GDAL-RASTER-READ(1)

📦 version 3.13.3, in alpine 3.24, arch rolling, ubuntu stonking

💖 GDAL-RASTER-READ 💖

okay bestie, so this is a page from the GDAL manual — like, GDAL-RASTER-READ(1) — and it's literally the blueprint for reading a raster dataset inside a pipeline. added in version 3.11, so it's still kinda new-new. let's get into it 🫶

✨ NAME ✨

gdal-raster-read — read a raster dataset (pipeline only, no cap)

this one is Added in version 3.11, so if your GDAL is giving grandma energy, this command is not gonna show up. 😭

🌸 DESCRIPTION 🌸

okay so the read operation is for use in a gdal pipeline only, and it reads a single input raster dataset. that's it, that's the whole job. it's the very first step of a pipeline — like the opening scene, the main character entrance, the vibe-setter. everything downstream depends on it. 👑

🦋 SYNOPSIS 🦋

* read [OPTIONS] <INPUT>
------------------------

Read a raster dataset.

Positional arguments:
  -i, --input <INPUT>                  Input raster datasets [required]

Advanced Options:
  --if, --input-format <INPUT-FORMAT>  Input formats [may be repeated]
  --oo, --open-option <KEY>=<VALUE>    Open options [may be repeated]

like. read a raster dataset. that's the assignment. 💅

⭐ STANDARD OPTIONS ⭐

  • --if, --input-format <format> — this is where you tell it which format/driver name to try when it opens your input file(s). real talk: you usually do not need this. it exists for when automatic driver detection is being messy and picks the wrong driver. you can repeat this option as many times as you want to hand it a whole lineup of candidate drivers. ⚠️ but listen: it does not force those drivers to open the dataset — it's a suggestion, not a command. and some drivers are picky, they have requirements on file extensions.
    • May be repeated. 🔁
  • --oo, --open-option <NAME>=<VALUE> — a dataset open option, and it's format specific, so you gotta know what your driver likes. 💖
    • May be repeated. 🔁

🎀 EXAMPLES 🎀

🌈 Example 1: Read a GeoTIFF file

$ gdal raster pipeline read input.tif ! ... [other commands here] ...

see that !? that's how you chain the next step onto the pipeline. it's giving relay race, it's giving teamwork, it's giving slay. 🔥

👑 AUTHOR 👑

Even Rouault <even.rouault@spatialys.com>

1998-2026

and that's the whole page, bestie! 🦋 this one's from the GDAL manual, dated Aug 18, 2026, and it ate, no crumbs. go read some rasters. ✨🎀

📦 where this page comes from