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| -rwxr-xr-x | doc/api/child_process.md | 14 |
1 files changed, 10 insertions, 4 deletions
diff --git a/doc/api/child_process.md b/doc/api/child_process.md index 6f5b320f43c..cf0ba5a75ba 100755 --- a/doc/api/child_process.md +++ b/doc/api/child_process.md @@ -26,10 +26,16 @@ ls.on('close', (code) => { ``` By default, pipes for `stdin`, `stdout`, and `stderr` are established between -the parent Node.js process and the spawned child. It is possible to stream data -through these pipes in a non-blocking way. *Note, however, that some programs -use line-buffered I/O internally. While that does not affect Node.js, it can -mean that data sent to the child process may not be immediately consumed.* +the parent Node.js process and the spawned child. These pipes have +limited (and platform-specific) capacity. If the child process writes to +stdout in excess of that limit without the output being captured, the child +process will block waiting for the pipe buffer to accept more data. This is +identical to the behavior of pipes in the shell. Use the `{ stdio: 'ignore' }` +option if the output will not be consumed. +It is possible to stream data through these pipes in a non-blocking way. Note, +however, that some programs use line-buffered I/O internally. While that does +not affect Node.js, it can mean that data sent to the child process may not be +immediately consumed. The [`child_process.spawn()`][] method spawns the child process asynchronously, without blocking the Node.js event loop. The [`child_process.spawnSync()`][] |