I set up for depth pre-pass as follows:

glEnable(GL_DEPTH_TEST);
glDepthMask(GL_TRUE);
glDepthFunc(GL_LESS);
glClear(GL_DEPTH_BUFFER_BIT);
glFramebufferDrawBufferEXT(id, GL_NONE); // id is currently bound framebuffer object
glColorMaski(0, GL_FALSE, GL_FALSE, GL_FALSE, GL_FALSE);

I'm not explicitly writing depth in the fragment shader. Should I then have a version of my shader program that has only a vertex shader and no fragment shader? I ask for efficiency reasons, since I don't know whether OpenGL can figure out from either the GL_NONE draw buffer or false color mask that it doesn't need to run the fragment shader. The downside of doing a separate shader program for the depth pre-pass is that I'd have to do it for every shader program that has a different vertex shader.

Kind of a useless question.

If it does execute: then keep your fragment shader as gl_FragColor = vec4(0,0,0,0); OR you may not even need it. leaving a blank main() that returns immediately even though it is executed.

If it doesn't execute for GL_NONE: then keep the same stripped down fragment shader. It just wont run.....

I don't believe you can have a shader object without a vertex + pixel shader. Not sure though.

I think you can use the stencil buffer to mark what pixels you want to run fragment shaders on.

Kind of a useless question.

If it does execute: then keep your fragment shader as gl_FragColor = vec4(0,0,0,0); OR you may not even need it. leaving a blank main() that returns immediately even though it is executed.

If it doesn't execute for GL_NONE: then keep the same stripped down fragment shader. It just wont run.....

I don't believe you can have a shader object without a vertex + pixel shader. Not sure though.

Maybe you should read the question again, because you seem to have answered a different one.

> If it does execute...

> If it doesn't execute

That presumes the answer--which, if I knew, I wouldn't have asked here in the very title of my question, now, would have I? Do you have a problem with reading comprehension?

I specifically asked about efficiency. I need to know which case it is, so I can determine whether to do the work of making additional shader programs that have the no fragment shader (or have a main() that doesn't do anything--which of those latter two is NOT my question and obviously I can easily check). What you wrote, instead, was what to do in either case--which I already knew. GG

First off, you ask "if depth not written" - and then you use glDepthMask(GL_TRUE) - that's oxymoronic.

Secondly, for a final absolute determination... you can use a query object for samples passed.

I mean not written explicitly in the fragment shader by assigning to gl_FragDepth.

Impossible to tell for sure, but probably yes.

In theory, the fragment shader should run, since whether or not you enable writing out fragments using glColorMaski doesn't matter for the shader. Masking happens after execution of the fragment shader, and it is also orthogonal (in times of atomic ops and shader load/store, a shader can have side effects even if not outputting any depth or color values to fragments).

In practice, who knows. The driver might simply realize that nothing happens (depth is not written in the shader, and color is masked out) and not execute the shader at all. If your application has a noticeable market share, the IHV might even come up with a driver profile for your application which enables that optimization only for your application.

First off, you ask "if depth not written" - and then you use glDepthMask(GL_TRUE) - that's oxymoronic.

The meaning is (at least I'd guess so) that depth is written as the interpolated vertex depth, and not calculated by the fragment shader.

Thanks. And yes, that's what I meant with "depth not written".

does OpenGL still execute fragment shader if depth not written and color mask is GL_NONE?

And what exactly did I say......... I will add you to the list of people I choose not to help, which will be 1 person for the last 8 years I've been on here.

I gave you some logical thinking which is: who cares. If the GPU does or doesn't run the pixel shader, then whatever shader you have bound wont run anyway (Even if its 1 million executions). If the contrary to that is it does run, then give it the simplest shader possible. Same result, and you don't even need to know the answer to your question................because it doesn't matter. Its either going to execute your 0 or 1 instruction pixel shader or not. Its out of your control, but if you assume it has to run a pixel shader, then you are safe. NOT TO MENTION it could be vendor/card specific under the hood to decide to use the pixel shader or not.

How hard is if for you to write a pixel shader that does 20 texture fetches with glDrawBuffers(GL_NONE) and see if your performance is horrible.....well then its running your pixel shader......

Do you have a problem with reading comprehension?

When people (who work in the industry already) reply to you and give you a decent answer and tell them they are too stupid that they can't even read your question, so they shouldn't help you.....