Self Destructing Code in C

Using remove() function in C, we can write a program which can destroy itself after it is compiled and executed.

Explanation: This can be done using the remove function in C. Note that, this is done in Linux environment. So, the remove function is fed the first parameter in command line argument i.e. a.out file (executable file) created after compiling . Hence the program will be destroyed.

// CPP program of self destructing output file
#include<stdio.h>
#include<stdlib.h>

int main(int c, char *argv[])
{
    printf("By the time you run me "
           "I will be destroyed \n");

    // Array of pointers to command line arguments
    remove(argv[0]);

    // Note: argv[0] will contain the executable\
    // file i.e. 'a.out'

    return 0;
}

Steps:

1. Open the terminal.
2. Type the following command on the terminal :

    gcc self.c 

3. This will create the a.out file.
4. Type the following command on the terminal :

    ./a.out 

Output:

By the time you run me, I will be destroyed

After the output shown above, the a.out file will be removed. And hence our work is done.