[deliverable/linux.git] / Documentation / media / uapi / v4l / dev-codec.rst

.. -*- coding: utf-8; mode: rst -*-

.. _codec:

***************
Codec Interface
***************

A V4L2 codec can compress, decompress, transform, or otherwise convert
video data from one format into another format, in memory. Typically
such devices are memory-to-memory devices (i.e. devices with the
``V4L2_CAP_VIDEO_M2M`` or ``V4L2_CAP_VIDEO_M2M_MPLANE`` capability set).

A memory-to-memory video node acts just like a normal video node, but it
supports both output (sending frames from memory to the codec hardware)
and capture (receiving the processed frames from the codec hardware into
memory) stream I/O. An application will have to setup the stream I/O for
both sides and finally call :ref:`VIDIOC_STREAMON <VIDIOC_STREAMON>`
for both capture and output to start the codec.

Video compression codecs use the MPEG controls to setup their codec
parameters

.. note:: The MPEG controls actually support many more codecs than
   just MPEG. See :ref:`mpeg-controls`.

Memory-to-memory devices can often be used as a shared resource: you can
open the video node multiple times, each application setting up their
own codec properties that are local to the file handle, and each can use
it independently from the others. The driver will arbitrate access to
the codec and reprogram it whenever another file handler gets access.
This is different from the usual video node behavior where the video
properties are global to the device (i.e. changing something through one
file handle is visible through another file handle).
Commit	Line	Data
5377d91f MH	1	.. -- coding: utf-8; mode: rst --
	2
	3	.. _codec:
	4
	5	***************
	6	Codec Interface
	7	***************
	8
	9	A V4L2 codec can compress, decompress, transform, or otherwise convert
	10	video data from one format into another format, in memory. Typically
	11	such devices are memory-to-memory devices (i.e. devices with the
	12	``V4L2_CAP_VIDEO_M2M`` or ``V4L2_CAP_VIDEO_M2M_MPLANE`` capability set).
	13
	14	A memory-to-memory video node acts just like a normal video node, but it
	15	supports both output (sending frames from memory to the codec hardware)
	16	and capture (receiving the processed frames from the codec hardware into
	17	memory) stream I/O. An application will have to setup the stream I/O for
863bd721	18	both sides and finally call :ref:`VIDIOC_STREAMON <VIDIOC_STREAMON>`
5377d91f MH	19	for both capture and output to start the codec.
	20
	21	Video compression codecs use the MPEG controls to setup their codec
706f8a99 MCC	22	parameters
	23
	24	.. note:: The MPEG controls actually support many more codecs than
	25	just MPEG. See :ref:`mpeg-controls`.
5377d91f MH	26
	27	Memory-to-memory devices can often be used as a shared resource: you can
	28	open the video node multiple times, each application setting up their
	29	own codec properties that are local to the file handle, and each can use
	30	it independently from the others. The driver will arbitrate access to
	31	the codec and reprogram it whenever another file handler gets access.
	32	This is different from the usual video node behavior where the video
	33	properties are global to the device (i.e. changing something through one
	34	file handle is visible through another file handle).