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# docs.GL

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

# glColorMask

## Name

glColorMask — enable and disable writing of frame buffer color components

## C Specification

`void glColorMask(` | GLboolean red,
| GLboolean green,
| GLboolean blue,
| GLboolean alpha`)`;

## Parameters

`red`, `green`, `blue`, `alpha`

  Specify whether red, green, blue, and alpha are to be written into the frame buffer. The initial values are all `GL_TRUE`, indicating that the color components are written.

## Description

`glColorMask` specifies whether the individual color components in the frame buffer can or cannot be written. `glColorMask` sets the mask for all active draw buffers. If `red` is `GL_FALSE`, for example, no change is made to the red component of any pixel in any of the color buffers, regardless of the drawing operation attempted.

Changes to individual bits of components cannot be controlled. Rather, changes are either enabled or disabled for entire color components.

## Associated Gets

glGet with argument `GL_COLOR_WRITEMASK`

## Tutorials

## API Version Support

| OpenGL ES API Version
--- | ---
Function Name | 2.0 | 3.0 | 3.1
glColorMask | ✔ | ✔ | ✔

## See Also

glClear, glDepthMask, glStencilMask

## 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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