diff --git a/ghc/lib/cbits/freeFile.lc b/ghc/lib/cbits/freeFile.lc
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..5c780769460d7cef873d637c459e603d0540d40e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/ghc/lib/cbits/freeFile.lc
@@ -0,0 +1,52 @@
+%
+% (c) The GRASP/AQUA Project, Glasgow University, 1997
+%
+\subsection[freeFile.lc]{Giving up files}
+
+\begin{code}
+
+#include "rtsdefs.h"
+#include "stgio.h"
+
+/* sigh, the standard channels are handled differently,
+   we don't want them freed via the ForeignObj finaliser,
+   as we probably want to use these channels before we
+   *really* shutdown (dumping stats etc.)
+*/
+void freeStdChannel(fp)
+StgForeignObj fp;
+{ return; }
+
+void freeFile(fp)
+StgForeignObj fp;
+{
+    int rc;
+
+    if ( fp == NULL || (rc = unlockFile(fileno((FILE *)fp))) ) {
+	/* If the file handle has been explicitly closed
+         * (via closeFile()) or freed, we will have given
+	 * up our process lock, so we silently return here.
+         */
+       return;
+    }
+
+    /*
+     * The finaliser for the FILEs embedded in Handles. The RTS
+     * assumes that the finaliser runs without problems, so all
+     * we can do here is fclose(), and hope nothing went wrong.
+     *
+     * Assume fclose() flushes output stream.
+     */
+
+    rc = fclose((FILE *)fp);
+    /* Error or no error, we don't care.. */
+
+    /* 
+    if ( rc == EOF ) {
+       fprintf(stderr. "Warning: file close ran into trouble\n");
+    }
+    */
+
+    return;
+}
+\end{code}