1528 lines
62 KiB
Markdown
1528 lines
62 KiB
Markdown
Zstandard Compression Format
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============================
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### Notices
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Copyright (c) 2016-present Yann Collet, Facebook, Inc.
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Permission is granted to copy and distribute this document
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for any purpose and without charge,
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including translations into other languages
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and incorporation into compilations,
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provided that the copyright notice and this notice are preserved,
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and that any substantive changes or deletions from the original
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are clearly marked.
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Distribution of this document is unlimited.
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### Version
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0.2.5 (31/03/17)
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Introduction
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------------
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The purpose of this document is to define a lossless compressed data format,
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that is independent of CPU type, operating system,
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file system and character set, suitable for
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file compression, pipe and streaming compression,
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using the [Zstandard algorithm](http://www.zstandard.org).
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The data can be produced or consumed,
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even for an arbitrarily long sequentially presented input data stream,
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using only an a priori bounded amount of intermediate storage,
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and hence can be used in data communications.
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The format uses the Zstandard compression method,
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and optional [xxHash-64 checksum method](http://www.xxhash.org),
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for detection of data corruption.
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The data format defined by this specification
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does not attempt to allow random access to compressed data.
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This specification is intended for use by implementers of software
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to compress data into Zstandard format and/or decompress data from Zstandard format.
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The text of the specification assumes a basic background in programming
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at the level of bits and other primitive data representations.
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Unless otherwise indicated below,
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a compliant compressor must produce data sets
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that conform to the specifications presented here.
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It doesn’t need to support all options though.
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A compliant decompressor must be able to decompress
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at least one working set of parameters
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that conforms to the specifications presented here.
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It may also ignore informative fields, such as checksum.
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Whenever it does not support a parameter defined in the compressed stream,
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it must produce a non-ambiguous error code and associated error message
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explaining which parameter is unsupported.
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### Overall conventions
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In this document:
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- square brackets i.e. `[` and `]` are used to indicate optional fields or parameters.
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- the naming convention for identifiers is `Mixed_Case_With_Underscores`
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### Definitions
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Content compressed by Zstandard is transformed into a Zstandard __frame__.
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Multiple frames can be appended into a single file or stream.
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A frame is completely independent, has a defined beginning and end,
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and a set of parameters which tells the decoder how to decompress it.
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A frame encapsulates one or multiple __blocks__.
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Each block can be compressed or not,
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and has a guaranteed maximum content size, which depends on frame parameters.
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Unlike frames, each block depends on previous blocks for proper decoding.
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However, each block can be decompressed without waiting for its successor,
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allowing streaming operations.
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Overview
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---------
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- [Frames](#frames)
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- [Zstandard frames](#zstandard-frames)
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- [Blocks](#blocks)
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- [Literals Section](#literals-section)
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- [Sequences Section](#sequences-section)
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- [Sequence Execution](#sequence-execution)
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- [Skippable frames](#skippable-frames)
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- [Entropy Encoding](#entropy-encoding)
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- [FSE](#fse)
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- [Huffman Coding](#huffman-coding)
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- [Dictionary Format](#dictionary-format)
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Frames
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------
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Zstandard compressed data is made of up one or more __frames__.
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Each frame is independent and can be decompressed indepedently of other frames.
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The decompressed content of multiple concatenated frames is the concatenation of
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each frames decompressed content.
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There are two frame formats defined by Zstandard:
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Zstandard frames and Skippable frames.
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Zstandard frames contain compressed data, while
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skippable frames contain no data and can be used for metadata.
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## Zstandard frames
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The structure of a single Zstandard frame is following:
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| `Magic_Number` | `Frame_Header` |`Data_Block`| [More data blocks] | [`Content_Checksum`] |
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|:--------------:|:--------------:|:----------:| ------------------ |:--------------------:|
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| 4 bytes | 2-14 bytes | n bytes | | 0-4 bytes |
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__`Magic_Number`__
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4 Bytes, __little-endian__ format.
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Value : 0xFD2FB528
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__`Frame_Header`__
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2 to 14 Bytes, detailed in [`Frame_Header`](#frame_header).
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__`Data_Block`__
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Detailed in [`Blocks`](#blocks).
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That’s where compressed data is stored.
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__`Content_Checksum`__
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An optional 32-bit checksum, only present if `Content_Checksum_flag` is set.
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The content checksum is the result
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of [xxh64() hash function](http://www.xxhash.org)
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digesting the original (decoded) data as input, and a seed of zero.
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The low 4 bytes of the checksum are stored in __little-endian__ format.
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### `Frame_Header`
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The `Frame_Header` has a variable size, with a minimum of 2 bytes,
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and up to 14 bytes depending on optional parameters.
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The structure of `Frame_Header` is following:
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| `Frame_Header_Descriptor` | [`Window_Descriptor`] | [`Dictionary_ID`] | [`Frame_Content_Size`] |
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| ------------------------- | --------------------- | ----------------- | ---------------------- |
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| 1 byte | 0-1 byte | 0-4 bytes | 0-8 bytes |
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#### `Frame_Header_Descriptor`
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The first header's byte is called the `Frame_Header_Descriptor`.
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It describes which other fields are present.
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Decoding this byte is enough to tell the size of `Frame_Header`.
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| Bit number | Field name |
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| ---------- | ---------- |
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| 7-6 | `Frame_Content_Size_flag` |
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| 5 | `Single_Segment_flag` |
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| 4 | `Unused_bit` |
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| 3 | `Reserved_bit` |
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| 2 | `Content_Checksum_flag` |
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| 1-0 | `Dictionary_ID_flag` |
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In this table, bit 7 is the highest bit, while bit 0 is the lowest one.
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__`Frame_Content_Size_flag`__
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This is a 2-bits flag (`= Frame_Header_Descriptor >> 6`),
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specifying if `Frame_Content_Size` (the decompressed data size)
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is provided within the header.
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`Flag_Value` provides `FCS_Field_Size`,
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which is the number of bytes used by `Frame_Content_Size`
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according to the following table:
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| `Flag_Value` | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
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| -------------- | ------ | --- | --- | --- |
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|`FCS_Field_Size`| 0 or 1 | 2 | 4 | 8 |
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When `Flag_Value` is `0`, `FCS_Field_Size` depends on `Single_Segment_flag` :
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if `Single_Segment_flag` is set, `Field_Size` is 1.
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Otherwise, `Field_Size` is 0 : `Frame_Content_Size` is not provided.
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__`Single_Segment_flag`__
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If this flag is set,
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data must be regenerated within a single continuous memory segment.
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In this case, `Window_Descriptor` byte is skipped,
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but `Frame_Content_Size` is necessarily present.
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As a consequence, the decoder must allocate a memory segment
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of size equal or bigger than `Frame_Content_Size`.
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In order to preserve the decoder from unreasonable memory requirements,
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a decoder is allowed to reject a compressed frame
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which requests a memory size beyond decoder's authorized range.
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For broader compatibility, decoders are recommended to support
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memory sizes of at least 8 MB.
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This is only a recommendation,
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each decoder is free to support higher or lower limits,
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depending on local limitations.
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__`Unused_bit`__
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The value of this bit should be set to zero.
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A decoder compliant with this specification version shall not interpret it.
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It might be used in a future version,
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to signal a property which is not mandatory to properly decode the frame.
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__`Reserved_bit`__
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This bit is reserved for some future feature.
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Its value _must be zero_.
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A decoder compliant with this specification version must ensure it is not set.
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This bit may be used in a future revision,
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to signal a feature that must be interpreted to decode the frame correctly.
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__`Content_Checksum_flag`__
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If this flag is set, a 32-bits `Content_Checksum` will be present at frame's end.
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See `Content_Checksum` paragraph.
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__`Dictionary_ID_flag`__
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This is a 2-bits flag (`= FHD & 3`),
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telling if a dictionary ID is provided within the header.
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It also specifies the size of this field as `Field_Size`.
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|`Flag_Value`| 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
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| ---------- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
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|`Field_Size`| 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
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#### `Window_Descriptor`
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Provides guarantees on minimum memory buffer required to decompress a frame.
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This information is important for decoders to allocate enough memory.
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The `Window_Descriptor` byte is optional.
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When `Single_Segment_flag` is set, `Window_Descriptor` is not present.
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In this case, `Window_Size` is `Frame_Content_Size`,
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which can be any value from 0 to 2^64-1 bytes (16 ExaBytes).
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| Bit numbers | 7-3 | 2-0 |
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| ----------- | ---------- | ---------- |
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| Field name | `Exponent` | `Mantissa` |
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The minimum memory buffer size is called `Window_Size`.
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It is described by the following formulas :
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```
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windowLog = 10 + Exponent;
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windowBase = 1 << windowLog;
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windowAdd = (windowBase / 8) * Mantissa;
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Window_Size = windowBase + windowAdd;
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```
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The minimum `Window_Size` is 1 KB.
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The maximum `Window_Size` is `(1<<41) + 7*(1<<38)` bytes, which is 3.75 TB.
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To properly decode compressed data,
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a decoder will need to allocate a buffer of at least `Window_Size` bytes.
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In order to preserve decoder from unreasonable memory requirements,
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a decoder is allowed to reject a compressed frame
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which requests a memory size beyond decoder's authorized range.
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For improved interoperability,
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decoders are recommended to be compatible with `Window_Size >= 8 MB`,
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and encoders are recommended to not request more than 8 MB.
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It's merely a recommendation though,
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decoders are free to support larger or lower limits,
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depending on local limitations.
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#### `Dictionary_ID`
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This is a variable size field, which contains
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the ID of the dictionary required to properly decode the frame.
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`Dictionary_ID` field is optional. When it's not present,
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it's up to the decoder to make sure it uses the correct dictionary.
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Field size depends on `Dictionary_ID_flag`.
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1 byte can represent an ID 0-255.
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2 bytes can represent an ID 0-65535.
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4 bytes can represent an ID 0-4294967295.
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Format is __little-endian__.
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It's allowed to represent a small ID (for example `13`)
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with a large 4-bytes dictionary ID, even if it is less efficient.
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_Reserved ranges :_
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If the frame is going to be distributed in a private environment,
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any dictionary ID can be used.
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However, for public distribution of compressed frames using a dictionary,
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the following ranges are reserved and shall not be used :
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- low range : `<= 32767`
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- high range : `>= (1 << 31)`
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#### `Frame_Content_Size`
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This is the original (uncompressed) size. This information is optional.
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`Frame_Content_Size` uses a variable number of bytes, provided by `FCS_Field_Size`.
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`FCS_Field_Size` is provided by the value of `Frame_Content_Size_flag`.
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`FCS_Field_Size` can be equal to 0 (not present), 1, 2, 4 or 8 bytes.
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| `FCS_Field_Size` | Range |
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| ---------------- | ---------- |
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| 0 | unknown |
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| 1 | 0 - 255 |
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| 2 | 256 - 65791|
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| 4 | 0 - 2^32-1 |
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| 8 | 0 - 2^64-1 |
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`Frame_Content_Size` format is __little-endian__.
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When `FCS_Field_Size` is 1, 4 or 8 bytes, the value is read directly.
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When `FCS_Field_Size` is 2, _the offset of 256 is added_.
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It's allowed to represent a small size (for example `18`) using any compatible variant.
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Blocks
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-------
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After `Magic_Number` and `Frame_Header`, there are some number of blocks.
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Each frame must have at least one block,
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but there is no upper limit on the number of blocks per frame.
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The structure of a block is as follows:
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| `Block_Header` | `Block_Content` |
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|:--------------:|:---------------:|
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| 3 bytes | n bytes |
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`Block_Header` uses 3 bytes, written using __little-endian__ convention.
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It contains 3 fields :
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| `Last_Block` | `Block_Type` | `Block_Size` |
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|:------------:|:------------:|:------------:|
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| bit 0 | bits 1-2 | bits 3-23 |
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__`Last_Block`__
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The lowest bit signals if this block is the last one.
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The frame will end after this last block.
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It may be followed by an optional `Content_Checksum`
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(see [Zstandard Frames](#zstandard-frames)).
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__`Block_Type`__
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The next 2 bits represent the `Block_Type`.
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There are 4 block types :
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| Value | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
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| ------------ | ----------- | ----------- | ------------------ | --------- |
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| `Block_Type` | `Raw_Block` | `RLE_Block` | `Compressed_Block` | `Reserved`|
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- `Raw_Block` - this is an uncompressed block.
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`Block_Content` contains `Block_Size` bytes.
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- `RLE_Block` - this is a single byte, repeated `Block_Size` times.
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`Block_Content` consists of a single byte.
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On the decompression side, this byte must be repeated `Block_Size` times.
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- `Compressed_Block` - this is a [Zstandard compressed block](#compressed-blocks),
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explained later on.
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`Block_Size` is the length of `Block_Content`, the compressed data.
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The decompressed size is not known,
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but its maximum possible value is guaranteed (see below)
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- `Reserved` - this is not a block.
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This value cannot be used with current version of this specification.
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__`Block_Size`__
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The upper 21 bits of `Block_Header` represent the `Block_Size`.
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Block sizes must respect a few rules :
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- For `Compressed_Block`, `Block_Size` is always strictly less than decompressed size.
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- Block decompressed size is always <= `Window_Size`
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- Block decompressed size is always <= 128 KB.
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A block can contain any number of bytes (even empty),
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up to `Block_Maximum_Decompressed_Size`, which is the smallest of :
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- `Window_Size`
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- 128 KB
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Compressed Blocks
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-----------------
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To decompress a compressed block, the compressed size must be provided
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from `Block_Size` field within `Block_Header`.
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A compressed block consists of 2 sections :
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- [Literals Section](#literals-section)
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- [Sequences Section](#sequences-section)
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The results of the two sections are then combined to produce the decompressed
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data in [Sequence Execution](#sequence-execution)
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#### Prerequisites
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To decode a compressed block, the following elements are necessary :
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- Previous decoded data, up to a distance of `Window_Size`,
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or all previously decoded data when `Single_Segment_flag` is set.
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- List of "recent offsets" from previous `Compressed_Block`.
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- Decoding tables of previous `Compressed_Block` for each symbol type
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(literals, literals lengths, match lengths, offsets).
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Literals Section
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----------------
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All literals are regrouped in the first part of the block.
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They can be decoded first, and then copied during [Sequence Execution],
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or they can be decoded on the flow during [Sequence Execution].
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Literals can be stored uncompressed or compressed using Huffman prefix codes.
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When compressed, an optional tree description can be present,
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followed by 1 or 4 streams.
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| `Literals_Section_Header` | [`Huffman_Tree_Description`] | Stream1 | [Stream2] | [Stream3] | [Stream4] |
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| ------------------------- | ---------------------------- | ------- | --------- | --------- | --------- |
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#### `Literals_Section_Header`
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Header is in charge of describing how literals are packed.
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It's a byte-aligned variable-size bitfield, ranging from 1 to 5 bytes,
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using __little-endian__ convention.
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| `Literals_Block_Type` | `Size_Format` | `Regenerated_Size` | [`Compressed_Size`] |
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| --------------------- | ------------- | ------------------ | ------------------- |
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| 2 bits | 1 - 2 bits | 5 - 20 bits | 0 - 18 bits |
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In this representation, bits on the left are the lowest bits.
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__`Literals_Block_Type`__
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This field uses 2 lowest bits of first byte, describing 4 different block types :
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| `Literals_Block_Type` | Value |
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| --------------------------- | ----- |
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| `Raw_Literals_Block` | 0 |
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| `RLE_Literals_Block` | 1 |
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| `Compressed_Literals_Block` | 2 |
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| `Treeless_Literals_Block` | 3 |
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- `Raw_Literals_Block` - Literals are stored uncompressed.
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- `RLE_Literals_Block` - Literals consist of a single byte value
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repeated `Regenerated_Size` times.
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- `Compressed_Literals_Block` - This is a standard Huffman-compressed block,
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starting with a Huffman tree description.
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See details below.
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- `Treeless_Literals_Block` - This is a Huffman-compressed block,
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using Huffman tree _from previous Huffman-compressed literals block_.
|
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`Huffman_Tree_Description` will be skipped.
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||
Note: If this mode is triggered without any previous Huffman-table in the frame
|
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(or [dictionary](#dictionary-format)), this should be treated as data corruption.
|
||
|
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__`Size_Format`__
|
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`Size_Format` is divided into 2 families :
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||
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||
- For `Raw_Literals_Block` and `RLE_Literals_Block`,
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it's only necessary to decode `Regenerated_Size`.
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There is no `Compressed_Size` field.
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- For `Compressed_Block` and `Treeless_Literals_Block`,
|
||
it's required to decode both `Compressed_Size`
|
||
and `Regenerated_Size` (the decompressed size).
|
||
It's also necessary to decode the number of streams (1 or 4).
|
||
|
||
For values spanning several bytes, convention is __little-endian__.
|
||
|
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__`Size_Format` for `Raw_Literals_Block` and `RLE_Literals_Block`__ :
|
||
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||
- Value ?0 : `Size_Format` uses 1 bit.
|
||
`Regenerated_Size` uses 5 bits (0-31).
|
||
`Literals_Section_Header` has 1 byte.
|
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`Regenerated_Size = Header[0]>>3`
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- Value 01 : `Size_Format` uses 2 bits.
|
||
`Regenerated_Size` uses 12 bits (0-4095).
|
||
`Literals_Section_Header` has 2 bytes.
|
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`Regenerated_Size = (Header[0]>>4) + (Header[1]<<4)`
|
||
- Value 11 : `Size_Format` uses 2 bits.
|
||
`Regenerated_Size` uses 20 bits (0-1048575).
|
||
`Literals_Section_Header` has 3 bytes.
|
||
`Regenerated_Size = (Header[0]>>4) + (Header[1]<<4) + (Header[2]<<12)`
|
||
|
||
Only Stream1 is present for these cases.
|
||
Note : it's allowed to represent a short value (for example `13`)
|
||
using a long format, even if it's less efficient.
|
||
|
||
__`Size_Format` for `Compressed_Literals_Block` and `Treeless_Literals_Block`__ :
|
||
|
||
- Value 00 : _A single stream_.
|
||
Both `Regenerated_Size` and `Compressed_Size` use 10 bits (0-1023).
|
||
`Literals_Section_Header` has 3 bytes.
|
||
- Value 01 : 4 streams.
|
||
Both `Regenerated_Size` and `Compressed_Size` use 10 bits (0-1023).
|
||
`Literals_Section_Header` has 3 bytes.
|
||
- Value 10 : 4 streams.
|
||
Both `Regenerated_Size` and `Compressed_Size` use 14 bits (0-16383).
|
||
`Literals_Section_Header` has 4 bytes.
|
||
- Value 11 : 4 streams.
|
||
Both `Regenerated_Size` and `Compressed_Size` use 18 bits (0-262143).
|
||
`Literals_Section_Header` has 5 bytes.
|
||
|
||
Both `Compressed_Size` and `Regenerated_Size` fields follow __little-endian__ convention.
|
||
Note: `Compressed_Size` __includes__ the size of the Huffman Tree description
|
||
_when_ it is present.
|
||
|
||
### Raw Literals Block
|
||
The data in Stream1 is `Regenerated_Size` bytes long,
|
||
it contains the raw literals data to be used during [Sequence Execution].
|
||
|
||
### RLE Literals Block
|
||
Stream1 consists of a single byte which should be repeated `Regenerated_Size` times
|
||
to generate the decoded literals.
|
||
|
||
### Compressed Literals Block and Treeless Literals Block
|
||
Both of these modes contain Huffman encoded data.
|
||
`Treeless_Literals_Block` does not have a `Huffman_Tree_Description`.
|
||
|
||
#### `Huffman_Tree_Description`
|
||
This section is only present when `Literals_Block_Type` type is `Compressed_Literals_Block` (`2`).
|
||
The format of the Huffman tree description can be found at [Huffman Tree description](#huffman-tree-description).
|
||
The size of `Huffman_Tree_Description` is determined during decoding process,
|
||
it must be used to determine where streams begin.
|
||
`Total_Streams_Size = Compressed_Size - Huffman_Tree_Description_Size`.
|
||
|
||
For `Treeless_Literals_Block`,
|
||
the Huffman table comes from previously compressed literals block.
|
||
|
||
Huffman compressed data consists of either 1 or 4 Huffman-coded streams.
|
||
|
||
If only one stream is present, it is a single bitstream occupying the entire
|
||
remaining portion of the literals block, encoded as described within
|
||
[Huffman-Coded Streams](#huffman-coded-streams).
|
||
|
||
If there are four streams, the literals section header only provides enough
|
||
information to know the decompressed and compressed sizes of all four streams _combined_.
|
||
The decompressed size of each stream is equal to `(Regenerated_Size+3)/4`,
|
||
except for the last stream which may be up to 3 bytes smaller,
|
||
to reach a total decompressed size as specified in `Regenerated_Size`.
|
||
|
||
The compressed size of each stream is provided explicitly:
|
||
the first 6 bytes of the compressed data consist of three 2-byte __little-endian__ fields,
|
||
describing the compressed sizes of the first three streams.
|
||
`Stream4_Size` is computed from total `Total_Streams_Size` minus sizes of other streams.
|
||
|
||
`Stream4_Size = Total_Streams_Size - 6 - Stream1_Size - Stream2_Size - Stream3_Size`.
|
||
|
||
Note: remember that `Total_Streams_Size` can be smaller than `Compressed_Size` in header,
|
||
because `Compressed_Size` also contains `Huffman_Tree_Description_Size` when it is present.
|
||
|
||
Each of these 4 bitstreams is then decoded independently as a Huffman-Coded stream,
|
||
as described at [Huffman-Coded Streams](#huffman-coded-streams)
|
||
|
||
|
||
Sequences Section
|
||
-----------------
|
||
A compressed block is a succession of _sequences_ .
|
||
A sequence is a literal copy command, followed by a match copy command.
|
||
A literal copy command specifies a length.
|
||
It is the number of bytes to be copied (or extracted) from the Literals Section.
|
||
A match copy command specifies an offset and a length.
|
||
|
||
When all _sequences_ are decoded,
|
||
if there are literals left in the _literal section_,
|
||
these bytes are added at the end of the block.
|
||
|
||
This is described in more detail in [Sequence Execution](#sequence-execution)
|
||
|
||
The `Sequences_Section` regroup all symbols required to decode commands.
|
||
There are 3 symbol types : literals lengths, offsets and match lengths.
|
||
They are encoded together, interleaved, in a single _bitstream_.
|
||
|
||
The `Sequences_Section` starts by a header,
|
||
followed by optional probability tables for each symbol type,
|
||
followed by the bitstream.
|
||
|
||
| `Sequences_Section_Header` | [`Literals_Length_Table`] | [`Offset_Table`] | [`Match_Length_Table`] | bitStream |
|
||
| -------------------------- | ------------------------- | ---------------- | ---------------------- | --------- |
|
||
|
||
To decode the `Sequences_Section`, it's required to know its size.
|
||
This size is deduced from `Block_Size - Literals_Section_Size`.
|
||
|
||
|
||
#### `Sequences_Section_Header`
|
||
|
||
Consists of 2 items:
|
||
- `Number_of_Sequences`
|
||
- Symbol compression modes
|
||
|
||
__`Number_of_Sequences`__
|
||
|
||
This is a variable size field using between 1 and 3 bytes.
|
||
Let's call its first byte `byte0`.
|
||
- `if (byte0 == 0)` : there are no sequences.
|
||
The sequence section stops there.
|
||
Decompressed content is defined entirely as Literals Section content.
|
||
- `if (byte0 < 128)` : `Number_of_Sequences = byte0` . Uses 1 byte.
|
||
- `if (byte0 < 255)` : `Number_of_Sequences = ((byte0-128) << 8) + byte1` . Uses 2 bytes.
|
||
- `if (byte0 == 255)`: `Number_of_Sequences = byte1 + (byte2<<8) + 0x7F00` . Uses 3 bytes.
|
||
|
||
__Symbol compression modes__
|
||
|
||
This is a single byte, defining the compression mode of each symbol type.
|
||
|
||
|Bit number| 7-6 | 5-4 | 3-2 | 1-0 |
|
||
| -------- | ----------------------- | -------------- | -------------------- | ---------- |
|
||
|Field name| `Literals_Lengths_Mode` | `Offsets_Mode` | `Match_Lengths_Mode` | `Reserved` |
|
||
|
||
The last field, `Reserved`, must be all-zeroes.
|
||
|
||
`Literals_Lengths_Mode`, `Offsets_Mode` and `Match_Lengths_Mode` define the `Compression_Mode` of
|
||
literals lengths, offsets, and match lengths symbols respectively.
|
||
|
||
They follow the same enumeration :
|
||
|
||
| Value | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
|
||
| ------------------ | ----------------- | ---------- | --------------------- | ------------- |
|
||
| `Compression_Mode` | `Predefined_Mode` | `RLE_Mode` | `FSE_Compressed_Mode` | `Repeat_Mode` |
|
||
|
||
- `Predefined_Mode` : A predefined FSE distribution table is used, defined in
|
||
[default distributions](#default-distributions).
|
||
No distribution table will be present.
|
||
- `RLE_Mode` : The table description consists of a single byte.
|
||
This code will be repeated for all sequences.
|
||
- `Repeat_Mode` : The table used in the previous compressed block will be used again.
|
||
No distribution table will be present.
|
||
Note: this includes RLE mode, so if `Repeat_Mode` follows `RLE_Mode`, the same symbol will be repeated.
|
||
If this mode is used without any previous sequence table in the frame
|
||
(or [dictionary](#dictionary-format)) to repeat, this should be treated as corruption.
|
||
- `FSE_Compressed_Mode` : standard FSE compression.
|
||
A distribution table will be present.
|
||
The format of this distribution table is described in [FSE Table Description](#fse-table-description).
|
||
Note that the maximum allowed accuracy log for literals length and match length tables is 9,
|
||
and the maximum accuracy log for the offsets table is 8.
|
||
|
||
#### The codes for literals lengths, match lengths, and offsets.
|
||
|
||
Each symbol is a _code_ in its own context,
|
||
which specifies `Baseline` and `Number_of_Bits` to add.
|
||
_Codes_ are FSE compressed,
|
||
and interleaved with raw additional bits in the same bitstream.
|
||
|
||
##### Literals length codes
|
||
|
||
Literals length codes are values ranging from `0` to `35` included.
|
||
They define lengths from 0 to 131071 bytes.
|
||
The literals length is equal to the decoded `Baseline` plus
|
||
the result of reading `Number_of_Bits` bits from the bitstream,
|
||
as a __little-endian__ value.
|
||
|
||
| `Literals_Length_Code` | 0-15 |
|
||
| ---------------------- | ---------------------- |
|
||
| length | `Literals_Length_Code` |
|
||
| `Number_of_Bits` | 0 |
|
||
|
||
| `Literals_Length_Code` | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 |
|
||
| ---------------------- | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- |
|
||
| `Baseline` | 16 | 18 | 20 | 22 | 24 | 28 | 32 | 40 |
|
||
| `Number_of_Bits` | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 |
|
||
|
||
| `Literals_Length_Code` | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 |
|
||
| ---------------------- | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- |
|
||
| `Baseline` | 48 | 64 | 128 | 256 | 512 | 1024 | 2048 | 4096 |
|
||
| `Number_of_Bits` | 4 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
|
||
|
||
| `Literals_Length_Code` | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 |
|
||
| ---------------------- | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- |
|
||
| `Baseline` | 8192 |16384 |32768 |65536 |
|
||
| `Number_of_Bits` | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 |
|
||
|
||
|
||
##### Match length codes
|
||
|
||
Match length codes are values ranging from `0` to `52` included.
|
||
They define lengths from 3 to 131074 bytes.
|
||
The match length is equal to the decoded `Baseline` plus
|
||
the result of reading `Number_of_Bits` bits from the bitstream,
|
||
as a __little-endian__ value.
|
||
|
||
| `Match_Length_Code` | 0-31 |
|
||
| ------------------- | ----------------------- |
|
||
| value | `Match_Length_Code` + 3 |
|
||
| `Number_of_Bits` | 0 |
|
||
|
||
| `Match_Length_Code` | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 | 37 | 38 | 39 |
|
||
| ------------------- | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- |
|
||
| `Baseline` | 35 | 37 | 39 | 41 | 43 | 47 | 51 | 59 |
|
||
| `Number_of_Bits` | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 |
|
||
|
||
| `Match_Length_Code` | 40 | 41 | 42 | 43 | 44 | 45 | 46 | 47 |
|
||
| ------------------- | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- |
|
||
| `Baseline` | 67 | 83 | 99 | 131 | 259 | 515 | 1027 | 2051 |
|
||
| `Number_of_Bits` | 4 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 |
|
||
|
||
| `Match_Length_Code` | 48 | 49 | 50 | 51 | 52 |
|
||
| ------------------- | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- |
|
||
| `Baseline` | 4099 | 8195 |16387 |32771 |65539 |
|
||
| `Number_of_Bits` | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 |
|
||
|
||
##### Offset codes
|
||
|
||
Offset codes are values ranging from `0` to `N`.
|
||
|
||
A decoder is free to limit its maximum `N` supported.
|
||
Recommendation is to support at least up to `22`.
|
||
For information, at the time of this writing.
|
||
the reference decoder supports a maximum `N` value of `28` in 64-bits mode.
|
||
|
||
An offset code is also the number of additional bits to read in __little-endian__ fashion,
|
||
and can be translated into an `Offset_Value` using the following formulas :
|
||
|
||
```
|
||
Offset_Value = (1 << offsetCode) + readNBits(offsetCode);
|
||
if (Offset_Value > 3) offset = Offset_Value - 3;
|
||
```
|
||
It means that maximum `Offset_Value` is `(2^(N+1))-1` and it supports back-reference distance up to `(2^(N+1))-4`
|
||
but is limited by [maximum back-reference distance](#window_descriptor).
|
||
|
||
`Offset_Value` from 1 to 3 are special : they define "repeat codes".
|
||
This is described in more detail in [Repeat Offsets](#repeat-offsets).
|
||
|
||
#### Decoding Sequences
|
||
FSE bitstreams are read in reverse direction than written. In zstd,
|
||
the compressor writes bits forward into a block and the decompressor
|
||
must read the bitstream _backwards_.
|
||
|
||
To find the start of the bitstream it is therefore necessary to
|
||
know the offset of the last byte of the block which can be found
|
||
by counting `Block_Size` bytes after the block header.
|
||
|
||
After writing the last bit containing information, the compressor
|
||
writes a single `1`-bit and then fills the byte with 0-7 `0` bits of
|
||
padding. The last byte of the compressed bitstream cannot be `0` for
|
||
that reason.
|
||
|
||
When decompressing, the last byte containing the padding is the first
|
||
byte to read. The decompressor needs to skip 0-7 initial `0`-bits and
|
||
the first `1`-bit it occurs. Afterwards, the useful part of the bitstream
|
||
begins.
|
||
|
||
FSE decoding requires a 'state' to be carried from symbol to symbol.
|
||
For more explanation on FSE decoding, see the [FSE section](#fse).
|
||
|
||
For sequence decoding, a separate state keeps track of each
|
||
literal lengths, offsets, and match lengths symbols.
|
||
Some FSE primitives are also used.
|
||
For more details on the operation of these primitives, see the [FSE section](#fse).
|
||
|
||
##### Starting states
|
||
The bitstream starts with initial FSE state values,
|
||
each using the required number of bits in their respective _accuracy_,
|
||
decoded previously from their normalized distribution.
|
||
|
||
It starts by `Literals_Length_State`,
|
||
followed by `Offset_State`,
|
||
and finally `Match_Length_State`.
|
||
|
||
Reminder : always keep in mind that all values are read _backward_,
|
||
so the 'start' of the bitstream is at the highest position in memory,
|
||
immediately before the last `1`-bit for padding.
|
||
|
||
After decoding the starting states, a single sequence is decoded
|
||
`Number_Of_Sequences` times.
|
||
These sequences are decoded in order from first to last.
|
||
Since the compressor writes the bitstream in the forward direction,
|
||
this means the compressor must encode the sequences starting with the last
|
||
one and ending with the first.
|
||
|
||
##### Decoding a sequence
|
||
For each of the symbol types, the FSE state can be used to determine the appropriate code.
|
||
The code then defines the baseline and number of bits to read for each type.
|
||
See the [description of the codes] for how to determine these values.
|
||
|
||
[description of the codes]: #the-codes-for-literals-lengths-match-lengths-and-offsets
|
||
|
||
Decoding starts by reading the `Number_of_Bits` required to decode `Offset`.
|
||
It then does the same for `Match_Length`, and then for `Literals_Length`.
|
||
This sequence is then used for [sequence execution](#sequence-execution).
|
||
|
||
If it is not the last sequence in the block,
|
||
the next operation is to update states.
|
||
Using the rules pre-calculated in the decoding tables,
|
||
`Literals_Length_State` is updated,
|
||
followed by `Match_Length_State`,
|
||
and then `Offset_State`.
|
||
See the [FSE section](#fse) for details on how to update states from the bitstream.
|
||
|
||
This operation will be repeated `Number_of_Sequences` times.
|
||
At the end, the bitstream shall be entirely consumed,
|
||
otherwise the bitstream is considered corrupted.
|
||
|
||
#### Default Distributions
|
||
If `Predefined_Mode` is selected for a symbol type,
|
||
its FSE decoding table is generated from a predefined distribution table defined here.
|
||
For details on how to convert this distribution into a decoding table, see the [FSE section].
|
||
|
||
[FSE section]: #from-normalized-distribution-to-decoding-tables
|
||
|
||
##### Literals Length
|
||
The decoding table uses an accuracy log of 6 bits (64 states).
|
||
```
|
||
short literalsLength_defaultDistribution[36] =
|
||
{ 4, 3, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 1, 1, 1,
|
||
2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 3, 2, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1,
|
||
-1,-1,-1,-1 };
|
||
```
|
||
|
||
##### Match Length
|
||
The decoding table uses an accuracy log of 6 bits (64 states).
|
||
```
|
||
short matchLengths_defaultDistribution[53] =
|
||
{ 1, 4, 3, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1,
|
||
1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1,
|
||
1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1,-1,-1,
|
||
-1,-1,-1,-1,-1 };
|
||
```
|
||
|
||
##### Offset Codes
|
||
The decoding table uses an accuracy log of 5 bits (32 states),
|
||
and supports a maximum `N` value of 28, allowing offset values up to 536,870,908 .
|
||
|
||
If any sequence in the compressed block requires a larger offset than this,
|
||
it's not possible to use the default distribution to represent it.
|
||
```
|
||
short offsetCodes_defaultDistribution[29] =
|
||
{ 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1,
|
||
1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1,-1,-1,-1,-1,-1 };
|
||
```
|
||
|
||
|
||
Sequence Execution
|
||
------------------
|
||
Once literals and sequences have been decoded,
|
||
they are combined to produce the decoded content of a block.
|
||
|
||
Each sequence consists of a tuple of (`literals_length`, `offset_value`, `match_length`),
|
||
decoded as described in the [Sequences Section](#sequences-section).
|
||
To execute a sequence, first copy `literals_length` bytes from the literals section
|
||
to the output.
|
||
|
||
Then `match_length` bytes are copied from previous decoded data.
|
||
The offset to copy from is determined by `offset_value`:
|
||
if `offset_value > 3`, then the offset is `offset_value - 3`.
|
||
If `offset_value` is from 1-3, the offset is a special repeat offset value.
|
||
See the [repeat offset](#repeat-offsets) section for how the offset is determined
|
||
in this case.
|
||
|
||
The offset is defined as from the current position, so an offset of 6
|
||
and a match length of 3 means that 3 bytes should be copied from 6 bytes back.
|
||
Note that all offsets leading to previously decoded data
|
||
must be smaller than `Window_Size` defined in `Frame_Header_Descriptor`.
|
||
|
||
#### Repeat offsets
|
||
As seen in [Sequence Execution](#sequence-execution),
|
||
the first 3 values define a repeated offset and we will call them
|
||
`Repeated_Offset1`, `Repeated_Offset2`, and `Repeated_Offset3`.
|
||
They are sorted in recency order, with `Repeated_Offset1` meaning "most recent one".
|
||
|
||
If `offset_value == 1`, then the offset used is `Repeated_Offset1`, etc.
|
||
|
||
There is an exception though, when current sequence's `literals_length = 0`.
|
||
In this case, repeated offsets are shifted by one,
|
||
so an `offset_value` of 1 means `Repeated_Offset2`,
|
||
an `offset_value` of 2 means `Repeated_Offset3`,
|
||
and an `offset_value` of 3 means `Repeated_Offset1 - 1_byte`.
|
||
|
||
For the first block, the starting offset history is populated with the following values : 1, 4 and 8 (in order).
|
||
|
||
Then each block gets its starting offset history from the ending values of the most recent `Compressed_Block`.
|
||
Note that blocks which are not `Compressed_Block` are skipped, they do not contribute to offset history.
|
||
|
||
[Offset Codes]: #offset-codes
|
||
|
||
###### Offset updates rules
|
||
|
||
The newest offset takes the lead in offset history,
|
||
shifting others back (up to its previous place if it was already present).
|
||
|
||
This means that when `Repeated_Offset1` (most recent) is used, history is unmodified.
|
||
When `Repeated_Offset2` is used, it's swapped with `Repeated_Offset1`.
|
||
If any other offset is used, it becomes `Repeated_Offset1` and the rest are shift back by one.
|
||
|
||
|
||
Skippable Frames
|
||
----------------
|
||
|
||
| `Magic_Number` | `Frame_Size` | `User_Data` |
|
||
|:--------------:|:------------:|:-----------:|
|
||
| 4 bytes | 4 bytes | n bytes |
|
||
|
||
Skippable frames allow the insertion of user-defined data
|
||
into a flow of concatenated frames.
|
||
Its design is pretty straightforward,
|
||
with the sole objective to allow the decoder to quickly skip
|
||
over user-defined data and continue decoding.
|
||
|
||
Skippable frames defined in this specification are compatible with [LZ4] ones.
|
||
|
||
[LZ4]:http://www.lz4.org
|
||
|
||
__`Magic_Number`__
|
||
|
||
4 Bytes, __little-endian__ format.
|
||
Value : 0x184D2A5?, which means any value from 0x184D2A50 to 0x184D2A5F.
|
||
All 16 values are valid to identify a skippable frame.
|
||
|
||
__`Frame_Size`__
|
||
|
||
This is the size, in bytes, of the following `User_Data`
|
||
(without including the magic number nor the size field itself).
|
||
This field is represented using 4 Bytes, __little-endian__ format, unsigned 32-bits.
|
||
This means `User_Data` can’t be bigger than (2^32-1) bytes.
|
||
|
||
__`User_Data`__
|
||
|
||
The `User_Data` can be anything. Data will just be skipped by the decoder.
|
||
|
||
|
||
Entropy Encoding
|
||
----------------
|
||
Two types of entropy encoding are used by the Zstandard format:
|
||
FSE, and Huffman coding.
|
||
|
||
FSE
|
||
---
|
||
FSE, short for Finite State Entropy, is an entropy codec based on [ANS].
|
||
FSE encoding/decoding involves a state that is carried over between symbols,
|
||
so decoding must be done in the opposite direction as encoding.
|
||
Therefore, all FSE bitstreams are read from end to beginning.
|
||
|
||
For additional details on FSE, see [Finite State Entropy].
|
||
|
||
[Finite State Entropy]:https://github.com/Cyan4973/FiniteStateEntropy/
|
||
|
||
FSE decoding involves a decoding table which has a power of 2 size, and contain three elements:
|
||
`Symbol`, `Num_Bits`, and `Baseline`.
|
||
The `log2` of the table size is its `Accuracy_Log`.
|
||
The FSE state represents an index in this table.
|
||
|
||
To obtain the initial state value, consume `Accuracy_Log` bits from the stream as a __little-endian__ value.
|
||
The next symbol in the stream is the `Symbol` indicated in the table for that state.
|
||
To obtain the next state value,
|
||
the decoder should consume `Num_Bits` bits from the stream as a __little-endian__ value and add it to `Baseline`.
|
||
|
||
[ANS]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asymmetric_Numeral_Systems
|
||
|
||
### FSE Table Description
|
||
To decode FSE streams, it is necessary to construct the decoding table.
|
||
The Zstandard format encodes FSE table descriptions as follows:
|
||
|
||
An FSE distribution table describes the probabilities of all symbols
|
||
from `0` to the last present one (included)
|
||
on a normalized scale of `1 << Accuracy_Log` .
|
||
|
||
It's a bitstream which is read forward, in __little-endian__ fashion.
|
||
It's not necessary to know its exact size,
|
||
since it will be discovered and reported by the decoding process.
|
||
|
||
The bitstream starts by reporting on which scale it operates.
|
||
`Accuracy_Log = low4bits + 5`.
|
||
|
||
Then follows each symbol value, from `0` to last present one.
|
||
The number of bits used by each field is variable.
|
||
It depends on :
|
||
|
||
- Remaining probabilities + 1 :
|
||
__example__ :
|
||
Presuming an `Accuracy_Log` of 8,
|
||
and presuming 100 probabilities points have already been distributed,
|
||
the decoder may read any value from `0` to `255 - 100 + 1 == 156` (inclusive).
|
||
Therefore, it must read `log2sup(156) == 8` bits.
|
||
|
||
- Value decoded : small values use 1 less bit :
|
||
__example__ :
|
||
Presuming values from 0 to 156 (inclusive) are possible,
|
||
255-156 = 99 values are remaining in an 8-bits field.
|
||
They are used this way :
|
||
first 99 values (hence from 0 to 98) use only 7 bits,
|
||
values from 99 to 156 use 8 bits.
|
||
This is achieved through this scheme :
|
||
|
||
| Value read | Value decoded | Number of bits used |
|
||
| ---------- | ------------- | ------------------- |
|
||
| 0 - 98 | 0 - 98 | 7 |
|
||
| 99 - 127 | 99 - 127 | 8 |
|
||
| 128 - 226 | 0 - 98 | 7 |
|
||
| 227 - 255 | 128 - 156 | 8 |
|
||
|
||
Symbols probabilities are read one by one, in order.
|
||
|
||
Probability is obtained from Value decoded by following formula :
|
||
`Proba = value - 1`
|
||
|
||
It means value `0` becomes negative probability `-1`.
|
||
`-1` is a special probability, which means "less than 1".
|
||
Its effect on distribution table is described in the [next section].
|
||
For the purpose of calculating total allocated probability points, it counts as one.
|
||
|
||
[next section]:#from-normalized-distribution-to-decoding-tables
|
||
|
||
When a symbol has a __probability__ of `zero`,
|
||
it is followed by a 2-bits repeat flag.
|
||
This repeat flag tells how many probabilities of zeroes follow the current one.
|
||
It provides a number ranging from 0 to 3.
|
||
If it is a 3, another 2-bits repeat flag follows, and so on.
|
||
|
||
When last symbol reaches cumulated total of `1 << Accuracy_Log`,
|
||
decoding is complete.
|
||
If the last symbol makes cumulated total go above `1 << Accuracy_Log`,
|
||
distribution is considered corrupted.
|
||
|
||
Then the decoder can tell how many bytes were used in this process,
|
||
and how many symbols are present.
|
||
The bitstream consumes a round number of bytes.
|
||
Any remaining bit within the last byte is just unused.
|
||
|
||
##### From normalized distribution to decoding tables
|
||
|
||
The distribution of normalized probabilities is enough
|
||
to create a unique decoding table.
|
||
|
||
It follows the following build rule :
|
||
|
||
The table has a size of `Table_Size = 1 << Accuracy_Log`.
|
||
Each cell describes the symbol decoded,
|
||
and instructions to get the next state.
|
||
|
||
Symbols are scanned in their natural order for "less than 1" probabilities.
|
||
Symbols with this probability are being attributed a single cell,
|
||
starting from the end of the table.
|
||
These symbols define a full state reset, reading `Accuracy_Log` bits.
|
||
|
||
All remaining symbols are sorted in their natural order.
|
||
Starting from symbol `0` and table position `0`,
|
||
each symbol gets attributed as many cells as its probability.
|
||
Cell allocation is spreaded, not linear :
|
||
each successor position follow this rule :
|
||
|
||
```
|
||
position += (tableSize>>1) + (tableSize>>3) + 3;
|
||
position &= tableSize-1;
|
||
```
|
||
|
||
A position is skipped if already occupied by a "less than 1" probability symbol.
|
||
`position` does not reset between symbols, it simply iterates through
|
||
each position in the table, switching to the next symbol when enough
|
||
states have been allocated to the current one.
|
||
|
||
The result is a list of state values.
|
||
Each state will decode the current symbol.
|
||
|
||
To get the `Number_of_Bits` and `Baseline` required for next state,
|
||
it's first necessary to sort all states in their natural order.
|
||
The lower states will need 1 more bit than higher ones.
|
||
|
||
__Example__ :
|
||
Presuming a symbol has a probability of 5.
|
||
It receives 5 state values. States are sorted in natural order.
|
||
|
||
Next power of 2 is 8.
|
||
Space of probabilities is divided into 8 equal parts.
|
||
Presuming the `Accuracy_Log` is 7, it defines 128 states.
|
||
Divided by 8, each share is 16 large.
|
||
|
||
In order to reach 8, 8-5=3 lowest states will count "double",
|
||
taking shares twice larger,
|
||
requiring one more bit in the process.
|
||
|
||
Numbering starts from higher states using less bits.
|
||
|
||
| state order | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
|
||
| ---------------- | ----- | ----- | ------ | ---- | ----- |
|
||
| width | 32 | 32 | 32 | 16 | 16 |
|
||
| `Number_of_Bits` | 5 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 |
|
||
| range number | 2 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 1 |
|
||
| `Baseline` | 32 | 64 | 96 | 0 | 16 |
|
||
| range | 32-63 | 64-95 | 96-127 | 0-15 | 16-31 |
|
||
|
||
The next state is determined from current state
|
||
by reading the required `Number_of_Bits`, and adding the specified `Baseline`.
|
||
|
||
See [Appendix A] for the results of this process applied to the default distributions.
|
||
|
||
[Appendix A]: #appendix-a---decoding-tables-for-predefined-codes
|
||
|
||
Huffman Coding
|
||
--------------
|
||
Zstandard Huffman-coded streams are read backwards,
|
||
similar to the FSE bitstreams.
|
||
Therefore, to find the start of the bitstream, it is therefore to
|
||
know the offset of the last byte of the Huffman-coded stream.
|
||
|
||
After writing the last bit containing information, the compressor
|
||
writes a single `1`-bit and then fills the byte with 0-7 `0` bits of
|
||
padding. The last byte of the compressed bitstream cannot be `0` for
|
||
that reason.
|
||
|
||
When decompressing, the last byte containing the padding is the first
|
||
byte to read. The decompressor needs to skip 0-7 initial `0`-bits and
|
||
the first `1`-bit it occurs. Afterwards, the useful part of the bitstream
|
||
begins.
|
||
|
||
The bitstream contains Huffman-coded symbols in __little-endian__ order,
|
||
with the codes defined by the method below.
|
||
|
||
### Huffman Tree Description
|
||
Prefix coding represents symbols from an a priori known alphabet
|
||
by bit sequences (codewords), one codeword for each symbol,
|
||
in a manner such that different symbols may be represented
|
||
by bit sequences of different lengths,
|
||
but a parser can always parse an encoded string
|
||
unambiguously symbol-by-symbol.
|
||
|
||
Given an alphabet with known symbol frequencies,
|
||
the Huffman algorithm allows the construction of an optimal prefix code
|
||
using the fewest bits of any possible prefix codes for that alphabet.
|
||
|
||
Prefix code must not exceed a maximum code length.
|
||
More bits improve accuracy but cost more header size,
|
||
and require more memory or more complex decoding operations.
|
||
This specification limits maximum code length to 11 bits.
|
||
|
||
|
||
##### Representation
|
||
|
||
All literal values from zero (included) to last present one (excluded)
|
||
are represented by `Weight` with values from `0` to `Max_Number_of_Bits`.
|
||
Transformation from `Weight` to `Number_of_Bits` follows this formula :
|
||
```
|
||
Number_of_Bits = Weight ? (Max_Number_of_Bits + 1 - Weight) : 0
|
||
```
|
||
The last symbol's `Weight` is deduced from previously decoded ones,
|
||
by completing to the nearest power of 2.
|
||
This power of 2 gives `Max_Number_of_Bits`, the depth of the current tree.
|
||
|
||
__Example__ :
|
||
Let's presume the following Huffman tree must be described :
|
||
|
||
| literal | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
|
||
| ---------------- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|
||
| `Number_of_Bits` | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 4 |
|
||
|
||
The tree depth is 4, since its smallest element uses 4 bits.
|
||
Value `5` will not be listed as it can be determined from the values for 0-4,
|
||
nor will values above `5` as they are all 0.
|
||
Values from `0` to `4` will be listed using `Weight` instead of `Number_of_Bits`.
|
||
Weight formula is :
|
||
```
|
||
Weight = Number_of_Bits ? (Max_Number_of_Bits + 1 - Number_of_Bits) : 0
|
||
```
|
||
It gives the following series of weights :
|
||
|
||
| literal | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
|
||
| -------- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|
||
| `Weight` | 4 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
|
||
|
||
The decoder will do the inverse operation :
|
||
having collected weights of literals from `0` to `4`,
|
||
it knows the last literal, `5`, is present with a non-zero weight.
|
||
The weight of `5` can be determined by advancing to the next power of 2.
|
||
The sum of `2^(Weight-1)` (excluding 0's) is :
|
||
`8 + 4 + 2 + 0 + 1 = 15`.
|
||
Nearest power of 2 is 16.
|
||
Therefore, `Max_Number_of_Bits = 4` and `Weight[5] = 1`.
|
||
|
||
##### Huffman Tree header
|
||
|
||
This is a single byte value (0-255),
|
||
which describes how to decode the list of weights.
|
||
|
||
- if `headerByte` >= 128 : this is a direct representation,
|
||
where each `Weight` is written directly as a 4 bits field (0-15).
|
||
They are encoded forward, 2 weights to a byte with the first weight taking
|
||
the top four bits and the second taking the bottom four (e.g. the following
|
||
operations could be used to read the weights:
|
||
`Weight[0] = (Byte[0] >> 4), Weight[1] = (Byte[0] & 0xf)`, etc.).
|
||
The full representation occupies `((Number_of_Symbols+1)/2)` bytes,
|
||
meaning it uses a last full byte even if `Number_of_Symbols` is odd.
|
||
`Number_of_Symbols = headerByte - 127`.
|
||
Note that maximum `Number_of_Symbols` is 255-127 = 128.
|
||
A larger series must necessarily use FSE compression.
|
||
|
||
- if `headerByte` < 128 :
|
||
the series of weights is compressed by FSE.
|
||
The length of the FSE-compressed series is equal to `headerByte` (0-127).
|
||
|
||
##### Finite State Entropy (FSE) compression of Huffman weights
|
||
|
||
In this case, the series of Huffman weights is compressed using FSE compression.
|
||
It's a single bitstream with 2 interleaved states,
|
||
sharing a single distribution table.
|
||
|
||
To decode an FSE bitstream, it is necessary to know its compressed size.
|
||
Compressed size is provided by `headerByte`.
|
||
It's also necessary to know its _maximum possible_ decompressed size,
|
||
which is `255`, since literal values span from `0` to `255`,
|
||
and last symbol's weight is not represented.
|
||
|
||
An FSE bitstream starts by a header, describing probabilities distribution.
|
||
It will create a Decoding Table.
|
||
For a list of Huffman weights, the maximum accuracy log is 7 bits.
|
||
For more description see the [FSE header description](#fse-table-description)
|
||
|
||
The Huffman header compression uses 2 states,
|
||
which share the same FSE distribution table.
|
||
The first state (`State1`) encodes the even indexed symbols,
|
||
and the second (`State2`) encodes the odd indexes.
|
||
`State1` is initialized first, and then `State2`, and they take turns
|
||
decoding a single symbol and updating their state.
|
||
For more details on these FSE operations, see the [FSE section](#fse).
|
||
|
||
The number of symbols to decode is determined
|
||
by tracking bitStream overflow condition:
|
||
If updating state after decoding a symbol would require more bits than
|
||
remain in the stream, it is assumed that extra bits are 0. Then,
|
||
the symbols for each of the final states are decoded and the process is complete.
|
||
|
||
##### Conversion from weights to Huffman prefix codes
|
||
|
||
All present symbols shall now have a `Weight` value.
|
||
It is possible to transform weights into Number_of_Bits, using this formula:
|
||
```
|
||
Number_of_Bits = Number_of_Bits ? Max_Number_of_Bits + 1 - Weight : 0
|
||
```
|
||
Symbols are sorted by `Weight`. Within same `Weight`, symbols keep natural order.
|
||
Symbols with a `Weight` of zero are removed.
|
||
Then, starting from lowest weight, prefix codes are distributed in order.
|
||
|
||
__Example__ :
|
||
Let's presume the following list of weights has been decoded :
|
||
|
||
| Literal | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
|
||
| -------- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|
||
| `Weight` | 4 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
|
||
|
||
Sorted by weight and then natural order,
|
||
it gives the following distribution :
|
||
|
||
| Literal | 3 | 4 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
|
||
| ---------------- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | ---- |
|
||
| `Weight` | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
|
||
| `Number_of_Bits` | 0 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
|
||
| prefix codes | N/A | 0000| 0001| 001 | 01 | 1 |
|
||
|
||
### Huffman-coded Streams
|
||
Given a Huffman decoding table,
|
||
it's possible to decode a Huffman-coded stream.
|
||
|
||
Each bitstream must be read _backward_,
|
||
that is starting from the end down to the beginning.
|
||
Therefore it's necessary to know the size of each bitstream.
|
||
|
||
It's also necessary to know exactly which _bit_ is the latest.
|
||
This is detected by a final bit flag :
|
||
the highest bit of latest byte is a final-bit-flag.
|
||
Consequently, a last byte of `0` is not possible.
|
||
And the final-bit-flag itself is not part of the useful bitstream.
|
||
Hence, the last byte contains between 0 and 7 useful bits.
|
||
|
||
For example, if the literal sequence "0145" was encoded using the prefix codes above,
|
||
it would be encoded as:
|
||
```
|
||
00000001 01110000
|
||
```
|
||
|
||
|Symbol | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | Padding |
|
||
|--------|------|------|----|---|---------|
|
||
|Encoding|`0000`|`0001`|`01`|`1`| `10000` |
|
||
|
||
Starting from the end,
|
||
it's possible to read the bitstream in a __little-endian__ fashion,
|
||
keeping track of already used bits. Since the bitstream is encoded in reverse
|
||
order, by starting at the end the symbols can be read in forward order.
|
||
|
||
Reading the last `Max_Number_of_Bits` bits,
|
||
it's then possible to compare extracted value to decoding table,
|
||
determining the symbol to decode and number of bits to discard.
|
||
|
||
The process continues up to reading the required number of symbols per stream.
|
||
If a bitstream is not entirely and exactly consumed,
|
||
hence reaching exactly its beginning position with _all_ bits consumed,
|
||
the decoding process is considered faulty.
|
||
|
||
|
||
Dictionary Format
|
||
-----------------
|
||
|
||
Zstandard is compatible with "raw content" dictionaries,
|
||
free of any format restriction, except that they must be at least 8 bytes.
|
||
These dictionaries function as if they were just the `Content` part
|
||
of a formatted dictionary.
|
||
|
||
But dictionaries created by `zstd --train` follow a format, described here.
|
||
|
||
__Pre-requisites__ : a dictionary has a size,
|
||
defined either by a buffer limit, or a file size.
|
||
|
||
| `Magic_Number` | `Dictionary_ID` | `Entropy_Tables` | `Content` |
|
||
| -------------- | --------------- | ---------------- | --------- |
|
||
|
||
__`Magic_Number`__ : 4 bytes ID, value 0xEC30A437, __little-endian__ format
|
||
|
||
__`Dictionary_ID`__ : 4 bytes, stored in __little-endian__ format.
|
||
`Dictionary_ID` can be any value, except 0 (which means no `Dictionary_ID`).
|
||
It's used by decoders to check if they use the correct dictionary.
|
||
|
||
_Reserved ranges :_
|
||
If the frame is going to be distributed in a private environment,
|
||
any `Dictionary_ID` can be used.
|
||
However, for public distribution of compressed frames,
|
||
the following ranges are reserved and shall not be used :
|
||
|
||
- low range : <= 32767
|
||
- high range : >= (2^31)
|
||
|
||
__`Entropy_Tables`__ : following the same format as the tables in compressed blocks.
|
||
See the relevant [FSE](#fse-table-description)
|
||
and [Huffman](#huffman-tree-description) sections for how to decode these tables.
|
||
They are stored in following order :
|
||
Huffman tables for literals, FSE table for offsets,
|
||
FSE table for match lengths, and FSE table for literals lengths.
|
||
These tables populate the Repeat Stats literals mode and
|
||
Repeat distribution mode for sequence decoding.
|
||
It's finally followed by 3 offset values, populating recent offsets (instead of using `{1,4,8}`),
|
||
stored in order, 4-bytes __little-endian__ each, for a total of 12 bytes.
|
||
Each recent offset must have a value < dictionary size.
|
||
|
||
__`Content`__ : The rest of the dictionary is its content.
|
||
The content act as a "past" in front of data to compress or decompress,
|
||
so it can be referenced in sequence commands.
|
||
As long as the amount of data decoded from this frame is less than or
|
||
equal to `Window_Size`, sequence commands may specify offsets longer
|
||
than the total length of decoded output so far to reference back to the
|
||
dictionary. After the total output has surpassed `Window_Size` however,
|
||
this is no longer allowed and the dictionary is no longer accessible.
|
||
|
||
[compressed blocks]: #the-format-of-compressed_block
|
||
|
||
|
||
Appendix A - Decoding tables for predefined codes
|
||
-------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
This appendix contains FSE decoding tables
|
||
for the predefined literal length, match length, and offset codes.
|
||
The tables have been constructed using the algorithm as given above in chapter
|
||
"from normalized distribution to decoding tables".
|
||
The tables here can be used as examples
|
||
to crosscheck that an implementation build its decoding tables correctly.
|
||
|
||
#### Literal Length Code:
|
||
|
||
| State | Symbol | Number_Of_Bits | Base |
|
||
| ----- | ------ | -------------- | ---- |
|
||
| 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
|
||
| 1 | 0 | 4 | 16 |
|
||
| 2 | 1 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 3 | 3 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 4 | 4 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 5 | 6 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 6 | 7 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 7 | 9 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 8 | 10 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 9 | 12 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 10 | 14 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 11 | 16 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 12 | 18 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 13 | 19 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 14 | 21 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 15 | 22 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 16 | 24 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 17 | 25 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 18 | 26 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 19 | 27 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 20 | 29 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 21 | 31 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 22 | 0 | 4 | 32 |
|
||
| 23 | 1 | 4 | 0 |
|
||
| 24 | 2 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 25 | 4 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 26 | 5 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 27 | 7 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 28 | 8 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 29 | 10 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 30 | 11 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 31 | 13 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 32 | 16 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 33 | 17 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 34 | 19 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 35 | 20 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 36 | 22 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 37 | 23 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 38 | 25 | 4 | 0 |
|
||
| 39 | 25 | 4 | 16 |
|
||
| 40 | 26 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 41 | 28 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 42 | 30 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 43 | 0 | 4 | 48 |
|
||
| 44 | 1 | 4 | 16 |
|
||
| 45 | 2 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 46 | 3 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 47 | 5 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 48 | 6 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 49 | 8 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 50 | 9 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 51 | 11 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 52 | 12 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 53 | 15 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 54 | 17 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 55 | 18 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 56 | 20 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 57 | 21 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 58 | 23 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 59 | 24 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 60 | 35 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 61 | 34 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 62 | 33 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 63 | 32 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
|
||
#### Match Length Code:
|
||
|
||
| State | Symbol | Number_Of_Bits | Base |
|
||
| ----- | ------ | -------------- | ---- |
|
||
| 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 |
|
||
| 2 | 2 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 3 | 3 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 4 | 5 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 5 | 6 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 6 | 8 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 7 | 10 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 8 | 13 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 9 | 16 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 10 | 19 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 11 | 22 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 12 | 25 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 13 | 28 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 14 | 31 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 15 | 33 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 16 | 35 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 17 | 37 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 18 | 39 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 19 | 41 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 20 | 43 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 21 | 45 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 22 | 1 | 4 | 16 |
|
||
| 23 | 2 | 4 | 0 |
|
||
| 24 | 3 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 25 | 4 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 26 | 6 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 27 | 7 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 28 | 9 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 29 | 12 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 30 | 15 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 31 | 18 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 32 | 21 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 33 | 24 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 34 | 27 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 35 | 30 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 36 | 32 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 37 | 34 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 38 | 36 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 39 | 38 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 40 | 40 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 41 | 42 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 42 | 44 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 43 | 1 | 4 | 32 |
|
||
| 44 | 1 | 4 | 48 |
|
||
| 45 | 2 | 4 | 16 |
|
||
| 46 | 4 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 47 | 5 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 48 | 7 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 49 | 8 | 5 | 32 |
|
||
| 50 | 11 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 51 | 14 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 52 | 17 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 53 | 20 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 54 | 23 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 55 | 26 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 56 | 29 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 57 | 52 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 58 | 51 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 59 | 50 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 60 | 49 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 61 | 48 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 62 | 47 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
| 63 | 46 | 6 | 0 |
|
||
|
||
#### Offset Code:
|
||
|
||
| State | Symbol | Number_Of_Bits | Base |
|
||
| ----- | ------ | -------------- | ---- |
|
||
| 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 1 | 6 | 4 | 0 |
|
||
| 2 | 9 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 3 | 15 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 4 | 21 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 5 | 3 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 6 | 7 | 4 | 0 |
|
||
| 7 | 12 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 8 | 18 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 9 | 23 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 10 | 5 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 11 | 8 | 4 | 0 |
|
||
| 12 | 14 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 13 | 20 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 14 | 2 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 15 | 7 | 4 | 16 |
|
||
| 16 | 11 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 17 | 17 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 18 | 22 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 19 | 4 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 20 | 8 | 4 | 16 |
|
||
| 21 | 13 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 22 | 19 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 23 | 1 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 24 | 6 | 4 | 16 |
|
||
| 25 | 10 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 26 | 16 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 27 | 28 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 28 | 27 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 29 | 26 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 30 | 25 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
| 31 | 24 | 5 | 0 |
|
||
|
||
Version changes
|
||
---------------
|
||
- 0.2.5 : minor typos and clarifications
|
||
- 0.2.4 : section restructuring, by Sean Purcell
|
||
- 0.2.3 : clarified several details, by Sean Purcell
|
||
- 0.2.2 : added predefined codes, by Johannes Rudolph
|
||
- 0.2.1 : clarify field names, by Przemyslaw Skibinski
|
||
- 0.2.0 : numerous format adjustments for zstd v0.8
|
||
- 0.1.2 : limit Huffman tree depth to 11 bits
|
||
- 0.1.1 : reserved dictID ranges
|
||
- 0.1.0 : initial release
|