Immediate mode (computer graphics)

Immediate mode is an API design pattern in computer graphics libraries, in which

• the client calls directly cause rendering of graphics objects to the display, or in which
• the data to describe rendering primitives is inserted frame by frame directly from the client into a command list (in the case of immediate mode primitive rendering),

without the use of extensive indirection – thus immediate – to retained resources. It does not preclude the use of double-buffering.

Retained mode is an alternative approach. Historically, retained mode has been the dominant style in GUI libraries; however, both can coexist in the same library and are not necessarily exclusive in practice.