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
		
	
	
	
	
	
---
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						||
layout: page
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title: The libsndfile API
 | 
						||
---
 | 
						||
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						||
# libsndfile
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
Libsndfile is a library designed to allow the reading and writing of many different sampled sound file formats (such as
 | 
						||
MS Windows WAV and the Apple/SGI AIFF format) through one standard library interface.
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
During read and write operations, formats are seamlessly converted between the format the application program has
 | 
						||
requested or supplied and the file's data format. The application programmer can remain blissfully unaware of issues
 | 
						||
such as file endian-ness and data format. See [Note 1](#note-1) and [Note 2](#note-2).
 | 
						||
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Every effort is made to keep these documents up-to-date, error free and unambiguous. However, since maintaining the
 | 
						||
documentation is the least fun part of working on libsndfile, these docs can and do fall behind the behaviour of the
 | 
						||
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
 | 
						||
test suite which is also part of the source code tarball is also a good place to look for the correct usage of the
 | 
						||
library functions.
 | 
						||
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**Finally, if you think there is some feature missing from libsndfile, check that it isn't already implemented (and
 | 
						||
documented) [here](command.md).**
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
## Synopsis
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
```c
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						||
#include <stdio.h>;
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						||
#include <sndfile.h>;
 | 
						||
```
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
| Name                                                                                                        | Description                                    |
 | 
						||
|:------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|:---------------------------------------        |
 | 
						||
| [sf_open, sf_wchar_open](#open)                                                                             | File open functions.                           |
 | 
						||
| [sf_open_fd](#open_fd)                                                                                      | Open sound file using file descriptor.         |
 | 
						||
| [sf_open_virtual](#open_virtual)                                                                            | Open sound file using virtual API.             |
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						||
| [sf_format_check](#check)                                                                                   | Validate sound file info.                      |
 | 
						||
| [sf_seek](#seek)                                                                                            | Seek position in sound file.                   |
 | 
						||
| [sf_command](command.md)                                                                                    | Command interface.                             |
 | 
						||
| [sf_error, sf_strerror, sf_error_number, sf_perror, sf_error_str](#error)                                   | Error functions.                               |
 | 
						||
| [sf_close](#close)                                                                                          | File close function.                           |
 | 
						||
| [sf_write_sync](#write_sync)                                                                                | Write sync function.                           |
 | 
						||
| [sf_read_short, sf_read_int, sf_read_float, sf_read_double](#read)                                          | File items read functions.                     |
 | 
						||
| [sf_readf_short, sf_readf_int, sf_readf_float, sf_readf_double](#readf)                                     | File frames read functions.                    |
 | 
						||
| [sf_write_short, sf_write_int, sf_write_float, sf_write_double](#write)                                     | File items write functions.                    |
 | 
						||
| [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. |
 | 
						||
| [sf_version_string](#version_string)                                                                        | Retrieve library version string.                |
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						||
| [sf_current_byterate](#current_byterate)                                                                    | Retrieve current byterate.                     |
 | 
						||
| [sf_set_chunk, sf_get_chunk_iterator, sf_next_chunk_iterator, sf_get_chunk_size, sf_get_chunk_data](#chunk) | RIFF chunks API.                               |
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
SNDFILE* is an anonymous pointer to data which is private to the library.
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
## File Open Function {#open}
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
```c
 | 
						||
SNDFILE*  sf_open    (const char *path, int mode, SF_INFO *sfinfo) ;
 | 
						||
```
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
The sf_open() function opens the sound file at the specified path. The filename is byte encoded, but may be utf-8 on
 | 
						||
Linux, while on Mac OS X it will use the filesystem character set. On Windows, there is also a Windows specific
 | 
						||
sf_wchar_open() that takes a UTF16_BE encoded filename.
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
```c
 | 
						||
SNDFILE*  sf_wchar_open (LPCWSTR wpath, int mode, SF_INFO *sfinfo) ;
 | 
						||
```
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
The SF_INFO structure is for passing data between the calling function and the library when opening a file for reading
 | 
						||
or writing. It is defined in sndfile.h as follows:
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
```c
 | 
						||
typedef struct
 | 
						||
{    sf_count_t  frames ;     /* Used to be called samples. */
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						||
        int         samplerate ;
 | 
						||
        int         channels ;
 | 
						||
        int         format ;
 | 
						||
        int         sections ;
 | 
						||
        int         seekable ;
 | 
						||
    } SF_INFO ;
 | 
						||
```
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
The mode parameter for this function can be any one of the following three values:
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
SFM_READ
 | 
						||
: read only mode
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
SFM_WRITE
 | 
						||
: write only mode
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
SFM_RDWR
 | 
						||
: read/write mode
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
When opening a file for read, the **format** field should be set to zero before
 | 
						||
calling **sf_open**(). The only exception to this is the case of RAW files where
 | 
						||
the caller has to set the **samplerate**, **channels** and **format** fields to
 | 
						||
valid values. All other fields of the structure are filled in by the library.
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
**Note:** The libsndfile library will reject values for field **channels** that
 | 
						||
are greater than `1024`. These value represent the maximum theoretical limit
 | 
						||
and may be less for specific formats.
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
When opening a file for write, the caller must fill in structure members
 | 
						||
**samplerate**, **channels**, and **format**.
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
The **format** field in the above **SF_INFO** structure is made up of the
 | 
						||
bit-wise OR of a major format type (values between 0x10000 and 0x08000000), a
 | 
						||
minor format type (with values less than 0x10000) and an optional endian-ness
 | 
						||
value. The currently understood formats are listed in *sndfile.h* as follows and
 | 
						||
also include bitmasks for separating major and minor file types. Not all
 | 
						||
combinations of endian-ness and major and minor file types are valid.
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
| Name                     | Value      | Description                                |
 | 
						||
|:-------------------------|:-----------|:-------------------------------------------|
 | 
						||
| **Major formats.**                                                                 |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_WAV            | 0x010000   | Microsoft WAV format (little endian).      |
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						||
| SF_FORMAT_AIFF           | 0x020000   | Apple/SGI AIFF format (big endian).        |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_AU             | 0x030000   | Sun/NeXT AU format (big endian).           |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_RAW            | 0x040000   | RAW PCM data.                              |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_PAF            | 0x050000   | Ensoniq PARIS file format.                 |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_SVX            | 0x060000   | Amiga IFF / SVX8 / SV16 format.            |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_NIST           | 0x070000   | Sphere NIST format.                        |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_VOC            | 0x080000   | VOC files.                                 |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_IRCAM          | 0x0A0000   | Berkeley/IRCAM/CARL                        |
 | 
						||
| 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          |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_MAT5           | 0x0D0000   | Matlab (tm) V5.0 / GNU Octave 2.1          |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_PVF            | 0x0E0000   | Portable Voice Format                      |
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						||
| SF_FORMAT_XI             | 0x0F0000   | Fasttracker 2 Extended Instrument          |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_HTK            | 0x100000   | HMM Tool Kit format                        |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_SDS            | 0x110000   | Midi Sample Dump Standard                  |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_AVR            | 0x120000   | Audio Visual Research                      |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_WAVEX          | 0x130000   | MS WAVE with WAVEFORMATEX                  |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_SD2            | 0x160000   | Sound Designer 2                           |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_FLAC           | 0x170000   | FLAC lossless file format                  |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_CAF            | 0x180000   | Core Audio File format                     |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_WVE            | 0x190000   | Psion WVE format                           |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_OGG            | 0x200000   | Xiph OGG container                         |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_MPC2K          | 0x210000   | Akai MPC 2000 sampler                      |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_RF64           | 0x220000   | RF64 WAV file                              |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_MPEG           | 0x230000   | MPEG-1/2 audio stream                      |
 | 
						||
| **Subtypes.**                                                                      |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_PCM_S8         | 0x0001     | Signed 8 bit data                          |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_PCM_16         | 0x0002     | Signed 16 bit data                         |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_PCM_24         | 0x0003     | Signed 24 bit data                         |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_PCM_32         | 0x0004     | Signed 32 bit data                         |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_PCM_U8         | 0x0005     | Unsigned 8 bit data (WAV and RAW only)     |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_FLOAT          | 0x0006     | 32 bit float data                          |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_DOUBLE         | 0x0007     | 64 bit float data                          |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_ULAW           | 0x0010     | U-Law encoded.                             |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_ALAW           | 0x0011     | A-Law encoded.                             |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_IMA_ADPCM      | 0x0012     | IMA ADPCM.                                 |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_MS_ADPCM       | 0x0013     | Microsoft ADPCM.                           |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_GSM610         | 0x0020     | GSM 6.10 encoding.                         |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_VOX_ADPCM      | 0x0021     | OKI / Dialogix ADPCM                       |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_NMS_ADPCM_16   | 0x0022     | 16kbs NMS G721-variant encoding.           |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_NMS_ADPCM_24   | 0x0023     | 24kbs NMS G721-variant encoding.           |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_NMS_ADPCM_32   | 0x0024     | 32kbs NMS G721-variant encoding.           |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_G721_32        | 0x0030     | 32kbs G721 ADPCM encoding.                 |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_G723_24        | 0x0031     | 24kbs G723 ADPCM encoding.                 |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_G723_40        | 0x0032     | 40kbs G723 ADPCM encoding.                 |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_DWVW_12        | 0x0040     | 12 bit Delta Width Variable Word encoding. |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_DWVW_16        | 0x0041     | 16 bit Delta Width Variable Word encoding. |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_DWVW_24        | 0x0042     | 24 bit Delta Width Variable Word encoding. |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_DWVW_N         | 0x0043     | N bit Delta Width Variable Word encoding.  |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_DPCM_8         | 0x0050     | 8 bit differential PCM (XI only)           |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_DPCM_16        | 0x0051     | 16 bit differential PCM (XI only)          |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_VORBIS         | 0x0060     | Xiph Vorbis encoding.                      |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_OPUS           | 0x0064     | Xiph/Skype Opus encoding.                  |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_ALAC_16        | 0x0070     | Apple Lossless Audio Codec (16 bit).       |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_ALAC_20        | 0x0071     | Apple Lossless Audio Codec (20 bit).       |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_ALAC_24        | 0x0072     | Apple Lossless Audio Codec (24 bit).       |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_ALAC_32        | 0x0073     | Apple Lossless Audio Codec (32 bit).       |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_MPEG_LAYER_I   | 0x0080     | MPEG-1 Audio Layer I.                      |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_MPEG_LAYER_II  | 0x0081     | MPEG-1 Audio Layer II.                     |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_MPEG_LAYER_III | 0x0082     | MPEG-2 Audio Layer III.                    |
 | 
						||
| **Endian-ness options.**                                                           |
 | 
						||
| SF_ENDIAN_FILE           | 0x00000000 | Default file endian-ness.                  |
 | 
						||
| SF_ENDIAN_LITTLE         | 0x10000000 | Force little endian-ness.                  |
 | 
						||
| SF_ENDIAN_BIG            | 0x20000000 | Force big endian-ness.                     |
 | 
						||
| SF_ENDIAN_CPU            | 0x30000000 | Force CPU endian-ness.                     |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_SUBMASK        | 0x0000FFFF |                                            |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_TYPEMASK       | 0x0FFF0000 |                                            |
 | 
						||
| SF_FORMAT_ENDMASK        | 0x30000000 |                                            |
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
Every call to **sf_open**() should be matched with a call to
 | 
						||
[**sf_close**()](#close) to free up memory allocated during the call to **sf_open**().
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
On success, the sf_open function returns a non-NULL pointer which should be passed as the first parameter to all
 | 
						||
subsequent libsndfile calls dealing with that audio file. On fail, the sf_open function returns a NULL pointer. An
 | 
						||
explanation of the error can obtained by passing NULL to [**sf_strerror**()](#error).
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
### File Descriptor Open {#open_fd}
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
```c
 | 
						||
SNDFILE*  sf_open_fd (int fd, int mode, SF_INFO *sfinfo, int close_desc) ;
 | 
						||
```
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
**Note:** On Microsoft Windows, this function does not work if the application
 | 
						||
and the libsndfile DLL are linked to different versions of the Microsoft C
 | 
						||
runtime DLL.
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
The second open function takes a file descriptor of a file that has already been
 | 
						||
opened. Care should be taken to ensure that the mode of the file represented by
 | 
						||
the descriptor matches the mode argument. This function is useful in the
 | 
						||
following circumstances:
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
* Opening temporary files securely (ie use the **tmpfile**() to return a FILE*
 | 
						||
  pointer and then using fileno() to retrieve the file descriptor which is then
 | 
						||
  passed to libsndfile).
 | 
						||
* Opening files with file names using OS specific character encodings and then
 | 
						||
  passing the file descriptor to **sf_open_fd**().
 | 
						||
* Opening sound files embedded within larger files. [More info](embedded_files.md).
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
Every call to `sf_open_fd`() should be matched with a call to sf_close() to free
 | 
						||
up memory allocated during the call to sf_open_fd().
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
When sf_close() is called, the file descriptor is only closed if the
 | 
						||
**close_desc** parameter was TRUE when the sf_open_fd() function was called.
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
On success, the sf_open_fd() function returns a non-NULL pointer which should be
 | 
						||
passed as the first parameter to all subsequent libsndfile calls dealing with
 | 
						||
that audio file. On fail, the sf_open_fd() function returns a NULL pointer.
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
### Virtual File Open Function {#open_virtual}
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
```c
 | 
						||
SNDFILE*    sf_open_virtual (SF_VIRTUAL_IO *sfvirtual, int mode, SF_INFO *sfinfo, void *user_data) ;
 | 
						||
```
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
Opens a soundfile from a virtual file I/O context which is provided by the
 | 
						||
caller. This is usually used to interface libsndfile to write/read from memory
 | 
						||
with a stream or buffer based system. Apart from the sfvirtual and the user_data
 | 
						||
parameters this function behaves like [sf_open()](#open).
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
```c
 | 
						||
    typedef struct
 | 
						||
    {    sf_vio_get_filelen  get_filelen ;
 | 
						||
          sf_vio_seek         seek ;
 | 
						||
          sf_vio_read         read ;
 | 
						||
          sf_vio_write        write ;
 | 
						||
          sf_vio_tell         tell ;
 | 
						||
    } SF_VIRTUAL_IO ;
 | 
						||
```
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
Libsndfile calls the callbacks provided by the SF_VIRTUAL_IO structure when
 | 
						||
opening, reading and writing to the virtual file context. The user_data pointer
 | 
						||
is a user defined context which will be available in the callbacks.
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
```c
 | 
						||
typedef sf_count_t  (*sf_vio_get_filelen) (void *user_data) ;
 | 
						||
typedef sf_count_t  (*sf_vio_seek)        (sf_count_t offset, int whence, void *user_data) ;
 | 
						||
typedef sf_count_t  (*sf_vio_read)        (void *ptr, sf_count_t count, void *user_data) ;
 | 
						||
typedef sf_count_t  (*sf_vio_write)       (const void *ptr, sf_count_t count, void *user_data) ;
 | 
						||
typedef sf_count_t  (*sf_vio_tell)        (void *user_data) ;
 | 
						||
```
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
#### sf_vio_get_filelen
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
```c
 | 
						||
typedef sf_count_t  (*sf_vio_get_filelen) (void *user_data) ;
 | 
						||
```
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
The virtual file context must return the length of the virtual file in bytes.
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
#### sf_vio_seek
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
```c
 | 
						||
typedef sf_count_t  (*sf_vio_seek)        (sf_count_t offset, int whence, void *user_data) ;
 | 
						||
```
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
The virtual file context must seek to offset using the seek mode provided by
 | 
						||
whence which is one of SEEK_CUR, SEEK_SET, SEEK_END.
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
The return value must contain the new offset in the file.
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
#### sf_vio_read
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
```c
 | 
						||
typedef sf_count_t  (*sf_vio_read)        (void *ptr, sf_count_t count, void *user_data) ;
 | 
						||
```
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
The virtual file context must copy ("read") "count" bytes into the buffer
 | 
						||
provided by ptr and return the count of actually copied bytes.
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
#### sf_vio_write
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
```c
 | 
						||
typedef sf_count_t  (*sf_vio_write)       (const void *ptr, sf_count_t count, void *user_data) ;
 | 
						||
```
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
The virtual file context must process "count" bytes stored in the buffer passed
 | 
						||
with ptr and return the count of actually processed bytes.
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
#### sf_vio_tell
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
```c
 | 
						||
typedef sf_count_t  (*sf_vio_tell)        (void *user_data) ;
 | 
						||
```
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
Return the current position of the virtual file context.
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
## Format Check Function {#chek}
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
```c
 | 
						||
int  sf_format_check (const SF_INFO *info) ;
 | 
						||
```
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
This function allows the caller to check if a set of parameters in the SF_INFO
 | 
						||
struct is valid before calling [sf_open](#open) (SFM_WRITE).
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
sf_format_check() returns TRUE if the parameters are valid and FALSE otherwise.
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
## File Seek Functions
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
```c
 | 
						||
sf_count_t  sf_seek  (SNDFILE *sndfile, sf_count_t frames, int whence) ;
 | 
						||
```
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
The file seek functions work much like lseek in unistd.h with the exception that
 | 
						||
the non-audio data is ignored and the seek only moves within the audio data
 | 
						||
section of the file. In addition, seeks are defined in number of (multichannel)
 | 
						||
frames. Therefore, a seek in a stereo file from the current position forward
 | 
						||
with an offset of 1 would skip forward by one sample of both channels.
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
like lseek(), the whence parameter can be any one of the following three values:
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
SEEK_SET
 | 
						||
: The offset is set to the start of the audio data plus offset (multichannel)
 | 
						||
frames.
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
SEEK_CUR
 | 
						||
: The offset is set to its current location plus offset (multichannel) frames.
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
SEEK_END
 | 
						||
: The offset is set to the end of the data plus offset (multichannel) frames.
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
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
 | 
						||
SFM_RDWR, bitwise OR-ing the standard whence values above with either SFM_READ
 | 
						||
or SFM_WRITE allows the read and write pointers to be modified separately.
 | 
						||
If the SEEK_* values are used on their own, the read and write pointers are
 | 
						||
both modified.
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
Note that the frames offset can be negative and in fact should be when SEEK_END
 | 
						||
is used for the whence parameter.
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
sf_seek will return the offset in (multichannel) frames from the start of the
 | 
						||
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     |
 | 
						||
| SF_ERR_MALFORMED_FILE       | 3     |
 | 
						||
| SF_ERR_UNSUPPORTED_ENCODING | 4     |
 | 
						||
 | 
						||
or any one of many other internal error values.
 | 
						||
Applications should only test the return value against error values defined in
 | 
						||
\<sndfile.h\>; as the internal error values are subject to change at any time.
 | 
						||
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.
 |