outside a function, usually at the top of a program.
Global variables hold their values throughout the lifetime of a program and they can
be accessed inside any of the functions defined for the program.

If a function accesses and modifies the value of a global variable, then the updated
value is available for other function calls.

If a variable defined in a certain file, then you can still access it inside another code
module as a global variable by using the extern keyword. The extern keyword can
also be used to access a global variable instead of a local variable of the same name.

Declaring Global Variable


The declaration of a global variable in C is similar to the declaration of the normal
(local) variables but global variables are declared outside of the functions.

Consider the following syntax to declare a global variable:

data_type variable_name;

// main or any function


int main()
{
}

Example of Global Variable in C


The following program shows how global variables are used in a program:

#include <stdio.h>

/* global variable declaration */


int g = 10;

int main(){

/* local variable declaration */


int a;

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/* actual initialization */
a = g * 2;
printf("Value of a = %d, and g = %d\n", a, g);

return 0;
}

Output

When you run this code, it will produce the following output −

Value of a = 20, and g = 10

Accessing Global Variables


Global variables are accessible in all the functions in a C program. If any function
updates the value of a global variable, then its updated value will subsequently be
available for all the other functions.

Example of Accessing Global Variables

The following example demonstrates the example of accessing global variables in C


language:

#include <stdio.h>

/* global variable declaration */


int g = 10;

int function1();
int function2();

int main(){

printf("Value of Global variable g = %d\n", g);

function1();
printf("Updated value of Global variable g = %d\n", g);

function2();

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printf("Updated value of Global variable g = %d\n", g);

return 0;
}

int function1(){
g = g + 10;
printf("New value of g in function1(): %d\n", g);
return 0;
}

int function2(){
printf("The value of g in function2(): %d\n", g);
g = g + 10;
return 0;
}

Run the code and check its output −

Value of Global variable g = 10


New value of g in function1(): 20
Updated value of Global variable g = 20
The value of g in function2(): 20
Updated value of Global variable g = 30

Scope and Accessibility of Global Variables


Global variables are available to only those functions which are defined after their
declaration. Global variables are declared outside of any function, so they can be
accessed by all functions within the same file by default.

Example

In this example, we declared a global variable (x) before the main() function. There
is another global variable y that is declared after the main() function but before
function1(). In such a case, the variable y, even thought it is a global variable, is not
available for use in the main() function, as it is declared afterwards. As a result, you
get an error.

#include <stdio.h>

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6/16/24, 12:40 PM Global Variables in C

/* global variable declaration */


int x = 10;

int function1();

int main(){

printf("value of Global variable x= %d y=%d\n", x, y);


function1();
return 0;
}

int y = 20;

int function1(){
printf ("Value of Global variable x = %d y = %d\n", x, y);
}

When you run this code, it will produce an error −

Line no 11: error: 'y' undeclared (first use in this function)


11 | printf ("Value of Global variable x = %d y = %d\n", x, y);
| ^

Accessing Global Variables With extern Keyword


If you want to access a global variable when a local variable with same name is also
there in the program, then you should use the extern keyword.

Example

In this C Program, we have a global variable and a local variable with the same
name (x). Now, let's see how we can use the keyword "extern" to avoid confusion −

#include <stdio.h>

// Global variable x
int x = 50;

int main(){

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// Local variable x
int x = 10;{
extern int x;
printf("Value of global x is %d\n", x);
}

printf("Value of local x is %d\n", x);

return 0;
}

Output

When you run this code, it will produce the following output −

Value of global x is 50
Value of local x is 10

Avoid Using Global Variables


Global variables can simplify the programming logic. Global variables can be
accessed across functions and you need not use a parameter passing technique to
pass variables from one function to another. However, it is not wise or efficient to
have too many global variables in a C program, as the memory occupied by these
variables is not released till the end of the program.

Using global declaration is not considered a good programming practice because it


doesn’t implement structured approach. Global declaration is also not advised from
security point of view, as they are accessible to all the functions. Finally, using global
declarations can make a program difficult to debug, maintain, and scale up.

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