1 \input texinfo @c -*- texinfo -*-
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4 @settitle ffmpeg Documentation
6 @center @titlefont{ffmpeg Documentation}
15 ffmpeg [@var{global_options}] @{[@var{input_file_options}] -i @file{input_file}@} ... @{[@var{output_file_options}] @file{output_file}@} ...
18 @c man begin DESCRIPTION
20 @command{ffmpeg} is a very fast video and audio converter that can also grab from
21 a live audio/video source. It can also convert between arbitrary sample
22 rates and resize video on the fly with a high quality polyphase filter.
24 @command{ffmpeg} reads from an arbitrary number of input "files" (which can be regular
25 files, pipes, network streams, grabbing devices, etc.), specified by the
26 @code{-i} option, and writes to an arbitrary number of output "files", which are
27 specified by a plain output filename. Anything found on the command line which
28 cannot be interpreted as an option is considered to be an output filename.
30 Each input or output file can, in principle, contain any number of streams of
31 different types (video/audio/subtitle/attachment/data). The allowed number and/or
32 types of streams may be limited by the container format. Selecting which
33 streams from which inputs will go into which output is either done automatically
34 or with the @code{-map} option (see the Stream selection chapter).
36 To refer to input files in options, you must use their indices (0-based). E.g.
37 the first input file is @code{0}, the second is @code{1}, etc. Similarly, streams
38 within a file are referred to by their indices. E.g. @code{2:3} refers to the
39 fourth stream in the third input file. Also see the Stream specifiers chapter.
41 As a general rule, options are applied to the next specified
42 file. Therefore, order is important, and you can have the same
43 option on the command line multiple times. Each occurrence is
44 then applied to the next input or output file.
45 Exceptions from this rule are the global options (e.g. verbosity level),
46 which should be specified first.
48 Do not mix input and output files -- first specify all input files, then all
49 output files. Also do not mix options which belong to different files. All
50 options apply ONLY to the next input or output file and are reset between files.
54 To set the video bitrate of the output file to 64 kbit/s:
56 ffmpeg -i input.avi -b:v 64k -bufsize 64k output.avi
60 To force the frame rate of the output file to 24 fps:
62 ffmpeg -i input.avi -r 24 output.avi
66 To force the frame rate of the input file (valid for raw formats only)
67 to 1 fps and the frame rate of the output file to 24 fps:
69 ffmpeg -r 1 -i input.m2v -r 24 output.avi
73 The format option may be needed for raw input files.
75 @c man end DESCRIPTION
77 @chapter Detailed description
78 @c man begin DETAILED DESCRIPTION
80 The transcoding process in @command{ffmpeg} for each output can be described by
81 the following diagram:
84 _______ ______________
86 | input | demuxer | encoded data | decoder
87 | file | ---------> | packets | -----+
88 |_______| |______________| |
95 ________ ______________ |
97 | output | <-------- | encoded data | <----+
98 | file | muxer | packets | encoder
99 |________| |______________|
104 @command{ffmpeg} calls the libavformat library (containing demuxers) to read
105 input files and get packets containing encoded data from them. When there are
106 multiple input files, @command{ffmpeg} tries to keep them synchronized by
107 tracking lowest timestamp on any active input stream.
109 Encoded packets are then passed to the decoder (unless streamcopy is selected
110 for the stream, see further for a description). The decoder produces
111 uncompressed frames (raw video/PCM audio/...) which can be processed further by
112 filtering (see next section). After filtering, the frames are passed to the
113 encoder, which encodes them and outputs encoded packets. Finally those are
114 passed to the muxer, which writes the encoded packets to the output file.
117 Before encoding, @command{ffmpeg} can process raw audio and video frames using
118 filters from the libavfilter library. Several chained filters form a filter
119 graph. @command{ffmpeg} distinguishes between two types of filtergraphs:
122 @subsection Simple filtergraphs
123 Simple filtergraphs are those that have exactly one input and output, both of
124 the same type. In the above diagram they can be represented by simply inserting
125 an additional step between decoding and encoding:
128 _________ ______________
130 | decoded | | encoded data |
131 | frames |\ _ | packets |
132 |_________| \ /||______________|
134 simple _\|| | / encoder
135 filtergraph | filtered |/
141 Simple filtergraphs are configured with the per-stream @option{-filter} option
142 (with @option{-vf} and @option{-af} aliases for video and audio respectively).
143 A simple filtergraph for video can look for example like this:
146 _______ _____________ _______ ________
148 | input | ---> | deinterlace | ---> | scale | ---> | output |
149 |_______| |_____________| |_______| |________|
153 Note that some filters change frame properties but not frame contents. E.g. the
154 @code{fps} filter in the example above changes number of frames, but does not
155 touch the frame contents. Another example is the @code{setpts} filter, which
156 only sets timestamps and otherwise passes the frames unchanged.
158 @subsection Complex filtergraphs
159 Complex filtergraphs are those which cannot be described as simply a linear
160 processing chain applied to one stream. This is the case, for example, when the graph has
161 more than one input and/or output, or when output stream type is different from
162 input. They can be represented with the following diagram:
167 | input 0 |\ __________
169 \ _________ /| output 0 |
171 _________ \| complex | /
173 | input 1 |---->| filter |\
174 |_________| | | \ __________
177 _________ / |_________| |__________|
184 Complex filtergraphs are configured with the @option{-filter_complex} option.
185 Note that this option is global, since a complex filtergraph, by its nature,
186 cannot be unambiguously associated with a single stream or file.
188 The @option{-lavfi} option is equivalent to @option{-filter_complex}.
190 A trivial example of a complex filtergraph is the @code{overlay} filter, which
191 has two video inputs and one video output, containing one video overlaid on top
192 of the other. Its audio counterpart is the @code{amix} filter.
195 Stream copy is a mode selected by supplying the @code{copy} parameter to the
196 @option{-codec} option. It makes @command{ffmpeg} omit the decoding and encoding
197 step for the specified stream, so it does only demuxing and muxing. It is useful
198 for changing the container format or modifying container-level metadata. The
199 diagram above will, in this case, simplify to this:
202 _______ ______________ ________
204 | input | demuxer | encoded data | muxer | output |
205 | file | ---------> | packets | -------> | file |
206 |_______| |______________| |________|
210 Since there is no decoding or encoding, it is very fast and there is no quality
211 loss. However, it might not work in some cases because of many factors. Applying
212 filters is obviously also impossible, since filters work on uncompressed data.
214 @c man end DETAILED DESCRIPTION
216 @chapter Stream selection
217 @c man begin STREAM SELECTION
219 By default, @command{ffmpeg} includes only one stream of each type (video, audio, subtitle)
220 present in the input files and adds them to each output file. It picks the
221 "best" of each based upon the following criteria: for video, it is the stream
222 with the highest resolution, for audio, it is the stream with the most channels, for
223 subtitles, it is the first subtitle stream. In the case where several streams of
224 the same type rate equally, the stream with the lowest index is chosen.
226 You can disable some of those defaults by using the @code{-vn/-an/-sn} options. For
227 full manual control, use the @code{-map} option, which disables the defaults just
230 @c man end STREAM SELECTION
235 @include fftools-common-opts.texi
237 @section Main options
241 @item -f @var{fmt} (@emph{input/output})
242 Force input or output file format. The format is normally auto detected for input
243 files and guessed from the file extension for output files, so this option is not
244 needed in most cases.
246 @item -i @var{filename} (@emph{input})
249 @item -y (@emph{global})
250 Overwrite output files without asking.
252 @item -n (@emph{global})
253 Do not overwrite output files, and exit immediately if a specified
254 output file already exists.
256 @item -c[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{codec} (@emph{input/output,per-stream})
257 @itemx -codec[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{codec} (@emph{input/output,per-stream})
258 Select an encoder (when used before an output file) or a decoder (when used
259 before an input file) for one or more streams. @var{codec} is the name of a
260 decoder/encoder or a special value @code{copy} (output only) to indicate that
261 the stream is not to be re-encoded.
265 ffmpeg -i INPUT -map 0 -c:v libx264 -c:a copy OUTPUT
267 encodes all video streams with libx264 and copies all audio streams.
269 For each stream, the last matching @code{c} option is applied, so
271 ffmpeg -i INPUT -map 0 -c copy -c:v:1 libx264 -c:a:137 libvorbis OUTPUT
273 will copy all the streams except the second video, which will be encoded with
274 libx264, and the 138th audio, which will be encoded with libvorbis.
276 @item -t @var{duration} (@emph{input/output})
277 When used as an input option (before @code{-i}), limit the @var{duration} of
278 data read from the input file.
280 When used as an output option (before an output filename), stop writing the
281 output after its duration reaches @var{duration}.
283 @var{duration} may be a number in seconds, or in @code{hh:mm:ss[.xxx]} form.
285 -to and -t are mutually exclusive and -t has priority.
287 @item -to @var{position} (@emph{output})
288 Stop writing the output at @var{position}.
289 @var{position} may be a number in seconds, or in @code{hh:mm:ss[.xxx]} form.
291 -to and -t are mutually exclusive and -t has priority.
293 @item -fs @var{limit_size} (@emph{output})
294 Set the file size limit, expressed in bytes.
296 @item -ss @var{position} (@emph{input/output})
297 When used as an input option (before @code{-i}), seeks in this input file to
298 @var{position}. Note the in most formats it is not possible to seek exactly, so
299 @command{ffmpeg} will seek to the closest seek point before @var{position}.
300 When transcoding and @option{-accurate_seek} is enabled (the default), this
301 extra segment between the seek point and @var{position} will be decoded and
302 discarded. When doing stream copy or when @option{-noaccurate_seek} is used, it
305 When used as an output option (before an output filename), decodes but discards
306 input until the timestamps reach @var{position}.
308 @var{position} may be either in seconds or in @code{hh:mm:ss[.xxx]} form.
310 @item -sseof @var{position} (@emph{input/output})
312 Like the @code{-ss} option but relative to the "end of file". That is negative
313 values are earlier in the file, 0 is at EOF.
315 @item -itsoffset @var{offset} (@emph{input})
316 Set the input time offset.
318 @var{offset} must be a time duration specification,
319 see @ref{time duration syntax,,the Time duration section in the ffmpeg-utils(1) manual,ffmpeg-utils}.
321 The offset is added to the timestamps of the input files. Specifying
322 a positive offset means that the corresponding streams are delayed by
323 the time duration specified in @var{offset}.
325 @item -timestamp @var{date} (@emph{output})
326 Set the recording timestamp in the container.
328 @var{date} must be a time duration specification,
329 see @ref{date syntax,,the Date section in the ffmpeg-utils(1) manual,ffmpeg-utils}.
331 @item -metadata[:metadata_specifier] @var{key}=@var{value} (@emph{output,per-metadata})
332 Set a metadata key/value pair.
334 An optional @var{metadata_specifier} may be given to set metadata
335 on streams or chapters. See @code{-map_metadata} documentation for
338 This option overrides metadata set with @code{-map_metadata}. It is
339 also possible to delete metadata by using an empty value.
341 For example, for setting the title in the output file:
343 ffmpeg -i in.avi -metadata title="my title" out.flv
346 To set the language of the first audio stream:
348 ffmpeg -i INPUT -metadata:s:a:0 language=eng OUTPUT
351 @item -target @var{type} (@emph{output})
352 Specify target file type (@code{vcd}, @code{svcd}, @code{dvd}, @code{dv},
353 @code{dv50}). @var{type} may be prefixed with @code{pal-}, @code{ntsc-} or
354 @code{film-} to use the corresponding standard. All the format options
355 (bitrate, codecs, buffer sizes) are then set automatically. You can just type:
358 ffmpeg -i myfile.avi -target vcd /tmp/vcd.mpg
361 Nevertheless you can specify additional options as long as you know
362 they do not conflict with the standard, as in:
365 ffmpeg -i myfile.avi -target vcd -bf 2 /tmp/vcd.mpg
368 @item -dframes @var{number} (@emph{output})
369 Set the number of data frames to output. This is an alias for @code{-frames:d}.
371 @item -frames[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{framecount} (@emph{output,per-stream})
372 Stop writing to the stream after @var{framecount} frames.
374 @item -q[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{q} (@emph{output,per-stream})
375 @itemx -qscale[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{q} (@emph{output,per-stream})
376 Use fixed quality scale (VBR). The meaning of @var{q}/@var{qscale} is
378 If @var{qscale} is used without a @var{stream_specifier} then it applies only
379 to the video stream, this is to maintain compatibility with previous behavior
380 and as specifying the same codec specific value to 2 different codecs that is
381 audio and video generally is not what is intended when no stream_specifier is
384 @anchor{filter_option}
385 @item -filter[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{filtergraph} (@emph{output,per-stream})
386 Create the filtergraph specified by @var{filtergraph} and use it to
389 @var{filtergraph} is a description of the filtergraph to apply to
390 the stream, and must have a single input and a single output of the
391 same type of the stream. In the filtergraph, the input is associated
392 to the label @code{in}, and the output to the label @code{out}. See
393 the ffmpeg-filters manual for more information about the filtergraph
396 See the @ref{filter_complex_option,,-filter_complex option} if you
397 want to create filtergraphs with multiple inputs and/or outputs.
399 @item -filter_script[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{filename} (@emph{output,per-stream})
400 This option is similar to @option{-filter}, the only difference is that its
401 argument is the name of the file from which a filtergraph description is to be
404 @item -pre[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{preset_name} (@emph{output,per-stream})
405 Specify the preset for matching stream(s).
407 @item -stats (@emph{global})
408 Print encoding progress/statistics. It is on by default, to explicitly
409 disable it you need to specify @code{-nostats}.
411 @item -progress @var{url} (@emph{global})
412 Send program-friendly progress information to @var{url}.
414 Progress information is written approximately every second and at the end of
415 the encoding process. It is made of "@var{key}=@var{value}" lines. @var{key}
416 consists of only alphanumeric characters. The last key of a sequence of
417 progress information is always "progress".
420 Enable interaction on standard input. On by default unless standard input is
421 used as an input. To explicitly disable interaction you need to specify
424 Disabling interaction on standard input is useful, for example, if
425 ffmpeg is in the background process group. Roughly the same result can
426 be achieved with @code{ffmpeg ... < /dev/null} but it requires a
429 @item -debug_ts (@emph{global})
430 Print timestamp information. It is off by default. This option is
431 mostly useful for testing and debugging purposes, and the output
432 format may change from one version to another, so it should not be
433 employed by portable scripts.
435 See also the option @code{-fdebug ts}.
437 @item -attach @var{filename} (@emph{output})
438 Add an attachment to the output file. This is supported by a few formats
439 like Matroska for e.g. fonts used in rendering subtitles. Attachments
440 are implemented as a specific type of stream, so this option will add
441 a new stream to the file. It is then possible to use per-stream options
442 on this stream in the usual way. Attachment streams created with this
443 option will be created after all the other streams (i.e. those created
444 with @code{-map} or automatic mappings).
446 Note that for Matroska you also have to set the mimetype metadata tag:
448 ffmpeg -i INPUT -attach DejaVuSans.ttf -metadata:s:2 mimetype=application/x-truetype-font out.mkv
450 (assuming that the attachment stream will be third in the output file).
452 @item -dump_attachment[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{filename} (@emph{input,per-stream})
453 Extract the matching attachment stream into a file named @var{filename}. If
454 @var{filename} is empty, then the value of the @code{filename} metadata tag
457 E.g. to extract the first attachment to a file named 'out.ttf':
459 ffmpeg -dump_attachment:t:0 out.ttf -i INPUT
461 To extract all attachments to files determined by the @code{filename} tag:
463 ffmpeg -dump_attachment:t "" -i INPUT
466 Technical note -- attachments are implemented as codec extradata, so this
467 option can actually be used to extract extradata from any stream, not just
471 Disable automatically rotating video based on file metadata.
475 @section Video Options
478 @item -vframes @var{number} (@emph{output})
479 Set the number of video frames to output. This is an alias for @code{-frames:v}.
480 @item -r[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{fps} (@emph{input/output,per-stream})
481 Set frame rate (Hz value, fraction or abbreviation).
483 As an input option, ignore any timestamps stored in the file and instead
484 generate timestamps assuming constant frame rate @var{fps}.
485 This is not the same as the @option{-framerate} option used for some input formats
486 like image2 or v4l2 (it used to be the same in older versions of FFmpeg).
487 If in doubt use @option{-framerate} instead of the input option @option{-r}.
489 As an output option, duplicate or drop input frames to achieve constant output
490 frame rate @var{fps}.
492 @item -s[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{size} (@emph{input/output,per-stream})
495 As an input option, this is a shortcut for the @option{video_size} private
496 option, recognized by some demuxers for which the frame size is either not
497 stored in the file or is configurable -- e.g. raw video or video grabbers.
499 As an output option, this inserts the @code{scale} video filter to the
500 @emph{end} of the corresponding filtergraph. Please use the @code{scale} filter
501 directly to insert it at the beginning or some other place.
503 The format is @samp{wxh} (default - same as source).
505 @item -aspect[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{aspect} (@emph{output,per-stream})
506 Set the video display aspect ratio specified by @var{aspect}.
508 @var{aspect} can be a floating point number string, or a string of the
509 form @var{num}:@var{den}, where @var{num} and @var{den} are the
510 numerator and denominator of the aspect ratio. For example "4:3",
511 "16:9", "1.3333", and "1.7777" are valid argument values.
513 If used together with @option{-vcodec copy}, it will affect the aspect ratio
514 stored at container level, but not the aspect ratio stored in encoded
515 frames, if it exists.
517 @item -vn (@emph{output})
518 Disable video recording.
520 @item -vcodec @var{codec} (@emph{output})
521 Set the video codec. This is an alias for @code{-codec:v}.
523 @item -pass[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{n} (@emph{output,per-stream})
524 Select the pass number (1 or 2). It is used to do two-pass
525 video encoding. The statistics of the video are recorded in the first
526 pass into a log file (see also the option -passlogfile),
527 and in the second pass that log file is used to generate the video
528 at the exact requested bitrate.
529 On pass 1, you may just deactivate audio and set output to null,
530 examples for Windows and Unix:
532 ffmpeg -i foo.mov -c:v libxvid -pass 1 -an -f rawvideo -y NUL
533 ffmpeg -i foo.mov -c:v libxvid -pass 1 -an -f rawvideo -y /dev/null
536 @item -passlogfile[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{prefix} (@emph{output,per-stream})
537 Set two-pass log file name prefix to @var{prefix}, the default file name
538 prefix is ``ffmpeg2pass''. The complete file name will be
539 @file{PREFIX-N.log}, where N is a number specific to the output
542 @item -vf @var{filtergraph} (@emph{output})
543 Create the filtergraph specified by @var{filtergraph} and use it to
546 This is an alias for @code{-filter:v}, see the @ref{filter_option,,-filter option}.
549 @section Advanced Video options
552 @item -pix_fmt[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{format} (@emph{input/output,per-stream})
553 Set pixel format. Use @code{-pix_fmts} to show all the supported
555 If the selected pixel format can not be selected, ffmpeg will print a
556 warning and select the best pixel format supported by the encoder.
557 If @var{pix_fmt} is prefixed by a @code{+}, ffmpeg will exit with an error
558 if the requested pixel format can not be selected, and automatic conversions
559 inside filtergraphs are disabled.
560 If @var{pix_fmt} is a single @code{+}, ffmpeg selects the same pixel format
561 as the input (or graph output) and automatic conversions are disabled.
563 @item -sws_flags @var{flags} (@emph{input/output})
568 @item -rc_override[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{override} (@emph{output,per-stream})
569 Rate control override for specific intervals, formatted as "int,int,int"
570 list separated with slashes. Two first values are the beginning and
571 end frame numbers, last one is quantizer to use if positive, or quality
575 Force interlacing support in encoder (MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 only).
576 Use this option if your input file is interlaced and you want
577 to keep the interlaced format for minimum losses.
578 The alternative is to deinterlace the input stream with
579 @option{-deinterlace}, but deinterlacing introduces losses.
581 Calculate PSNR of compressed frames.
583 Dump video coding statistics to @file{vstats_HHMMSS.log}.
584 @item -vstats_file @var{file}
585 Dump video coding statistics to @var{file}.
586 @item -top[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{n} (@emph{output,per-stream})
587 top=1/bottom=0/auto=-1 field first
588 @item -dc @var{precision}
590 @item -vtag @var{fourcc/tag} (@emph{output})
591 Force video tag/fourcc. This is an alias for @code{-tag:v}.
592 @item -qphist (@emph{global})
594 @item -vbsf @var{bitstream_filter}
597 @item -force_key_frames[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{time}[,@var{time}...] (@emph{output,per-stream})
598 @item -force_key_frames[:@var{stream_specifier}] expr:@var{expr} (@emph{output,per-stream})
599 Force key frames at the specified timestamps, more precisely at the first
600 frames after each specified time.
602 If the argument is prefixed with @code{expr:}, the string @var{expr}
603 is interpreted like an expression and is evaluated for each frame. A
604 key frame is forced in case the evaluation is non-zero.
606 If one of the times is "@code{chapters}[@var{delta}]", it is expanded into
607 the time of the beginning of all chapters in the file, shifted by
608 @var{delta}, expressed as a time in seconds.
609 This option can be useful to ensure that a seek point is present at a
610 chapter mark or any other designated place in the output file.
612 For example, to insert a key frame at 5 minutes, plus key frames 0.1 second
613 before the beginning of every chapter:
615 -force_key_frames 0:05:00,chapters-0.1
618 The expression in @var{expr} can contain the following constants:
621 the number of current processed frame, starting from 0
623 the number of forced frames
625 the number of the previous forced frame, it is @code{NAN} when no
626 keyframe was forced yet
628 the time of the previous forced frame, it is @code{NAN} when no
629 keyframe was forced yet
631 the time of the current processed frame
634 For example to force a key frame every 5 seconds, you can specify:
636 -force_key_frames expr:gte(t,n_forced*5)
639 To force a key frame 5 seconds after the time of the last forced one,
640 starting from second 13:
642 -force_key_frames expr:if(isnan(prev_forced_t),gte(t,13),gte(t,prev_forced_t+5))
645 Note that forcing too many keyframes is very harmful for the lookahead
646 algorithms of certain encoders: using fixed-GOP options or similar
647 would be more efficient.
649 @item -copyinkf[:@var{stream_specifier}] (@emph{output,per-stream})
650 When doing stream copy, copy also non-key frames found at the
653 @item -hwaccel[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{hwaccel} (@emph{input,per-stream})
654 Use hardware acceleration to decode the matching stream(s). The allowed values
655 of @var{hwaccel} are:
658 Do not use any hardware acceleration (the default).
661 Automatically select the hardware acceleration method.
664 Use Apple VDA hardware acceleration.
667 Use VDPAU (Video Decode and Presentation API for Unix) hardware acceleration.
670 Use DXVA2 (DirectX Video Acceleration) hardware acceleration.
673 This option has no effect if the selected hwaccel is not available or not
674 supported by the chosen decoder.
676 Note that most acceleration methods are intended for playback and will not be
677 faster than software decoding on modern CPUs. Additionally, @command{ffmpeg}
678 will usually need to copy the decoded frames from the GPU memory into the system
679 memory, resulting in further performance loss. This option is thus mainly
682 @item -hwaccel_device[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{hwaccel_device} (@emph{input,per-stream})
683 Select a device to use for hardware acceleration.
685 This option only makes sense when the @option{-hwaccel} option is also
686 specified. Its exact meaning depends on the specific hardware acceleration
691 For VDPAU, this option specifies the X11 display/screen to use. If this option
692 is not specified, the value of the @var{DISPLAY} environment variable is used
695 For DXVA2, this option should contain the number of the display adapter to use.
696 If this option is not specified, the default adapter is used.
700 @section Audio Options
703 @item -aframes @var{number} (@emph{output})
704 Set the number of audio frames to output. This is an alias for @code{-frames:a}.
705 @item -ar[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{freq} (@emph{input/output,per-stream})
706 Set the audio sampling frequency. For output streams it is set by
707 default to the frequency of the corresponding input stream. For input
708 streams this option only makes sense for audio grabbing devices and raw
709 demuxers and is mapped to the corresponding demuxer options.
710 @item -aq @var{q} (@emph{output})
711 Set the audio quality (codec-specific, VBR). This is an alias for -q:a.
712 @item -ac[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{channels} (@emph{input/output,per-stream})
713 Set the number of audio channels. For output streams it is set by
714 default to the number of input audio channels. For input streams
715 this option only makes sense for audio grabbing devices and raw demuxers
716 and is mapped to the corresponding demuxer options.
717 @item -an (@emph{output})
718 Disable audio recording.
719 @item -acodec @var{codec} (@emph{input/output})
720 Set the audio codec. This is an alias for @code{-codec:a}.
721 @item -sample_fmt[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{sample_fmt} (@emph{output,per-stream})
722 Set the audio sample format. Use @code{-sample_fmts} to get a list
723 of supported sample formats.
725 @item -af @var{filtergraph} (@emph{output})
726 Create the filtergraph specified by @var{filtergraph} and use it to
729 This is an alias for @code{-filter:a}, see the @ref{filter_option,,-filter option}.
732 @section Advanced Audio options
735 @item -atag @var{fourcc/tag} (@emph{output})
736 Force audio tag/fourcc. This is an alias for @code{-tag:a}.
737 @item -absf @var{bitstream_filter}
739 @item -guess_layout_max @var{channels} (@emph{input,per-stream})
740 If some input channel layout is not known, try to guess only if it
741 corresponds to at most the specified number of channels. For example, 2
742 tells to @command{ffmpeg} to recognize 1 channel as mono and 2 channels as
743 stereo but not 6 channels as 5.1. The default is to always try to guess. Use
744 0 to disable all guessing.
747 @section Subtitle options
750 @item -scodec @var{codec} (@emph{input/output})
751 Set the subtitle codec. This is an alias for @code{-codec:s}.
752 @item -sn (@emph{output})
753 Disable subtitle recording.
754 @item -sbsf @var{bitstream_filter}
758 @section Advanced Subtitle options
762 @item -fix_sub_duration
763 Fix subtitles durations. For each subtitle, wait for the next packet in the
764 same stream and adjust the duration of the first to avoid overlap. This is
765 necessary with some subtitles codecs, especially DVB subtitles, because the
766 duration in the original packet is only a rough estimate and the end is
767 actually marked by an empty subtitle frame. Failing to use this option when
768 necessary can result in exaggerated durations or muxing failures due to
769 non-monotonic timestamps.
771 Note that this option will delay the output of all data until the next
772 subtitle packet is decoded: it may increase memory consumption and latency a
775 @item -canvas_size @var{size}
776 Set the size of the canvas used to render subtitles.
780 @section Advanced options
783 @item -map [-]@var{input_file_id}[:@var{stream_specifier}][,@var{sync_file_id}[:@var{stream_specifier}]] | @var{[linklabel]} (@emph{output})
785 Designate one or more input streams as a source for the output file. Each input
786 stream is identified by the input file index @var{input_file_id} and
787 the input stream index @var{input_stream_id} within the input
788 file. Both indices start at 0. If specified,
789 @var{sync_file_id}:@var{stream_specifier} sets which input stream
790 is used as a presentation sync reference.
792 The first @code{-map} option on the command line specifies the
793 source for output stream 0, the second @code{-map} option specifies
794 the source for output stream 1, etc.
796 A @code{-} character before the stream identifier creates a "negative" mapping.
797 It disables matching streams from already created mappings.
799 An alternative @var{[linklabel]} form will map outputs from complex filter
800 graphs (see the @option{-filter_complex} option) to the output file.
801 @var{linklabel} must correspond to a defined output link label in the graph.
803 For example, to map ALL streams from the first input file to output
805 ffmpeg -i INPUT -map 0 output
808 For example, if you have two audio streams in the first input file,
809 these streams are identified by "0:0" and "0:1". You can use
810 @code{-map} to select which streams to place in an output file. For
813 ffmpeg -i INPUT -map 0:1 out.wav
815 will map the input stream in @file{INPUT} identified by "0:1" to
816 the (single) output stream in @file{out.wav}.
818 For example, to select the stream with index 2 from input file
819 @file{a.mov} (specified by the identifier "0:2"), and stream with
820 index 6 from input @file{b.mov} (specified by the identifier "1:6"),
821 and copy them to the output file @file{out.mov}:
823 ffmpeg -i a.mov -i b.mov -c copy -map 0:2 -map 1:6 out.mov
826 To select all video and the third audio stream from an input file:
828 ffmpeg -i INPUT -map 0:v -map 0:a:2 OUTPUT
831 To map all the streams except the second audio, use negative mappings
833 ffmpeg -i INPUT -map 0 -map -0:a:1 OUTPUT
836 To pick the English audio stream:
838 ffmpeg -i INPUT -map 0:m:language:eng OUTPUT
841 Note that using this option disables the default mappings for this output file.
843 @item -ignore_unknown
844 Ignore input streams with unknown type instead of failing if copying
845 such streams is attempted.
848 Allow input streams with unknown type to be copied instead of failing if copying
849 such streams is attempted.
851 @item -map_channel [@var{input_file_id}.@var{stream_specifier}.@var{channel_id}|-1][:@var{output_file_id}.@var{stream_specifier}]
852 Map an audio channel from a given input to an output. If
853 @var{output_file_id}.@var{stream_specifier} is not set, the audio channel will
854 be mapped on all the audio streams.
856 Using "-1" instead of
857 @var{input_file_id}.@var{stream_specifier}.@var{channel_id} will map a muted
860 For example, assuming @var{INPUT} is a stereo audio file, you can switch the
861 two audio channels with the following command:
863 ffmpeg -i INPUT -map_channel 0.0.1 -map_channel 0.0.0 OUTPUT
866 If you want to mute the first channel and keep the second:
868 ffmpeg -i INPUT -map_channel -1 -map_channel 0.0.1 OUTPUT
871 The order of the "-map_channel" option specifies the order of the channels in
872 the output stream. The output channel layout is guessed from the number of
873 channels mapped (mono if one "-map_channel", stereo if two, etc.). Using "-ac"
874 in combination of "-map_channel" makes the channel gain levels to be updated if
875 input and output channel layouts don't match (for instance two "-map_channel"
876 options and "-ac 6").
878 You can also extract each channel of an input to specific outputs; the following
879 command extracts two channels of the @var{INPUT} audio stream (file 0, stream 0)
880 to the respective @var{OUTPUT_CH0} and @var{OUTPUT_CH1} outputs:
882 ffmpeg -i INPUT -map_channel 0.0.0 OUTPUT_CH0 -map_channel 0.0.1 OUTPUT_CH1
885 The following example splits the channels of a stereo input into two separate
886 streams, which are put into the same output file:
888 ffmpeg -i stereo.wav -map 0:0 -map 0:0 -map_channel 0.0.0:0.0 -map_channel 0.0.1:0.1 -y out.ogg
891 Note that currently each output stream can only contain channels from a single
892 input stream; you can't for example use "-map_channel" to pick multiple input
893 audio channels contained in different streams (from the same or different files)
894 and merge them into a single output stream. It is therefore not currently
895 possible, for example, to turn two separate mono streams into a single stereo
896 stream. However splitting a stereo stream into two single channel mono streams
899 If you need this feature, a possible workaround is to use the @emph{amerge}
900 filter. For example, if you need to merge a media (here @file{input.mkv}) with 2
901 mono audio streams into one single stereo channel audio stream (and keep the
902 video stream), you can use the following command:
904 ffmpeg -i input.mkv -filter_complex "[0:1] [0:2] amerge" -c:a pcm_s16le -c:v copy output.mkv
907 @item -map_metadata[:@var{metadata_spec_out}] @var{infile}[:@var{metadata_spec_in}] (@emph{output,per-metadata})
908 Set metadata information of the next output file from @var{infile}. Note that
909 those are file indices (zero-based), not filenames.
910 Optional @var{metadata_spec_in/out} parameters specify, which metadata to copy.
911 A metadata specifier can have the following forms:
914 global metadata, i.e. metadata that applies to the whole file
916 @item @var{s}[:@var{stream_spec}]
917 per-stream metadata. @var{stream_spec} is a stream specifier as described
918 in the @ref{Stream specifiers} chapter. In an input metadata specifier, the first
919 matching stream is copied from. In an output metadata specifier, all matching
920 streams are copied to.
922 @item @var{c}:@var{chapter_index}
923 per-chapter metadata. @var{chapter_index} is the zero-based chapter index.
925 @item @var{p}:@var{program_index}
926 per-program metadata. @var{program_index} is the zero-based program index.
928 If metadata specifier is omitted, it defaults to global.
930 By default, global metadata is copied from the first input file,
931 per-stream and per-chapter metadata is copied along with streams/chapters. These
932 default mappings are disabled by creating any mapping of the relevant type. A negative
933 file index can be used to create a dummy mapping that just disables automatic copying.
935 For example to copy metadata from the first stream of the input file to global metadata
938 ffmpeg -i in.ogg -map_metadata 0:s:0 out.mp3
941 To do the reverse, i.e. copy global metadata to all audio streams:
943 ffmpeg -i in.mkv -map_metadata:s:a 0:g out.mkv
945 Note that simple @code{0} would work as well in this example, since global
946 metadata is assumed by default.
948 @item -map_chapters @var{input_file_index} (@emph{output})
949 Copy chapters from input file with index @var{input_file_index} to the next
950 output file. If no chapter mapping is specified, then chapters are copied from
951 the first input file with at least one chapter. Use a negative file index to
952 disable any chapter copying.
954 @item -benchmark (@emph{global})
955 Show benchmarking information at the end of an encode.
956 Shows CPU time used and maximum memory consumption.
957 Maximum memory consumption is not supported on all systems,
958 it will usually display as 0 if not supported.
959 @item -benchmark_all (@emph{global})
960 Show benchmarking information during the encode.
961 Shows CPU time used in various steps (audio/video encode/decode).
962 @item -timelimit @var{duration} (@emph{global})
963 Exit after ffmpeg has been running for @var{duration} seconds.
964 @item -dump (@emph{global})
965 Dump each input packet to stderr.
966 @item -hex (@emph{global})
967 When dumping packets, also dump the payload.
968 @item -re (@emph{input})
969 Read input at native frame rate. Mainly used to simulate a grab device.
970 or live input stream (e.g. when reading from a file). Should not be used
971 with actual grab devices or live input streams (where it can cause packet
973 By default @command{ffmpeg} attempts to read the input(s) as fast as possible.
974 This option will slow down the reading of the input(s) to the native frame rate
975 of the input(s). It is useful for real-time output (e.g. live streaming).
977 Loop over the input stream. Currently it works only for image
978 streams. This option is used for automatic FFserver testing.
979 This option is deprecated, use -loop 1.
980 @item -loop_output @var{number_of_times}
981 Repeatedly loop output for formats that support looping such as animated GIF
982 (0 will loop the output infinitely).
983 This option is deprecated, use -loop.
984 @item -vsync @var{parameter}
986 For compatibility reasons old values can be specified as numbers.
987 Newly added values will have to be specified as strings always.
991 Each frame is passed with its timestamp from the demuxer to the muxer.
993 Frames will be duplicated and dropped to achieve exactly the requested
996 Frames are passed through with their timestamp or dropped so as to
997 prevent 2 frames from having the same timestamp.
999 As passthrough but destroys all timestamps, making the muxer generate
1000 fresh timestamps based on frame-rate.
1002 Chooses between 1 and 2 depending on muxer capabilities. This is the
1006 Note that the timestamps may be further modified by the muxer, after this.
1007 For example, in the case that the format option @option{avoid_negative_ts}
1010 With -map you can select from which stream the timestamps should be
1011 taken. You can leave either video or audio unchanged and sync the
1012 remaining stream(s) to the unchanged one.
1014 @item -frame_drop_threshold @var{parameter}
1015 Frame drop threshold, which specifies how much behind video frames can
1016 be before they are dropped. In frame rate units, so 1.0 is one frame.
1017 The default is -1.1. One possible usecase is to avoid framedrops in case
1018 of noisy timestamps or to increase frame drop precision in case of exact
1021 @item -async @var{samples_per_second}
1022 Audio sync method. "Stretches/squeezes" the audio stream to match the timestamps,
1023 the parameter is the maximum samples per second by which the audio is changed.
1024 -async 1 is a special case where only the start of the audio stream is corrected
1025 without any later correction.
1027 Note that the timestamps may be further modified by the muxer, after this.
1028 For example, in the case that the format option @option{avoid_negative_ts}
1031 This option has been deprecated. Use the @code{aresample} audio filter instead.
1034 Do not process input timestamps, but keep their values without trying
1035 to sanitize them. In particular, do not remove the initial start time
1038 Note that, depending on the @option{vsync} option or on specific muxer
1039 processing (e.g. in case the format option @option{avoid_negative_ts}
1040 is enabled) the output timestamps may mismatch with the input
1041 timestamps even when this option is selected.
1043 @item -start_at_zero
1044 When used with @option{copyts}, shift input timestamps so they start at zero.
1046 This means that using e.g. @code{-ss 50} will make output timestamps start at
1047 50 seconds, regardless of what timestamp the input file started at.
1049 @item -copytb @var{mode}
1050 Specify how to set the encoder timebase when stream copying. @var{mode} is an
1051 integer numeric value, and can assume one of the following values:
1055 Use the demuxer timebase.
1057 The time base is copied to the output encoder from the corresponding input
1058 demuxer. This is sometimes required to avoid non monotonically increasing
1059 timestamps when copying video streams with variable frame rate.
1062 Use the decoder timebase.
1064 The time base is copied to the output encoder from the corresponding input
1068 Try to make the choice automatically, in order to generate a sane output.
1071 Default value is -1.
1073 @item -shortest (@emph{output})
1074 Finish encoding when the shortest input stream ends.
1075 @item -dts_delta_threshold
1076 Timestamp discontinuity delta threshold.
1077 @item -muxdelay @var{seconds} (@emph{input})
1078 Set the maximum demux-decode delay.
1079 @item -muxpreload @var{seconds} (@emph{input})
1080 Set the initial demux-decode delay.
1081 @item -streamid @var{output-stream-index}:@var{new-value} (@emph{output})
1082 Assign a new stream-id value to an output stream. This option should be
1083 specified prior to the output filename to which it applies.
1084 For the situation where multiple output files exist, a streamid
1085 may be reassigned to a different value.
1087 For example, to set the stream 0 PID to 33 and the stream 1 PID to 36 for
1088 an output mpegts file:
1090 ffmpeg -i infile -streamid 0:33 -streamid 1:36 out.ts
1093 @item -bsf[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{bitstream_filters} (@emph{output,per-stream})
1094 Set bitstream filters for matching streams. @var{bitstream_filters} is
1095 a comma-separated list of bitstream filters. Use the @code{-bsfs} option
1096 to get the list of bitstream filters.
1098 ffmpeg -i h264.mp4 -c:v copy -bsf:v h264_mp4toannexb -an out.h264
1101 ffmpeg -i file.mov -an -vn -bsf:s mov2textsub -c:s copy -f rawvideo sub.txt
1104 @item -tag[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{codec_tag} (@emph{input/output,per-stream})
1105 Force a tag/fourcc for matching streams.
1107 @item -timecode @var{hh}:@var{mm}:@var{ss}SEP@var{ff}
1108 Specify Timecode for writing. @var{SEP} is ':' for non drop timecode and ';'
1111 ffmpeg -i input.mpg -timecode 01:02:03.04 -r 30000/1001 -s ntsc output.mpg
1114 @anchor{filter_complex_option}
1115 @item -filter_complex @var{filtergraph} (@emph{global})
1116 Define a complex filtergraph, i.e. one with arbitrary number of inputs and/or
1117 outputs. For simple graphs -- those with one input and one output of the same
1118 type -- see the @option{-filter} options. @var{filtergraph} is a description of
1119 the filtergraph, as described in the ``Filtergraph syntax'' section of the
1120 ffmpeg-filters manual.
1122 Input link labels must refer to input streams using the
1123 @code{[file_index:stream_specifier]} syntax (i.e. the same as @option{-map}
1124 uses). If @var{stream_specifier} matches multiple streams, the first one will be
1125 used. An unlabeled input will be connected to the first unused input stream of
1128 Output link labels are referred to with @option{-map}. Unlabeled outputs are
1129 added to the first output file.
1131 Note that with this option it is possible to use only lavfi sources without
1134 For example, to overlay an image over video
1136 ffmpeg -i video.mkv -i image.png -filter_complex '[0:v][1:v]overlay[out]' -map
1139 Here @code{[0:v]} refers to the first video stream in the first input file,
1140 which is linked to the first (main) input of the overlay filter. Similarly the
1141 first video stream in the second input is linked to the second (overlay) input
1144 Assuming there is only one video stream in each input file, we can omit input
1145 labels, so the above is equivalent to
1147 ffmpeg -i video.mkv -i image.png -filter_complex 'overlay[out]' -map
1151 Furthermore we can omit the output label and the single output from the filter
1152 graph will be added to the output file automatically, so we can simply write
1154 ffmpeg -i video.mkv -i image.png -filter_complex 'overlay' out.mkv
1157 To generate 5 seconds of pure red video using lavfi @code{color} source:
1159 ffmpeg -filter_complex 'color=c=red' -t 5 out.mkv
1162 @item -lavfi @var{filtergraph} (@emph{global})
1163 Define a complex filtergraph, i.e. one with arbitrary number of inputs and/or
1164 outputs. Equivalent to @option{-filter_complex}.
1166 @item -filter_complex_script @var{filename} (@emph{global})
1167 This option is similar to @option{-filter_complex}, the only difference is that
1168 its argument is the name of the file from which a complex filtergraph
1169 description is to be read.
1171 @item -accurate_seek (@emph{input})
1172 This option enables or disables accurate seeking in input files with the
1173 @option{-ss} option. It is enabled by default, so seeking is accurate when
1174 transcoding. Use @option{-noaccurate_seek} to disable it, which may be useful
1175 e.g. when copying some streams and transcoding the others.
1177 @item -seek_timestamp (@emph{input})
1178 This option enables or disables seeking by timestamp in input files with the
1179 @option{-ss} option. It is disabled by default. If enabled, the argument
1180 to the @option{-ss} option is considered an actual timestamp, and is not
1181 offset by the start time of the file. This matters only for files which do
1182 not start from timestamp 0, such as transport streams.
1184 @item -thread_queue_size @var{size} (@emph{input})
1185 This option sets the maximum number of queued packets when reading from the
1186 file or device. With low latency / high rate live streams, packets may be
1187 discarded if they are not read in a timely manner; raising this value can
1190 @item -override_ffserver (@emph{global})
1191 Overrides the input specifications from @command{ffserver}. Using this
1192 option you can map any input stream to @command{ffserver} and control
1193 many aspects of the encoding from @command{ffmpeg}. Without this
1194 option @command{ffmpeg} will transmit to @command{ffserver} what is
1195 requested by @command{ffserver}.
1197 The option is intended for cases where features are needed that cannot be
1198 specified to @command{ffserver} but can be to @command{ffmpeg}.
1200 @item -sdp_file @var{file} (@emph{global})
1201 Print sdp information to @var{file}.
1202 This allows dumping sdp information when at least one output isn't an
1205 @item -discard (@emph{input})
1206 Allows discarding specific streams or frames of streams at the demuxer.
1207 Not all demuxers support this.
1214 Default, which discards no frames.
1217 Discard all non-reference frames.
1220 Discard all bidirectional frames.
1223 Discard all frames excepts keyframes.
1229 @item -xerror (@emph{global})
1230 Stop and exit on error
1234 As a special exception, you can use a bitmap subtitle stream as input: it
1235 will be converted into a video with the same size as the largest video in
1236 the file, or 720x576 if no video is present. Note that this is an
1237 experimental and temporary solution. It will be removed once libavfilter has
1238 proper support for subtitles.
1240 For example, to hardcode subtitles on top of a DVB-T recording stored in
1241 MPEG-TS format, delaying the subtitles by 1 second:
1243 ffmpeg -i input.ts -filter_complex \
1244 '[#0x2ef] setpts=PTS+1/TB [sub] ; [#0x2d0] [sub] overlay' \
1245 -sn -map '#0x2dc' output.mkv
1247 (0x2d0, 0x2dc and 0x2ef are the MPEG-TS PIDs of respectively the video,
1248 audio and subtitles streams; 0:0, 0:3 and 0:7 would have worked too)
1250 @section Preset files
1251 A preset file contains a sequence of @var{option}=@var{value} pairs,
1252 one for each line, specifying a sequence of options which would be
1253 awkward to specify on the command line. Lines starting with the hash
1254 ('#') character are ignored and are used to provide comments. Check
1255 the @file{presets} directory in the FFmpeg source tree for examples.
1257 There are two types of preset files: ffpreset and avpreset files.
1259 @subsection ffpreset files
1260 ffpreset files are specified with the @code{vpre}, @code{apre},
1261 @code{spre}, and @code{fpre} options. The @code{fpre} option takes the
1262 filename of the preset instead of a preset name as input and can be
1263 used for any kind of codec. For the @code{vpre}, @code{apre}, and
1264 @code{spre} options, the options specified in a preset file are
1265 applied to the currently selected codec of the same type as the preset
1268 The argument passed to the @code{vpre}, @code{apre}, and @code{spre}
1269 preset options identifies the preset file to use according to the
1272 First ffmpeg searches for a file named @var{arg}.ffpreset in the
1273 directories @file{$FFMPEG_DATADIR} (if set), and @file{$HOME/.ffmpeg}, and in
1274 the datadir defined at configuration time (usually @file{PREFIX/share/ffmpeg})
1275 or in a @file{ffpresets} folder along the executable on win32,
1276 in that order. For example, if the argument is @code{libvpx-1080p}, it will
1277 search for the file @file{libvpx-1080p.ffpreset}.
1279 If no such file is found, then ffmpeg will search for a file named
1280 @var{codec_name}-@var{arg}.ffpreset in the above-mentioned
1281 directories, where @var{codec_name} is the name of the codec to which
1282 the preset file options will be applied. For example, if you select
1283 the video codec with @code{-vcodec libvpx} and use @code{-vpre 1080p},
1284 then it will search for the file @file{libvpx-1080p.ffpreset}.
1286 @subsection avpreset files
1287 avpreset files are specified with the @code{pre} option. They work similar to
1288 ffpreset files, but they only allow encoder- specific options. Therefore, an
1289 @var{option}=@var{value} pair specifying an encoder cannot be used.
1291 When the @code{pre} option is specified, ffmpeg will look for files with the
1292 suffix .avpreset in the directories @file{$AVCONV_DATADIR} (if set), and
1293 @file{$HOME/.avconv}, and in the datadir defined at configuration time (usually
1294 @file{PREFIX/share/ffmpeg}), in that order.
1296 First ffmpeg searches for a file named @var{codec_name}-@var{arg}.avpreset in
1297 the above-mentioned directories, where @var{codec_name} is the name of the codec
1298 to which the preset file options will be applied. For example, if you select the
1299 video codec with @code{-vcodec libvpx} and use @code{-pre 1080p}, then it will
1300 search for the file @file{libvpx-1080p.avpreset}.
1302 If no such file is found, then ffmpeg will search for a file named
1303 @var{arg}.avpreset in the same directories.
1308 @c man begin EXAMPLES
1310 @section Video and Audio grabbing
1312 If you specify the input format and device then ffmpeg can grab video
1316 ffmpeg -f oss -i /dev/dsp -f video4linux2 -i /dev/video0 /tmp/out.mpg
1319 Or with an ALSA audio source (mono input, card id 1) instead of OSS:
1321 ffmpeg -f alsa -ac 1 -i hw:1 -f video4linux2 -i /dev/video0 /tmp/out.mpg
1324 Note that you must activate the right video source and channel before
1325 launching ffmpeg with any TV viewer such as
1326 @uref{http://linux.bytesex.org/xawtv/, xawtv} by Gerd Knorr. You also
1327 have to set the audio recording levels correctly with a
1330 @section X11 grabbing
1332 Grab the X11 display with ffmpeg via
1335 ffmpeg -f x11grab -video_size cif -framerate 25 -i :0.0 /tmp/out.mpg
1338 0.0 is display.screen number of your X11 server, same as
1339 the DISPLAY environment variable.
1342 ffmpeg -f x11grab -video_size cif -framerate 25 -i :0.0+10,20 /tmp/out.mpg
1345 0.0 is display.screen number of your X11 server, same as the DISPLAY environment
1346 variable. 10 is the x-offset and 20 the y-offset for the grabbing.
1348 @section Video and Audio file format conversion
1350 Any supported file format and protocol can serve as input to ffmpeg:
1355 You can use YUV files as input:
1358 ffmpeg -i /tmp/test%d.Y /tmp/out.mpg
1361 It will use the files:
1363 /tmp/test0.Y, /tmp/test0.U, /tmp/test0.V,
1364 /tmp/test1.Y, /tmp/test1.U, /tmp/test1.V, etc...
1367 The Y files use twice the resolution of the U and V files. They are
1368 raw files, without header. They can be generated by all decent video
1369 decoders. You must specify the size of the image with the @option{-s} option
1370 if ffmpeg cannot guess it.
1373 You can input from a raw YUV420P file:
1376 ffmpeg -i /tmp/test.yuv /tmp/out.avi
1379 test.yuv is a file containing raw YUV planar data. Each frame is composed
1380 of the Y plane followed by the U and V planes at half vertical and
1381 horizontal resolution.
1384 You can output to a raw YUV420P file:
1387 ffmpeg -i mydivx.avi hugefile.yuv
1391 You can set several input files and output files:
1394 ffmpeg -i /tmp/a.wav -s 640x480 -i /tmp/a.yuv /tmp/a.mpg
1397 Converts the audio file a.wav and the raw YUV video file a.yuv
1401 You can also do audio and video conversions at the same time:
1404 ffmpeg -i /tmp/a.wav -ar 22050 /tmp/a.mp2
1407 Converts a.wav to MPEG audio at 22050 Hz sample rate.
1410 You can encode to several formats at the same time and define a
1411 mapping from input stream to output streams:
1414 ffmpeg -i /tmp/a.wav -map 0:a -b:a 64k /tmp/a.mp2 -map 0:a -b:a 128k /tmp/b.mp2
1417 Converts a.wav to a.mp2 at 64 kbits and to b.mp2 at 128 kbits. '-map
1418 file:index' specifies which input stream is used for each output
1419 stream, in the order of the definition of output streams.
1422 You can transcode decrypted VOBs:
1425 ffmpeg -i snatch_1.vob -f avi -c:v mpeg4 -b:v 800k -g 300 -bf 2 -c:a libmp3lame -b:a 128k snatch.avi
1428 This is a typical DVD ripping example; the input is a VOB file, the
1429 output an AVI file with MPEG-4 video and MP3 audio. Note that in this
1430 command we use B-frames so the MPEG-4 stream is DivX5 compatible, and
1431 GOP size is 300 which means one intra frame every 10 seconds for 29.97fps
1432 input video. Furthermore, the audio stream is MP3-encoded so you need
1433 to enable LAME support by passing @code{--enable-libmp3lame} to configure.
1434 The mapping is particularly useful for DVD transcoding
1435 to get the desired audio language.
1437 NOTE: To see the supported input formats, use @code{ffmpeg -formats}.
1440 You can extract images from a video, or create a video from many images:
1442 For extracting images from a video:
1444 ffmpeg -i foo.avi -r 1 -s WxH -f image2 foo-%03d.jpeg
1447 This will extract one video frame per second from the video and will
1448 output them in files named @file{foo-001.jpeg}, @file{foo-002.jpeg},
1449 etc. Images will be rescaled to fit the new WxH values.
1451 If you want to extract just a limited number of frames, you can use the
1452 above command in combination with the -vframes or -t option, or in
1453 combination with -ss to start extracting from a certain point in time.
1455 For creating a video from many images:
1457 ffmpeg -f image2 -framerate 12 -i foo-%03d.jpeg -s WxH foo.avi
1460 The syntax @code{foo-%03d.jpeg} specifies to use a decimal number
1461 composed of three digits padded with zeroes to express the sequence
1462 number. It is the same syntax supported by the C printf function, but
1463 only formats accepting a normal integer are suitable.
1465 When importing an image sequence, -i also supports expanding
1466 shell-like wildcard patterns (globbing) internally, by selecting the
1467 image2-specific @code{-pattern_type glob} option.
1469 For example, for creating a video from filenames matching the glob pattern
1472 ffmpeg -f image2 -pattern_type glob -framerate 12 -i 'foo-*.jpeg' -s WxH foo.avi
1476 You can put many streams of the same type in the output:
1479 ffmpeg -i test1.avi -i test2.avi -map 1:1 -map 1:0 -map 0:1 -map 0:0 -c copy -y test12.nut
1482 The resulting output file @file{test12.nut} will contain the first four streams
1483 from the input files in reverse order.
1486 To force CBR video output:
1488 ffmpeg -i myfile.avi -b 4000k -minrate 4000k -maxrate 4000k -bufsize 1835k out.m2v
1492 The four options lmin, lmax, mblmin and mblmax use 'lambda' units,
1493 but you may use the QP2LAMBDA constant to easily convert from 'q' units:
1495 ffmpeg -i src.ext -lmax 21*QP2LAMBDA dst.ext
1501 @include config.texi
1503 @ifset config-avutil
1506 @ifset config-avcodec
1507 @include codecs.texi
1508 @include bitstream_filters.texi
1510 @ifset config-avformat
1511 @include formats.texi
1512 @include protocols.texi
1514 @ifset config-avdevice
1515 @include devices.texi
1517 @ifset config-swresample
1518 @include resampler.texi
1520 @ifset config-swscale
1521 @include scaler.texi
1523 @ifset config-avfilter
1524 @include filters.texi
1532 @url{ffmpeg.html,ffmpeg}
1534 @ifset config-not-all
1535 @url{ffmpeg-all.html,ffmpeg-all},
1537 @url{ffplay.html,ffplay}, @url{ffprobe.html,ffprobe}, @url{ffserver.html,ffserver},
1538 @url{ffmpeg-utils.html,ffmpeg-utils},
1539 @url{ffmpeg-scaler.html,ffmpeg-scaler},
1540 @url{ffmpeg-resampler.html,ffmpeg-resampler},
1541 @url{ffmpeg-codecs.html,ffmpeg-codecs},
1542 @url{ffmpeg-bitstream-filters.html,ffmpeg-bitstream-filters},
1543 @url{ffmpeg-formats.html,ffmpeg-formats},
1544 @url{ffmpeg-devices.html,ffmpeg-devices},
1545 @url{ffmpeg-protocols.html,ffmpeg-protocols},
1546 @url{ffmpeg-filters.html,ffmpeg-filters}
1553 @ifset config-not-all
1556 ffplay(1), ffprobe(1), ffserver(1),
1557 ffmpeg-utils(1), ffmpeg-scaler(1), ffmpeg-resampler(1),
1558 ffmpeg-codecs(1), ffmpeg-bitstream-filters(1), ffmpeg-formats(1),
1559 ffmpeg-devices(1), ffmpeg-protocols(1), ffmpeg-filters(1)
1562 @include authors.texi
1567 @settitle ffmpeg video converter