Python API
==========

RenderDoc exposes APIs to python at two different levels:

1. The :doc:`base replay API <renderdoc/index>`, the ``renderdoc`` module, which provides low level access to handling capture files, replaying frames and obtaining analysis information. The UI is built entirely on top of this API, so it provides the full power of RenderDoc, however is does not have many convenience abstractions.
2. The :doc:`RenderDoc UI API <qrenderdoc/index>`, the ``qrenderdoc`` module, which exposes the abstractions and panels within the UI tool.

Within RenderDoc - when either running scripts on the command line, or via the :doc:`../window/python_shell` - both modules are pre-imported and available automatically.

It is also possible to build the ``renderdoc`` module standalone which can be loaded into python and used for scripting directly without the UI program. Due to the inherent difficulty of distributing C python modules this isn't included by default in distributed builds at the time of writing, but is generated by default in source builds - ``renderdoc.pyd`` on windows or ``renderdoc.so`` elsewhere.

.. note::

    RenderDoc only supports Python 3.4+, Python 2 is not supported.

This documentation contains information on getting started with the scripting, as well as tutorials and examples outline how to perform simple tasks.

Each example has a simple motivating goal and shows how to achieve it using the interfaces provided. They will not show every possible use of the interfaces, but instead give a starting point to build on. Further information about exactly what functionality is available can be found in the API reference below as well as using the python built-in ``help()`` function.

.. toctree::
    examples/renderdoc_intro
    examples/qrenderdoc_intro
    examples/basics
    examples/renderdoc/index
    examples/qrenderdoc/index
    renderdoc/index
    qrenderdoc/index
