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# docs.GL

OpenGL 4
OpenGL 3
OpenGL 2
OpenGL ES 3
OpenGL ES 2

# glCullFace

## Name

glCullFace — specify whether front- or back-facing facets can be culled

## C Specification

`void glCullFace(` | GLenum mode`)`;

## Parameters

`mode`

  Specifies whether front- or back-facing facets are candidates for culling. Symbolic constants `GL_FRONT`, `GL_BACK`, and `GL_FRONT_AND_BACK` are accepted. The initial value is `GL_BACK`.

## Description

`glCullFace` specifies whether front- or back-facing facets are culled (as specified by mode) when facet culling is enabled. Facet culling is initially disabled. To enable and disable facet culling, call the glEnable and glDisable commands with the argument `GL_CULL_FACE`. Facets include triangles, quadrilaterals, polygons, and rectangles.

glFrontFace specifies which of the clockwise and counterclockwise facets are front-facing and back-facing. See glFrontFace.

## Notes

If `mode` is `GL_FRONT_AND_BACK`, no facets are drawn, but other primitives such as points and lines are drawn.

## Errors

`GL_INVALID_ENUM` is generated if `mode` is not an accepted value.

## Associated Gets

glIsEnabled with argument `GL_CULL_FACE`

glGet with argument `GL_CULL_FACE_MODE`

## Tutorials

Anton Gerdelan - Vertex Buffer Objects

## Version Support

| OpenGL Version
--- | ---
Function / Feature Name | 2.0 | 2.1 | 3.0 | 3.1 | 3.2 | 3.3 | 4.0 | 4.1 | 4.2 | 4.3 | 4.4 | 4.5
`glCullFace` | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔

## See Also

glEnable, glFrontFace

## Copyright

Copyright © 1991-2006 Silicon Graphics, Inc. Copyright © 2010-2014 Khronos Group. This document is licensed under the SGI Free Software B License. For details, see https://web.archive.org/web/20171022161616/http://oss.sgi.com/projects/FreeB/.

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