VkFormat

VkFormat is an enumeration in the Vulkan graphics API that describes the data layout and interpretation of texels in images and buffers. Each value encodes the number and order of color channels (such as R, G, B, A, or depth/stencil) as well as the data type and range used to store each channel (for example unsigned normalized integers, signed integers, or floating point).

VkFormat is used in several API structures to specify how memory is laid out and how data should be interpreted. It appears in VkImageCreateInfo.pFormat, VkBufferImageCopy, VkImageViewCreateInfo, and related calls, guiding operations such as sampling, rendering, and data transfers. The format also informs shader and pipeline behavior when accessing textures and buffers.

Formats fall into families including color formats (for example VK_FORMAT_R8G8B8A8_UNORM, VK_FORMAT_R16G16_SFLOAT), depth/stencil formats (such as VK_FORMAT_D32_SFLOAT, VK_FORMAT_D24_UNORM_S8_UINT), and compressed or block formats (for example VK_FORMAT_BC1_RGB_UNORM_BLOCK, VK_FORMAT_ASTC_4x4_UNORM_BLOCK). Each format specifies channel order, bit depth, and data type, and may be normalized, integer, or floating-point.

Device support for a given VkFormat is not universal. Applications query device capabilities with vkGetPhysicalDeviceFormatProperties and vkGetPhysicalDeviceFormatFeatures to determine usage as a sampled image, color attachment, storage image, and more, as well as tiling and transfer capabilities. Image views can also apply component mapping to remap channels without changing the underlying format.

In summary, VkFormat defines how pixel and texel data is stored and interpreted, and determining its availability and features is essential for correct rendering and memory usage.