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BITFIELD_RO

Introduction​

In Dragonfly, as well as in Redis and Valkey, the BITFIELD_RO command is a read-only variant of the BITFIELD command. It allows you to query and retrieve specific bits or bitfields from a string without modifying the underlying string. This command is useful for applications that need to interpret data stored as bitfields, such as compact representations of statuses or settings.

Syntax​

BITFIELD_RO key [GET encoding offset] ...

Parameter Explanations​

  • key: The key of the string which is treated as a bitmap for read operations.
  • GET: Subcommand used to specify the retrieval operation.
    • encoding: Specifies the format (bit width and signedness) of the bitfield to be retrieved, such as i8, u16, etc.
    • offset: The bit position within the string from which to start reading.

Return Values​

The command returns an array of integers, where each integer corresponds to the value of the retrieved bitfield according to the specified encoding.

Code Examples​

Basic Example​

Retrieve an unsigned 8-bit integer (starting at offset 0) and a signed 16-bit integer (starting at offset 8).

dragonfly> SET mystring "\x01\x02\x03"
OK
dragonfly> BITFIELD_RO mystring GET u8 0 GET i16 8
1) (integer) 1
2) (integer) 515

Retrieving Multiple Bitfields​

In this example, we extract multiple bitfields from a single string. This demonstrates how to handle different offsets and encodings.

dragonfly> SET mystring "\xFF\xFE\xFD"
OK
dragonfly> BITFIELD_RO mystring GET u8 0 GET u8 8 GET i16 16
1) (integer) 255
2) (integer) 254
3) (integer) -3

Working with Larger Fields​

Extracting larger bitfields, such as 32-bit integers, to demonstrate handling of wider data.

dragonfly> SET mystring "\x00\x00\x00\x01\x00\x00\x00\x02"
OK
dragonfly> BITFIELD_RO mystring GET u32 0 GET u32 32
1) (integer) 1
2) (integer) 2

Best Practices​

  • Use appropriate encodings (u8, i16, etc.) to match the data you expect to retrieve.
  • Align your offsets correctly to avoid unexpected values due to partial byte reads.

Common Mistakes​

  • Incorrectly specifying offsets can lead to unexpected results. Ensure that offsets correctly align with the bit widths of the fields being read.
  • Mixing up signed (i) and unsigned (u) encodings may produce incorrect values when interpreting the data.

FAQs​

Can BITFIELD_RO modify the string?​

No, BITFIELD_RO is strictly read-only and cannot modify the underlying string.

What happens if I use an offset that exceeds the length of the string?​

If the specified offset extends beyond the end of the string, BITFIELD_RO will return nil for that field.