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| HDF5 Last Updated on 2026-03-23 The HDF5 Field Guide

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Property Lists Basics

Navigate back: Main / Getting Started with HDF5 / Learning the Basics

# What is a Property (or Property List)?

In HDF5, a property or property list is a characteristic or feature associated with an HDF5 object. There are default properties which handle the most common needs. These default properties are specified by passing in H5P_DEFAULT for the Property List parameter of a function. Default properties can be modified by use of the Property Lists (H5P) interface and function parameters.

The Property Lists (H5P) API allows a user to take advantage of the more powerful features in HDF5. It typically supports unusual cases when creating or accessing HDF5 objects. There is a programming model for working with Property Lists in HDF5 (see below).

For examples of modifying a property list, see these tutorial topics:

- See also
    Dataset Storage Layout
- See also
    Extendible Datasets
- See also
    Compressed Datasets
  There are many Property Lists associated with creating and accessing objects in HDF5. See the Property Lists (H5P) Interface documentation in the HDF5 HDF5 Reference Manual for a list of the different properties associated with HDF5 interfaces.

In summary:

- Properties are features of HDF5 objects, that can be changed by use of the Property List API and function parameters.
- Property lists provide a mechanism for adding functionality to HDF5 calls without increasing the number of arguments used for a given call.
- The Property List API supports unusual cases when creating and accessing HDF5 objects.

# Programming Model

Default properties are specified by simply passing in H5P_DEFAULT (C) / H5P_DEFAULT_F (F90) for the property list parameter in those functions for which properties can be changed.

The programming model for changing a property list is as follows:

- Create a copy or "instance" of the desired pre-defined property type, using the H5Pcreate call. This will return a property list identifier. Please see the HDF5 Reference Manual entry for H5Pcreate, for a comprehensive list of the property types.
- With the property list identifier, modify the property, using the Property Lists (H5P) APIs.
- Modify the object feature, by passing the property list identifier into the corresponding HDF5 object function.
- Close the property list when done, using H5Pclose.

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Navigate back: Main / Getting Started with HDF5 / Learning the Basics