xref: /linux/Documentation/userspace-api/media/v4l/vidioc-g-ext-ctrls.rst (revision c01044cc819160323f3ca4acd44fca487c4432e6)
1.. SPDX-License-Identifier: GFDL-1.1-no-invariants-or-later
2
3.. _VIDIOC_G_EXT_CTRLS:
4
5******************************************************************
6ioctl VIDIOC_G_EXT_CTRLS, VIDIOC_S_EXT_CTRLS, VIDIOC_TRY_EXT_CTRLS
7******************************************************************
8
9Name
10====
11
12VIDIOC_G_EXT_CTRLS - VIDIOC_S_EXT_CTRLS - VIDIOC_TRY_EXT_CTRLS - Get or set the value of several controls, try control values
13
14
15Synopsis
16========
17
18.. c:function:: int ioctl( int fd, VIDIOC_G_EXT_CTRLS, struct v4l2_ext_controls *argp )
19    :name: VIDIOC_G_EXT_CTRLS
20
21
22.. c:function:: int ioctl( int fd, VIDIOC_S_EXT_CTRLS, struct v4l2_ext_controls *argp )
23    :name: VIDIOC_S_EXT_CTRLS
24
25
26.. c:function:: int ioctl( int fd, VIDIOC_TRY_EXT_CTRLS, struct v4l2_ext_controls *argp )
27    :name: VIDIOC_TRY_EXT_CTRLS
28
29
30Arguments
31=========
32
33``fd``
34    File descriptor returned by :ref:`open() <func-open>`.
35
36``argp``
37    Pointer to struct :c:type:`v4l2_ext_controls`.
38
39
40Description
41===========
42
43These ioctls allow the caller to get or set multiple controls
44atomically. Control IDs are grouped into control classes (see
45:ref:`ctrl-class`) and all controls in the control array must belong
46to the same control class.
47
48Applications must always fill in the ``count``, ``which``, ``controls``
49and ``reserved`` fields of struct
50:c:type:`v4l2_ext_controls`, and initialize the
51struct :c:type:`v4l2_ext_control` array pointed to
52by the ``controls`` fields.
53
54To get the current value of a set of controls applications initialize
55the ``id``, ``size`` and ``reserved2`` fields of each struct
56:c:type:`v4l2_ext_control` and call the
57:ref:`VIDIOC_G_EXT_CTRLS <VIDIOC_G_EXT_CTRLS>` ioctl. String controls controls must also set the
58``string`` field. Controls of compound types
59(``V4L2_CTRL_FLAG_HAS_PAYLOAD`` is set) must set the ``ptr`` field.
60
61If the ``size`` is too small to receive the control result (only
62relevant for pointer-type controls like strings), then the driver will
63set ``size`` to a valid value and return an ``ENOSPC`` error code. You
64should re-allocate the memory to this new size and try again. For the
65string type it is possible that the same issue occurs again if the
66string has grown in the meantime. It is recommended to call
67:ref:`VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL` first and use
68``maximum``\ +1 as the new ``size`` value. It is guaranteed that that is
69sufficient memory.
70
71N-dimensional arrays are set and retrieved row-by-row. You cannot set a
72partial array, all elements have to be set or retrieved. The total size
73is calculated as ``elems`` * ``elem_size``. These values can be obtained
74by calling :ref:`VIDIOC_QUERY_EXT_CTRL <VIDIOC_QUERYCTRL>`.
75
76To change the value of a set of controls applications initialize the
77``id``, ``size``, ``reserved2`` and ``value/value64/string/ptr`` fields
78of each struct :c:type:`v4l2_ext_control` and call
79the :ref:`VIDIOC_S_EXT_CTRLS <VIDIOC_G_EXT_CTRLS>` ioctl. The controls will only be set if *all*
80control values are valid.
81
82To check if a set of controls have correct values applications
83initialize the ``id``, ``size``, ``reserved2`` and
84``value/value64/string/ptr`` fields of each struct
85:c:type:`v4l2_ext_control` and call the
86:ref:`VIDIOC_TRY_EXT_CTRLS <VIDIOC_G_EXT_CTRLS>` ioctl. It is up to the driver whether wrong
87values are automatically adjusted to a valid value or if an error is
88returned.
89
90When the ``id`` or ``which`` is invalid drivers return an ``EINVAL`` error
91code. When the value is out of bounds drivers can choose to take the
92closest valid value or return an ``ERANGE`` error code, whatever seems more
93appropriate. In the first case the new value is set in struct
94:c:type:`v4l2_ext_control`. If the new control value
95is inappropriate (e.g. the given menu index is not supported by the menu
96control), then this will also result in an ``EINVAL`` error code error.
97
98If ``request_fd`` is set to a not-yet-queued :ref:`request <media-request-api>`
99file descriptor and ``which`` is set to ``V4L2_CTRL_WHICH_REQUEST_VAL``,
100then the controls are not applied immediately when calling
101:ref:`VIDIOC_S_EXT_CTRLS <VIDIOC_G_EXT_CTRLS>`, but instead are applied by
102the driver for the buffer associated with the same request.
103If the device does not support requests, then ``EACCES`` will be returned.
104If requests are supported but an invalid request file descriptor is given,
105then ``EINVAL`` will be returned.
106
107An attempt to call :ref:`VIDIOC_S_EXT_CTRLS <VIDIOC_G_EXT_CTRLS>` for a
108request that has already been queued will result in an ``EBUSY`` error.
109
110If ``request_fd`` is specified and ``which`` is set to
111``V4L2_CTRL_WHICH_REQUEST_VAL`` during a call to
112:ref:`VIDIOC_G_EXT_CTRLS <VIDIOC_G_EXT_CTRLS>`, then it will return the
113values of the controls at the time of request completion.
114If the request is not yet completed, then this will result in an
115``EACCES`` error.
116
117The driver will only set/get these controls if all control values are
118correct. This prevents the situation where only some of the controls
119were set/get. Only low-level errors (e. g. a failed i2c command) can
120still cause this situation.
121
122
123.. tabularcolumns:: |p{1.2cm}|p{3.0cm}|p{1.5cm}|p{11.8cm}|
124
125.. c:type:: v4l2_ext_control
126
127.. cssclass: longtable
128
129.. flat-table:: struct v4l2_ext_control
130    :header-rows:  0
131    :stub-columns: 0
132    :widths:       1 1 2
133
134    * - __u32
135      - ``id``
136      - Identifies the control, set by the application.
137    * - __u32
138      - ``size``
139      - The total size in bytes of the payload of this control. This is
140	normally 0, but for pointer controls this should be set to the
141	size of the memory containing the payload, or that will receive
142	the payload. If :ref:`VIDIOC_G_EXT_CTRLS <VIDIOC_G_EXT_CTRLS>` finds that this value is
143	less than is required to store the payload result, then it is set
144	to a value large enough to store the payload result and ``ENOSPC`` is
145	returned.
146
147	.. note::
148
149	   For string controls, this ``size`` field should
150	   not be confused with the length of the string. This field refers
151	   to the size of the memory that contains the string. The actual
152	   *length* of the string may well be much smaller.
153    * - __u32
154      - ``reserved2``\ [1]
155      - Reserved for future extensions. Drivers and applications must set
156	the array to zero.
157    * - union {
158      - (anonymous)
159    * - __s32
160      - ``value``
161      - New value or current value. Valid if this control is not of type
162	``V4L2_CTRL_TYPE_INTEGER64`` and ``V4L2_CTRL_FLAG_HAS_PAYLOAD`` is
163	not set.
164    * - __s64
165      - ``value64``
166      - New value or current value. Valid if this control is of type
167	``V4L2_CTRL_TYPE_INTEGER64`` and ``V4L2_CTRL_FLAG_HAS_PAYLOAD`` is
168	not set.
169    * - char *
170      - ``string``
171      - A pointer to a string. Valid if this control is of type
172	``V4L2_CTRL_TYPE_STRING``.
173    * - __u8 *
174      - ``p_u8``
175      - A pointer to a matrix control of unsigned 8-bit values. Valid if
176	this control is of type ``V4L2_CTRL_TYPE_U8``.
177    * - __u16 *
178      - ``p_u16``
179      - A pointer to a matrix control of unsigned 16-bit values. Valid if
180	this control is of type ``V4L2_CTRL_TYPE_U16``.
181    * - __u32 *
182      - ``p_u32``
183      - A pointer to a matrix control of unsigned 32-bit values. Valid if
184	this control is of type ``V4L2_CTRL_TYPE_U32``.
185    * - :c:type:`v4l2_area` *
186      - ``p_area``
187      - A pointer to a struct :c:type:`v4l2_area`. Valid if this control is
188        of type ``V4L2_CTRL_TYPE_AREA``.
189    * - void *
190      - ``ptr``
191      - A pointer to a compound type which can be an N-dimensional array
192	and/or a compound type (the control's type is >=
193	``V4L2_CTRL_COMPOUND_TYPES``). Valid if
194	``V4L2_CTRL_FLAG_HAS_PAYLOAD`` is set for this control.
195    * - }
196      -
197
198
199.. tabularcolumns:: |p{4.0cm}|p{2.2cm}|p{2.1cm}|p{8.2cm}|
200
201.. c:type:: v4l2_ext_controls
202
203.. cssclass:: longtable
204
205.. flat-table:: struct v4l2_ext_controls
206    :header-rows:  0
207    :stub-columns: 0
208    :widths:       1 1 2
209
210    * - union {
211      - (anonymous)
212    * - __u32
213      - ``ctrl_class``
214      - The control class to which all controls belong, see
215	:ref:`ctrl-class`. Drivers that use a kernel framework for
216	handling controls will also accept a value of 0 here, meaning that
217	the controls can belong to any control class. Whether drivers
218	support this can be tested by setting ``ctrl_class`` to 0 and
219	calling :ref:`VIDIOC_TRY_EXT_CTRLS <VIDIOC_G_EXT_CTRLS>` with a ``count`` of 0. If that
220	succeeds, then the driver supports this feature.
221    * - __u32
222      - ``which``
223      - Which value of the control to get/set/try.
224	``V4L2_CTRL_WHICH_CUR_VAL`` will return the current value of the
225	control, ``V4L2_CTRL_WHICH_DEF_VAL`` will return the default
226	value of the control and ``V4L2_CTRL_WHICH_REQUEST_VAL`` indicates that
227	these controls have to be retrieved from a request or tried/set for
228	a request. In the latter case the ``request_fd`` field contains the
229	file descriptor of the request that should be used. If the device
230	does not support requests, then ``EACCES`` will be returned.
231
232	.. note::
233
234	   When using ``V4L2_CTRL_WHICH_DEF_VAL`` be aware that you can only
235	   get the default value of the control, you cannot set or try it.
236
237	For backwards compatibility you can also use a control class here
238	(see :ref:`ctrl-class`). In that case all controls have to
239	belong to that control class. This usage is deprecated, instead
240	just use ``V4L2_CTRL_WHICH_CUR_VAL``. There are some very old
241	drivers that do not yet support ``V4L2_CTRL_WHICH_CUR_VAL`` and
242	that require a control class here. You can test for such drivers
243	by setting ctrl_class to ``V4L2_CTRL_WHICH_CUR_VAL`` and calling
244	VIDIOC_TRY_EXT_CTRLS with a count of 0. If that fails, then the
245	driver does not support ``V4L2_CTRL_WHICH_CUR_VAL``.
246    * - }
247      -
248    * - __u32
249      - ``count``
250      - The number of controls in the controls array. May also be zero.
251    * - __u32
252      - ``error_idx``
253      - Set by the driver in case of an error. If the error is associated
254	with a particular control, then ``error_idx`` is set to the index
255	of that control. If the error is not related to a specific
256	control, or the validation step failed (see below), then
257	``error_idx`` is set to ``count``. The value is undefined if the
258	ioctl returned 0 (success).
259
260	Before controls are read from/written to hardware a validation
261	step takes place: this checks if all controls in the list are
262	valid controls, if no attempt is made to write to a read-only
263	control or read from a write-only control, and any other up-front
264	checks that can be done without accessing the hardware. The exact
265	validations done during this step are driver dependent since some
266	checks might require hardware access for some devices, thus making
267	it impossible to do those checks up-front. However, drivers should
268	make a best-effort to do as many up-front checks as possible.
269
270	This check is done to avoid leaving the hardware in an
271	inconsistent state due to easy-to-avoid problems. But it leads to
272	another problem: the application needs to know whether an error
273	came from the validation step (meaning that the hardware was not
274	touched) or from an error during the actual reading from/writing
275	to hardware.
276
277	The, in hindsight quite poor, solution for that is to set
278	``error_idx`` to ``count`` if the validation failed. This has the
279	unfortunate side-effect that it is not possible to see which
280	control failed the validation. If the validation was successful
281	and the error happened while accessing the hardware, then
282	``error_idx`` is less than ``count`` and only the controls up to
283	``error_idx-1`` were read or written correctly, and the state of
284	the remaining controls is undefined.
285
286	Since :ref:`VIDIOC_TRY_EXT_CTRLS <VIDIOC_G_EXT_CTRLS>` does not access hardware there is
287	also no need to handle the validation step in this special way, so
288	``error_idx`` will just be set to the control that failed the
289	validation step instead of to ``count``. This means that if
290	:ref:`VIDIOC_S_EXT_CTRLS <VIDIOC_G_EXT_CTRLS>` fails with ``error_idx`` set to ``count``,
291	then you can call :ref:`VIDIOC_TRY_EXT_CTRLS <VIDIOC_G_EXT_CTRLS>` to try to discover the
292	actual control that failed the validation step. Unfortunately,
293	there is no ``TRY`` equivalent for :ref:`VIDIOC_G_EXT_CTRLS <VIDIOC_G_EXT_CTRLS>`.
294    * - __s32
295      - ``request_fd``
296      - File descriptor of the request to be used by this operation. Only
297	valid if ``which`` is set to ``V4L2_CTRL_WHICH_REQUEST_VAL``.
298	If the device does not support requests, then ``EACCES`` will be returned.
299	If requests are supported but an invalid request file descriptor is
300	given, then ``EINVAL`` will be returned.
301    * - __u32
302      - ``reserved``\ [1]
303      - Reserved for future extensions.
304
305	Drivers and applications must set the array to zero.
306    * - struct :c:type:`v4l2_ext_control` *
307      - ``controls``
308      - Pointer to an array of ``count`` v4l2_ext_control structures.
309
310	Ignored if ``count`` equals zero.
311
312
313.. tabularcolumns:: |p{6.6cm}|p{2.2cm}|p{8.7cm}|
314
315.. _ctrl-class:
316
317.. flat-table:: Control classes
318    :header-rows:  0
319    :stub-columns: 0
320    :widths:       3 1 4
321
322    * - ``V4L2_CTRL_CLASS_USER``
323      - 0x980000
324      - The class containing user controls. These controls are described
325	in :ref:`control`. All controls that can be set using the
326	:ref:`VIDIOC_S_CTRL <VIDIOC_G_CTRL>` and
327	:ref:`VIDIOC_G_CTRL <VIDIOC_G_CTRL>` ioctl belong to this
328	class.
329    * - ``V4L2_CTRL_CLASS_MPEG``
330      - 0x990000
331      - The class containing MPEG compression controls. These controls are
332	described in :ref:`mpeg-controls`.
333    * - ``V4L2_CTRL_CLASS_CAMERA``
334      - 0x9a0000
335      - The class containing camera controls. These controls are described
336	in :ref:`camera-controls`.
337    * - ``V4L2_CTRL_CLASS_FM_TX``
338      - 0x9b0000
339      - The class containing FM Transmitter (FM TX) controls. These
340	controls are described in :ref:`fm-tx-controls`.
341    * - ``V4L2_CTRL_CLASS_FLASH``
342      - 0x9c0000
343      - The class containing flash device controls. These controls are
344	described in :ref:`flash-controls`.
345    * - ``V4L2_CTRL_CLASS_JPEG``
346      - 0x9d0000
347      - The class containing JPEG compression controls. These controls are
348	described in :ref:`jpeg-controls`.
349    * - ``V4L2_CTRL_CLASS_IMAGE_SOURCE``
350      - 0x9e0000
351      - The class containing image source controls. These controls are
352	described in :ref:`image-source-controls`.
353    * - ``V4L2_CTRL_CLASS_IMAGE_PROC``
354      - 0x9f0000
355      - The class containing image processing controls. These controls are
356	described in :ref:`image-process-controls`.
357    * - ``V4L2_CTRL_CLASS_FM_RX``
358      - 0xa10000
359      - The class containing FM Receiver (FM RX) controls. These controls
360	are described in :ref:`fm-rx-controls`.
361    * - ``V4L2_CTRL_CLASS_RF_TUNER``
362      - 0xa20000
363      - The class containing RF tuner controls. These controls are
364	described in :ref:`rf-tuner-controls`.
365
366
367Return Value
368============
369
370On success 0 is returned, on error -1 and the ``errno`` variable is set
371appropriately. The generic error codes are described at the
372:ref:`Generic Error Codes <gen-errors>` chapter.
373
374EINVAL
375    The struct :c:type:`v4l2_ext_control` ``id`` is
376    invalid, or the struct :c:type:`v4l2_ext_controls`
377    ``which`` is invalid, or the struct
378    :c:type:`v4l2_ext_control` ``value`` was
379    inappropriate (e.g. the given menu index is not supported by the
380    driver), or the ``which`` field was set to ``V4L2_CTRL_WHICH_REQUEST_VAL``
381    but the given ``request_fd`` was invalid or ``V4L2_CTRL_WHICH_REQUEST_VAL``
382    is not supported by the kernel.
383    This error code is also returned by the
384    :ref:`VIDIOC_S_EXT_CTRLS <VIDIOC_G_EXT_CTRLS>` and :ref:`VIDIOC_TRY_EXT_CTRLS <VIDIOC_G_EXT_CTRLS>` ioctls if two or
385    more control values are in conflict.
386
387ERANGE
388    The struct :c:type:`v4l2_ext_control` ``value``
389    is out of bounds.
390
391EBUSY
392    The control is temporarily not changeable, possibly because another
393    applications took over control of the device function this control
394    belongs to, or (if the ``which`` field was set to
395    ``V4L2_CTRL_WHICH_REQUEST_VAL``) the request was queued but not yet
396    completed.
397
398ENOSPC
399    The space reserved for the control's payload is insufficient. The
400    field ``size`` is set to a value that is enough to store the payload
401    and this error code is returned.
402
403EACCES
404    Attempt to try or set a read-only control, or to get a write-only
405    control, or to get a control from a request that has not yet been
406    completed.
407
408    Or the ``which`` field was set to ``V4L2_CTRL_WHICH_REQUEST_VAL`` but the
409    device does not support requests.
410