Embedded Systems Error Code
Systems & Devices
Embedded Systems
DOUBLE FREE | Memory freed twice
Industry
Systems & Devices
Canonical
/systems/embedded-systems/error-codes/double-free/
Last Updated
Feb 27, 2026
Summary
The firmware attempted to free a heap pointer more than once, corrupting allocator state.
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What This Code Means
“Double free” indicates a programming error where the same heap allocation is released twice. In embedded systems this can lead to heap corruption, random crashes, and unpredictable behavior.
Where Users Usually See This Code
- Debug builds with heap checks enabled
- Crash logs that include allocator diagnostics
Why This Code Appears
- Pointer ownership is unclear between modules
- Error-handling paths free memory twice
- Race conditions in multi-threaded code
What Typically Happens Next
- Heap corruption leading to crash/reset
What This Code Is Not
- It is not a normal field-service “hardware” error
- It is not a connectivity failure
Troubleshooting Checklist
- □ Capture the call stack and allocation/free trace if available
- □ Review code paths for ownership and lifetime rules
Notes And Edge Cases
In production firmware, these issues often present as random reboots without clear “double free” text.
Related Codes
8 links
- HEAP CORRUPTION CodeAllocator state corrupted
- ILLEGAL INSTRUCTION CodeInvalid CPU instruction
- MALLOC FAILED CodeHeap allocation failed
- OUT OF MEMORY CodeAllocation failure
- STACK OVERFLOW CodeStack exhaustion
- BUSFAULT CodeBus fault exception
- SVCALL CodeSupervisor call
- ASSERTION FAILED CodeRuntime assertion
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