Provided by: gdal-bin_3.12.0+dfsg-1_amd64 
NAME
gdal_edit - Edit in place various information of an existing GDAL dataset.
SYNOPSIS
gdal_edit [--help] [--help-general] [-ro] [-a_srs <srs_def>]
[-a_ullr <ulx> <uly> <lrx> <lry>] [-a_ulurll <ulx> <uly> <urx> <ury> <llx> <lly>]
[-tr <xres> <yres>] [-unsetgt] [-unsetrpc] [-a_nodata <value>] [-unsetnodata]
[-a_coord_epoch <epoch>] [-unsetepoch]
[-unsetstats] [-stats] [-approx_stats]
[-setstats <min> <max> <mean> <stddev>]
[-scale <value>] [-offset <value>] [-units <value>]
[-colorinterp_<X> {red|green|blue|alpha|gray|undefined|pan|coastal|rededge|nir|swir|mwir|lwir|...}]...
[-gcp <pixel> <line> <easting> <northing> [<elevation>]]...
[-unsetmd] [-oo <NAME>=<VALUE>]... [-mo <META-TAG>=<VALUE>]...
<datasetname>
DESCRIPTION
gdal_edit can be used to edit in place various information of an existing GDAL dataset (projection,
geotransform, nodata, metadata).
It works only with raster formats that support update access to existing datasets.
CAUTION:
Depending on the format, older values of the updated information might still be found in the file in a
"ghost" state, even if no longer accessible through the GDAL API. This is for example the case of the
GTiff -- GeoTIFF File Format format (this is not a exhaustive list).
NOTE:
gdal_edit is a Python utility, and is only available if GDAL Python bindings are available.
--help Show this help message and exit
--help-general
Gives a brief usage message for the generic GDAL commandline options and exit.
-ro Open the dataset in read-only. Might be useful for drivers refusing to use the dataset in
update-mode. In which case, updated information will go into PAM .aux.xml files.
-a_srs <srs_def>
Defines the target coordinate system. This coordinate system will be written to the dataset. If
the empty string or None is specified, then the existing coordinate system will be removed (for
TIFF/GeoTIFF, might not be well supported besides that).
-a_coord_epoch <epoch>
Assign/override the coordinate epoch of the dataset, as a decimal year (e.g., 2021.3).
Added in version 3.9.
-unsetepoch
Remove the coordinate epoch of the dataset.
Added in version 3.9.
-a_ullr <ulx> <uly> <lrx> <lry>
Assign/override the georeferenced bounds of the dataset.
-a_ulurll <ulx> <uly> <urx> <ury> <llx> <lly>
Assign/override the georeferenced bounds of the dataset from three points: upper-left, upper-right
and lower-left. Unlike -a_ullr, this also supports rotated datasets (edges not parallel to
coordinate system axes).
Added in version 3.1.
-tr <xres> <yres>
Set target resolution. The values must be expressed in georeferenced units. Both must be positive
values.
-unsetgt
Remove the georeference information.
-unsetrpc
Remove RPC information.
-unsetstats
Remove band statistics information.
-stats Calculate and store band statistics.
-setstats <min> <max> <mean> <stddev>
Store user-defined values for band statistics (minimum, maximum, mean and standard deviation). If
any of the values is set to None, the real statistics are calculated from the file and the ones
set to None are used from the real statistics.
-approx_stats
Calculate and store approximate band statistics.
-a_nodata <value>
Assign a specified nodata value to output bands.
-unsetnodata
Remove existing nodata values.
-scale <value>
Assign a specified scale value to output bands. If a single scale value is provided it will be
set for all bands. Alternatively one scale value per band can be provided, in which case the
number of scale values must match the number of bands. If no scale is needed, it it recommended
to set the value to 1. Scale and Offset are generally used together. For example, scale and
offset might be used to store elevations in a unsigned 16bit integer file with a precision of 0.1,
and starting from -100. True values would be calculated as: true_value = (pixel_value * scale) +
offset
NOTE:
These values can be applied using -unscale during a gdal_translate run.
-offset <value>
Assign a specified offset value to output bands. If a single offset value is provided it will be
set for all bands. Alternatively one offset value per band can be provided, in which case the
number of offset values must match the number of bands. If no offset is needed, it recommended to
set the value to 0. For more see scale.
-units <value>
Assign a unit to output band(s).
Added in version 3.1.
-colorinterp_<X> {red|green|blue|alpha|gray|undefined|pan|coastal|rededge|nir|swir|mwir|lwir|...}
Change the color interpretation of band X (where X is a valid band number, starting at 1).
-gcp pixel <line> <easting> <northing> [<elevation>]
Add the indicated ground control point to the dataset. This option may be provided multiple times
to provide a set of GCPs.
-unsetmd
Remove existing metadata (in the default metadata domain). Can be combined with -mo.
-mo <META-TAG>=<VALUE>
Passes a metadata key and value to set on the output dataset if possible. This metadata is added
to the existing metadata items, unless -unsetmd is also specified.
-oo <NAME>=<VALUE>
Open option (format specific).
The -a_ullr, -a_ulurll, -tr and -unsetgt options are exclusive.
The -unsetstats and either -stats or -approx_stats options are exclusive.
EXAMPLE
Example 1: Override the spatial bounds of a dataset and assign metadata values
gdal_edit -mo DATUM=WGS84 -mo PROJ=GEODETIC -a_ullr 7 47 8 46 test.ecw
Example 2: Assign scale and offset values to dataset
gdal_edit -scale 1e3 1e4 -offset 0 10 twoBand.tif
The values in the GeoTIFF are not changed.
AUTHOR
Even Rouault <even.rouault@spatialys.com>
COPYRIGHT
1998-2025
Nov 07, 2025 GDAL_EDIT(1)