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(libc.info)File Name Portability

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Portability of File Names
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   The rules for the syntax of file names discussed in Note: File
Names, are the rules normally used by the GNU system and by other
POSIX systems.  However, other operating systems may use other
conventions.

   There are two reasons why it can be important for you to be aware of
file name portability issues:

   * If your program makes assumptions about file name syntax, or
     contains embedded literal file name strings, it is more difficult
     to get it to run under other operating systems that use different
     syntax conventions.

   * Even if you are not concerned about running your program on
     machines that run other operating systems, it may still be
     possible to access files that use different naming conventions.
     For example, you may be able to access file systems on another
     computer running a different operating system over a network, or
     read and write disks in formats used by other operating systems.

   The ISO C standard says very little about file name syntax, only that
file names are strings.  In addition to varying restrictions on the
length of file names and what characters can validly appear in a file
name, different operating systems use different conventions and syntax
for concepts such as structured directories and file types or
extensions.  Some concepts such as file versions might be supported in
some operating systems and not by others.

   The POSIX.1 standard allows implementations to put additional
restrictions on file name syntax, concerning what characters are
permitted in file names and on the length of file name and file name
component strings.  However, in the GNU system, you do not need to worry
about these restrictions; any character except the null character is
permitted in a file name string, and there are no limits on the length
of file name strings.