SDL_PushGPUDebugGroup(3)

💖 SDL_PushGPUDebugGroup(3) 💖

okay bestie, welcome to the SDL3 FUNCTIONS section of the manual, and today's main character is SDL_PushGPUDebugGroup — she begins a debug group with an arbitrary name. no cap. let's get into it 🫶

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✨ NAME ✨

SDL_PushGPUDebugGroup — begins a debug group with an arbitrary name. that's it, that's the whole vibe. 💅

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🌸 SYNOPSIS 🌸

#include <SDL3/SDL_gpu.h>

void SDL_PushGPUDebugGroup(
    SDL_GPUCommandBuffer *command_buffer,
    const char *name);

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🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

so what's she for, you ask? she's for denoting groups of calls when you're viewing the command buffer callstream in a graphics debugging tool. it's giving "label your sections so your future self doesn't cry". iconic behavior honestly. 😭✨

⚠️ real talk: every single call to SDL_PushGPUDebugGroup must have a corresponding call to SDL_PopGPUDebugGroup. push without pop is a crime and the vibes will NOT recover.

Now. backend tea, because it's different everywhere and we must respect that:

• On Direct3D 12, using SDL_PushGPUDebugGroup requires WinPixEventRuntime.dll to be in your PATH or in the same directory as your executable. and if you're like "bestie where do I even get that" — see here https://devblogs.microsoft.com/pix/winpixeventruntime/ for instructions on how to obtain it. 🎀
• On some backends (e.g. Metal), pushing a debug group during a render/blit/compute pass will create a group that is scoped to the native pass rather than the command buffer. which is a whole different thing, lowkey. so for best results: if you push a debug group during a pass, always pop it in the same pass. matching push/pop inside the same pass = the move. periodt. 💅

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🎀 FUNCTION PARAMETERS 🎀

• command_buffer — a command buffer. yes, just a command buffer. she's the canvas, the stage, the group chat you're posting in. 💖
• name — a UTF-8 string constant that names the group. give her a cute name, she deserves it. ✨

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⭐ AVAILABILITY ⭐

this function is available since SDL 3.2.0. so if you're on something older... bestie. upgrade. 🙈

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👑 SEE ALSO 👑

• SDL_PopGPUDebugGroup(3) — the other half of the duo, the yin to this yang, the pop to your push. go read her next, they're a package deal. 🫶

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and that's the whole page, babe! Simple Directmedia Layer, SDL 3.4.18 — mwah, thanks for reading, go label your debug groups and slay 💅💖🌈