cdrdao runs from command line and has no graphical user interface. Several programs for authoring and writing CDs depend on cdrdao and provide a GUI, such as Brasero, K3b. cdrdao powers Brasero, the default CD application for the GNOME desktop until around 2013.[4][5]
Cdrdao is capable of reading and writing audio, data, and mixed audio/data discs.[1] It records audio or data CD-Rs in disk-at-once[6] mode based on a textual description of the CD contents, known as a TOC (table of contents) file that can be created and customized inside a text editor. When reading CDs, cdrdao creates a binary dump of the data inside a BIN file and uses the TOC file to index it. The TOC file can be converted to a CUE file using the included toc2cue command. [7] Using the TOC file, audio files can be burned to a disc in WAV format.[8] cdrdao can copy discs, blank discs, create disc image files, and check CDDB information.[9]
A key feature of cdrdao is its full control over the layout of the disc and its tracks.[10] This gives it the ability to create non-standard gaps between audio tracks that are different than two seconds in length and contain non-zero audio data. It can also create hidden tracks and intro tracks.[8]
