It's a little hard to tell without seeing the actual code but you can use this as a baseline:
#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>
int main (int argc, char *argv[]) {
char *pCh;
unsigned long unlong = 42;
// Check enough arguments.
if (argc != 2) {
puts ("Not enough arguments");
return 1;
}
// Convert to ulong WITH CHECKING!
unlong = strtoul (argv[1], &pCh, 10);
// Ensure argument was okay.
if ((pCh == argv[1]) || (*pCh != '\0')) {
puts ("Invalid number");
return 1;
}
// Output converted argument and exit.
printf ("Argument was %ld\n", unlong);
return 0;
}
Transcript follows:
pax> ./testprog 314159
Argument was 314159
If that's not enough to help out, I suggest you post the shortest complete program that exhibits the problem, then we can tell you in excruciating detail what's wrong with it :-)