Documentation/DocBook/media/v4l/vidioc-streamon.xml

<refentry id="vidioc-streamon">
  <refmeta>
    <refentrytitle>ioctl VIDIOC_STREAMON, VIDIOC_STREAMOFF</refentrytitle>
    &manvol;
  </refmeta>

  <refnamediv>
    <refname>VIDIOC_STREAMON</refname>
    <refname>VIDIOC_STREAMOFF</refname>
    <refpurpose>Start or stop streaming I/O</refpurpose>
  </refnamediv>

  <refsynopsisdiv>
    <funcsynopsis>
      <funcprototype>
	<funcdef>int <function>ioctl</function></funcdef>
	<paramdef>int <parameter>fd</parameter></paramdef>
	<paramdef>int <parameter>request</parameter></paramdef>
	<paramdef>const int *<parameter>argp</parameter></paramdef>
      </funcprototype>
    </funcsynopsis>
  </refsynopsisdiv>

  <refsect1>
    <title>Arguments</title>

    <variablelist>
      <varlistentry>
	<term><parameter>fd</parameter></term>
	<listitem>
	  <para>&fd;</para>
	</listitem>
      </varlistentry>
      <varlistentry>
	<term><parameter>request</parameter></term>
	<listitem>
	  <para>VIDIOC_STREAMON, VIDIOC_STREAMOFF</para>
	</listitem>
      </varlistentry>
      <varlistentry>
	<term><parameter>argp</parameter></term>
	<listitem>
	  <para></para>
	</listitem>
      </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
  </refsect1>

  <refsect1>
    <title>Description</title>

    <para>The <constant>VIDIOC_STREAMON</constant> and
<constant>VIDIOC_STREAMOFF</constant> ioctl start and stop the capture
or output process during streaming (<link linkend="mmap">memory
mapping</link> or <link linkend="userp">user pointer</link>) I/O.</para>

    <para>Specifically the capture hardware is disabled and no input
buffers are filled (if there are any empty buffers in the incoming
queue) until <constant>VIDIOC_STREAMON</constant> has been called.
Accordingly the output hardware is disabled, no video signal is
produced until <constant>VIDIOC_STREAMON</constant> has been called.
The ioctl will succeed when at least one output buffer is in the
incoming queue.</para>

    <para>The <constant>VIDIOC_STREAMOFF</constant> ioctl, apart of
aborting or finishing any DMA in progress, unlocks any user pointer
buffers locked in physical memory, and it removes all buffers from the
incoming and outgoing queues. That means all images captured but not
dequeued yet will be lost, likewise all images enqueued for output but
not transmitted yet. I/O returns to the same state as after calling
&VIDIOC-REQBUFS; and can be restarted accordingly.</para>

    <para>Both ioctls take a pointer to an integer, the desired buffer or
stream type. This is the same as &v4l2-requestbuffers;
<structfield>type</structfield>.</para>

    <para>If <constant>VIDIOC_STREAMON</constant> is called when streaming
is already in progress, or if <constant>VIDIOC_STREAMOFF</constant> is called
when streaming is already stopped, then the ioctl does nothing and 0 is
returned.</para>

    <para>Note that applications can be preempted for unknown periods right
before or after the <constant>VIDIOC_STREAMON</constant> or
<constant>VIDIOC_STREAMOFF</constant> calls, there is no notion of
starting or stopping "now". Buffer timestamps can be used to
synchronize with other events.</para>
  </refsect1>

  <refsect1>
    &return-value;

    <variablelist>
      <varlistentry>
	<term><errorcode>EINVAL</errorcode></term>
	<listitem>
	  <para>The buffer<structfield>type</structfield> is not supported,
	  or no buffers have been allocated (memory mapping) or enqueued
	  (output) yet.</para>
	</listitem>
      </varlistentry>
      <varlistentry>
	<term><errorcode>EPIPE</errorcode></term>
	<listitem>
	  <para>The driver implements <link
	  linkend="pad-level-formats">pad-level format configuration</link> and
	  the pipeline configuration is invalid.
	  </para>
	</listitem>
      </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
  </refsect1>
</refentry>