Linux SIGABRT (Abort Signal)

SIGABRT (Signal 6) is sent to a process to cause abnormal termination, typically triggered by the abort() function when the program detects a fatal error or assertion failure that cannot be recovered from.

Common Causes

Failed assertion in code (assert() function call)
Memory corruption detected by runtime (double free, buffer overflow)
C++ std::terminate() or uncaught exception
Library or runtime environment detecting unrecoverable state
Manual triggering via kill -6 or raise(SIGABRT)

How to Fix

1 Analyze Core Dump

Enable core dumps and use gdb to examine the stack trace at crash time.

BASH

 $ ulimit -c unlimited
gdb /path/to/executable core
# In gdb: bt (for backtrace)

2 Check Application Logs

Examine application logs for abort messages or failed assertions before the crash.

BASH

 $ journalctl -xe | grep -A 10 -B 5 "SIGABRT\|abort"
# Or check application-specific log files

3 Run with Debugger

Run the program under gdb to catch the abort signal and get immediate debugging context.

BASH

 $ gdb --args /path/to/program args
# In gdb: run
# When crash occurs: bt full

4 Check for Memory Issues

Use tools like Valgrind to detect memory corruption that could trigger SIGABRT.

BASH

$ valgrind --leak-check=full --show-leak-kinds=all /path/to/program args

5 Handle Signal Programmatically

For development, install a signal handler to catch SIGABRT and log additional context before exit.

BASH

 $ #include <signal.h>
#include <stdio.h>
void handler(int sig) {
    fprintf(stderr, "SIGABRT caught, performing cleanup\n");
    // Custom cleanup
    exit(1);
}
signal(SIGABRT, handler);