---
name: "cli-anything-renderdoc"
description: CLI harness for RenderDoc graphics debugger capture analysis
version: 0.1.0
command: cli-anything-renderdoc
install: pip install cli-anything-renderdoc
requires:
  - renderdoc (Python bindings from RenderDoc installation)
  - click>=8.0
  - prompt-toolkit>=3.0
categories:
  - graphics
  - debugging
  - gpu
  - rendering
---

# RenderDoc CLI Skill

Headless command-line analysis of RenderDoc GPU frame captures (`.rdc` files).

## Capabilities

- **Capture inspection**: metadata, sections, thumbnails, format conversion
- **Action tree**: list/search/filter draw calls, clears, dispatches, markers
- **Texture operations**: list, inspect, export (PNG/JPG/DDS/HDR/EXR), pixel picking
- **Pipeline state**: full shader/RT/viewport state at any event
- **Shader analysis**: export shader in human-readable form (HLSL/GLSL/disasm), constant buffer readback
- **Resource inspection**: buffer/texture enumeration, raw data reading
- **Mesh data**: vertex shader input/output decoding
- **GPU counters**: enumerate and fetch hardware performance counters

## Command Groups

### capture
```bash
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc capture info          # Metadata + sections
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc capture thumb -o t.png # Extract thumbnail
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc capture convert -o out.rdc --format rdc
```

### actions
```bash
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc actions list           # All actions
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc actions list --draws-only  # Draw calls only
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc actions summary        # Counts by type
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc actions find "Shadow"  # Search by name
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc actions get 42         # Single action
```

### textures
```bash
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc textures list
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc textures get <id>
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc textures save <id> -o out.png --format png
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc textures save-outputs 42 -o ./renders/
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc textures pick <id> 100 200
```

### pipeline
```bash
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc pipeline state 42

# Export shader in human-readable form
# Text shaders (GLSL/HLSL) → saved directly
# Binary shaders (DXBC/SPIR-V) → embedded source (HLSL/GLSL) or disassembly
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc pipeline shader-export 42 --stage Fragment
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc pipeline shader-export 42 --stage Vertex -o ./shaders/

cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc pipeline cbuffer 42 --stage Vertex --index 0

# Compare pipeline state between two events
# Default output: same directory as the capture file  ;  use -o to override
cli-anything-renderdoc -c a.rdc pipeline diff 100 200 -b b.rdc
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc pipeline diff 100 200              # same capture
cli-anything-renderdoc -c a.rdc pipeline diff 100 200 -b b.rdc -o result.json
cli-anything-renderdoc -c a.rdc pipeline diff 100 200 -b b.rdc --no-compact
```

### resources
```bash
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc resources list
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc resources buffers
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc resources read-buffer <id> --format float32
```

### mesh
```bash
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc mesh inputs 42 --max-vertices 10
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc mesh outputs 42
```

### counters
```bash
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc counters list
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc counters fetch --ids 1,2,3
```

## Preview Bundles

RenderDoc preview support is for truthful capture inspection rather than live
creative preview.

```bash
# List preview recipes
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc --json preview recipes

# Capture a preview bundle for the active capture or a specific event
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc --json preview capture --recipe quick --event-id 42

# Capture a diff preview bundle for two events or captures
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc --json preview diff 100 200
cli-anything-renderdoc -c a.rdc --json preview diff 100 200 --capture-b b.rdc

# Return the latest existing bundle for the capture
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc --json preview latest --recipe quick
```

Typical preview bundle contents:

- capture thumbnail
- output-target images
- `pipeline_state.json`
- `action_summary.json`

Diff bundles additionally include:

- A/B thumbnails
- A/B output-target images
- `pipeline_diff.json`

RenderDoc does not currently expose live preview sessions. Instead, each
capture/diff bundle appends to a stable recipe-level `trajectory.json`.

Viewer commands:

```bash
cli-hub previews inspect /path/to/bundle
cli-hub previews html /path/to/bundle -o page.html
cli-hub previews open /path/to/bundle
```

## JSON Mode

All commands support `--json` for machine-readable output:
```bash
cli-anything-renderdoc -c frame.rdc --json actions summary
```

## Environment Variables

| Variable              | Description                  |
|----------------------|------------------------------|
| `RENDERDOC_CAPTURE`  | Default capture file path   |
| `PYTHONPATH`         | Must include RenderDoc path |

## Agent Usage Notes

- **Use `pipeline shader-export` to extract shaders** — for binary shaders (DXBC/SPIR-V) it auto-exports embedded HLSL/GLSL source or falls back to disassembly; for text shaders (GLSL/HLSL) it saves the raw source directly
- **Shader formats by capture API**:
  - D3D11 → DXBC binary, exported as embedded HLSL source (`.hlsl`) or bytecode asm (`.dxbc.asm`)
  - OpenGL/GLES → GLSL source text (`.glsl`), already human-readable
  - Vulkan → SPIR-V binary, exported as embedded GLSL source (`.glsl`) or SPIR-V asm (`.spv.asm`)
- **Use `pipeline diff` to compare two events** — it writes a JSON file and prints only the path; use `-b` for a second capture
- Always specify `--json` for programmatic consumption
- Use `actions summary` first to understand capture complexity
- Use `actions list --draws-only` to focus on actual rendering
- Use `preview capture` or `preview diff` when the agent needs a portable,
  honest inspection bundle rather than raw replay calls alone
- Read `_trajectory_path` from preview JSON if you need persistent capture/diff history
- Use `cli-hub previews ...` only to inspect/open already-generated bundles
- Pipeline state requires an event ID from the action list
- Texture save supports: png, jpg, bmp, tga, hdr, exr, dds
- Buffer data can be decoded as hex, float32, uint32, or raw bytes