ffmpeg-utils
utility functions for ffmpeg processing
TLDR
SYNOPSIS
ffprobe [options] input
DESCRIPTION
ffprobe (part of ffmpeg utils) gathers information from multimedia streams and prints it in human or machine-readable formats. It reveals codec details, duration, bitrate, resolution, and metadata.The tool is essential for scripting video workflows, checking file properties before processing, and debugging encoding issues. Structured output formats enable parsing by other tools.ffprobe provides detailed stream analysis without modifying files, making it safe for inspection tasks.
PARAMETERS
INPUT
Media file to analyze.-show_format
Display container format info.-show_streams
Display stream information.-show_frames
Display frame information.-print_format FORMAT
Output format: json, xml, csv, flat.-show_entries ENTRIES
Select specific entries to show.-of FORMAT
Output format (alias for print_format).-select_streams SPEC
Select only specified streams (e.g., v:0 for first video, a for all audio).-show_chapters
Display chapter information.-hide_banner
Suppress printing banner with copyright and build info.-v LEVEL
Set logging verbosity (e.g., quiet, error, warning, info).-count_frames
Count the number of frames per stream (requires decoding, slow).--help
Display help information.
CAVEATS
Full frame analysis can be slow. Some formats have incomplete metadata. Output format varies by file type.
HISTORY
ffprobe was added to ffmpeg to provide dedicated media analysis functionality, separating inspection from processing. It's become the standard tool for programmatic media file analysis.
