---
name: "PR_MCE_KILL_SET"
section: "2const"
platform: "linux"
package: "man-pages"
version: "6.19-1"
release: "Arch Linux 2026-11-01"
platforms: ["linux"]
url: "https://new.carta.tech/PR_MCE_KILL_SET"
---

# PR\_MCE\_KILL\_SET(2const)

set the machine check memory corruption kill policy

## NAME

PR\_MCE\_KILL\_SET - set the machine check memory corruption kill policy

## LIBRARY

Standard C library (*libc*, *-lc*)

## SYNOPSIS

```
#include <linux/prctl.h>  /* Definition of PR_* constants */
#include <sys/prctl.h>
```

**int prctl(PR\_MCE\_KILL, PR\_MCE\_KILL\_SET, long** *pol***, 0L, 0L);**

## DESCRIPTION

Use a thread-specific memory corruption kill policy.

*pol* defines whether the policy is *early kill* (**PR\_MCE\_KILL\_EARLY**), *late kill* (**PR\_MCE\_KILL\_LATE**), or the system-wide default (**PR\_MCE\_KILL\_DEFAULT**).

Early kill means that the thread receives a **SIGBUS** signal as soon as hardware memory corruption is detected inside its address space.

In late kill mode, the process is killed only when it accesses a corrupted page. See [**sigaction**(2)](/sigaction/2.md) for more information on the **SIGBUS** signal.

## RETURN VALUE

On success, 0 is returned. On error, -1 is returned, and *errno* is set to indicate the error.

## ERRORS

- **EINVAL**

  *pol* is not a valid value.

## STANDARDS

Linux.

## HISTORY

Linux 2.6.32.

## SEE ALSO

[**prctl**(2)](/prctl/2.md), [**PR\_MCE\_KILL**(2const)](/PR_MCE_KILL/2const.md)