[Libvir] ABI compatibility question: static strings returned from some functions

We have some functions such as virConnectGetType which are defined to return statically allocated strings: /** * virConnectGetType: * @conn: pointer to the hypervisor connection * * Get the name of the Hypervisor software used. * * Returns NULL in case of error, a static zero terminated string otherwise. */ const char * virConnectGetType(virConnectPtr conn) [...] This is all well and good in the typical local case, but when working over a remote connection the string we return is allocated and requires freeing at some point. Unfortunately I don't see a good thing to do in this case except to change the semantics of virConnectGetType, which arguably breaks ABI compatibility. Suggestions from anyone? Rich. garbage.collection++ -- Emerging Technologies, Red Hat http://et.redhat.com/~rjones/ 64 Baker Street, London, W1U 7DF Mobile: +44 7866 314 421 "[Negative numbers] darken the very whole doctrines of the equations and make dark of the things which are in their nature excessively obvious and simple" (Francis Maseres FRS, mathematician, 1759)