GetID3 analyze() function new file size parameter

You can now read ID3 (media file headers) information from mp3 and other media files using GetID3 library without having the entire media file present. The new 2nd parameter to the analyze() member function allows you to detect play time duration with only a small portion of the file present.

Years ago I added this code to the versions of the getid3 library we packaged with the Blubrry PowerPress podcasting plugin. I’ve submitted this code to the getid3 project so everyone can benefit. As of GetID3 v1.9.10,  you can now pass a second optional parameter specifying the total file size. This parameter sets the file size value in the getid3 object, skipping the need for the library call the filesize() function.

This is the secret sauce that allows PowerPress to detect the file size and duration information from a media URL of any size in only a few seconds.

Requirements

The new parameter only works if the following are true:

• Have enough of the beginning of the media file that includes all of the ID3 header information. For a typical mp3 the first 1MB should suffice, though if there is a large image within your ID3 tags then you may need more than 1MB.
• Have the total file size in bytes.
• The mp3 file is using a constant bit rate. This must be true for podcasting, and highly recommended if the media is to be played within web browsers. Please read this page for details regarding VBR and podcasting.

Example Usage

// First 1MB of episode-1.mp3 that is 32,540,576 bytes
// (approximately 32MB)
$media_first1mb = '/tmp/episode-1-partial.mp3
$media_file_size = 32540576;
$getID3 = new getID3;
$FileInfo = $getID3->analyze( $media_first1mb, $media_file_size );

You can use a HTTP/1.1 byte range request to download the first 1MB of a media file, as well as a HTTP HEAD request to get the complete file length (file byte size).

Byte range requests and HEAD requests are safe to use for podcasting. If a service does not allow HEAD requests or accepts byte range requests, then they will have bigger issues to deal with as these features are required by iTunes.

Blubrry PowerPress podcasting plugin has been using this logic to detect mp3 (audio/mpeg), m4a (audio/x-m4a), mp4 (video/mp4), m4v (video/x-m4v), oga (audio/ogg) media since 2008.

Not all media formats support this option. You should test any format not mentioned above. For example, ogg Vorbis audio works, ogg Speex audio does not.