linux-drivers/
drivers/media/platform/verisilicon

VeriSilicon Hantro Video Decode/Encode IP

Hantro is a family of hardware video decoder/encoder IP blocks (originally from VeriSilicon/Hantro) embedded in many Arm SoCs, accelerating H.264, HEVC, and VP8/VP9 at up to 1080p60 or 4K. It powers the video pipelines on chips like Rockchip RK3399, NXP i.MX8M, Allwinner H6, and ST's STM32MP25, used in set-top boxes and embedded multimedia products.

keep conf=0.95 deploy=medium replacement=none subsystem=media category=media-other
95%

recommendation

It should stay in the kernel because the Hantro video codec block is shipping in current embedded SoCs from multiple vendors, including Rockchip, NXP i.MX8M (still listed as Active in 2025), Microchip SAMA5D4, Allwinner H6, and ST's new STM32MP25, and upstream maintenance is clearly ongoing with substantial fixes landing through early 2026.

repository signals

43 files
21,035 source lines
99 commits, 5y
+21,733 / −584 lines added / removed, 5y
32 authors, 5y
monthly commits · 2021-04-21 → 2026-04-21 · 99 total · active in 35/61 months
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sources

  1. spinics.net

    Linux media pull request dated 2026-02-11 calls out 'Verisilicon & rkvdec – major fixes and enhancements' and lists multiple verisilicon fixes, indicating active upstream maintenance rather than removal.

  2. nxp.com

    NXP lists the i.MX 8M Mini as Active and advertises hardware video decode/encode capabilities that match Hantro-backed functionality, showing ongoing new-product availability.

  3. wiki.st.com

    ST's 2025/2026 STM32MPU documentation says the STM32 hantro_vpu driver is enabled by default in ST deliveries and documents STM32MP25 video decoder/encoder devices using hantro-vpu.

  4. st.com

    ST partner marketplace shows a current STM32MP25 module advertising 1080p60 HEVC encoding/decoding, evidencing fresh deployment of SoCs using this class of IP.

codex reasoning notes (technical)

Local exec_command inspection of Kconfig shows this is the upstream Hantro VPU driver for Rockchip, NXP i.MX8M, Microchip SAMA5D4, Allwinner H6, and STM32MP25. The spinics URL was obtained via web search/open and shows active 2026 upstream fixes with no removal discussion. The NXP URL was obtained via web search/open/find and shows i.MX8M Mini still Active with matching codec features. The ST wiki and ST partner URLs were obtained via web search/open/find and show current STM32MP25 hantro-vpu enablement and shipping modules. Overall this is current embedded multimedia hardware with ongoing upstream work, so keep rather than deprecate.