const char* and char const* – are they the same?

Actually, according to the standard, const modifies the element directly to its left. The use of const at the beginning of a declaration is just a convenient mental shortcut. So the following two statements are equivalent:

char const * pointerToConstantContent1;
const char * pointerToConstantContent2;

In order to ensure the pointer itself is not modified, const should be placed after the asterisk:

char * const constantPointerToMutableContent;

To protect both the pointer and the content to which it points, use two consts.

char const * const constantPointerToConstantContent;

I’ve personally adopted always putting the const after the portion I intend not to modify such that I maintain consistency even when the pointer is the part I wish to keep constant.