Documentation

Return whether a mouse is currently connected.

Returns

true if a mouse is connected, false otherwise.

Thread safety

This function should only be called on the main thread.

See also

sDL_GetMice

C declaration

SDL_HasMouse, defined at SDL3/SDL_mouse.h 226:34

Since: 3.2.0

Get a list of currently connected mice.

Note that this will include any device or virtual driver that includes mouse functionality, including some game controllers, KVM switches, etc. You should wait for input from a device before you consider it actively in use.

Returns

a 0 terminated array of mouse instance IDs or NULL on failure; call SDL_GetError() for more information. This should be freed with SDL_free() when it is no longer needed.

Thread safety

This function should only be called on the main thread.

See also

sDL_GetMouseNameForID, sDL_HasMouse

C declaration

SDL_GetMice, defined at SDL3/SDL_mouse.h 249:43

Since: 3.2.0

Get the name of a mouse.

This function returns "" if the mouse doesn't have a name.

Returns

the name of the selected mouse, or NULL on failure; call SDL_GetError() for more information.

Thread safety

This function should only be called on the main thread.

See also

sDL_GetMice

C declaration

SDL_GetMouseNameForID, defined at SDL3/SDL_mouse.h 266:42

Since: 3.2.0

Get the window which currently has mouse focus.

Returns

the window with mouse focus.

Thread safety

This function should only be called on the main thread.

C declaration

SDL_GetMouseFocus, defined at SDL3/SDL_mouse.h 277:42

Since: 3.2.0

Query SDL's cache for the synchronous mouse button state and the window-relative SDL-cursor position.

This function returns the cached synchronous state as SDL understands it from the last pump of the event queue.

To query the platform for immediate asynchronous state, use SDL_GetGlobalMouseState.

Passing non-NULL pointers to x or y will write the destination with respective x or y coordinates relative to the focused window.

In Relative Mode, the SDL-cursor's position usually contradicts the platform-cursor's position as manually calculated from SDL_GetGlobalMouseState() and SDL_GetWindowPosition.

Returns

a 32-bit bitmask of the button state that can be bitwise-compared against the SDL_BUTTON_MASK(X) macro.

Thread safety

This function should only be called on the main thread.

See also

sDL_GetGlobalMouseState, sDL_GetRelativeMouseState

C declaration

SDL_GetMouseState, defined at SDL3/SDL_mouse.h 310:50

Since: 3.2.0

Query the platform for the asynchronous mouse button state and the desktop-relative platform-cursor position.

This function immediately queries the platform for the most recent asynchronous state, more costly than retrieving SDL's cached state in SDL_GetMouseState().

Passing non-NULL pointers to x or y will write the destination with respective x or y coordinates relative to the desktop.

In Relative Mode, the platform-cursor's position usually contradicts the SDL-cursor's position as manually calculated from SDL_GetMouseState() and SDL_GetWindowPosition.

This function can be useful if you need to track the mouse outside of a specific window and SDL_CaptureMouse() doesn't fit your needs. For example, it could be useful if you need to track the mouse while dragging a window, where coordinates relative to a window might not be in sync at all times.

Returns

a 32-bit bitmask of the button state that can be bitwise-compared against the SDL_BUTTON_MASK(X) macro.

Thread safety

This function should only be called on the main thread.

See also

sDL_CaptureMouse, sDL_GetMouseState, sDL_GetGlobalMouseState

C declaration

SDL_GetGlobalMouseState, defined at SDL3/SDL_mouse.h 347:50

Since: 3.2.0

Query SDL's cache for the synchronous mouse button state and accumulated mouse delta since last call.

This function returns the cached synchronous state as SDL understands it from the last pump of the event queue.

To query the platform for immediate asynchronous state, use SDL_GetGlobalMouseState.

Passing non-NULL pointers to x or y will write the destination with respective x or y deltas accumulated since the last call to this function (or since event initialization).

This function is useful for reducing overhead by processing relative mouse inputs in one go per-frame instead of individually per-event, at the expense of losing the order between events within the frame (e.g. quickly pressing and releasing a button within the same frame).

Returns

a 32-bit bitmask of the button state that can be bitwise-compared against the SDL_BUTTON_MASK(X) macro.

Thread safety

This function should only be called on the main thread.

See also

sDL_GetMouseState, sDL_GetGlobalMouseState

C declaration

SDL_GetRelativeMouseState, defined at SDL3/SDL_mouse.h 382:50

Since: 3.2.0

Move the mouse cursor to the given position within the window.

This function generates a mouse motion event if relative mode is not enabled. If relative mode is enabled, you can force mouse events for the warp by setting the SDL_HINT_MOUSE_RELATIVE_WARP_MOTION hint.

Note that this function will appear to succeed, but not actually move the mouse when used over Microsoft Remote Desktop.

Thread safety

This function should only be called on the main thread.

See also

sDL_WarpMouseGlobal

C declaration

SDL_WarpMouseInWindow, defined at SDL3/SDL_mouse.h 405:34

Since: 3.2.0

Move the mouse to the given position in global screen space.

This function generates a mouse motion event.

A failure of this function usually means that it is unsupported by a platform.

Note that this function will appear to succeed, but not actually move the mouse when used over Microsoft Remote Desktop.

Returns

true on success or false on failure; call SDL_GetError() for more information.

Thread safety

This function should only be called on the main thread.

See also

sDL_WarpMouseInWindow

C declaration

SDL_WarpMouseGlobal, defined at SDL3/SDL_mouse.h 430:34

Since: 3.2.0

Set a user-defined function by which to transform relative mouse inputs.

This overrides the relative system scale and relative speed scale hints. Should be called prior to enabling relative mouse mode, fails otherwise.

Returns

true on success or false on failure; call SDL_GetError() for more information.

Thread safety

This function should only be called on the main thread.

C declaration

SDL_SetRelativeMouseTransform, defined at SDL3/SDL_mouse.h 448:34

Since: 3.4.0

Set relative mouse mode for a window.

While the window has focus and relative mouse mode is enabled, the cursor is hidden, the mouse position is constrained to the window, and SDL will report continuous relative mouse motion even if the mouse is at the edge of the window.

If you'd like to keep the mouse position fixed while in relative mode you can use SDL_SetWindowMouseRect(). If you'd like the cursor to be at a specific location when relative mode ends, you should use SDL_WarpMouseInWindow() before disabling relative mode.

This function will flush any pending mouse motion for this window.

Returns

true on success or false on failure; call SDL_GetError() for more information.

Thread safety

This function should only be called on the main thread.

See also

sDL_GetWindowRelativeMouseMode

C declaration

SDL_SetWindowRelativeMouseMode, defined at SDL3/SDL_mouse.h 476:34

Since: 3.2.0

Query whether relative mouse mode is enabled for a window.

Returns

true if relative mode is enabled for a window or false otherwise.

Thread safety

This function should only be called on the main thread.

See also

sDL_SetWindowRelativeMouseMode

C declaration

SDL_GetWindowRelativeMouseMode, defined at SDL3/SDL_mouse.h 490:34

Since: 3.2.0

Capture the mouse and to track input outside an SDL window.

Capturing enables your app to obtain mouse events globally, instead of just within your window. Not all video targets support this function. When capturing is enabled, the current window will get all mouse events, but unlike relative mode, no change is made to the cursor and it is not restrained to your window.

This function may also deny mouse input to other windows both those in your application and others on the system so you should use this function sparingly, and in small bursts. For example, you might want to track the mouse while the user is dragging something, until the user releases a mouse button. It is not recommended that you capture the mouse for long periods of time, such as the entire time your app is running. For that, you should probably use SDL_SetWindowRelativeMouseMode() or SDL_SetWindowMouseGrab(), depending on your goals.

While captured, mouse events still report coordinates relative to the current (foreground) window, but those coordinates may be outside the bounds of the window (including negative values). Capturing is only allowed for the foreground window. If the window loses focus while capturing, the capture will be disabled automatically.

While capturing is enabled, the current window will have the SDL_WINDOW_MOUSE_CAPTURE flag set.

Please note that SDL will attempt to "auto capture" the mouse while the user is pressing a button; this is to try and make mouse behavior more consistent between platforms, and deal with the common case of a user dragging the mouse outside of the window. This means that if you are calling SDL_CaptureMouse() only to deal with this situation, you do not have to (although it is safe to do so). If this causes problems for your app, you can disable auto capture by setting the SDL_HINT_MOUSE_AUTO_CAPTURE hint to zero.

Returns

true on success or false on failure; call SDL_GetError() for more information.

Thread safety

This function should only be called on the main thread.

See also

sDL_GetGlobalMouseState

C declaration

SDL_CaptureMouse, defined at SDL3/SDL_mouse.h 538:34

Since: 3.2.0

Create a cursor using the specified bitmap data and mask (in MSB format).

mask has to be in MSB (Most Significant Bit) format.

The cursor width (w) must be a multiple of 8 bits.

The cursor is created in black and white according to the following:

• data=0, mask=1: white
• data=1, mask=1: black
• data=0, mask=0: transparent
• data=1, mask=0: inverted color if possible, black if not.

Cursors created with this function must be freed with SDL_DestroyCursor().

If you want to have a color cursor, or create your cursor from an SDL_Surface, you should use SDL_CreateColorCursor(). Alternately, you can hide the cursor and draw your own as part of your game's rendering, but it will be bound to the framerate.

Also, SDL_CreateSystemCursor() is available, which provides several readily-available system cursors to pick from.

Returns

a new cursor with the specified parameters on success or NULL on failure; call SDL_GetError() for more information.

Thread safety

This function should only be called on the main thread.

See also

sDL_CreateAnimatedCursor, sDL_CreateColorCursor, sDL_CreateSystemCursor, sDL_DestroyCursor, sDL_SetCursor

C declaration

SDL_CreateCursor, defined at SDL3/SDL_mouse.h 585:42

Since: 3.2.0

Create a color cursor.

If this function is passed a surface with alternate representations added with SDL_AddSurfaceAlternateImage(), the surface will be interpreted as the content to be used for 100% display scale, and the alternate representations will be used for high DPI situations if SDL_HINT_MOUSE_DPI_SCALE_CURSORS is enabled. For example, if the original surface is 32x32, then on a 2x macOS display or 200% display scale on Windows, a 64x64 version of the image will be used, if available. If a matching version of the image isn't available, the closest larger size image will be downscaled to the appropriate size and be used instead, if available. Otherwise, the closest smaller image will be upscaled and be used instead.

Returns

the new cursor on success or NULL on failure; call SDL_GetError() for more information.

Thread safety

This function should only be called on the main thread.

See also

SDL_AddSurfaceAlternateImage, sDL_CreateAnimatedCursor, sDL_CreateCursor, sDL_CreateSystemCursor, sDL_DestroyCursor, sDL_SetCursor

C declaration

SDL_CreateColorCursor, defined at SDL3/SDL_mouse.h 622:42

Since: 3.2.0

Create an animated color cursor.

Animated cursors are composed of a sequential array of frames, specified as surfaces and durations in an array of SDL_CursorFrameInfo structs. The hot spot coordinates are universal to all frames, and all frames must have the same dimensions.

Frame durations are specified in milliseconds. A duration of 0 implies an infinite frame time, and the animation will stop on that frame. To create a one-shot animation, set the duration of the last frame in the sequence to 0.

If this function is passed surfaces with alternate representations added with SDL_AddSurfaceAlternateImage(), the surfaces will be interpreted as the content to be used for 100% display scale, and the alternate representations will be used for high DPI situations. For example, if the original surfaces are 32x32, then on a 2x macOS display or 200% display scale on Windows, a 64x64 version of the image will be used, if available. If a matching version of the image isn't available, the closest larger size image will be downscaled to the appropriate size and be used instead, if available. Otherwise, the closest smaller image will be upscaled and be used instead.

If the underlying platform does not support animated cursors, this function will fall back to creating a static color cursor using the first frame in the sequence.

Returns

the new cursor on success or NULL on failure; call SDL_GetError() for more information.

Thread safety

This function should only be called on the main thread.

See also

SDL_AddSurfaceAlternateImage, sDL_CreateCursor, sDL_CreateColorCursor, sDL_CreateSystemCursor, sDL_DestroyCursor, sDL_SetCursor

C declaration

SDL_CreateAnimatedCursor, defined at SDL3/SDL_mouse.h 672:41

Since: 3.4.0

Create a system cursor.

Returns

a cursor on success or NULL on failure; call SDL_GetError() for more information.

Thread safety

This function should only be called on the main thread.

See also

sDL_DestroyCursor

C declaration

SDL_CreateSystemCursor, defined at SDL3/SDL_mouse.h 690:42

Since: 3.2.0

Set the active cursor.

This function sets the currently active cursor to the specified one. If the cursor is currently visible, the change will be immediately represented on the display. SDL_SetCursor(NULL) can be used to force cursor redraw, if this is desired for any reason.

Returns

true on success or false on failure; call SDL_GetError() for more information.

Thread safety

This function should only be called on the main thread.

See also

sDL_GetCursor

C declaration

SDL_SetCursor, defined at SDL3/SDL_mouse.h 710:34

Since: 3.2.0

Get the active cursor.

This function returns a pointer to the current cursor which is owned by the library. It is not necessary to free the cursor with SDL_DestroyCursor().

Returns

the active cursor or NULL if there is no mouse.

Thread safety

This function should only be called on the main thread.

See also

sDL_SetCursor

C declaration

SDL_GetCursor, defined at SDL3/SDL_mouse.h 726:42

Since: 3.2.0

Get the default cursor.

You do not have to call SDL_DestroyCursor() on the return value, but it is safe to do so.

Returns

the default cursor on success or NULL on failure; call SDL_GetError() for more information.

Thread safety

This function should only be called on the main thread.

C declaration

SDL_GetDefaultCursor, defined at SDL3/SDL_mouse.h 741:42

Since: 3.2.0

Free a previously-created cursor.

Use this function to free cursor resources created with SDL_CreateCursor(), SDL_CreateColorCursor() or SDL_CreateSystemCursor().

Thread safety

This function should only be called on the main thread.

See also

sDL_CreateAnimatedCursor, sDL_CreateColorCursor, sDL_CreateCursor, sDL_CreateSystemCursor

C declaration

SDL_DestroyCursor, defined at SDL3/SDL_mouse.h 760:34

Since: 3.2.0

Show the cursor.

Returns

true on success or false on failure; call SDL_GetError() for more information.

Thread safety

This function should only be called on the main thread.

See also

sDL_CursorVisible, sDL_HideCursor

C declaration

SDL_ShowCursor, defined at SDL3/SDL_mouse.h 775:34

Since: 3.2.0

Hide the cursor.

Returns

true on success or false on failure; call SDL_GetError() for more information.

Thread safety

This function should only be called on the main thread.

See also

sDL_CursorVisible, sDL_ShowCursor

C declaration

SDL_HideCursor, defined at SDL3/SDL_mouse.h 790:34

Since: 3.2.0

Return whether the cursor is currently being shown.

Returns

true if the cursor is being shown, or false if the cursor is hidden.

Thread safety

This function should only be called on the main thread.

See also

sDL_HideCursor, sDL_ShowCursor

C declaration

SDL_CursorVisible, defined at SDL3/SDL_mouse.h 805:34

Since: 3.2.0