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All apps/HandBrake

HandBrake

handbrake

HandBrake is an open-source, GPL-licensed, multiplatform, multithreaded video transcoder.

Runs as HandBrakeCLI, ghb|macOS, Linux, Windows|handbrake.fr

Open form in Otty otty.toml

Sync rules

What travels, what stays, what never leaves

HandBrake in your home directory Every rule on this page, by file

· ~/Library/Preferences/fr.handbrake.HandBrake.plist Sync

· Application Support/HandBrake/UserPresets.json Sync

· Containers/fr.handbrake.HandBrake/Data/Library/Application Support/HandBrake/UserPresets.json Sync

· presets.json Sync

· preferences.json Sync

Only what the catalog names. A directory that syncs brings everything inside it except what is listed as excluded here.

apps/handbrake/otty.tomlThe file this page is generated from

id = "handbrake"

name = "HandBrake"

homepage = "https://handbrake.fr"

description = "HandBrake is an open-source, GPL-licensed, multiplatform, multithreaded video transcoder."

# The HandBrake logo, from the project's own site.

icon = "https://handbrake.fr/img/logo.png"

# HandBrakeCLI is the command line build (test/module.defs sets

# TEST.exe = $(HB.name)CLI); ghb is the GTK application

# (gtk/src/meson.build, executable('ghb', …)). The Windows GUI is HandBrake.exe

# and the macOS bundle identifier is fr.handbrake.HandBrake

# (macosx/Info.plist.m4).

executables = ["HandBrakeCLI", "ghb"]

[dotfiles]

# libhb/preset.c picks the presets file per platform:

# SYS_LINUX "ghb/presets.json"

# SYS_MINGW "HandBrake\\presets.json"

# SYS_DARWIN "HandBrake/UserPresets.json"

# joined to hb_get_user_config_directory() (libhb/ports.c), which is

# FOLDERID_RoamingAppData on Windows, $XDG_CONFIG_HOME else $HOME/.config on

# Linux, and ~/Library/Application Support on macOS

# (HBUtilities.m, +appSupportURL). Three different file names in three

# different places, so each is written out rather than folded into one root.

# Beside the presets, each GUI keeps its own settings: the macOS app in the

# NSUserDefaults domain fr.handbrake.HandBrake, the GTK app in

# ~/.config/ghb/preferences.json (gtk/src/presets.c reads

# read_config_file("preferences.json") from ghb_get_user_config_dir()), and the

# Windows app in %APPDATA%\HandBrake\settings.json

# (win/CS/…/UserSettingService.cs over DirectoryUtilities.GetUserStoragePath()).

# The last entry is the Mac App Store build, which is sandboxed and so writes

# the same tree inside its container (libhb/platform/macosx/config.m).

paths = [

"[preferences]/fr.handbrake.HandBrake.plist",

"~/Library/Application Support/HandBrake/UserPresets.json",

"~/Library/Containers/fr.handbrake.HandBrake/Data/Library/Application Support/HandBrake/UserPresets.json",

"~/.config/ghb/presets.json",

"~/.config/ghb/preferences.json",

"%APPDATA%/HandBrake/presets.json",

"%APPDATA%/HandBrake/settings.json",

]

# HandBrake's state and logs sit beside these files rather than inside them —

# QueueV2.hbqueue next to UserPresets.json on macOS (HBAppDelegate.m),

# EncodeLogs/ next to presets.json on Linux, logs/ next to settings.json on

# Windows — and none of them is named above, since this entry lists files

# rather than the directories that hold them.

exclude = []

# A video transcoder stores no credential.

secret = []

# No machine_lines. A preset is encoder, quality, filters, audio and subtitle

# behaviour, which is the whole reason to carry the file between machines. The

# settings files do hold a default output directory, an absolute path — but on

# macOS that lives in a property list, which this schema cannot parse, so a

# rule would cover Linux and Windows only and silently miss the Mac.

[commands]

format = 1

label = "Transcode video"

description = "Encode a video file or disc with HandBrakeCLI. Covers source, container, video encoder and quality, audio track selection and picture size; filters, subtitles and per-codec tuning are left out."

quality = "ai-draft"

parser = { end_of_options = "--", interleave = "permute", long_equals = true, short_attached = true, short_bundles = false }

[[commands.source]]

id = "help"

kind = "manual"

url = "https://manpages.debian.org/unstable/handbrake-cli/HandBrakeCLI.1.en.html"

revision = "2026-10-27"

evidence = """

Syntax: HandBrakeCLI [options] -i <device> -o <file>

-Z. --preset <string>

-i, --input <string>

Set input device

-t, --title <number>

Select a title to encode (0 to scan all titles only, default: 1)

-o, --output <string>

Set output file name

-f, --format <string>

Set output format (mp4/mkv, default: autodetected from file name)

-m, --markers

Add chapter markers (mp4 and mkv output formats only)

-e, --encoder <string>

Set video library encoder Options: x264 / ffmpeg4 / ffmpeg2 / theora

--x264-preset <string>

ultrafast / superfast / veryfast / faster / fast / medium / slow / slower / veryslow / placebo

-q, --quality <number>

Set video quality

-b, --vb <kb/s>

Set video bitrate (default: 1000)

-2, --two-pass

Use two-pass mode

-r, --rate

-a, --audio <string>

Select audio track(s), separated by commas ("none" for no audio,

-w, --width <number>

Set picture width

-l, --height <number>

Set picture height

--crop <T:B:L:R>

-v, --verbose <#>

Be verbose (optional argument: logging level)

"""

[[commands.field]]

id = "input"

label = "Input file or device"

type = "path"

path = { kind = "any", role = "input" }

option = ["--input", "-i"]

sources = ["help"]

[[commands.field]]

id = "output"

label = "Output file"

type = "path"

path = { kind = "file", role = "output" }

option = ["--output", "-o"]

effect = "overwrite"

sources = ["help"]

[[commands.field]]

id = "preset"

label = "Preset"

description = "Built-in preset name; capitalization matters."

type = "string"

option = ["--preset", "-Z"]

sources = ["help"]

[[commands.field]]

id = "format"

label = "Container"

type = "enum"

choices = [{ value = "mp4", label = "MP4" }, { value = "mkv", label = "MKV" }]

option = ["--format", "-f"]

sources = ["help"]

[[commands.field]]

id = "encoder"

label = "Video encoder"

type = "string"

option = ["--encoder", "-e"]

suggestions = [{ value = "x264", label = "x264" }, { value = "ffmpeg4", label = "ffmpeg4" }, { value = "ffmpeg2", label = "ffmpeg2" }, { value = "theora", label = "Theora" }]

sources = ["help"]

[[commands.field]]

id = "x264_preset"

label = "x264 speed preset"

type = "string"

option = ["--x264-preset"]

suggestions = [{ value = "ultrafast", label = "ultrafast" }, { value = "veryfast", label = "veryfast" }, { value = "fast", label = "fast" }, { value = "medium", label = "medium" }, { value = "slow", label = "slow" }, { value = "veryslow", label = "veryslow" }]

sources = ["help"]

[[commands.field]]

id = "quality"

label = "Video quality"

type = "number"

option = ["--quality", "-q"]

sources = ["help"]

[[commands.field]]

id = "bitrate"

label = "Video bitrate (kb/s)"

type = "integer"

option = ["--vb", "-b"]

sources = ["help"]

[[commands.field]]

id = "two_pass"

label = "Two-pass"

type = "boolean"

option = ["--two-pass", "-2"]

sources = ["help"]

[[commands.field]]

id = "title"

label = "Title"

description = "0 scans all titles only."

type = "integer"

option = ["--title", "-t"]

sources = ["help"]

[[commands.field]]

id = "audio"

label = "Audio tracks"

description = "Comma separated track numbers, or none."

type = "string"

option = ["--audio", "-a"]

sources = ["help"]

[[commands.field]]

id = "width"

label = "Width"

type = "integer"

option = ["--width", "-w"]

sources = ["help"]

[[commands.field]]

id = "height"

label = "Height"

type = "integer"

option = ["--height", "-l"]

sources = ["help"]

[[commands.field]]

id = "markers"

label = "Chapter markers"

type = "boolean"

option = ["--markers", "-m"]

sources = ["help"]

[[commands.task]]

id = "preset"

label = "Encode with a preset"

fields = ["input", "output", "preset"]

required = ["input", "output", "preset"]

[[commands.task]]

id = "x264_crf"

label = "x264 constant quality"

fields = ["input", "output", "encoder", "quality", "x264_preset", "markers"]

required = ["input", "output", "quality"]

set = { encoder = ["x264"] }

[[commands.group]]

id = "basic"

label = "Basic"

fields = ["input", "output", "preset", "format", "quality", "markers"]

[[commands.group]]

id = "advanced"

label = "Advanced"

fields = ["encoder", "x264_preset", "bitrate", "two_pass", "title", "audio", "width", "height"]

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