HDF5 documents and links 
Introduction to HDF5 
 HDF5 User's Guide 
HDF5 Reference Manual 
HDF5 Application Developer's Guide 

HDF5 Software Changes from Release to Release

This document is intended to assist application developers who must keep an application synchronized with the HDF5 library or related software.

Development Release 1.5
(current development toward Production Release 1.6)

This section lists the API-level changes that have been made during the Release 1.5 development phase. (The development release number, 1.5, will be used to describe this version until this the current development cycle is completed, at which point it will be promoted to a production release. The first production release of this code will be as Release 1.6.)

Note that changes at the subrelease level in the Release 1.4 production branch, i.e., Releases 1.4.1, 1.4.2, ..., are summarized in the Release 1.4.x versions of this document; they are not reported here.

New Functions and Tools

The following functions are new for Release 1.5 and are included in the HDF5 Reference Manual.
 
H5Dget_offset hsize_t H5Dget_offset (hid_t dset_id)
H5Dget_space_status hid_t H5Dget_space_status (hid_t dset_id, H5D_space_status_t *status)
H5Fget_obj_ids herr_t H5Fget_obj_ids (hid_t file_id, unsigned int types, hid_t *obj_id_list)
H5Fget_vfd_handle herr_t H5Fget_vfd_handle (hid_t file_id, hid_t fapl_id, void *file_handle)
H5Gget_num_objs herr_t H5Gget_num_objs (hid_t loc_id, hsize_t* num_obj)
H5Gget_objname_by_idx ssize_t H5Gget_objname_by_idx (hid_t group_id, hsize_t idx, char *name, size_t* size)
H5Gget_objtype_by_idx int H5Gget_objtype_by_idx (hid_t group_id, hsize_t idx)
H5Iget_name ssize_t H5Iget_name (hid_t obj_id, char *name, size_t size)
H5Pall_filters_avail htri_t H5Pall_filters_avail (hid_t dcpl_id)
H5Pfill_value_defined herr_t H5Pfill_value_defined (hid_t plist_id, H5D_fill_value_t *status)
H5Pget_alloc_time herr_t H5Pget_alloc_time (hid_t plist_id, H5D_alloc_time_t *alloc_time)
H5Pget_edc_check H5Z_EDC_t H5Pget_edc_check (hid_t plist)
H5Pget_family_offset herr_t H5Pget_family_offset (hid_t fapl_id, hsize_t *offset)
H5Pget_fapl_mpiposix herr_t H5Pget_fapl_mpiposix (hid_t fapl_id, MPI_Comm *comm)
H5Pget_fill_time herr_t H5Pget_fill_time (hid_t plist_id, H5D_fill_time_t *fill_time)
H5Pget_filter_by_id herr_t H5Pget_filter_by_id (hid_t plist_id, H5Z_filter_t filter, unsigned int *flags, size_t *cd_nelmts, unsigned int cd_values[], size_t namelen, char *name[])
H5Pget_hyper_vector_size herr_t H5Pget_hyper_vector_size (hid_t dxpl_id, size_t *vector_size)
H5Pget_multi_type herr_t H5Pget_multi_type (hid_t fapl_id, H5FD_mem_t *type)
H5Pmodify_filter herr_t H5Pmodify_filter (hid_t plist, H5Z_filter_t filter, unsigned int flags, size_t cd_nelmts, const unsigned int cd_values[])
H5Pset_alloc_time herr_t H5Pset_alloc_time (hid_t plist_id, H5D_alloc_time_t alloc_time)
H5Pset_edc_check herr_t H5Pset_edc_check (hid_t plist, H5Z_EDC_t check)
H5Pset_family_offset herr_t H5Pset_family_offset (hid_t fapl_id, hsize_t offset)
H5Pset_fapl_mpiposix herr_t H5Pset_fapl_mpiposix (hid_t fapl_id, MPI_Comm comm)
H5Pset_fill_time herr_t H5Pset_fill_time (hid_t plist_id, H5D_fill_time_t fill_time)
H5Pset_filter herr_t H5Pset_filter (hid_t plist, H5Z_filter_t filter, unsigned int flags, size_t cd_nelmts, const unsigned int cd_values[])
H5Pset_filter_callback herr_t H5Pset_filter_callback (hid_t plist, H5Z_filter_func_t func, void *op_data)
H5Pset_fletcher32 herr_t H5Pset_fletcher32 (hid_t plist)
H5Pset_hyper_vector_size  herr_t H5Pset_hyper_vector_size (hid_t dxpl_id, size_t vector_size)
H5Pset_multi_type herr_t H5Pset_multi_type (hid_t fapl_id, H5FD_mem_t type)
H5Pset_shuffle herr_t H5Pset_shuffle (hid_t plist_id)
H5Pset_szip herr_t H5Pset_szip (hid_t plist, unsigned int options_mask, unsigned int pixels_per_block)
H5Rget_object_type int H5Rget_object_type (hid_t id, void *ref)
H5set_free_list_limits herr_t H5set_free_list_limits (int reg_global_lim, int reg_list_lim, int arr_global_lim, int arr_list_lim, int blk_global_lim, int blk_list_lim)
H5Sget_select_type H5S_sel_type H5Sget_select_type (hid_t space_id)
H5Tdetect_class htri_t H5Tdetect_class (hid_t dtype_id, H5T_class_t dtype_class)
H5Tget_native_type hid_t H5Tget_native_type (hid_t type_id, H5T_direction_t direction)
H5Tis_variable_str htri_t H5Tis_variable_str (hid_t dtype_id)
H5Zfilter_avail herr_t H5Zfilter_avail (H5Z_filter_t filter)
H5Zunregister herr_t H5Zunregister (H5Z_filter_t filter)
 
The following tools are new for Release 1.5 and are included in the HDF5 Reference Manual.
 
h5import
h5fc
h5perf
h5redeploy

Deleted Functions

The following functions have been removed from the HDF5 library and from the HDF5 Reference Manual. 
H5function1
H5function2
       
H5function3
H5function4
       
H5function5
H5function6

Functions with Changed Syntax

The following functions have changed slightly.
H5FDflush and VFL "flush" callbacks
An extra parameter 'closing' has been added to these functions, to allow the library to indicate that the file will be closed following the call to "flush". Actions in the "flush" call that are duplicated in the VFL "close" call may be omitted by the VFL driver.
H5Sget_select_bounds
The 'start' and 'end' parameters have changed from 'hsize_t *' to 'hssize_t *' to better match the rest of the dataspace API.
h5pset(get)_fapl_core_f
The 'backing_store' parameter has changed from INTEGER to LOGICAL to match better C API
h5pset(get)_preserve_f
The 'flag' parameter has changed from INTEGER to LOGICAL to match better C API
H5function
Description of change

Constants with Changed Values

 

Release 1.4

Note: Changes at the subrelease level, i.e., 1.4.1, 1.4.2, ..., are summarized in the Release 1.4.x version of this document; they are not reported here. Several functions were added to or removed from the HDF5 library in the development of Release 1.4. A few functions have been modified in minor ways.

New Functions

The following functions are new for Release 1.4 and are included in the HDF5 Reference Manual. 
herr_t H5Dvlen_get_buf_size (hid_t dataset_id, hid_t type_id, 
           hid_t space_id, hsize_t *size);
herr_t H5Epush (const char *file, const char *func,
           unsigned line, H5E_major_t maj, H5E_minor_t min, 
           const char *str);
hid_t H5Pget_driver (hid_t plist_id);
void *H5Pget_driver_info (hid_t plist_id);
herr_t H5Pget_dxpl_mpio (hid_t dxpl_id, 
           H5FD_mpio_xfer_t *xfer_mode/*out*/);
herr_t H5Pget_dxpl_multi (hid_t dxpl_id, 
           hid_t *memb_dxpl/*out*/);
herr_t H5Pget_fapl_core (hid_t fapl_id, size_t *increment/*out*/,
           hbool_t *backing_store/*out*/) 
herr_t H5Pget_fapl_family (hid_t fapl_id, 
           hsize_t *memb_size/*out*/, hid_t *memb_fapl_id/*out*/);
herr_t H5Pget_fapl_mpio (hid_t fapl_id, MPI_Comm *comm/*out*/,
           MPI_Info *info/*out*/);
herr_t H5Pget_fapl_multi (hid_t fapl_id, 
           H5FD_mem_t *memb_map/*out*/, hid_t *memb_fapl/*out*/, 
           char **memb_name/*out*/, haddr_t *memb_addr/*out*/, 
           hbool_t *relax/*out*/);
herr_t H5Pget_fapl_stream (hid_t fapl_id,
           H5FD_stream_fapl_t *fapl /*out*/ );
herr_t H5Pget_meta_block_size (hid_t fapl_id, 
           hsize_t *size/*out*/);
herr_t H5Pget_sieve_buf_size (hid_t fapl_id, 
           hsize_t *size/*out*/);
herr_t H5Pset_driver (hid_t plist_id, hid_t driver_id,
           const void *driver_info);
herr_t H5Pset_dxpl_mpio (hid_t dxpl_id, 
           H5FD_mpio_xfer_t xfer_mode);
herr_t H5Pset_dxpl_multi (hid_t dxpl_id, 
           const hid_t *memb_dxpl);
herr_t H5Pset_fapl_core (hid_t fapl_id, size_t increment, 
           hbool_t backing_store)
herr_t H5Pset_fapl_family (hid_t fapl_id, hsize_t memb_size,
           hid_t memb_fapl_id);
herr_t H5Pset_fapl_log (hid_t fapl_id, char *logfile, 
           int verbosity);
herr_t H5Pset_fapl_mpio (hid_t fapl_id, MPI_Comm comm, 
           MPI_Info info);
herr_t H5Pset_fapl_multi (hid_t fapl_id, 
           const H5FD_mem_t *memb_map, const hid_t *memb_fapl, 
           const char **memb_name, const haddr_t *memb_addr, 
           hbool_t relax);
herr_t H5Pset_fapl_sec2 (hid_t fapl_id);
herr_t H5Pset_fapl_split (hid_t fapl, const char *meta_ext,
           hid_t meta_plist_id, const char *raw_ext,
           hid_t raw_plist_id);
herr_t H5Pset_fapl_stdio (hid_t fapl_id);
herr_t H5Pset_fapl_stream (hid_t fapl_id,
           H5FD_stream_fapl_t *fapl);
herr_t H5Pset_meta_block_size(hid_t fapl_id, hsize_t size);
herr_t H5Pset_sieve_buf_size(hid_t fapl_id, hsize_t size);
hid_t H5Tarray_create (hid_t base, int rank, const hsize_t dims[], 
           const int perm[])
int H5Tget_array_dims (hid_t adtype_id, hsize_t *dims[], int *perm[])
int H5Tget_array_ndims (hid_t adtype_id)

The following functions are new for Release 1.4, but are intended only for use in specialized environments. These are also included in the HDF5 Reference Manual. 

herr_t H5Pget_fapl_dpss (hid_t fapl_id);
herr_t H5Pget_fapl_gass (hid_t fapl_id, GASS_Info *info/*out*/);
herr_t H5Pget_fapl_srb (hid_t fapl_id, SRB_Info *info);
herr_t H5Pset_fapl_dpss (hid_t fapl_id);
herr_t H5Pset_fapl_gass (hid_t fapl_id, GASS_Info info);
herr_t H5Pset_fapl_srb (hid_t fapl_id, SRB_Info info);

The following functions are new for Release 1.4 but are intended only for driver development work, not for general use. They are listed in the List of VFL Functions document in the HDF5 Technical Notes. They are described in detail only in the source code and do not appear in the HDF5 Reference Manual. 

haddr_t H5FDalloc (H5FD_t *file, H5FD_mem_t type, 
          hsize_t size);
herr_t H5FDclose (H5FD_t *file);
int H5FDcmp (const H5FD_t *f1, const H5FD_t *f2);
herr_t H5FDflush (H5FD_t *file);
herr_t H5FDfree (H5FD_t *file, H5FD_mem_t type, 
          haddr_t addr, hsize_t size);
haddr_t H5FDget_eoa (H5FD_t *file);
haddr_t H5FDget_eof (H5FD_t *file);
H5FD_t *H5FDopen (const char *name, unsigned flags, 
          hid_t fapl_id, haddr_t maxaddr);
int H5FDquery (const H5FD_t *f, unsigned long *flags);
herr_t H5FDread (H5FD_t *file, hid_t dxpl_id, haddr_t addr, 
          hsize_t size, void *buf/*out*/);
haddr_t H5FDrealloc (H5FD_t *file, H5FD_mem_t type, 
          haddr_t addr, hsize_t old_size, hsize_t new_size);
hid_t H5FDregister (const H5FD_class_t *cls);
herr_t H5FDset_eoa (H5FD_t *file, haddr_t eof);
herr_t H5FDunregister (hid_t driver_id);
herr_t H5FDwrite (H5FD_t *file, H5FD_mem_t type, 
          hid_t dxpl_id, haddr_t addr, hsize_t size, 
          const void *buf);

Deleted Functions

The following functions have been removed from the HDF5 library and from the HDF5 Reference Manual. 
H5Pget_core
H5Pget_driver
H5Pget_family
H5Pget_mpi
H5Pget_sec2
H5Pget_split
H5Pget_stdio
H5Pget_xfer
       
H5Pset_core
H5Pset_family
H5Pset_mpi
H5Pset_sec2
H5Pset_split
H5Pset_stdio
H5Pset_xfer
       
H5RAclose
H5RAcreate
H5RAopen
H5RAread
H5RAwrite
H5Tget_member_dims
H5Tinsert_array
Note that the entire H5RA interface, an esperimental interface for ragged arrays, has been removed from the library.

Functions with Changed Syntax

The following functions have changed slightly.
H5Pget_buffer
Return type has changed to hsize_t.
H5Pset_buffer
The type of the size parameter has changed to hsize_t.
H5Tconvert
The type of the nelmts parameter has changed to hsize_t.

Constants with Changed Values

The values of the constants H5P_DEFAULT and H5S_ALL have been changed from -2 to 0. These default values had to be special-cased in situations where they could be returned to distinguish them from error values.

 

This and Prior Releases: The RELEASE and HISTORY Files

The HDF5 source code, as distributed to users and developers, contains two files that will be of interest to readers of this document. Both files are located at the top level of the source code tree (i.e., in .../hdf5/) and are duplicated here for your reference:

RELEASE
Technical notes regarding the release, including new features and the changes since the last release, notes regarding new or revised utilities, notes regarding alternative language APIs (Fortran90, C++), bugs fixed since the last release, platforms on which the release has been tested, and known problems. This is the file commonly known among developers as "the release notes."

HISTORY
A release-by-release history of the HDF5 library. This file is a compiled set of the release notes (i.e., the RELEASE files) from prior releases.
HDF5 documents and links 
Introduction to HDF5 
 HDF5 User's Guide 
HDF5 Reference Manual 
HDF5 Application Developer's Guide 
HDF Help Desk
Describes HDF5 Release 1.5, Unreleased Development Branch
Last modified: 5 June 2003