 061991fe60
			
		
	
	
		061991fe60
		
	
	
	
	
		
			
			it appears a one-character typo in the cmake_minimum_required line prevents it from compiling under CMake 4.0. in order to fix that, I had to take this thing out of submodules... it is recommended to do this after you pull; git submodule deinit extern/libsndfile
		
			
				
	
	
		
			745 lines
		
	
	
		
			34 KiB
		
	
	
	
		
			Markdown
		
	
	
	
	
	
			
		
		
	
	
			745 lines
		
	
	
		
			34 KiB
		
	
	
	
		
			Markdown
		
	
	
	
	
	
| ---
 | ||
| layout: page
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| title: The libsndfile API
 | ||
| ---
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| # libsndfile
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| Libsndfile is a library designed to allow the reading and writing of many different sampled sound file formats (such as
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| MS Windows WAV and the Apple/SGI AIFF format) through one standard library interface.
 | ||
| 
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| During read and write operations, formats are seamlessly converted between the format the application program has
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| requested or supplied and the file's data format. The application programmer can remain blissfully unaware of issues
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| such as file endian-ness and data format. See [Note 1](#note-1) and [Note 2](#note-2).
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| 
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| Every effort is made to keep these documents up-to-date, error free and unambiguous. However, since maintaining the
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| documentation is the least fun part of working on libsndfile, these docs can and do fall behind the behaviour of the
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| library. If any errors, omissions or ambiguities are found, please notify me (erikd) at mega-nerd dot com.
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| 
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| To supplement this reference documentation, there are simple example programs included in the source code tarball. The
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| test suite which is also part of the source code tarball is also a good place to look for the correct usage of the
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| library functions.
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| 
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| **Finally, if you think there is some feature missing from libsndfile, check that it isn't already implemented (and
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| documented) [here](command.md).**
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| 
 | ||
| ## Synopsis
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| 
 | ||
| ```c
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| #include <stdio.h>;
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| #include <sndfile.h>;
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| ```
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| 
 | ||
| | Name                                                                                                        | Description                                    |
 | ||
| |:------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|:---------------------------------------        |
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| | [sf_open, sf_wchar_open](#open)                                                                             | File open functions.                           |
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| | [sf_open_fd](#open_fd)                                                                                      | Open sound file using file descriptor.         |
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| | [sf_open_virtual](#open_virtual)                                                                            | Open sound file using virtual API.             |
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| | [sf_format_check](#check)                                                                                   | Validate sound file info.                      |
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| | [sf_seek](#seek)                                                                                            | Seek position in sound file.                   |
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| | [sf_command](command.md)                                                                                    | Command interface.                             |
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| | [sf_error, sf_strerror, sf_error_number, sf_perror, sf_error_str](#error)                                   | Error functions.                               |
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| | [sf_close](#close)                                                                                          | File close function.                           |
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| | [sf_write_sync](#write_sync)                                                                                | Write sync function.                           |
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| | [sf_read_short, sf_read_int, sf_read_float, sf_read_double](#read)                                          | File items read functions.                     |
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| | [sf_readf_short, sf_readf_int, sf_readf_float, sf_readf_double](#readf)                                     | File frames read functions.                    |
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| | [sf_write_short, sf_write_int, sf_write_float, sf_write_double](#write)                                     | File items write functions.                    |
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| | [sf_writef_short, sf_writef_int, sf_writef_float, sf_writef_double](#writef)                                | File frames write functions.                   |
 | ||
| | [sf_read_raw, sf_write_raw](#raw)                                                                           | Raw read/write functions.                      |
 | ||
| | [sf_get_string, sf_set_string](#string)                                                                     | Functions for reading and writing string data. |
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| | [sf_version_string](#version_string)                                                                        | Retrieve library version string.                |
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| | [sf_current_byterate](#current_byterate)                                                                    | Retrieve current byterate.                     |
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| | [sf_set_chunk, sf_get_chunk_iterator, sf_next_chunk_iterator, sf_get_chunk_size, sf_get_chunk_data](#chunk) | RIFF chunks API.                               |
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| 
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| SNDFILE* is an anonymous pointer to data which is private to the library.
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| 
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| ## File Open Function {#open}
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| 
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| ```c
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| SNDFILE*  sf_open    (const char *path, int mode, SF_INFO *sfinfo) ;
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| ```
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| 
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| The sf_open() function opens the sound file at the specified path. The filename is byte encoded, but may be utf-8 on
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| Linux, while on Mac OS X it will use the filesystem character set. On Windows, there is also a Windows specific
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| sf_wchar_open() that takes a UTF16_BE encoded filename.
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| 
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| ```c
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| SNDFILE*  sf_wchar_open (LPCWSTR wpath, int mode, SF_INFO *sfinfo) ;
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| ```
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| 
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| The SF_INFO structure is for passing data between the calling function and the library when opening a file for reading
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| or writing. It is defined in sndfile.h as follows:
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| 
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| ```c
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| typedef struct
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| {    sf_count_t  frames ;     /* Used to be called samples. */
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|         int         samplerate ;
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|         int         channels ;
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|         int         format ;
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|         int         sections ;
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|         int         seekable ;
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|     } SF_INFO ;
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| ```
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| 
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| The mode parameter for this function can be any one of the following three values:
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| 
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| SFM_READ
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| : read only mode
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| 
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| SFM_WRITE
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| : write only mode
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| 
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| SFM_RDWR
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| : read/write mode
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| 
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| When opening a file for read, the **format** field should be set to zero before
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| calling **sf_open**(). The only exception to this is the case of RAW files where
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| the caller has to set the **samplerate**, **channels** and **format** fields to
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| valid values. All other fields of the structure are filled in by the library.
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| 
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| **Note:** The libsndfile library will reject values for field **channels** that
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| are greater than `1024`. These value represent the maximum theoretical limit
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| and may be less for specific formats.
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| 
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| When opening a file for write, the caller must fill in structure members
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| **samplerate**, **channels**, and **format**.
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| 
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| The **format** field in the above **SF_INFO** structure is made up of the
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| bit-wise OR of a major format type (values between 0x10000 and 0x08000000), a
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| minor format type (with values less than 0x10000) and an optional endian-ness
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| value. The currently understood formats are listed in *sndfile.h* as follows and
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| also include bitmasks for separating major and minor file types. Not all
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| combinations of endian-ness and major and minor file types are valid.
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| 
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| | Name                     | Value      | Description                                |
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| |:-------------------------|:-----------|:-------------------------------------------|
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| | **Major formats.**                                                                 |
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| | SF_FORMAT_WAV            | 0x010000   | Microsoft WAV format (little endian).      |
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| | SF_FORMAT_AIFF           | 0x020000   | Apple/SGI AIFF format (big endian).        |
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| | SF_FORMAT_AU             | 0x030000   | Sun/NeXT AU format (big endian).           |
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| | SF_FORMAT_RAW            | 0x040000   | RAW PCM data.                              |
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| | SF_FORMAT_PAF            | 0x050000   | Ensoniq PARIS file format.                 |
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| | SF_FORMAT_SVX            | 0x060000   | Amiga IFF / SVX8 / SV16 format.            |
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| | SF_FORMAT_NIST           | 0x070000   | Sphere NIST format.                        |
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| | SF_FORMAT_VOC            | 0x080000   | VOC files.                                 |
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| | SF_FORMAT_IRCAM          | 0x0A0000   | Berkeley/IRCAM/CARL                        |
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| | SF_FORMAT_W64            | 0x0B0000   | Sonic Foundry's 64 bit RIFF/WAV            |
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| | SF_FORMAT_MAT4           | 0x0C0000   | Matlab (tm) V4.2 / GNU Octave 2.0          |
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| | SF_FORMAT_MAT5           | 0x0D0000   | Matlab (tm) V5.0 / GNU Octave 2.1          |
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| | SF_FORMAT_PVF            | 0x0E0000   | Portable Voice Format                      |
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| | SF_FORMAT_XI             | 0x0F0000   | Fasttracker 2 Extended Instrument          |
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| | SF_FORMAT_HTK            | 0x100000   | HMM Tool Kit format                        |
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| | SF_FORMAT_SDS            | 0x110000   | Midi Sample Dump Standard                  |
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| | SF_FORMAT_AVR            | 0x120000   | Audio Visual Research                      |
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| | SF_FORMAT_WAVEX          | 0x130000   | MS WAVE with WAVEFORMATEX                  |
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| | SF_FORMAT_SD2            | 0x160000   | Sound Designer 2                           |
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| | SF_FORMAT_FLAC           | 0x170000   | FLAC lossless file format                  |
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| | SF_FORMAT_CAF            | 0x180000   | Core Audio File format                     |
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| | SF_FORMAT_WVE            | 0x190000   | Psion WVE format                           |
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| | SF_FORMAT_OGG            | 0x200000   | Xiph OGG container                         |
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| | SF_FORMAT_MPC2K          | 0x210000   | Akai MPC 2000 sampler                      |
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| | SF_FORMAT_RF64           | 0x220000   | RF64 WAV file                              |
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| | SF_FORMAT_MPEG           | 0x230000   | MPEG-1/2 audio stream                      |
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| | **Subtypes.**                                                                      |
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| | SF_FORMAT_PCM_S8         | 0x0001     | Signed 8 bit data                          |
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| | SF_FORMAT_PCM_16         | 0x0002     | Signed 16 bit data                         |
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| | SF_FORMAT_PCM_24         | 0x0003     | Signed 24 bit data                         |
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| | SF_FORMAT_PCM_32         | 0x0004     | Signed 32 bit data                         |
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| | SF_FORMAT_PCM_U8         | 0x0005     | Unsigned 8 bit data (WAV and RAW only)     |
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| | SF_FORMAT_FLOAT          | 0x0006     | 32 bit float data                          |
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| | SF_FORMAT_DOUBLE         | 0x0007     | 64 bit float data                          |
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| | SF_FORMAT_ULAW           | 0x0010     | U-Law encoded.                             |
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| | SF_FORMAT_ALAW           | 0x0011     | A-Law encoded.                             |
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| | SF_FORMAT_IMA_ADPCM      | 0x0012     | IMA ADPCM.                                 |
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| | SF_FORMAT_MS_ADPCM       | 0x0013     | Microsoft ADPCM.                           |
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| | SF_FORMAT_GSM610         | 0x0020     | GSM 6.10 encoding.                         |
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| | SF_FORMAT_VOX_ADPCM      | 0x0021     | OKI / Dialogix ADPCM                       |
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| | SF_FORMAT_NMS_ADPCM_16   | 0x0022     | 16kbs NMS G721-variant encoding.           |
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| | SF_FORMAT_NMS_ADPCM_24   | 0x0023     | 24kbs NMS G721-variant encoding.           |
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| | SF_FORMAT_NMS_ADPCM_32   | 0x0024     | 32kbs NMS G721-variant encoding.           |
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| | SF_FORMAT_G721_32        | 0x0030     | 32kbs G721 ADPCM encoding.                 |
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| | SF_FORMAT_G723_24        | 0x0031     | 24kbs G723 ADPCM encoding.                 |
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| | SF_FORMAT_G723_40        | 0x0032     | 40kbs G723 ADPCM encoding.                 |
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| | SF_FORMAT_DWVW_12        | 0x0040     | 12 bit Delta Width Variable Word encoding. |
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| | SF_FORMAT_DWVW_16        | 0x0041     | 16 bit Delta Width Variable Word encoding. |
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| | SF_FORMAT_DWVW_24        | 0x0042     | 24 bit Delta Width Variable Word encoding. |
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| | SF_FORMAT_DWVW_N         | 0x0043     | N bit Delta Width Variable Word encoding.  |
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| | SF_FORMAT_DPCM_8         | 0x0050     | 8 bit differential PCM (XI only)           |
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| | SF_FORMAT_DPCM_16        | 0x0051     | 16 bit differential PCM (XI only)          |
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| | SF_FORMAT_VORBIS         | 0x0060     | Xiph Vorbis encoding.                      |
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| | SF_FORMAT_OPUS           | 0x0064     | Xiph/Skype Opus encoding.                  |
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| | SF_FORMAT_ALAC_16        | 0x0070     | Apple Lossless Audio Codec (16 bit).       |
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| | SF_FORMAT_ALAC_20        | 0x0071     | Apple Lossless Audio Codec (20 bit).       |
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| | SF_FORMAT_ALAC_24        | 0x0072     | Apple Lossless Audio Codec (24 bit).       |
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| | SF_FORMAT_ALAC_32        | 0x0073     | Apple Lossless Audio Codec (32 bit).       |
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| | SF_FORMAT_MPEG_LAYER_I   | 0x0080     | MPEG-1 Audio Layer I.                      |
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| | SF_FORMAT_MPEG_LAYER_II  | 0x0081     | MPEG-1 Audio Layer II.                     |
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| | SF_FORMAT_MPEG_LAYER_III | 0x0082     | MPEG-2 Audio Layer III.                    |
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| | **Endian-ness options.**                                                           |
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| | SF_ENDIAN_FILE           | 0x00000000 | Default file endian-ness.                  |
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| | SF_ENDIAN_LITTLE         | 0x10000000 | Force little endian-ness.                  |
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| | SF_ENDIAN_BIG            | 0x20000000 | Force big endian-ness.                     |
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| | SF_ENDIAN_CPU            | 0x30000000 | Force CPU endian-ness.                     |
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| | SF_FORMAT_SUBMASK        | 0x0000FFFF |                                            |
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| | SF_FORMAT_TYPEMASK       | 0x0FFF0000 |                                            |
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| | SF_FORMAT_ENDMASK        | 0x30000000 |                                            |
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| 
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| Every call to **sf_open**() should be matched with a call to
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| [**sf_close**()](#close) to free up memory allocated during the call to **sf_open**().
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| 
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| On success, the sf_open function returns a non-NULL pointer which should be passed as the first parameter to all
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| subsequent libsndfile calls dealing with that audio file. On fail, the sf_open function returns a NULL pointer. An
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| explanation of the error can obtained by passing NULL to [**sf_strerror**()](#error).
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| 
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| ### File Descriptor Open {#open_fd}
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| 
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| ```c
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| SNDFILE*  sf_open_fd (int fd, int mode, SF_INFO *sfinfo, int close_desc) ;
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| ```
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| 
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| **Note:** On Microsoft Windows, this function does not work if the application
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| and the libsndfile DLL are linked to different versions of the Microsoft C
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| runtime DLL.
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| 
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| The second open function takes a file descriptor of a file that has already been
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| opened. Care should be taken to ensure that the mode of the file represented by
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| the descriptor matches the mode argument. This function is useful in the
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| following circumstances:
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| 
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| * Opening temporary files securely (ie use the **tmpfile**() to return a FILE*
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|   pointer and then using fileno() to retrieve the file descriptor which is then
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|   passed to libsndfile).
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| * Opening files with file names using OS specific character encodings and then
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|   passing the file descriptor to **sf_open_fd**().
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| * Opening sound files embedded within larger files. [More info](embedded_files.md).
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| 
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| Every call to `sf_open_fd`() should be matched with a call to sf_close() to free
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| up memory allocated during the call to sf_open_fd().
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| 
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| When sf_close() is called, the file descriptor is only closed if the
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| **close_desc** parameter was TRUE when the sf_open_fd() function was called.
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| 
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| On success, the sf_open_fd() function returns a non-NULL pointer which should be
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| passed as the first parameter to all subsequent libsndfile calls dealing with
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| that audio file. On fail, the sf_open_fd() function returns a NULL pointer.
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| 
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| ### Virtual File Open Function {#open_virtual}
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| 
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| ```c
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| SNDFILE*    sf_open_virtual (SF_VIRTUAL_IO *sfvirtual, int mode, SF_INFO *sfinfo, void *user_data) ;
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| ```
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| 
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| Opens a soundfile from a virtual file I/O context which is provided by the
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| caller. This is usually used to interface libsndfile to write/read from memory
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| with a stream or buffer based system. Apart from the sfvirtual and the user_data
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| parameters this function behaves like [sf_open()](#open).
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| 
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| ```c
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|     typedef struct
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|     {    sf_vio_get_filelen  get_filelen ;
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|           sf_vio_seek         seek ;
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|           sf_vio_read         read ;
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|           sf_vio_write        write ;
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|           sf_vio_tell         tell ;
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|     } SF_VIRTUAL_IO ;
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| ```
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| 
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| Libsndfile calls the callbacks provided by the SF_VIRTUAL_IO structure when
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| opening, reading and writing to the virtual file context. The user_data pointer
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| is a user defined context which will be available in the callbacks.
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| 
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| ```c
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| typedef sf_count_t  (*sf_vio_get_filelen) (void *user_data) ;
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| typedef sf_count_t  (*sf_vio_seek)        (sf_count_t offset, int whence, void *user_data) ;
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| typedef sf_count_t  (*sf_vio_read)        (void *ptr, sf_count_t count, void *user_data) ;
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| typedef sf_count_t  (*sf_vio_write)       (const void *ptr, sf_count_t count, void *user_data) ;
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| typedef sf_count_t  (*sf_vio_tell)        (void *user_data) ;
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| ```
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| 
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| #### sf_vio_get_filelen
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| 
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| ```c
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| typedef sf_count_t  (*sf_vio_get_filelen) (void *user_data) ;
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| ```
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| 
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| The virtual file context must return the length of the virtual file in bytes.
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| 
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| #### sf_vio_seek
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| 
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| ```c
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| typedef sf_count_t  (*sf_vio_seek)        (sf_count_t offset, int whence, void *user_data) ;
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| ```
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| 
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| The virtual file context must seek to offset using the seek mode provided by
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| whence which is one of SEEK_CUR, SEEK_SET, SEEK_END.
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| 
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| The return value must contain the new offset in the file.
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| 
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| #### sf_vio_read
 | ||
| 
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| ```c
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| typedef sf_count_t  (*sf_vio_read)        (void *ptr, sf_count_t count, void *user_data) ;
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| ```
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| 
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| The virtual file context must copy ("read") "count" bytes into the buffer
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| provided by ptr and return the count of actually copied bytes.
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| 
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| #### sf_vio_write
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| 
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| ```c
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| typedef sf_count_t  (*sf_vio_write)       (const void *ptr, sf_count_t count, void *user_data) ;
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| ```
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| 
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| The virtual file context must process "count" bytes stored in the buffer passed
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| with ptr and return the count of actually processed bytes.
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| 
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| #### sf_vio_tell
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| 
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| ```c
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| typedef sf_count_t  (*sf_vio_tell)        (void *user_data) ;
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| ```
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| 
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| Return the current position of the virtual file context.
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| 
 | ||
| ## Format Check Function {#chek}
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| 
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| ```c
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| int  sf_format_check (const SF_INFO *info) ;
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| ```
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| 
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| This function allows the caller to check if a set of parameters in the SF_INFO
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| struct is valid before calling [sf_open](#open) (SFM_WRITE).
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| 
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| sf_format_check() returns TRUE if the parameters are valid and FALSE otherwise.
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| 
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| ## File Seek Functions
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| 
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| ```c
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| sf_count_t  sf_seek  (SNDFILE *sndfile, sf_count_t frames, int whence) ;
 | ||
| ```
 | ||
| 
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| The file seek functions work much like lseek in unistd.h with the exception that
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| the non-audio data is ignored and the seek only moves within the audio data
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| section of the file. In addition, seeks are defined in number of (multichannel)
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| frames. Therefore, a seek in a stereo file from the current position forward
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| with an offset of 1 would skip forward by one sample of both channels.
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| 
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| like lseek(), the whence parameter can be any one of the following three values:
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| 
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| SEEK_SET
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| : The offset is set to the start of the audio data plus offset (multichannel)
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| frames.
 | ||
| 
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| SEEK_CUR
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| : The offset is set to its current location plus offset (multichannel) frames.
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| 
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| SEEK_END
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| : The offset is set to the end of the data plus offset (multichannel) frames.
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| 
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| Internally, libsndfile keeps track of the read and write locations using
 | ||
| separate read and write pointers. If a file has been opened with a mode of
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| SFM_RDWR, bitwise OR-ing the standard whence values above with either SFM_READ
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| or SFM_WRITE allows the read and write pointers to be modified separately.
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| If the SEEK_* values are used on their own, the read and write pointers are
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| both modified.
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| 
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| Note that the frames offset can be negative and in fact should be when SEEK_END
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| is used for the whence parameter.
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| 
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| sf_seek will return the offset in (multichannel) frames from the start of the
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| audio data or -1 if an error occurred (ie an attempt is made to seek beyond the
 | ||
| start or end of the file).
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ## Error Reporting Functions {#error}
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ```c
 | ||
| int sf_error (SNDFILE *sndfile) ;
 | ||
| ```
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| This function returns the current error number for the given SNDFILE.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| The error number may be one of the following:
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| | Name                        | Value |
 | ||
| |:----------------------------|:------|
 | ||
| | SF_ERR_NO_ERROR             | 0     |
 | ||
| | SF_ERR_UNRECOGNISED_FORMAT  | 1     |
 | ||
| | SF_ERR_SYSTEM               | 2     |
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| | SF_ERR_MALFORMED_FILE       | 3     |
 | ||
| | SF_ERR_UNSUPPORTED_ENCODING | 4     |
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| 
 | ||
| or any one of many other internal error values.
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| Applications should only test the return value against error values defined in
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| \<sndfile.h\>; as the internal error values are subject to change at any time.
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| For errors not in the above list, the function sf_error_number() can be used to
 | ||
| convert it to an error string.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ```c
 | ||
| const char* sf_strerror     (SNDFILE *sndfile) ;
 | ||
| const char* sf_error_number (int errnum) ;
 | ||
| ```
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| The error functions sf_strerror () and sf_error_number () convert the library's
 | ||
| internal error enumerations into text strings.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ```c
 | ||
| int sf_perror    (SNDFILE *sndfile) ;
 | ||
| int sf_error_str (SNDFILE *sndfile, char* str, size_t len) ;
 | ||
| ```
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| The functions sf_perror() and sf_error_str() are deprecated and will be dropped
 | ||
| from the library at some later date.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ## File Close Function {#close}
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ```c
 | ||
| int sf_close (SNDFILE *sndfile) ;
 | ||
| ```
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| The close function closes the file, deallocates its internal buffers and returns
 | ||
| 0 on success or an error value otherwise.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ## Write Sync Function {#write_sync}
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ```c
 | ||
| void  sf_write_sync  (SNDFILE *sndfile) ;
 | ||
| ```
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| If the file is opened SFM_WRITE or SFM_RDWR, call the operating system's
 | ||
| function to force the writing of all file cache buffers to disk. If the file is
 | ||
| opened SFM_READ no action is taken.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ## File Read Functions {#read}
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ```c
 | ||
| sf_count_t sf_read_short  (SNDFILE *sndfile, short *ptr, sf_count_t items) ;
 | ||
| sf_count_t sf_read_int    (SNDFILE *sndfile, int *ptr, sf_count_t items) ;
 | ||
| sf_count_t sf_read_float  (SNDFILE *sndfile, float *ptr, sf_count_t items) ;
 | ||
| sf_count_t sf_read_double (SNDFILE *sndfile, double *ptr, sf_count_t items) ;
 | ||
| ```
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| {: #readf}
 | ||
| ```c
 | ||
| sf_count_t sf_readf_short  (SNDFILE *sndfile, short *ptr, sf_count_t frames) ;
 | ||
| sf_count_t sf_readf_int    (SNDFILE *sndfile, int *ptr, sf_count_t frames) ;
 | ||
| sf_count_t sf_readf_float  (SNDFILE *sndfile, float *ptr, sf_count_t frames) ;
 | ||
| sf_count_t sf_readf_double (SNDFILE *sndfile, double *ptr, sf_count_t frames) ;
 | ||
| ```
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| The file read functions fill the array pointed to by ptr with the requested
 | ||
| number of items or frames.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| For the frames-count functions, the frames parameter specifies the number of
 | ||
| frames. A frame is just a block of samples, one for each channel.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| **Care must be taken to ensure that there is enough space in the array pointed
 | ||
| to by ptr, to take (frames \* channels) number of items (shorts, ints, floats or
 | ||
| doubles).**
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| For the items-count functions, the items parameter must be an integer product
 | ||
| of the number of channels or an error will occur. Here, an item is just a
 | ||
| sample.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| Note: The only difference between the "items" and "frames" versions of each read
 | ||
| function is the units in which the object count is specified - calling
 | ||
| sf_readf_short() with a count argument of N, on a SNDFILE with C channels, is
 | ||
| the same as calling sf_read_short with a count argument of N\*C. The buffer
 | ||
| pointed to by "ptr" should be the same number of bytes in each case.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| Note: The data type used by the calling program and the data format of the file
 | ||
| do not need to be the same. For instance, it is possible to open a 16 bit PCM
 | ||
| encoded WAV file and read the data using sf_read_float(). The library seamlessly
 | ||
| converts between the two formats on-the-fly. See [Note 1](#note-1).
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| The sf_read_XXXX and sf_readf_XXXX functions return the number of items or
 | ||
| frames read, respectively. Unless the end of the file was reached during the
 | ||
| read, the return value should equal the number of objects requested. Attempts to
 | ||
| read beyond the end of the file will not result in an error but will cause the
 | ||
| read functions to return less than the number of objects requested or 0 if
 | ||
| already at the end of the file. When the buffer is not is not completely filled,
 | ||
| unused buffer space is filled by zeroes.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ## File Write Functions {#write}
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ```c
 | ||
| sf_count_t sf_write_short  (SNDFILE *sndfile, short *ptr, sf_count_t items) ;
 | ||
| sf_count_t sf_write_int    (SNDFILE *sndfile, int *ptr, sf_count_t items) ;
 | ||
| sf_count_t sf_write_float  (SNDFILE *sndfile, float *ptr, sf_count_t items) ;
 | ||
| sf_count_t sf_write_double (SNDFILE *sndfile, double *ptr, sf_count_t items) ;
 | ||
| ```
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| {: #writef}
 | ||
| ```c
 | ||
| sf_count_t sf_writef_short  (SNDFILE *sndfile, short *ptr, sf_count_t frames) ;
 | ||
| sf_count_t sf_writef_int    (SNDFILE *sndfile, int *ptr, sf_count_t frames) ;
 | ||
| sf_count_t sf_writef_float  (SNDFILE *sndfile, float *ptr, sf_count_t frames) ;
 | ||
| sf_count_t sf_writef_double (SNDFILE *sndfile, double *ptr, sf_count_t frames) ;
 | ||
| ```
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| The file write functions write the data in the array pointed to by ptr to the
 | ||
| file.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| For items-count functions, the items parameter specifies the size of the array
 | ||
| and must be an integer product of the number of channels or an error will occur.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| For the frames-count functions, the array is expected to be large enough to hold
 | ||
| a number of items equal to the product of frames and the number of channels.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| As with the read functions [above](#read), the only difference in the items and
 | ||
| frames version of each write function is the units in which the buffer size is
 | ||
| specified. Again, the data type used by the calling program and the data format
 | ||
| of the file do not need to be the same ([Note 1](#note-1)).
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| The sf_write_XXXX and sf_writef_XXXX functions respectively return the number of
 | ||
| items or frames written (which should be the same as the items or frames
 | ||
| parameter).
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ## Raw File Read and Write Functions {#raw}
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ```c
 | ||
| sf_count_t sf_read_raw  (SNDFILE *sndfile, void *ptr, sf_count_t bytes) ;
 | ||
| sf_count_t sf_write_raw (SNDFILE *sndfile, void *ptr, sf_count_t bytes) ;
 | ||
| ```
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| **Note:** Unless you are writing an external decoder/encode that uses libsndfile
 | ||
| to handle the file headers, you should not be using these functions.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| The raw read and write functions read raw audio data from the audio file (not to
 | ||
| be confused with reading RAW header-less PCM files). The number of bytes read or
 | ||
| written must always be an integer multiple of the number of channels multiplied
 | ||
| by the number of bytes required to represent one sample from one channel.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| The raw read and write functions return the number of bytes read or written
 | ||
| (which should be the same as the bytes parameter).
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| **Note : The result of using of both regular reads/writes and raw reads/writes
 | ||
| on compressed file formats other than SF_FORMAT_ALAW and SF_FORMAT_ULAW is
 | ||
| undefined.**
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| See also : [SFC_RAW_NEEDS_ENDSWAP](command.md#sfc_raw_needs_endswap).
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ## Functions for Reading and Writing String Data {#string}
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ```c
 | ||
| const char* sf_get_string (SNDFILE *sndfile, int str_type) ;
 | ||
| int         sf_set_string (SNDFILE *sndfile, int str_type, const char* str) ;
 | ||
| ```
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| These functions allow strings to be set on files opened for write and to be
 | ||
| retrieved from files opened for read where supported by the given file type. The
 | ||
| **str_type** parameter can be any one of the following string types:
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| | Name               | Value | Description   |
 | ||
| |:-------------------|:------|:--------------|
 | ||
| | SF_STR_TITLE       | 0x01  | Title.        |
 | ||
| | SF_STR_COPYRIGHT   | 0x02  | Copyright.    |
 | ||
| | SF_STR_SOFTWARE    | 0x03  | Software.     |
 | ||
| | SF_STR_ARTIST      | 0x04  | Artist.       |
 | ||
| | SF_STR_COMMENT     | 0x05  | Comment.      |
 | ||
| | SF_STR_DATE        | 0x06  | Date.         |
 | ||
| | SF_STR_ALBUM       | 0x07  | Album.        |
 | ||
| | SF_STR_LICENSE     | 0x08  | License.      |
 | ||
| | SF_STR_TRACKNUMBER | 0x09  | Track number. |
 | ||
| | SF_STR_GENRE       | 0x10  | Genre.        |
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| The sf_get_string() function returns the specified string if it exists and a
 | ||
| NULL pointer otherwise. In addition to the string ids above, SF_STR_FIRST (==
 | ||
| SF_STR_TITLE) and SF_STR_LAST (always the same as the highest numbers string id)
 | ||
| are also available to allow iteration over all the available string ids.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| The sf_set_string() function sets the string data. It returns zero on success
 | ||
| and non-zero on error.The error code can be converted to a string using
 | ||
| sf_error_number().
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| Strings passed to and retrieved from these two functions are assumed to be
 | ||
| utf-8. However, while formats like Ogg/Vorbis and FLAC fully support utf-8,
 | ||
| others like WAV and AIFF officially only support ASCII. Writing utf-8 strings to
 | ||
| WAV and AIF files with libsndfile will work when read back with libsndfile, but
 | ||
| may not work with other programs.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| The suggested method of dealing with tags retrieved using sf_get_string() is to
 | ||
| assume they are utf-8. Similarly if you have a string in some exotic format like
 | ||
| utf-16, it should be encoded to utf-8 before being written using libsndfile.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ## Function for retrieving library version {#version_string}
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ```c
 | ||
| const char *sf_version_string (void) ;
 | ||
| ```
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| Return the library version string.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ## Function for retrieving current byterate {#current_byterate}
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ```c
 | ||
| int sf_current_byterate (SNDFILE *sndfile) ;
 | ||
| ```
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| Return the current byterate at this point in the file. The byte rate in this
 | ||
| case is the number of bytes per second of audio data. For instance, for a
 | ||
| stereo, 18 bit PCM encoded file with an 16kHz sample rate, the byte rate
 | ||
| would be 2 (stereo) \* 2 (two bytes per sample) * 16000 => 64000 bytes/sec.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| For some file formats the returned value will be accurate and exact, for some
 | ||
| it will be a close approximation, for some it will be the average bitrate for
 | ||
| the whole file and for some it will be a time varying value that was accurate
 | ||
| when the file was most recently read or written.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| To get the bitrate, multiple this value by 8.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| `sf_current_byterate` returns byte per second or -1 if byterate is
 | ||
| unknown.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ## Functions to get and set chunks from within a sound file
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| These functions allow the getting and setting of chunks within a sound file (for
 | ||
| those formats which allow it).
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| These functions fail safely. Specifically, they will not allow you to overwrite
 | ||
| existing chunks or add extra versions of format specific reserved chunks but
 | ||
| should allow you to retrieve any and all chunks (may not be implemented for all
 | ||
| chunks or all file formats).
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ### sf_set_chunk
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ```c
 | ||
| int sf_set_chunk (SNDFILE *sndfile, const SF_CHUNK_INFO *chunk_info) ;
 | ||
| ```
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| Set the specified chunk info (must be done before any audio data is written to
 | ||
| the file). This will fail for format specific reserved chunks. The
 | ||
| `chunk_info->data` pointer must be valid until the file is closed.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| The `SF_CHUNK_INFO` struct is documented as follows:
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ```c
 | ||
| struct SF_CHUNK_INFO
 | ||
| {     char        id [64] ;   /* The chunk identifier. */
 | ||
|     unsigned      id_size ;   /* The size of the chunk identifier. */
 | ||
|     unsigned      datalen ;   /* The size of that data. */
 | ||
|     void          *data ;     /* Pointer to the data. */
 | ||
| } ;
 | ||
|     typedef struct SF_CHUNK_INFO SF_CHUNK_INFO ;
 | ||
| ```
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| `sf_set_chunk` returns `SF_ERR_NO_ERROR` on success or non-zero on failure.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ### sf_get_chunk_iterator
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ```c
 | ||
| SF_CHUNK_ITERATOR *
 | ||
| sf_get_chunk_iterator (SNDFILE *sndfile, const SF_CHUNK_INFO *chunk_info) ;
 | ||
| ```
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| Get an iterator for all chunks matching `chunk_info`.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| `SF_CHUNK_ITERATOR` is an opaque structure to an iterator over the all chunks of
 | ||
| a given id and defined as follows:
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ```c
 | ||
| typedef	struct SF_CHUNK_ITERATOR SF_CHUNK_ITERATOR ;
 | ||
| ```
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| The iterator will point to the first chunk matching `chunk_info`. Chunks are
 | ||
| matching, if (`chunk_info->id`) matches the first (`chunk_info->id_size`) bytes
 | ||
| of a chunk found in the `SNDFILE*` handle. If `chunk_info` is `NULL`, an
 | ||
| iterator to all chunks in the `SNDFILE*` handle is returned. The values of
 | ||
| `chunk_info->datalen` and `chunk_info->data` are ignored. If no matching chunks
 | ||
| are found in the sndfile, `NULL` is returned.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| The returned iterator will stay valid until one of the following occurs:
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| * The sndfile is closed.
 | ||
| * A new chunk is added using [`sf_set_chunk()`](#sf_set_chunk).
 | ||
| * Another chunk iterator function is called on the same `SNDFILE*`
 | ||
|   handle that causes the iterator to be modified.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| The memory for the iterator belongs to the SNDFILE* handle and is freed when
 | ||
| [sf_close](#close) is called.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ### sf_next_chunk_iterator
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ```c
 | ||
| sf_next_chunk_iterator (SF_CHUNK_ITERATOR * iterator) ;
 | ||
| ```
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| Iterate through chunks by incrementing the iterator.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| Increments the iterator and returns a handle to the new one. After this call,
 | ||
| iterator will no longer be valid, and you must use the newly returned handle
 | ||
| from now on. The returned handle can be used to access the next chunk matching
 | ||
| the criteria as defined in [sf_get_chunk_iterator](#sf_get_chunk_iterator).
 | ||
| If iterator points to the last chunk, this will free all resources associated
 | ||
| with iterator and return `NULL`. The returned iterator will stay valid until
 | ||
| `sf_get_next_chunk_iterator` is called again, the sndfile is closed or a new
 | ||
| chunk us added.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ### sf_get_chunk_size
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ```c
 | ||
| int
 | ||
| sf_get_chunk_size (const SF_CHUNK_ITERATOR * it, SF_CHUNK_INFO * chunk_info) ;
 | ||
| ```
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| Get the size of the specified chunk.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| If the specified chunk exists, the size will be returned in the `datalen` field
 | ||
| of the `SF_CHUNK_INFO` struct. Additionally, the id of the chunk will be copied
 | ||
| to the `id` field of the `SF_CHUNK_INFO` struct and it's `id_size` field will be
 | ||
| updated accordingly.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| If the chunk doesn't exist `chunk_info->datalen` will be zero, and the `id` and
 | ||
| `id_size` fields will be undefined.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| The function will return `SF_ERR_NO_ERROR` on success or non-zero on failure.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ### sf_get_chunk_data
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ```c
 | ||
| int
 | ||
| sf_get_chunk_data (const SF_CHUNK_ITERATOR *it, SF_CHUNK_INFO *chunk_info) ;
 | ||
| ```
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| Get the specified chunk data.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| If the specified chunk exists, up to `chunk_info->datalen` bytes of the chunk
 | ||
| data will be copied into the `chunk_info->data` buffer (allocated by the caller)
 | ||
| and the `chunk_info->datalen` field updated to reflect the size of the data. The
 | ||
| `id` and `id_size` field will be updated according to the retrieved chunk. If
 | ||
| the chunk doesn't exist `chunk_info->datalen` will be zero, and the `id` and
 | ||
| `id_size` fields will be undefined.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| The function will return `SF_ERR_NO_ERROR` on success or non-zero on failure.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ## Note 1
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| When converting between integer PCM formats of differing size (e.g. using
 | ||
| sf_read_int() to read a 16 bit PCM encoded WAV file) libsndfile obeys one simple
 | ||
| rule:
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| Whenever integer data is moved from one sized container to another sized
 | ||
| container, the most significant bit in the source container will become the most
 | ||
| significant bit in the destination container.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| When converting between integer data and floating point data, different rules
 | ||
| apply. The default behaviour when reading floating point data (sf_read_float()
 | ||
| or sf_read_double ()) from a file with integer data is normalisation. Regardless
 | ||
| of whether data in the file is 8, 16, 24 or 32 bit wide, the data will be read
 | ||
| as floating point data in the range [-1.0, 1.0]. Similarly, data in the range
 | ||
| [-1.0, 1.0] will be written to an integer PCM file so that a data value of 1.0
 | ||
| will be the largest allowable integer for the given bit width. This
 | ||
| normalisation can be turned on or off using the [sf_command](command.md)
 | ||
| interface.
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| ## Note 2
 | ||
| 
 | ||
| Reading a file containing floating point data (allowable with WAV, AIFF, AU and
 | ||
| other file formats) using integer read methods (sf_read_short() or
 | ||
| sf_read_int()) can produce unexpected results. For instance the data in the file
 | ||
| may have a maximum absolute value < 1.0 which would mean that all sample
 | ||
| values read from the file will be zero. In order to read these files correctly
 | ||
| using integer read methods, it is recommended that you use the
 | ||
| [sf_command](command.md) interface, a command of
 | ||
| [SFC_SET_SCALE_FLOAT_INT_READ](command.md#sfc_set_scale_float_int_read) and a
 | ||
| parameter of SF_TRUE to force correct scaling.
 |