Demuxing Library]

Demuxers read a media file and split it into chunks of data (packets). More...

Data Structures

struct AVInputFormat

Functions

AVInputFormat * av_find_input_format (const char *short_name)

Find AVInputFormat based on the short name of the input format.

AVInputFormat * av_probe_input_format (AVProbeData *pd, int is_opened)

Guess the file format.

AVInputFormat * av_probe_input_format2 (AVProbeData *pd, int is_opened, int *score_max)

Guess the file format.

AVInputFormat * av_probe_input_format3 (AVProbeData *pd, int is_opened, int *score_ret)

Guess the file format.

int av_probe_input_buffer (AVIOContext *pb, AVInputFormat **fmt, const char *filename, void *logctx, unsigned int offset, unsigned int max_probe_size)

Probe a bytestream to determine the input format.

int avformat_open_input (AVFormatContext **ps, const char *filename, AVInputFormat *fmt, AVDictionary **options)

Open an input stream and read the header.

attribute_deprecated int av_demuxer_open (AVFormatContext *ic)

attribute_deprecated int av_find_stream_info (AVFormatContext *ic)

Read packets of a media file to get stream information.

int avformat_find_stream_info (AVFormatContext *ic, AVDictionary **options)

Read packets of a media file to get stream information.

AVProgram * av_find_program_from_stream (AVFormatContext *ic, AVProgram *last, int s)

Find the programs which belong to a given stream.

int av_find_best_stream (AVFormatContext *ic, enum AVMediaType type, int wanted_stream_nb, int related_stream, AVCodec **decoder_ret, int flags)

Find the "best" stream in the file.

attribute_deprecated int av_read_packet (AVFormatContext *s, AVPacket *pkt)

int av_read_frame (AVFormatContext *s, AVPacket *pkt)

Return the next frame of a stream.

int av_seek_frame (AVFormatContext *s, int stream_index, int64_t timestamp, int flags)

Seek to the keyframe at timestamp.

int avformat_seek_file (AVFormatContext *s, int stream_index, int64_t min_ts, int64_t ts, int64_t max_ts, int flags)

Seek to timestamp ts.

int av_read_play (AVFormatContext *s)

Start playing a network-based stream (e.g.

int av_read_pause (AVFormatContext *s)

Pause a network-based stream (e.g.

attribute_deprecated void av_close_input_file (AVFormatContext *s)

void avformat_close_input (AVFormatContext **s)

Close an opened input AVFormatContext.

Detailed Description

Demuxers read a media file and split it into chunks of data (packets).

A packet contains one or more encoded frames which belongs to a single elementary stream. In the lavf API this process is represented by the avformat_open_input() function for opening a file, av_read_frame() for reading a single packet and finally avformat_close_input(), which does the cleanup.

Opening a media file

The minimum information required to open a file is its URL or filename, which is passed to avformat_open_input(), as in the following code:

 const char    *url = "in.mp3";
 AVFormatContext *s = NULL;
 int ret = avformat_open_input(&s, url, NULL, NULL);
 if (ret < 0)
     abort();

The above code attempts to allocate an AVFormatContext, open the specified file (autodetecting the format) and read the header, exporting the information stored there into s. Some formats do not have a header or do not store enough information there, so it is recommended that you call the avformat_find_stream_info() function which tries to read and decode a few frames to find missing information.

In some cases you might want to preallocate an AVFormatContext yourself with avformat_alloc_context() and do some tweaking on it before passing it to avformat_open_input(). One such case is when you want to use custom functions for reading input data instead of lavf internal I/O layer. To do that, create your own AVIOContext with avio_alloc_context(), passing your reading callbacks to it. Then set the pb field of your AVFormatContext to newly created AVIOContext.

Since the format of the opened file is in general not known until after avformat_open_input() has returned, it is not possible to set demuxer private options on a preallocated context. Instead, the options should be passed to avformat_open_input() wrapped in an AVDictionary:

 AVDictionary *options = NULL;
 av_dict_set(&options, "video_size", "640x480", 0);
 av_dict_set(&options, "pixel_format", "rgb24", 0);

 if (avformat_open_input(&s, url, NULL, &options) < 0)
     abort();
 av_dict_free(&options);

This code passes the private options 'video_size' and 'pixel_format' to the demuxer. They would be necessary for e.g. the rawvideo demuxer, since it cannot know how to interpret raw video data otherwise. If the format turns out to be something different than raw video, those options will not be recognized by the demuxer and therefore will not be applied. Such unrecognized options are then returned in the options dictionary (recognized options are consumed). The calling program can handle such unrecognized options as it wishes, e.g.

 AVDictionaryEntry *e;
 if (e = av_dict_get(options, "", NULL, AV_DICT_IGNORE_SUFFIX)) {
     fprintf(stderr, "Option %s not recognized by the demuxer.\n", e->key);
     abort();
 }

After you have finished reading the file, you must close it with avformat_close_input(). It will free everything associated with the file.

Reading from an opened file

Reading data from an opened AVFormatContext is done by repeatedly calling av_read_frame() on it. Each call, if successful, will return an AVPacket containing encoded data for one AVStream, identified by AVPacket.stream_index. This packet may be passed straight into the libavcodec decoding functions avcodec_decode_video2(), avcodec_decode_audio4() or avcodec_decode_subtitle2() if the caller wishes to decode the data.

AVPacket.pts, AVPacket.dts and AVPacket.duration timing information will be set if known. They may also be unset (i.e. AV_NOPTS_VALUE for pts/dts, 0 for duration) if the stream does not provide them. The timing information will be in AVStream.time_base units, i.e. it has to be multiplied by the timebase to convert them to seconds.

The packet data belongs to the demuxer and is invalid after the next call to av_read_frame(). The user must free the packet with av_free_packet() before calling av_read_frame() again or closing the file.

Seeking

Function Documentation

attribute_deprecated void av_close_input_file ( AVFormatContext * s )

Deprecated:: use avformat_close_input() Close a media file (but not its codecs).

Parameters:

s

media file handle

Definition at line 3091 of file utils.c.

attribute_deprecated int av_demuxer_open ( AVFormatContext * ic )

Definition at line 436 of file utils.c.

int av_find_best_stream	(	AVFormatContext *	ic,
		enum AVMediaType	type,
		int	wanted_stream_nb,
		int	related_stream,
		AVCodec **	decoder_ret,
		int	flags
	)

Find the "best" stream in the file.

The best stream is determined according to various heuristics as the most likely to be what the user expects. If the decoder parameter is non-NULL, av_find_best_stream will find the default decoder for the stream's codec; streams for which no decoder can be found are ignored.

Parameters:

	ic	media file handle
	type	stream type: video, audio, subtitles, etc.
	wanted_stream_nb	user-requested stream number, or -1 for automatic selection
	related_stream	try to find a stream related (eg. in the same program) to this one, or -1 if none
	decoder_ret	if non-NULL, returns the decoder for the selected stream
	flags	flags; none are currently defined

Returns:: the non-negative stream number in case of success, AVERROR_STREAM_NOT_FOUND if no stream with the requested type could be found, AVERROR_DECODER_NOT_FOUND if streams were found but no decoder

Note:: If av_find_best_stream returns successfully and decoder_ret is not NULL, then *decoder_ret is guaranteed to be set to a valid AVCodec.

Definition at line 2970 of file utils.c.

Referenced by find_stream(), open_codec_context(), open_input_file(), and read_thread().

AVInputFormat* av_find_input_format ( const char * short_name )

Find AVInputFormat based on the short name of the input format.

Definition at line 267 of file utils.c.

Referenced by ff_load_image(), http_receive_data(), movie_common_init(), opt_format(), opt_input_file(), parse_ffconfig(), sap_read_header(), and show_help_demuxer().

AVProgram* av_find_program_from_stream	(	AVFormatContext *	ic,
		AVProgram *	last,
		int	s
	)

Find the programs which belong to a given stream.

Parameters:

	ic	media file handle
	last	the last found program, the search will start after this program, or from the beginning if it is NULL
	s	stream index

Returns:: the next program which belongs to s, NULL if no program is found or the last program is not among the programs of ic.

Definition at line 2953 of file utils.c.

Referenced by av_find_best_stream().

attribute_deprecated int av_find_stream_info ( AVFormatContext * ic )

Read packets of a media file to get stream information.

This is useful for file formats with no headers such as MPEG. This function also computes the real framerate in case of MPEG-2 repeat frame mode. The logical file position is not changed by this function; examined packets may be buffered for later processing.

Parameters:

ic

media file handle

Returns:: >=0 if OK, AVERROR_xxx on error

Todo:: Let the user decide somehow what information is needed so that we do not waste time getting stuff the user does not need.

Deprecated:: use avformat_find_stream_info.

Definition at line 2536 of file utils.c.

int av_probe_input_buffer	(	AVIOContext *	pb,
		AVInputFormat **	fmt,
		const char *	filename,
		void *	logctx,
		unsigned int	offset,
		unsigned int	max_probe_size
	)

Probe a bytestream to determine the input format.

Each time a probe returns with a score that is too low, the probe buffer size is increased and another attempt is made. When the maximum probe size is reached, the input format with the highest score is returned.

Parameters:

	pb	the bytestream to probe
	fmt	the input format is put here
	filename	the filename of the stream
	logctx	the log context
	offset	the offset within the bytestream to probe from
	max_probe_size	the maximum probe buffer size (zero for default)

Returns:: 0 in case of success, a negative value corresponding to an AVERROR code otherwise

Definition at line 456 of file utils.c.

Referenced by hls_read_header(), and init_input().

AVInputFormat* av_probe_input_format	(	AVProbeData *	pd,
		int	is_opened
	)

Guess the file format.

Parameters:

is_opened

Whether the file is already opened; determines whether demuxers with or without AVFMT_NOFILE are probed.

Definition at line 394 of file utils.c.

Referenced by init_input().

AVInputFormat* av_probe_input_format2	(	AVProbeData *	pd,
		int	is_opened,
		int *	score_max
	)

Guess the file format.

Parameters:

	is_opened	Whether the file is already opened; determines whether demuxers with or without AVFMT_NOFILE are probed.
	score_max	A probe score larger that this is required to accept a detection, the variable is set to the actual detection score afterwards. If the score is <= AVPROBE_SCORE_MAX / 4 it is recommended to retry with a larger probe buffer.

Definition at line 383 of file utils.c.

Referenced by av_probe_input_buffer(), av_probe_input_format(), and read_gab2_sub().

AVInputFormat* av_probe_input_format3	(	AVProbeData *	pd,
		int	is_opened,
		int *	score_ret
	)

Guess the file format.

Parameters:

	is_opened	Whether the file is already opened; determines whether demuxers with or without AVFMT_NOFILE are probed.
	score_ret	The score of the best detection.

Definition at line 343 of file utils.c.

Referenced by av_probe_input_format2(), and set_codec_from_probe_data().

int av_read_frame	(	AVFormatContext *	s,
		AVPacket *	pkt
	)

Return the next frame of a stream.

This function returns what is stored in the file, and does not validate that what is there are valid frames for the decoder. It will split what is stored in the file into frames and return one for each call. It will not omit invalid data between valid frames so as to give the decoder the maximum information possible for decoding.

The returned packet is valid until the next av_read_frame() or until av_close_input_file() and must be freed with av_free_packet. For video, the packet contains exactly one frame. For audio, it contains an integer number of frames if each frame has a known fixed size (e.g. PCM or ADPCM data). If the audio frames have a variable size (e.g. MPEG audio), then it contains one frame.

pkt->pts, pkt->dts and pkt->duration are always set to correct values in AVStream.time_base units (and guessed if the format cannot provide them). pkt->pts can be AV_NOPTS_VALUE if the video format has B-frames, so it is better to rely on pkt->dts if you do not decompress the payload.

Returns:: 0 if OK, < 0 on error or end of file

Definition at line 1426 of file utils.c.

Referenced by asf_read_pts(), ff_load_image(), get_input_packet(), hls_read_packet(), http_prepare_data(), main(), movie_push_frame(), mpc_read_seek(), mpegts_get_dts(), read_packets(), read_thread(), sap_fetch_packet(), search_hi_lo_keyframes(), seek_frame_generic(), and wv_read_seek().

attribute_deprecated int av_read_packet	(	AVFormatContext *	s,
		AVPacket *	pkt
	)

Deprecated:: use AVFMT_FLAG_NOFILLIN | AVFMT_FLAG_NOPARSE to read raw unprocessed packets

Read a transport packet from a media file.

This function is obsolete and should never be used. Use av_read_frame() instead.

Parameters:

	s	media file handle
	pkt	is filled

Returns:: 0 if OK, AVERROR_xxx on error

Definition at line 810 of file utils.c.

Referenced by extract_mpeg4_header().

int av_read_pause ( AVFormatContext * s )

Pause a network-based stream (e.g.

RTSP stream).

Use av_read_play() to resume it.

Definition at line 3034 of file utils.c.

Referenced by read_thread().

int av_read_play ( AVFormatContext * s )

Start playing a network-based stream (e.g.

RTSP stream) at the current position.

Definition at line 3025 of file utils.c.

Referenced by read_thread().

int av_seek_frame	(	AVFormatContext *	s,
		int	stream_index,
		int64_t	timestamp,
		int	flags
	)

Seek to the keyframe at timestamp.

'timestamp' in 'stream_index'.

Parameters:

	stream_index	If stream_index is (-1), a default stream is selected, and timestamp is automatically converted from AV_TIME_BASE units to the stream specific time_base.
	timestamp	Timestamp in AVStream.time_base units or, if no stream is specified, in AV_TIME_BASE units.
	flags	flags which select direction and seeking mode

Returns:: >= 0 on success

Definition at line 2020 of file utils.c.

Referenced by avformat_seek_file(), movie_common_init(), open_input_stream(), opt_input_file(), and rewind_file().

void avformat_close_input ( AVFormatContext ** s )

Close an opened input AVFormatContext.

Free it and all its contents and set *s to NULL.

Definition at line 3097 of file utils.c.

Referenced by av_close_input_file(), avi_read_close(), build_feed_streams(), build_file_streams(), close_connection(), close_input_file(), exit_program(), ff_load_image(), ff_rtsp_close_streams(), ff_wms_parse_sdp_a_line(), free_variant_list(), handle_file(), http_prepare_data(), http_receive_data(), main(), movie_uninit(), open_input_stream(), opt_input_file(), rdt_free_context(), read_ffserver_streams(), read_thread(), and sap_read_close().

int avformat_find_stream_info	(	AVFormatContext *	ic,
		AVDictionary **	options
	)

Read packets of a media file to get stream information.

This is useful for file formats with no headers such as MPEG. This function also computes the real framerate in case of MPEG-2 repeat frame mode. The logical file position is not changed by this function; examined packets may be buffered for later processing.

Parameters:

	ic	media file handle
	options	If non-NULL, an ic.nb_streams long array of pointers to dictionaries, where i-th member contains options for codec corresponding to i-th stream. On return each dictionary will be filled with options that were not found.

Returns:: >=0 if OK, AVERROR_xxx on error

Note:: this function isn't guaranteed to open all the codecs, so options being non-empty at return is a perfectly normal behavior.

Todo:: Let the user decide somehow what information is needed so that we do not waste time getting stuff the user does not need.

Definition at line 2542 of file utils.c.

Referenced by av_find_stream_info(), build_file_streams(), handle_file(), hls_read_header(), main(), movie_common_init(), open_input_file(), open_input_stream(), opt_input_file(), and read_thread().

int avformat_open_input	(	AVFormatContext **	ps,
		const char *	filename,
		AVInputFormat *	fmt,
		AVDictionary **	options
	)

Open an input stream and read the header.

The codecs are not opened. The stream must be closed with av_close_input_file().

Parameters:

	ps	Pointer to user-supplied AVFormatContext (allocated by avformat_alloc_context). May be a pointer to NULL, in which case an AVFormatContext is allocated by this function and written into ps. Note that a user-supplied AVFormatContext will be freed on failure.
	filename	Name of the stream to open.
	fmt	If non-NULL, this parameter forces a specific input format. Otherwise the format is autodetected.
	options	A dictionary filled with AVFormatContext and demuxer-private options. On return this parameter will be destroyed and replaced with a dict containing options that were not found. May be NULL.

Returns:: 0 on success, a negative AVERROR on failure.

Note:: If you want to use custom IO, preallocate the format context and set its pb field.

Definition at line 586 of file utils.c.

Referenced by build_feed_streams(), build_file_streams(), ff_load_image(), ff_wms_parse_sdp_a_line(), handle_file(), hls_read_header(), http_receive_data(), main(), movie_common_init(), open_input_file(), open_input_stream(), opt_input_file(), rdt_new_context(), read_ffserver_streams(), read_gab2_sub(), read_thread(), and sap_read_header().

int avformat_seek_file	(	AVFormatContext *	s,
		int	stream_index,
		int64_t	min_ts,
		int64_t	ts,
		int64_t	max_ts,
		int	flags
	)

Seek to timestamp ts.

Seeking will be done so that the point from which all active streams can be presented successfully will be closest to ts and within min/max_ts. Active streams are all streams that have AVStream.discard < AVDISCARD_ALL.

If flags contain AVSEEK_FLAG_BYTE, then all timestamps are in bytes and are the file position (this may not be supported by all demuxers). If flags contain AVSEEK_FLAG_FRAME, then all timestamps are in frames in the stream with stream_index (this may not be supported by all demuxers). Otherwise all timestamps are in units of the stream selected by stream_index or if stream_index is -1, in AV_TIME_BASE units. If flags contain AVSEEK_FLAG_ANY, then non-keyframes are treated as keyframes (this may not be supported by all demuxers).

Parameters:

	stream_index	index of the stream which is used as time base reference
	min_ts	smallest acceptable timestamp
	ts	target timestamp
	max_ts	largest acceptable timestamp
	flags	flags

Returns:: >=0 on success, error code otherwise

Note:: This is part of the new seek API which is still under construction. Thus do not use this yet. It may change at any time, do not expect ABI compatibility yet!

Definition at line 2030 of file utils.c.

Referenced by main(), read_thread(), and seek_subtitle().


Data Structures
struct	AVInputFormat
Functions
AVInputFormat *	av_find_input_format (const char *short_name)
	Find AVInputFormat based on the short name of the input format.
AVInputFormat *	av_probe_input_format (AVProbeData *pd, int is_opened)
	Guess the file format.
AVInputFormat *	av_probe_input_format2 (AVProbeData pd, int is_opened, int score_max)
	Guess the file format.
AVInputFormat *	av_probe_input_format3 (AVProbeData pd, int is_opened, int score_ret)
	Guess the file format.
int	av_probe_input_buffer (AVIOContext pb, AVInputFormat fmt, const char filename, void *logctx, unsigned int offset, unsigned int max_probe_size)
	Probe a bytestream to determine the input format.
int	avformat_open_input (AVFormatContext *ps, const char filename, AVInputFormat fmt, AVDictionary *options)
	Open an input stream and read the header.
attribute_deprecated int	av_demuxer_open (AVFormatContext *ic)
attribute_deprecated int	av_find_stream_info (AVFormatContext *ic)
	Read packets of a media file to get stream information.
int	avformat_find_stream_info (AVFormatContext ic, AVDictionary *options)
	Read packets of a media file to get stream information.
AVProgram *	av_find_program_from_stream (AVFormatContext ic, AVProgram last, int s)
	Find the programs which belong to a given stream.
int	av_find_best_stream (AVFormatContext ic, enum AVMediaType type, int wanted_stream_nb, int related_stream, AVCodec *decoder_ret, int flags)
	Find the "best" stream in the file.
attribute_deprecated int	av_read_packet (AVFormatContext s, AVPacket pkt)
int	av_read_frame (AVFormatContext s, AVPacket pkt)
	Return the next frame of a stream.
int	av_seek_frame (AVFormatContext *s, int stream_index, int64_t timestamp, int flags)
	Seek to the keyframe at timestamp.
int	avformat_seek_file (AVFormatContext *s, int stream_index, int64_t min_ts, int64_t ts, int64_t max_ts, int flags)
	Seek to timestamp ts.
int	av_read_play (AVFormatContext *s)
	Start playing a network-based stream (e.g.
int	av_read_pause (AVFormatContext *s)
	Pause a network-based stream (e.g.
attribute_deprecated void	av_close_input_file (AVFormatContext *s)
void	avformat_close_input (AVFormatContext **s)
	Close an opened input AVFormatContext.

Demuxing [I/O and Muxing/Demuxing Library]

Data Structures

Functions

Detailed Description

Opening a media file

Reading from an opened file

Seeking

Function Documentation

Demuxing
[I/O and Muxing/Demuxing Library]