1 \input texinfo @c -*- texinfo -*-
3 @settitle ffmpeg Documentation
5 @center @titlefont{ffmpeg Documentation}
14 ffmpeg [@var{global_options}] @{[@var{input_file_options}] -i @file{input_file}@} ... @{[@var{output_file_options}] @file{output_file}@} ...
17 @c man begin DESCRIPTION
19 @command{ffmpeg} is a very fast video and audio converter that can also grab from
20 a live audio/video source. It can also convert between arbitrary sample
21 rates and resize video on the fly with a high quality polyphase filter.
23 @command{ffmpeg} reads from an arbitrary number of input "files" (which can be regular
24 files, pipes, network streams, grabbing devices, etc.), specified by the
25 @code{-i} option, and writes to an arbitrary number of output "files", which are
26 specified by a plain output filename. Anything found on the command line which
27 cannot be interpreted as an option is considered to be an output filename.
29 Each input or output file can, in principle, contain any number of streams of
30 different types (video/audio/subtitle/attachment/data). The allowed number and/or
31 types of streams may be limited by the container format. Selecting which
32 streams from which inputs will go into which output is either done automatically
33 or with the @code{-map} option (see the Stream selection chapter).
35 To refer to input files in options, you must use their indices (0-based). E.g.
36 the first input file is @code{0}, the second is @code{1}, etc. Similarly, streams
37 within a file are referred to by their indices. E.g. @code{2:3} refers to the
38 fourth stream in the third input file. Also see the Stream specifiers chapter.
40 As a general rule, options are applied to the next specified
41 file. Therefore, order is important, and you can have the same
42 option on the command line multiple times. Each occurrence is
43 then applied to the next input or output file.
44 Exceptions from this rule are the global options (e.g. verbosity level),
45 which should be specified first.
47 Do not mix input and output files -- first specify all input files, then all
48 output files. Also do not mix options which belong to different files. All
49 options apply ONLY to the next input or output file and are reset between files.
53 To set the video bitrate of the output file to 64 kbit/s:
55 ffmpeg -i input.avi -b:v 64k -bufsize 64k output.avi
59 To force the frame rate of the output file to 24 fps:
61 ffmpeg -i input.avi -r 24 output.avi
65 To force the frame rate of the input file (valid for raw formats only)
66 to 1 fps and the frame rate of the output file to 24 fps:
68 ffmpeg -r 1 -i input.m2v -r 24 output.avi
72 The format option may be needed for raw input files.
74 @c man end DESCRIPTION
76 @chapter Detailed description
77 @c man begin DETAILED DESCRIPTION
79 The transcoding process in @command{ffmpeg} for each output can be described by
80 the following diagram:
83 _______ ______________
85 | input | demuxer | encoded data | decoder
86 | file | ---------> | packets | -----+
87 |_______| |______________| |
94 ________ ______________ |
96 | output | <-------- | encoded data | <----+
97 | file | muxer | packets | encoder
98 |________| |______________|
103 @command{ffmpeg} calls the libavformat library (containing demuxers) to read
104 input files and get packets containing encoded data from them. When there are
105 multiple input files, @command{ffmpeg} tries to keep them synchronized by
106 tracking lowest timestamp on any active input stream.
108 Encoded packets are then passed to the decoder (unless streamcopy is selected
109 for the stream, see further for a description). The decoder produces
110 uncompressed frames (raw video/PCM audio/...) which can be processed further by
111 filtering (see next section). After filtering, the frames are passed to the
112 encoder, which encodes them and outputs encoded packets. Finally those are
113 passed to the muxer, which writes the encoded packets to the output file.
116 Before encoding, @command{ffmpeg} can process raw audio and video frames using
117 filters from the libavfilter library. Several chained filters form a filter
118 graph. @command{ffmpeg} distinguishes between two types of filtergraphs:
121 @subsection Simple filtergraphs
122 Simple filtergraphs are those that have exactly one input and output, both of
123 the same type. In the above diagram they can be represented by simply inserting
124 an additional step between decoding and encoding:
127 _________ ______________
129 | decoded | | encoded data |
130 | frames |\ _ | packets |
131 |_________| \ /||______________|
133 simple _\|| | / encoder
134 filtergraph | filtered |/
140 Simple filtergraphs are configured with the per-stream @option{-filter} option
141 (with @option{-vf} and @option{-af} aliases for video and audio respectively).
142 A simple filtergraph for video can look for example like this:
145 _______ _____________ _______ ________
147 | input | ---> | deinterlace | ---> | scale | ---> | output |
148 |_______| |_____________| |_______| |________|
152 Note that some filters change frame properties but not frame contents. E.g. the
153 @code{fps} filter in the example above changes number of frames, but does not
154 touch the frame contents. Another example is the @code{setpts} filter, which
155 only sets timestamps and otherwise passes the frames unchanged.
157 @subsection Complex filtergraphs
158 Complex filtergraphs are those which cannot be described as simply a linear
159 processing chain applied to one stream. This is the case, for example, when the graph has
160 more than one input and/or output, or when output stream type is different from
161 input. They can be represented with the following diagram:
166 | input 0 |\ __________
168 \ _________ /| output 0 |
170 _________ \| complex | /
172 | input 1 |---->| filter |\
173 |_________| | | \ __________
176 _________ / |_________| |__________|
183 Complex filtergraphs are configured with the @option{-filter_complex} option.
184 Note that this option is global, since a complex filtergraph, by its nature,
185 cannot be unambiguously associated with a single stream or file.
187 The @option{-lavfi} option is equivalent to @option{-filter_complex}.
189 A trivial example of a complex filtergraph is the @code{overlay} filter, which
190 has two video inputs and one video output, containing one video overlaid on top
191 of the other. Its audio counterpart is the @code{amix} filter.
194 Stream copy is a mode selected by supplying the @code{copy} parameter to the
195 @option{-codec} option. It makes @command{ffmpeg} omit the decoding and encoding
196 step for the specified stream, so it does only demuxing and muxing. It is useful
197 for changing the container format or modifying container-level metadata. The
198 diagram above will, in this case, simplify to this:
201 _______ ______________ ________
203 | input | demuxer | encoded data | muxer | output |
204 | file | ---------> | packets | -------> | file |
205 |_______| |______________| |________|
209 Since there is no decoding or encoding, it is very fast and there is no quality
210 loss. However, it might not work in some cases because of many factors. Applying
211 filters is obviously also impossible, since filters work on uncompressed data.
213 @c man end DETAILED DESCRIPTION
215 @chapter Stream selection
216 @c man begin STREAM SELECTION
218 By default, @command{ffmpeg} includes only one stream of each type (video, audio, subtitle)
219 present in the input files and adds them to each output file. It picks the
220 "best" of each based upon the following criteria: for video, it is the stream
221 with the highest resolution, for audio, it is the stream with the most channels, for
222 subtitles, it is the first subtitle stream. In the case where several streams of
223 the same type rate equally, the stream with the lowest index is chosen.
225 You can disable some of those defaults by using the @code{-vn/-an/-sn} options. For
226 full manual control, use the @code{-map} option, which disables the defaults just
229 @c man end STREAM SELECTION
234 @include fftools-common-opts.texi
236 @section Main options
240 @item -f @var{fmt} (@emph{input/output})
241 Force input or output file format. The format is normally auto detected for input
242 files and guessed from the file extension for output files, so this option is not
243 needed in most cases.
245 @item -i @var{filename} (@emph{input})
248 @item -y (@emph{global})
249 Overwrite output files without asking.
251 @item -n (@emph{global})
252 Do not overwrite output files, and exit immediately if a specified
253 output file already exists.
255 @item -c[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{codec} (@emph{input/output,per-stream})
256 @itemx -codec[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{codec} (@emph{input/output,per-stream})
257 Select an encoder (when used before an output file) or a decoder (when used
258 before an input file) for one or more streams. @var{codec} is the name of a
259 decoder/encoder or a special value @code{copy} (output only) to indicate that
260 the stream is not to be re-encoded.
264 ffmpeg -i INPUT -map 0 -c:v libx264 -c:a copy OUTPUT
266 encodes all video streams with libx264 and copies all audio streams.
268 For each stream, the last matching @code{c} option is applied, so
270 ffmpeg -i INPUT -map 0 -c copy -c:v:1 libx264 -c:a:137 libvorbis OUTPUT
272 will copy all the streams except the second video, which will be encoded with
273 libx264, and the 138th audio, which will be encoded with libvorbis.
275 @item -t @var{duration} (@emph{output})
276 Stop writing the output after its duration reaches @var{duration}.
277 @var{duration} may be a number in seconds, or in @code{hh:mm:ss[.xxx]} form.
279 -to and -t are mutually exclusive and -t has priority.
281 @item -to @var{position} (@emph{output})
282 Stop writing the output at @var{position}.
283 @var{position} 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 -fs @var{limit_size} (@emph{output})
288 Set the file size limit, expressed in bytes.
290 @item -ss @var{position} (@emph{input/output})
291 When used as an input option (before @code{-i}), seeks in this input file to
292 @var{position}. Note the in most formats it is not possible to seek exactly, so
293 @command{ffmpeg} will seek to the closest seek point before @var{position}.
294 When transcoding and @option{-accurate_seek} is enabled (the default), this
295 extra segment between the seek point and @var{position} will be decoded and
296 discarded. When doing stream copy or when @option{-noaccurate_seek} is used, it
299 When used as an output option (before an output filename), decodes but discards
300 input until the timestamps reach @var{position}.
302 @var{position} may be either in seconds or in @code{hh:mm:ss[.xxx]} form.
304 @item -itsoffset @var{offset} (@emph{input})
305 Set the input time offset.
307 @var{offset} must be a time duration specification,
308 see @ref{time duration syntax,,the Time duration section in the ffmpeg-utils(1) manual,ffmpeg-utils}.
310 The offset is added to the timestamps of the input files. Specifying
311 a positive offset means that the corresponding streams are delayed by
312 the time duration specified in @var{offset}.
314 @item -timestamp @var{date} (@emph{output})
315 Set the recording timestamp in the container.
317 @var{date} must be a time duration specification,
318 see @ref{date syntax,,the Date section in the ffmpeg-utils(1) manual,ffmpeg-utils}.
320 @item -metadata[:metadata_specifier] @var{key}=@var{value} (@emph{output,per-metadata})
321 Set a metadata key/value pair.
323 An optional @var{metadata_specifier} may be given to set metadata
324 on streams or chapters. See @code{-map_metadata} documentation for
327 This option overrides metadata set with @code{-map_metadata}. It is
328 also possible to delete metadata by using an empty value.
330 For example, for setting the title in the output file:
332 ffmpeg -i in.avi -metadata title="my title" out.flv
335 To set the language of the first audio stream:
337 ffmpeg -i INPUT -metadata:s:a:1 language=eng OUTPUT
340 @item -target @var{type} (@emph{output})
341 Specify target file type (@code{vcd}, @code{svcd}, @code{dvd}, @code{dv},
342 @code{dv50}). @var{type} may be prefixed with @code{pal-}, @code{ntsc-} or
343 @code{film-} to use the corresponding standard. All the format options
344 (bitrate, codecs, buffer sizes) are then set automatically. You can just type:
347 ffmpeg -i myfile.avi -target vcd /tmp/vcd.mpg
350 Nevertheless you can specify additional options as long as you know
351 they do not conflict with the standard, as in:
354 ffmpeg -i myfile.avi -target vcd -bf 2 /tmp/vcd.mpg
357 @item -dframes @var{number} (@emph{output})
358 Set the number of data frames to record. This is an alias for @code{-frames:d}.
360 @item -frames[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{framecount} (@emph{output,per-stream})
361 Stop writing to the stream after @var{framecount} frames.
363 @item -q[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{q} (@emph{output,per-stream})
364 @itemx -qscale[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{q} (@emph{output,per-stream})
365 Use fixed quality scale (VBR). The meaning of @var{q}/@var{qscale} is
367 If @var{qscale} is used without a @var{stream_specifier} then it applies only
368 to the video stream, this is to maintain compatibility with previous behavior
369 and as specifying the same codec specific value to 2 different codecs that is
370 audio and video generally is not what is intended when no stream_specifier is
373 @anchor{filter_option}
374 @item -filter[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{filtergraph} (@emph{output,per-stream})
375 Create the filtergraph specified by @var{filtergraph} and use it to
378 @var{filtergraph} is a description of the filtergraph to apply to
379 the stream, and must have a single input and a single output of the
380 same type of the stream. In the filtergraph, the input is associated
381 to the label @code{in}, and the output to the label @code{out}. See
382 the ffmpeg-filters manual for more information about the filtergraph
385 See the @ref{filter_complex_option,,-filter_complex option} if you
386 want to create filtergraphs with multiple inputs and/or outputs.
388 @item -filter_script[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{filename} (@emph{output,per-stream})
389 This option is similar to @option{-filter}, the only difference is that its
390 argument is the name of the file from which a filtergraph description is to be
393 @item -pre[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{preset_name} (@emph{output,per-stream})
394 Specify the preset for matching stream(s).
396 @item -stats (@emph{global})
397 Print encoding progress/statistics. It is on by default, to explicitly
398 disable it you need to specify @code{-nostats}.
400 @item -progress @var{url} (@emph{global})
401 Send program-friendly progress information to @var{url}.
403 Progress information is written approximately every second and at the end of
404 the encoding process. It is made of "@var{key}=@var{value}" lines. @var{key}
405 consists of only alphanumeric characters. The last key of a sequence of
406 progress information is always "progress".
409 Enable interaction on standard input. On by default unless standard input is
410 used as an input. To explicitly disable interaction you need to specify
413 Disabling interaction on standard input is useful, for example, if
414 ffmpeg is in the background process group. Roughly the same result can
415 be achieved with @code{ffmpeg ... < /dev/null} but it requires a
418 @item -debug_ts (@emph{global})
419 Print timestamp information. It is off by default. This option is
420 mostly useful for testing and debugging purposes, and the output
421 format may change from one version to another, so it should not be
422 employed by portable scripts.
424 See also the option @code{-fdebug ts}.
426 @item -attach @var{filename} (@emph{output})
427 Add an attachment to the output file. This is supported by a few formats
428 like Matroska for e.g. fonts used in rendering subtitles. Attachments
429 are implemented as a specific type of stream, so this option will add
430 a new stream to the file. It is then possible to use per-stream options
431 on this stream in the usual way. Attachment streams created with this
432 option will be created after all the other streams (i.e. those created
433 with @code{-map} or automatic mappings).
435 Note that for Matroska you also have to set the mimetype metadata tag:
437 ffmpeg -i INPUT -attach DejaVuSans.ttf -metadata:s:2 mimetype=application/x-truetype-font out.mkv
439 (assuming that the attachment stream will be third in the output file).
441 @item -dump_attachment[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{filename} (@emph{input,per-stream})
442 Extract the matching attachment stream into a file named @var{filename}. If
443 @var{filename} is empty, then the value of the @code{filename} metadata tag
446 E.g. to extract the first attachment to a file named 'out.ttf':
448 ffmpeg -dump_attachment:t:0 out.ttf -i INPUT
450 To extract all attachments to files determined by the @code{filename} tag:
452 ffmpeg -dump_attachment:t "" -i INPUT
455 Technical note -- attachments are implemented as codec extradata, so this
456 option can actually be used to extract extradata from any stream, not just
461 @section Video Options
464 @item -vframes @var{number} (@emph{output})
465 Set the number of video frames to record. This is an alias for @code{-frames:v}.
466 @item -r[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{fps} (@emph{input/output,per-stream})
467 Set frame rate (Hz value, fraction or abbreviation).
469 As an input option, ignore any timestamps stored in the file and instead
470 generate timestamps assuming constant frame rate @var{fps}.
472 As an output option, duplicate or drop input frames to achieve constant output
473 frame rate @var{fps}.
475 @item -s[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{size} (@emph{input/output,per-stream})
478 As an input option, this is a shortcut for the @option{video_size} private
479 option, recognized by some demuxers for which the frame size is either not
480 stored in the file or is configurable -- e.g. raw video or video grabbers.
482 As an output option, this inserts the @code{scale} video filter to the
483 @emph{end} of the corresponding filtergraph. Please use the @code{scale} filter
484 directly to insert it at the beginning or some other place.
486 The format is @samp{wxh} (default - same as source).
488 @item -aspect[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{aspect} (@emph{output,per-stream})
489 Set the video display aspect ratio specified by @var{aspect}.
491 @var{aspect} can be a floating point number string, or a string of the
492 form @var{num}:@var{den}, where @var{num} and @var{den} are the
493 numerator and denominator of the aspect ratio. For example "4:3",
494 "16:9", "1.3333", and "1.7777" are valid argument values.
496 If used together with @option{-vcodec copy}, it will affect the aspect ratio
497 stored at container level, but not the aspect ratio stored in encoded
498 frames, if it exists.
500 @item -vn (@emph{output})
501 Disable video recording.
503 @item -vcodec @var{codec} (@emph{output})
504 Set the video codec. This is an alias for @code{-codec:v}.
506 @item -pass[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{n} (@emph{output,per-stream})
507 Select the pass number (1 or 2). It is used to do two-pass
508 video encoding. The statistics of the video are recorded in the first
509 pass into a log file (see also the option -passlogfile),
510 and in the second pass that log file is used to generate the video
511 at the exact requested bitrate.
512 On pass 1, you may just deactivate audio and set output to null,
513 examples for Windows and Unix:
515 ffmpeg -i foo.mov -c:v libxvid -pass 1 -an -f rawvideo -y NUL
516 ffmpeg -i foo.mov -c:v libxvid -pass 1 -an -f rawvideo -y /dev/null
519 @item -passlogfile[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{prefix} (@emph{output,per-stream})
520 Set two-pass log file name prefix to @var{prefix}, the default file name
521 prefix is ``ffmpeg2pass''. The complete file name will be
522 @file{PREFIX-N.log}, where N is a number specific to the output
525 @item -vf @var{filtergraph} (@emph{output})
526 Create the filtergraph specified by @var{filtergraph} and use it to
529 This is an alias for @code{-filter:v}, see the @ref{filter_option,,-filter option}.
532 @section Advanced Video Options
535 @item -pix_fmt[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{format} (@emph{input/output,per-stream})
536 Set pixel format. Use @code{-pix_fmts} to show all the supported
538 If the selected pixel format can not be selected, ffmpeg will print a
539 warning and select the best pixel format supported by the encoder.
540 If @var{pix_fmt} is prefixed by a @code{+}, ffmpeg will exit with an error
541 if the requested pixel format can not be selected, and automatic conversions
542 inside filtergraphs are disabled.
543 If @var{pix_fmt} is a single @code{+}, ffmpeg selects the same pixel format
544 as the input (or graph output) and automatic conversions are disabled.
546 @item -sws_flags @var{flags} (@emph{input/output})
551 @item -rc_override[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{override} (@emph{output,per-stream})
552 Rate control override for specific intervals, formatted as "int,int,int"
553 list separated with slashes. Two first values are the beginning and
554 end frame numbers, last one is quantizer to use if positive, or quality
558 Force interlacing support in encoder (MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 only).
559 Use this option if your input file is interlaced and you want
560 to keep the interlaced format for minimum losses.
561 The alternative is to deinterlace the input stream with
562 @option{-deinterlace}, but deinterlacing introduces losses.
564 Calculate PSNR of compressed frames.
566 Dump video coding statistics to @file{vstats_HHMMSS.log}.
567 @item -vstats_file @var{file}
568 Dump video coding statistics to @var{file}.
569 @item -top[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{n} (@emph{output,per-stream})
570 top=1/bottom=0/auto=-1 field first
571 @item -dc @var{precision}
573 @item -vtag @var{fourcc/tag} (@emph{output})
574 Force video tag/fourcc. This is an alias for @code{-tag:v}.
575 @item -qphist (@emph{global})
577 @item -vbsf @var{bitstream_filter}
580 @item -force_key_frames[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{time}[,@var{time}...] (@emph{output,per-stream})
581 @item -force_key_frames[:@var{stream_specifier}] expr:@var{expr} (@emph{output,per-stream})
582 Force key frames at the specified timestamps, more precisely at the first
583 frames after each specified time.
585 If the argument is prefixed with @code{expr:}, the string @var{expr}
586 is interpreted like an expression and is evaluated for each frame. A
587 key frame is forced in case the evaluation is non-zero.
589 If one of the times is "@code{chapters}[@var{delta}]", it is expanded into
590 the time of the beginning of all chapters in the file, shifted by
591 @var{delta}, expressed as a time in seconds.
592 This option can be useful to ensure that a seek point is present at a
593 chapter mark or any other designated place in the output file.
595 For example, to insert a key frame at 5 minutes, plus key frames 0.1 second
596 before the beginning of every chapter:
598 -force_key_frames 0:05:00,chapters-0.1
601 The expression in @var{expr} can contain the following constants:
604 the number of current processed frame, starting from 0
606 the number of forced frames
608 the number of the previous forced frame, it is @code{NAN} when no
609 keyframe was forced yet
611 the time of the previous forced frame, it is @code{NAN} when no
612 keyframe was forced yet
614 the time of the current processed frame
617 For example to force a key frame every 5 seconds, you can specify:
619 -force_key_frames expr:gte(t,n_forced*5)
622 To force a key frame 5 seconds after the time of the last forced one,
623 starting from second 13:
625 -force_key_frames expr:if(isnan(prev_forced_t),gte(t,13),gte(t,prev_forced_t+5))
628 Note that forcing too many keyframes is very harmful for the lookahead
629 algorithms of certain encoders: using fixed-GOP options or similar
630 would be more efficient.
632 @item -copyinkf[:@var{stream_specifier}] (@emph{output,per-stream})
633 When doing stream copy, copy also non-key frames found at the
636 @item -hwaccel[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{hwaccel} (@emph{input,per-stream})
637 Use hardware acceleration to decode the matching stream(s). The allowed values
638 of @var{hwaccel} are:
641 Do not use any hardware acceleration (the default).
644 Automatically select the hardware acceleration method.
647 Use VDPAU (Video Decode and Presentation API for Unix) hardware acceleration.
650 Use DXVA2 (DirectX Video Acceleration) hardware acceleration.
653 This option has no effect if the selected hwaccel is not available or not
654 supported by the chosen decoder.
656 Note that most acceleration methods are intended for playback and will not be
657 faster than software decoding on modern CPUs. Additionally, @command{ffmpeg}
658 will usually need to copy the decoded frames from the GPU memory into the system
659 memory, resulting in further performance loss. This option is thus mainly
662 @item -hwaccel_device[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{hwaccel_device} (@emph{input,per-stream})
663 Select a device to use for hardware acceleration.
665 This option only makes sense when the @option{-hwaccel} option is also
666 specified. Its exact meaning depends on the specific hardware acceleration
671 For VDPAU, this option specifies the X11 display/screen to use. If this option
672 is not specified, the value of the @var{DISPLAY} environment variable is used
675 For DXVA2, this option should contain the number of the display adapter to use.
676 If this option is not specified, the default adapter is used.
680 @section Audio Options
683 @item -aframes @var{number} (@emph{output})
684 Set the number of audio frames to record. This is an alias for @code{-frames:a}.
685 @item -ar[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{freq} (@emph{input/output,per-stream})
686 Set the audio sampling frequency. For output streams it is set by
687 default to the frequency of the corresponding input stream. For input
688 streams this option only makes sense for audio grabbing devices and raw
689 demuxers and is mapped to the corresponding demuxer options.
690 @item -aq @var{q} (@emph{output})
691 Set the audio quality (codec-specific, VBR). This is an alias for -q:a.
692 @item -ac[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{channels} (@emph{input/output,per-stream})
693 Set the number of audio channels. For output streams it is set by
694 default to the number of input audio channels. For input streams
695 this option only makes sense for audio grabbing devices and raw demuxers
696 and is mapped to the corresponding demuxer options.
697 @item -an (@emph{output})
698 Disable audio recording.
699 @item -acodec @var{codec} (@emph{input/output})
700 Set the audio codec. This is an alias for @code{-codec:a}.
701 @item -sample_fmt[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{sample_fmt} (@emph{output,per-stream})
702 Set the audio sample format. Use @code{-sample_fmts} to get a list
703 of supported sample formats.
705 @item -af @var{filtergraph} (@emph{output})
706 Create the filtergraph specified by @var{filtergraph} and use it to
709 This is an alias for @code{-filter:a}, see the @ref{filter_option,,-filter option}.
712 @section Advanced Audio options:
715 @item -atag @var{fourcc/tag} (@emph{output})
716 Force audio tag/fourcc. This is an alias for @code{-tag:a}.
717 @item -absf @var{bitstream_filter}
719 @item -guess_layout_max @var{channels} (@emph{input,per-stream})
720 If some input channel layout is not known, try to guess only if it
721 corresponds to at most the specified number of channels. For example, 2
722 tells to @command{ffmpeg} to recognize 1 channel as mono and 2 channels as
723 stereo but not 6 channels as 5.1. The default is to always try to guess. Use
724 0 to disable all guessing.
727 @section Subtitle options:
730 @item -scodec @var{codec} (@emph{input/output})
731 Set the subtitle codec. This is an alias for @code{-codec:s}.
732 @item -sn (@emph{output})
733 Disable subtitle recording.
734 @item -sbsf @var{bitstream_filter}
738 @section Advanced Subtitle options:
742 @item -fix_sub_duration
743 Fix subtitles durations. For each subtitle, wait for the next packet in the
744 same stream and adjust the duration of the first to avoid overlap. This is
745 necessary with some subtitles codecs, especially DVB subtitles, because the
746 duration in the original packet is only a rough estimate and the end is
747 actually marked by an empty subtitle frame. Failing to use this option when
748 necessary can result in exaggerated durations or muxing failures due to
749 non-monotonic timestamps.
751 Note that this option will delay the output of all data until the next
752 subtitle packet is decoded: it may increase memory consumption and latency a
755 @item -canvas_size @var{size}
756 Set the size of the canvas used to render subtitles.
760 @section Advanced options
763 @item -map [-]@var{input_file_id}[:@var{stream_specifier}][,@var{sync_file_id}[:@var{stream_specifier}]] | @var{[linklabel]} (@emph{output})
765 Designate one or more input streams as a source for the output file. Each input
766 stream is identified by the input file index @var{input_file_id} and
767 the input stream index @var{input_stream_id} within the input
768 file. Both indices start at 0. If specified,
769 @var{sync_file_id}:@var{stream_specifier} sets which input stream
770 is used as a presentation sync reference.
772 The first @code{-map} option on the command line specifies the
773 source for output stream 0, the second @code{-map} option specifies
774 the source for output stream 1, etc.
776 A @code{-} character before the stream identifier creates a "negative" mapping.
777 It disables matching streams from already created mappings.
779 An alternative @var{[linklabel]} form will map outputs from complex filter
780 graphs (see the @option{-filter_complex} option) to the output file.
781 @var{linklabel} must correspond to a defined output link label in the graph.
783 For example, to map ALL streams from the first input file to output
785 ffmpeg -i INPUT -map 0 output
788 For example, if you have two audio streams in the first input file,
789 these streams are identified by "0:0" and "0:1". You can use
790 @code{-map} to select which streams to place in an output file. For
793 ffmpeg -i INPUT -map 0:1 out.wav
795 will map the input stream in @file{INPUT} identified by "0:1" to
796 the (single) output stream in @file{out.wav}.
798 For example, to select the stream with index 2 from input file
799 @file{a.mov} (specified by the identifier "0:2"), and stream with
800 index 6 from input @file{b.mov} (specified by the identifier "1:6"),
801 and copy them to the output file @file{out.mov}:
803 ffmpeg -i a.mov -i b.mov -c copy -map 0:2 -map 1:6 out.mov
806 To select all video and the third audio stream from an input file:
808 ffmpeg -i INPUT -map 0:v -map 0:a:2 OUTPUT
811 To map all the streams except the second audio, use negative mappings
813 ffmpeg -i INPUT -map 0 -map -0:a:1 OUTPUT
816 Note that using this option disables the default mappings for this output file.
818 @item -map_channel [@var{input_file_id}.@var{stream_specifier}.@var{channel_id}|-1][:@var{output_file_id}.@var{stream_specifier}]
819 Map an audio channel from a given input to an output. If
820 @var{output_file_id}.@var{stream_specifier} is not set, the audio channel will
821 be mapped on all the audio streams.
823 Using "-1" instead of
824 @var{input_file_id}.@var{stream_specifier}.@var{channel_id} will map a muted
827 For example, assuming @var{INPUT} is a stereo audio file, you can switch the
828 two audio channels with the following command:
830 ffmpeg -i INPUT -map_channel 0.0.1 -map_channel 0.0.0 OUTPUT
833 If you want to mute the first channel and keep the second:
835 ffmpeg -i INPUT -map_channel -1 -map_channel 0.0.1 OUTPUT
838 The order of the "-map_channel" option specifies the order of the channels in
839 the output stream. The output channel layout is guessed from the number of
840 channels mapped (mono if one "-map_channel", stereo if two, etc.). Using "-ac"
841 in combination of "-map_channel" makes the channel gain levels to be updated if
842 input and output channel layouts don't match (for instance two "-map_channel"
843 options and "-ac 6").
845 You can also extract each channel of an input to specific outputs; the following
846 command extracts two channels of the @var{INPUT} audio stream (file 0, stream 0)
847 to the respective @var{OUTPUT_CH0} and @var{OUTPUT_CH1} outputs:
849 ffmpeg -i INPUT -map_channel 0.0.0 OUTPUT_CH0 -map_channel 0.0.1 OUTPUT_CH1
852 The following example splits the channels of a stereo input into two separate
853 streams, which are put into the same output file:
855 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
858 Note that currently each output stream can only contain channels from a single
859 input stream; you can't for example use "-map_channel" to pick multiple input
860 audio channels contained in different streams (from the same or different files)
861 and merge them into a single output stream. It is therefore not currently
862 possible, for example, to turn two separate mono streams into a single stereo
863 stream. However splitting a stereo stream into two single channel mono streams
866 If you need this feature, a possible workaround is to use the @emph{amerge}
867 filter. For example, if you need to merge a media (here @file{input.mkv}) with 2
868 mono audio streams into one single stereo channel audio stream (and keep the
869 video stream), you can use the following command:
871 ffmpeg -i input.mkv -filter_complex "[0:1] [0:2] amerge" -c:a pcm_s16le -c:v copy output.mkv
874 @item -map_metadata[:@var{metadata_spec_out}] @var{infile}[:@var{metadata_spec_in}] (@emph{output,per-metadata})
875 Set metadata information of the next output file from @var{infile}. Note that
876 those are file indices (zero-based), not filenames.
877 Optional @var{metadata_spec_in/out} parameters specify, which metadata to copy.
878 A metadata specifier can have the following forms:
881 global metadata, i.e. metadata that applies to the whole file
883 @item @var{s}[:@var{stream_spec}]
884 per-stream metadata. @var{stream_spec} is a stream specifier as described
885 in the @ref{Stream specifiers} chapter. In an input metadata specifier, the first
886 matching stream is copied from. In an output metadata specifier, all matching
887 streams are copied to.
889 @item @var{c}:@var{chapter_index}
890 per-chapter metadata. @var{chapter_index} is the zero-based chapter index.
892 @item @var{p}:@var{program_index}
893 per-program metadata. @var{program_index} is the zero-based program index.
895 If metadata specifier is omitted, it defaults to global.
897 By default, global metadata is copied from the first input file,
898 per-stream and per-chapter metadata is copied along with streams/chapters. These
899 default mappings are disabled by creating any mapping of the relevant type. A negative
900 file index can be used to create a dummy mapping that just disables automatic copying.
902 For example to copy metadata from the first stream of the input file to global metadata
905 ffmpeg -i in.ogg -map_metadata 0:s:0 out.mp3
908 To do the reverse, i.e. copy global metadata to all audio streams:
910 ffmpeg -i in.mkv -map_metadata:s:a 0:g out.mkv
912 Note that simple @code{0} would work as well in this example, since global
913 metadata is assumed by default.
915 @item -map_chapters @var{input_file_index} (@emph{output})
916 Copy chapters from input file with index @var{input_file_index} to the next
917 output file. If no chapter mapping is specified, then chapters are copied from
918 the first input file with at least one chapter. Use a negative file index to
919 disable any chapter copying.
921 @item -benchmark (@emph{global})
922 Show benchmarking information at the end of an encode.
923 Shows CPU time used and maximum memory consumption.
924 Maximum memory consumption is not supported on all systems,
925 it will usually display as 0 if not supported.
926 @item -benchmark_all (@emph{global})
927 Show benchmarking information during the encode.
928 Shows CPU time used in various steps (audio/video encode/decode).
929 @item -timelimit @var{duration} (@emph{global})
930 Exit after ffmpeg has been running for @var{duration} seconds.
931 @item -dump (@emph{global})
932 Dump each input packet to stderr.
933 @item -hex (@emph{global})
934 When dumping packets, also dump the payload.
935 @item -re (@emph{input})
936 Read input at native frame rate. Mainly used to simulate a grab device.
937 or live input stream (e.g. when reading from a file). Should not be used
938 with actual grab devices or live input streams (where it can cause packet
940 By default @command{ffmpeg} attempts to read the input(s) as fast as possible.
941 This option will slow down the reading of the input(s) to the native frame rate
942 of the input(s). It is useful for real-time output (e.g. live streaming).
944 Loop over the input stream. Currently it works only for image
945 streams. This option is used for automatic FFserver testing.
946 This option is deprecated, use -loop 1.
947 @item -loop_output @var{number_of_times}
948 Repeatedly loop output for formats that support looping such as animated GIF
949 (0 will loop the output infinitely).
950 This option is deprecated, use -loop.
951 @item -vsync @var{parameter}
953 For compatibility reasons old values can be specified as numbers.
954 Newly added values will have to be specified as strings always.
958 Each frame is passed with its timestamp from the demuxer to the muxer.
960 Frames will be duplicated and dropped to achieve exactly the requested
963 Frames are passed through with their timestamp or dropped so as to
964 prevent 2 frames from having the same timestamp.
966 As passthrough but destroys all timestamps, making the muxer generate
967 fresh timestamps based on frame-rate.
969 Chooses between 1 and 2 depending on muxer capabilities. This is the
973 Note that the timestamps may be further modified by the muxer, after this.
974 For example, in the case that the format option @option{avoid_negative_ts}
977 With -map you can select from which stream the timestamps should be
978 taken. You can leave either video or audio unchanged and sync the
979 remaining stream(s) to the unchanged one.
981 @item -async @var{samples_per_second}
982 Audio sync method. "Stretches/squeezes" the audio stream to match the timestamps,
983 the parameter is the maximum samples per second by which the audio is changed.
984 -async 1 is a special case where only the start of the audio stream is corrected
985 without any later correction.
987 Note that the timestamps may be further modified by the muxer, after this.
988 For example, in the case that the format option @option{avoid_negative_ts}
991 This option has been deprecated. Use the @code{aresample} audio filter instead.
994 Do not process input timestamps, but keep their values without trying
995 to sanitize them. In particular, do not remove the initial start time
998 Note that, depending on the @option{vsync} option or on specific muxer
999 processing (e.g. in case the format option @option{avoid_negative_ts}
1000 is enabled) the output timestamps may mismatch with the input
1001 timestamps even when this option is selected.
1003 @item -copytb @var{mode}
1004 Specify how to set the encoder timebase when stream copying. @var{mode} is an
1005 integer numeric value, and can assume one of the following values:
1009 Use the demuxer timebase.
1011 The time base is copied to the output encoder from the corresponding input
1012 demuxer. This is sometimes required to avoid non monotonically increasing
1013 timestamps when copying video streams with variable frame rate.
1016 Use the decoder timebase.
1018 The time base is copied to the output encoder from the corresponding input
1022 Try to make the choice automatically, in order to generate a sane output.
1025 Default value is -1.
1027 @item -shortest (@emph{output})
1028 Finish encoding when the shortest input stream ends.
1029 @item -dts_delta_threshold
1030 Timestamp discontinuity delta threshold.
1031 @item -muxdelay @var{seconds} (@emph{input})
1032 Set the maximum demux-decode delay.
1033 @item -muxpreload @var{seconds} (@emph{input})
1034 Set the initial demux-decode delay.
1035 @item -streamid @var{output-stream-index}:@var{new-value} (@emph{output})
1036 Assign a new stream-id value to an output stream. This option should be
1037 specified prior to the output filename to which it applies.
1038 For the situation where multiple output files exist, a streamid
1039 may be reassigned to a different value.
1041 For example, to set the stream 0 PID to 33 and the stream 1 PID to 36 for
1042 an output mpegts file:
1044 ffmpeg -i infile -streamid 0:33 -streamid 1:36 out.ts
1047 @item -bsf[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{bitstream_filters} (@emph{output,per-stream})
1048 Set bitstream filters for matching streams. @var{bitstream_filters} is
1049 a comma-separated list of bitstream filters. Use the @code{-bsfs} option
1050 to get the list of bitstream filters.
1052 ffmpeg -i h264.mp4 -c:v copy -bsf:v h264_mp4toannexb -an out.h264
1055 ffmpeg -i file.mov -an -vn -bsf:s mov2textsub -c:s copy -f rawvideo sub.txt
1058 @item -tag[:@var{stream_specifier}] @var{codec_tag} (@emph{input/output,per-stream})
1059 Force a tag/fourcc for matching streams.
1061 @item -timecode @var{hh}:@var{mm}:@var{ss}SEP@var{ff}
1062 Specify Timecode for writing. @var{SEP} is ':' for non drop timecode and ';'
1065 ffmpeg -i input.mpg -timecode 01:02:03.04 -r 30000/1001 -s ntsc output.mpg
1068 @anchor{filter_complex_option}
1069 @item -filter_complex @var{filtergraph} (@emph{global})
1070 Define a complex filtergraph, i.e. one with arbitrary number of inputs and/or
1071 outputs. For simple graphs -- those with one input and one output of the same
1072 type -- see the @option{-filter} options. @var{filtergraph} is a description of
1073 the filtergraph, as described in the ``Filtergraph syntax'' section of the
1074 ffmpeg-filters manual.
1076 Input link labels must refer to input streams using the
1077 @code{[file_index:stream_specifier]} syntax (i.e. the same as @option{-map}
1078 uses). If @var{stream_specifier} matches multiple streams, the first one will be
1079 used. An unlabeled input will be connected to the first unused input stream of
1082 Output link labels are referred to with @option{-map}. Unlabeled outputs are
1083 added to the first output file.
1085 Note that with this option it is possible to use only lavfi sources without
1088 For example, to overlay an image over video
1090 ffmpeg -i video.mkv -i image.png -filter_complex '[0:v][1:v]overlay[out]' -map
1093 Here @code{[0:v]} refers to the first video stream in the first input file,
1094 which is linked to the first (main) input of the overlay filter. Similarly the
1095 first video stream in the second input is linked to the second (overlay) input
1098 Assuming there is only one video stream in each input file, we can omit input
1099 labels, so the above is equivalent to
1101 ffmpeg -i video.mkv -i image.png -filter_complex 'overlay[out]' -map
1105 Furthermore we can omit the output label and the single output from the filter
1106 graph will be added to the output file automatically, so we can simply write
1108 ffmpeg -i video.mkv -i image.png -filter_complex 'overlay' out.mkv
1111 To generate 5 seconds of pure red video using lavfi @code{color} source:
1113 ffmpeg -filter_complex 'color=c=red' -t 5 out.mkv
1116 @item -lavfi @var{filtergraph} (@emph{global})
1117 Define a complex filtergraph, i.e. one with arbitrary number of inputs and/or
1118 outputs. Equivalent to @option{-filter_complex}.
1120 @item -filter_complex_script @var{filename} (@emph{global})
1121 This option is similar to @option{-filter_complex}, the only difference is that
1122 its argument is the name of the file from which a complex filtergraph
1123 description is to be read.
1125 @item -accurate_seek (@emph{input})
1126 This option enables or disables accurate seeking in input files with the
1127 @option{-ss} option. It is enabled by default, so seeking is accurate when
1128 transcoding. Use @option{-noaccurate_seek} to disable it, which may be useful
1129 e.g. when copying some streams and transcoding the others.
1131 @item -override_ffserver (@emph{global})
1132 Overrides the input specifications from @command{ffserver}. Using this
1133 option you can map any input stream to @command{ffserver} and control
1134 many aspects of the encoding from @command{ffmpeg}. Without this
1135 option @command{ffmpeg} will transmit to @command{ffserver} what is
1136 requested by @command{ffserver}.
1138 The option is intended for cases where features are needed that cannot be
1139 specified to @command{ffserver} but can be to @command{ffmpeg}.
1143 As a special exception, you can use a bitmap subtitle stream as input: it
1144 will be converted into a video with the same size as the largest video in
1145 the file, or 720x576 if no video is present. Note that this is an
1146 experimental and temporary solution. It will be removed once libavfilter has
1147 proper support for subtitles.
1149 For example, to hardcode subtitles on top of a DVB-T recording stored in
1150 MPEG-TS format, delaying the subtitles by 1 second:
1152 ffmpeg -i input.ts -filter_complex \
1153 '[#0x2ef] setpts=PTS+1/TB [sub] ; [#0x2d0] [sub] overlay' \
1154 -sn -map '#0x2dc' output.mkv
1156 (0x2d0, 0x2dc and 0x2ef are the MPEG-TS PIDs of respectively the video,
1157 audio and subtitles streams; 0:0, 0:3 and 0:7 would have worked too)
1159 @section Preset files
1160 A preset file contains a sequence of @var{option}=@var{value} pairs,
1161 one for each line, specifying a sequence of options which would be
1162 awkward to specify on the command line. Lines starting with the hash
1163 ('#') character are ignored and are used to provide comments. Check
1164 the @file{presets} directory in the FFmpeg source tree for examples.
1166 Preset files are specified with the @code{vpre}, @code{apre},
1167 @code{spre}, and @code{fpre} options. The @code{fpre} option takes the
1168 filename of the preset instead of a preset name as input and can be
1169 used for any kind of codec. For the @code{vpre}, @code{apre}, and
1170 @code{spre} options, the options specified in a preset file are
1171 applied to the currently selected codec of the same type as the preset
1174 The argument passed to the @code{vpre}, @code{apre}, and @code{spre}
1175 preset options identifies the preset file to use according to the
1178 First ffmpeg searches for a file named @var{arg}.ffpreset in the
1179 directories @file{$FFMPEG_DATADIR} (if set), and @file{$HOME/.ffmpeg}, and in
1180 the datadir defined at configuration time (usually @file{PREFIX/share/ffmpeg})
1181 or in a @file{ffpresets} folder along the executable on win32,
1182 in that order. For example, if the argument is @code{libvpx-1080p}, it will
1183 search for the file @file{libvpx-1080p.ffpreset}.
1185 If no such file is found, then ffmpeg will search for a file named
1186 @var{codec_name}-@var{arg}.ffpreset in the above-mentioned
1187 directories, where @var{codec_name} is the name of the codec to which
1188 the preset file options will be applied. For example, if you select
1189 the video codec with @code{-vcodec libvpx} and use @code{-vpre 1080p},
1190 then it will search for the file @file{libvpx-1080p.ffpreset}.
1198 For streaming at very low bitrates, use a low frame rate
1199 and a small GOP size. This is especially true for RealVideo where
1200 the Linux player does not seem to be very fast, so it can miss
1201 frames. An example is:
1204 ffmpeg -g 3 -r 3 -t 10 -b:v 50k -s qcif -f rv10 /tmp/b.rm
1208 The parameter 'q' which is displayed while encoding is the current
1209 quantizer. The value 1 indicates that a very good quality could
1210 be achieved. The value 31 indicates the worst quality. If q=31 appears
1211 too often, it means that the encoder cannot compress enough to meet
1212 your bitrate. You must either increase the bitrate, decrease the
1213 frame rate or decrease the frame size.
1216 If your computer is not fast enough, you can speed up the
1217 compression at the expense of the compression ratio. You can use
1218 '-me zero' to speed up motion estimation, and '-g 0' to disable
1219 motion estimation completely (you have only I-frames, which means it
1220 is about as good as JPEG compression).
1223 To have very low audio bitrates, reduce the sampling frequency
1224 (down to 22050 Hz for MPEG audio, 22050 or 11025 for AC-3).
1227 To have a constant quality (but a variable bitrate), use the option
1228 '-qscale n' when 'n' is between 1 (excellent quality) and 31 (worst
1235 @c man begin EXAMPLES
1237 @section Preset files
1239 A preset file contains a sequence of @var{option=value} pairs, one for
1240 each line, specifying a sequence of options which can be specified also on
1241 the command line. Lines starting with the hash ('#') character are ignored and
1242 are used to provide comments. Empty lines are also ignored. Check the
1243 @file{presets} directory in the FFmpeg source tree for examples.
1245 Preset files are specified with the @code{pre} option, this option takes a
1246 preset name as input. FFmpeg searches for a file named @var{preset_name}.avpreset in
1247 the directories @file{$AVCONV_DATADIR} (if set), and @file{$HOME/.ffmpeg}, and in
1248 the data directory defined at configuration time (usually @file{$PREFIX/share/ffmpeg})
1249 in that order. For example, if the argument is @code{libx264-max}, it will
1250 search for the file @file{libx264-max.avpreset}.
1252 @section Video and Audio grabbing
1254 If you specify the input format and device then ffmpeg can grab video
1258 ffmpeg -f oss -i /dev/dsp -f video4linux2 -i /dev/video0 /tmp/out.mpg
1261 Or with an ALSA audio source (mono input, card id 1) instead of OSS:
1263 ffmpeg -f alsa -ac 1 -i hw:1 -f video4linux2 -i /dev/video0 /tmp/out.mpg
1266 Note that you must activate the right video source and channel before
1267 launching ffmpeg with any TV viewer such as
1268 @uref{http://linux.bytesex.org/xawtv/, xawtv} by Gerd Knorr. You also
1269 have to set the audio recording levels correctly with a
1272 @section X11 grabbing
1274 Grab the X11 display with ffmpeg via
1277 ffmpeg -f x11grab -video_size cif -framerate 25 -i :0.0 /tmp/out.mpg
1280 0.0 is display.screen number of your X11 server, same as
1281 the DISPLAY environment variable.
1284 ffmpeg -f x11grab -video_size cif -framerate 25 -i :0.0+10,20 /tmp/out.mpg
1287 0.0 is display.screen number of your X11 server, same as the DISPLAY environment
1288 variable. 10 is the x-offset and 20 the y-offset for the grabbing.
1290 @section Video and Audio file format conversion
1292 Any supported file format and protocol can serve as input to ffmpeg:
1297 You can use YUV files as input:
1300 ffmpeg -i /tmp/test%d.Y /tmp/out.mpg
1303 It will use the files:
1305 /tmp/test0.Y, /tmp/test0.U, /tmp/test0.V,
1306 /tmp/test1.Y, /tmp/test1.U, /tmp/test1.V, etc...
1309 The Y files use twice the resolution of the U and V files. They are
1310 raw files, without header. They can be generated by all decent video
1311 decoders. You must specify the size of the image with the @option{-s} option
1312 if ffmpeg cannot guess it.
1315 You can input from a raw YUV420P file:
1318 ffmpeg -i /tmp/test.yuv /tmp/out.avi
1321 test.yuv is a file containing raw YUV planar data. Each frame is composed
1322 of the Y plane followed by the U and V planes at half vertical and
1323 horizontal resolution.
1326 You can output to a raw YUV420P file:
1329 ffmpeg -i mydivx.avi hugefile.yuv
1333 You can set several input files and output files:
1336 ffmpeg -i /tmp/a.wav -s 640x480 -i /tmp/a.yuv /tmp/a.mpg
1339 Converts the audio file a.wav and the raw YUV video file a.yuv
1343 You can also do audio and video conversions at the same time:
1346 ffmpeg -i /tmp/a.wav -ar 22050 /tmp/a.mp2
1349 Converts a.wav to MPEG audio at 22050 Hz sample rate.
1352 You can encode to several formats at the same time and define a
1353 mapping from input stream to output streams:
1356 ffmpeg -i /tmp/a.wav -map 0:a -b:a 64k /tmp/a.mp2 -map 0:a -b:a 128k /tmp/b.mp2
1359 Converts a.wav to a.mp2 at 64 kbits and to b.mp2 at 128 kbits. '-map
1360 file:index' specifies which input stream is used for each output
1361 stream, in the order of the definition of output streams.
1364 You can transcode decrypted VOBs:
1367 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
1370 This is a typical DVD ripping example; the input is a VOB file, the
1371 output an AVI file with MPEG-4 video and MP3 audio. Note that in this
1372 command we use B-frames so the MPEG-4 stream is DivX5 compatible, and
1373 GOP size is 300 which means one intra frame every 10 seconds for 29.97fps
1374 input video. Furthermore, the audio stream is MP3-encoded so you need
1375 to enable LAME support by passing @code{--enable-libmp3lame} to configure.
1376 The mapping is particularly useful for DVD transcoding
1377 to get the desired audio language.
1379 NOTE: To see the supported input formats, use @code{ffmpeg -formats}.
1382 You can extract images from a video, or create a video from many images:
1384 For extracting images from a video:
1386 ffmpeg -i foo.avi -r 1 -s WxH -f image2 foo-%03d.jpeg
1389 This will extract one video frame per second from the video and will
1390 output them in files named @file{foo-001.jpeg}, @file{foo-002.jpeg},
1391 etc. Images will be rescaled to fit the new WxH values.
1393 If you want to extract just a limited number of frames, you can use the
1394 above command in combination with the -vframes or -t option, or in
1395 combination with -ss to start extracting from a certain point in time.
1397 For creating a video from many images:
1399 ffmpeg -f image2 -i foo-%03d.jpeg -r 12 -s WxH foo.avi
1402 The syntax @code{foo-%03d.jpeg} specifies to use a decimal number
1403 composed of three digits padded with zeroes to express the sequence
1404 number. It is the same syntax supported by the C printf function, but
1405 only formats accepting a normal integer are suitable.
1407 When importing an image sequence, -i also supports expanding
1408 shell-like wildcard patterns (globbing) internally, by selecting the
1409 image2-specific @code{-pattern_type glob} option.
1411 For example, for creating a video from filenames matching the glob pattern
1414 ffmpeg -f image2 -pattern_type glob -i 'foo-*.jpeg' -r 12 -s WxH foo.avi
1418 You can put many streams of the same type in the output:
1421 ffmpeg -i test1.avi -i test2.avi -map 0:3 -map 0:2 -map 0:1 -map 0:0 -c copy test12.nut
1424 The resulting output file @file{test12.avi} will contain first four streams from
1425 the input file in reverse order.
1428 To force CBR video output:
1430 ffmpeg -i myfile.avi -b 4000k -minrate 4000k -maxrate 4000k -bufsize 1835k out.m2v
1434 The four options lmin, lmax, mblmin and mblmax use 'lambda' units,
1435 but you may use the QP2LAMBDA constant to easily convert from 'q' units:
1437 ffmpeg -i src.ext -lmax 21*QP2LAMBDA dst.ext
1443 @include config.texi
1445 @ifset config-avutil
1448 @ifset config-avcodec
1449 @include codecs.texi
1450 @include bitstream_filters.texi
1452 @ifset config-avformat
1453 @include formats.texi
1454 @include protocols.texi
1456 @ifset config-avdevice
1457 @include devices.texi
1459 @ifset config-swresample
1460 @include resampler.texi
1462 @ifset config-swscale
1463 @include scaler.texi
1465 @ifset config-avfilter
1466 @include filters.texi
1474 @url{ffmpeg.html,ffmpeg}
1476 @ifset config-not-all
1477 @url{ffmpeg-all.html,ffmpeg-all},
1479 @url{ffplay.html,ffplay}, @url{ffprobe.html,ffprobe}, @url{ffserver.html,ffserver},
1480 @url{ffmpeg-utils.html,ffmpeg-utils},
1481 @url{ffmpeg-scaler.html,ffmpeg-scaler},
1482 @url{ffmpeg-resampler.html,ffmpeg-resampler},
1483 @url{ffmpeg-codecs.html,ffmpeg-codecs},
1484 @url{ffmpeg-bitstream-filters.html,ffmpeg-bitstream-filters},
1485 @url{ffmpeg-formats.html,ffmpeg-formats},
1486 @url{ffmpeg-devices.html,ffmpeg-devices},
1487 @url{ffmpeg-protocols.html,ffmpeg-protocols},
1488 @url{ffmpeg-filters.html,ffmpeg-filters}
1495 @ifset config-not-all
1498 ffplay(1), ffprobe(1), ffserver(1),
1499 ffmpeg-utils(1), ffmpeg-scaler(1), ffmpeg-resampler(1),
1500 ffmpeg-codecs(1), ffmpeg-bitstream-filters(1), ffmpeg-formats(1),
1501 ffmpeg-devices(1), ffmpeg-protocols(1), ffmpeg-filters(1)
1504 @include authors.texi
1509 @settitle ffmpeg video converter