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{| class="wikitable"
|+Archives
|-
! scope="col"|<abbr title="File extension">File ext</abbr>
! scope="col"|File type
! scope="col"|Notes
|-
|.rar
|Compressed Archive
|Use WinRAR or 7-Zip to open and extract.
|-
|.7z/.7zip
|Compressed Archive
|Use WinRAR or 7-Zip to open and extract.
|-
|.zip
|Compressed Archive
|Use WinRAR or 7-Zip to open and extract.
|-
|.tar.gz<br/>.gz
|Compressed Archive
|Use WinRAR or 7-Zip to open and extract.
|-
|.tar
|Archive
|Use WinRAR or 7-Zip to open and extract.
|-
|.001/.part1/.r01
|Split Archive
|Use WinRAR or 7-Zip to open and extract.
|-
|.gzip
|Compressed Archive
|Use 7-Zip to open and extract. Can be loaded by [[PCSX2]] directly.
|-
|.tar.bz2<br/>.bz2
|Compressed Archive
|Use WinRAR or 7-Zip to open and extract. Could previously have been loaded by PCSX2 (Old CDVD plugin) until PCSX2 became plugin-free.
|}
{| class="wikitable"
|+Disc/Disk Images
|-
! scope="col"|<abbr title="File Extention">File ext</abbr>
! scope="col"|Name
! scope="col"|System
! scope="col"|Notes
|-
|.iso/.img
|Disk Image
|Multiple
|
|-
|.ccd
|CloneCD Control File
|Multiple
|Usually comes with .img files.
|-
|.bin
|Binary File
|Multiple
|Usually accompanied with, and used by, a [[Cue sheet (.cue)|cue sheet]].
|-
|[[Cue sheet (.cue)|.cue]]
|Cue Sheet
|Multiple
|Metadata file for .bin/.iso/.img tracks.
|-
|.chd
|Compressed Hard Disk
|Multiple
|Originally made for [[MAME]], now used by multiple emulators
|-
|.mdf
|Media Descriptor File
|Multiple
|Disc image made from Alcohol 120%
|-
|.mds
|Media Descriptor Sheet
|Multiple
|Similar to .cue or .ccd, but for .mdf files.
|-
|.ecm
|Error Code Modeler
|[[PlayStation emulators|PlayStation]]
|Compressed PS1 disc image, use Unecm to decompress it.
|-
|.cso
|Compressed ISO
|PS2/PSP/GC/Wii
|Compressed disc image, see [[Save Disk Space for ISOs|here]] to convert to and from .iso
|-
|.gcz
|Compressed Dolphin ISO
|GC/Wii
|Compressed Wii/GC disc image, see [[Save Disk Space for ISOs|here]] to convert to and from .iso
|-
|.rvz
|Modern Dolphin Format
|GC/Wii
|A new compressed format developed by the Dolphin team able to efficiently compress junk/padding data, allowing both small file sizes and archival quality.
|-
|.cdi/.gdi
|CD Image
|[[Sega Dreamcast emulators|Dreamcast]]
|Typically used with Dreamcast, CDI is a compressed GDI
|-
|.sbi
|CD Image
|
|Sub-channel data. Generally used in the case of PS1 for Digital Rights Management
|-
|.sub
|CloneCD Subchannel File
|PS1/others?
|Sub-channel data for CloneCD, may come with .img/.ccd. Don't confuse with MicroDVD subtitle files with the same extension.
|-
|.nrg
|Nero Image File
|PS1/PS2/others?
|
|-
|.isz
|ISO Zipped
|PS2/others?
|
|-
|.fds
|Famicom Disk System
|[[Nintendo Entertainment System emulators|NES]]
|
|-
|.ndd
|Nintendo 64DD
|[[Nintendo 64 emulators|N64]]
|
|-
|.adf
|Amiga Disk File
|[[Amiga line|Amiga]]
|
|-
|.adz/adf.gz
|ADZ
|[[Amiga line|Amiga]]
|Name derived from Amiga Disk File and the compression format gzip
|-
|.dms
|Disk Masher System
|[[Amiga line|Amiga]]
|
|-
|.ipf
|Interchangeable Preservation Format
|[[Amiga line|Amiga]]
|A file format designed to replace the 'Amiga Disk File' format due to many files in the .adf format "cracked" variants of software. Has better support for copy protected disks.
|}
{| class="wikitable"
|+Tape Files
|-
! scope="col"|<abbr title="File extension">File ext</abbr>
! scope="col"|Name
! scope="col"|System
! scope="col"|Notes
|-
|.wav
|Waveform Audio File Format
|Tape Based Systems
|Raw data in audio format<ref group=N>When listened to, the file will play white noise. If this noise is perfectly recorded on to a tape, that tape should theoretically be able to be used on a system. In practice, however, this is more difficult to do, as any interference can potentially ruin the tape and some copy protection systems may render the re-recording unusable</ref>
|-
|.tap
|Tape File
|Tape Based Systems
|Raw tape data usable by appropriate emulators
|-
|.tzx
|ZX Spectrum Tape File
|Compatible Tape Based Systems ([[ZX Spectrum emulators|ZXS]], [[Amstrad CPC emulators|CPC]], [[Commodore 64 emulators|C64]], etc.)
|Prefered file type for all emulators, perfect representation
|-
|.cdc
|CPC Digital Tape
|[[Amstrad CPC emulators|Amstrad CPC]]
|Identical to the .tzx file but useable only by [[Amstrad CPC emulators]]
|-
|.cas
|PC-6000 and PC-6601 Cassette
|[[NEC PC-6000 series]]
|
|}
{| class="wikitable"
<references group=N />
|+ROM Images
|-
! scope="col"|<abbr title="File extension">File ext</abbr>
! scope="col"|Name
! scope="col"|System
! scope="col"|Notes
|-
|.nes/.nez/.unf/.unif
|NES ROM
|[[Nintendo Entertainment System emulators|NES]]
|.unf and .unif correspond to the now deprecated Universal NES Image Format.
|-
|.smc
|Super Magicom
|[[Super Nintendo emulators|SNES]]
|Headered ROMs dumped from a Super Magicom copier.
|-
|.sfc
|Super Famicom ROM
|[[Super Nintendo emulators|SNES]]
|Headerless SNES ROM
|-
|.md
|Multi Game Doctor
|[[Sega Genesis emulators|Genesis]]
|ROMs dumped from a Multi Game Doctor
|-
|.smd
|Super Magic Drive
|[[Sega Genesis emulators|Genesis]]
|Headered ROMs dumped from a Super Magic Drive
|-
|.gen
|Genesis ROM
|[[Sega Genesis emulators|Genesis]]
|Headerless Genesis ROM
|-
|.gg
|Game Gear ROM
|[[Master System emulators|Game Gear]]
|
|-
|.z64
|Zip Diskette N64 ROM
|[[Nintendo 64 emulators|Nintendo 64]]
|Headered N64 ROMS dumped with a Mr. Backup Z64
|-
|.v64
|Doctor V64
|[[Nintendo 64 emulators|Nintendo 64]]
|Headered N64 ROMS dumped with a Doctor V64
|-
|.n64
|N64 ROM
|[[Nintendo 64 emulators|Nintendo 64]]
|
|-
|.gb
|Game Boy ROM
|[[Game Boy/Game Boy Color emulators|Game Boy]]
|
|-
|.gbc
|Game Boy Color ROM
|[[Game Boy/Game Boy Color emulators|Game Boy Color]]
|
|-
|.gba/.srl
|Game Boy Advance ROM
|[[Game Boy Advance emulators|Game Boy Advance]]
|
|-
|.gcm
|GameCube Master Image
|[[GameCube emulators|GameCube]]
|GC disc dumped the way it's read
|-
|.gcz
|Compressed GameCube Disc Image
|[[GameCube emulators|GameCube]]
|Can be either a compressed .gcm or .iso
|-
|.xiso
|Xbox ISO
|[[Xbox emulators|Xbox]]
|
|-
|.nds/.srl
|Nintendo DS ROM
|[[Nintendo DS emulators|Nintendo DS]]
|
|-
|.dsi/.nds/.app/.srl
|DSiWare ROM
|DSiWare
|Different from regular DS ROMs.
|-
|.ids
|iQue DS ROM
|[[Nintendo DS emulators|iQue/Nintendo DS]]
|The same thing as regular Nintendo DS ROMs, but for the Chinese iQue DS.
|-
|.wbfs
|Wii Backup File System
|[[Wii emulators|Wii]]
|Use WBFS Manager to convert to and from .iso
|-
|rowspan="2"|.wad
|Wii Application Data
|[[Wii emulators|Wii]]
|Used for Wii channels
|-
|Where's All the Data?
|Doom Engine games
|Used for games derived from the [https://doomwiki.org/wiki/Doom_engine Doom engine] and [https://doomwiki.org/wiki/WAD#Uses_outside_the_Doom_engine a few 90's games].
|-
|.cia
|CTR Importable Archive
|[[Nintendo 3DS emulators|3DS]]
|
|-
|.3ds
|Nintendo 3DS ROM
|[[Nintendo 3DS emulators|3DS]]
|
|-
|.nsp
|Nintendo Switch ROM
|[[Nintendo Switch emulators|Nintendo Switch]]
|Dump of SD and NAND games, Updates
|-
|.xci
|Nintendo Switch ROM
|[[Nintendo Switch emulators|Nintendo Switch]]
|Dump of a game cartridge
|-
|.ngp/.ngc
|NGP/C ROM
|[[Neo Geo Pocket emulators|Neo Geo Pocket/Color]]
|
|-
|.pce
|PC Engine ROM
|[[PC Engine (TurboGrafx-16) emulators|PC Engine]]
|
|-
|.vpk
|PlayStation Vita ROM
|[[PlayStation Vita emulators|PlayStation Vita]]
|Compressed files forming a PlayStation Vita ROM
|-
|.vb
|Virtual Boy ROM
|[[Virtual Boy emulators|Virtual Boy]]
|Also used for Visual Basic source files
|-
|.ws/.wsc
|WonderSwan (Color) ROM
|[[WonderSwan emulators|WonderSwan/Color]]
|
|-
|.bin/.dat/.lst
|NAOMI ROM
|[[Dreamcast emulators|Dreamcast]]
|NAOMI format supported by relevant Dreamcast emulators. MAME-deprecated and mostly irrelevant
|-
|.ipa
|Apple iPhone App Data
|[[IOS emulators|iOS]]
|
|-
|.apk
|Android App Data
|[[Android emulators|Android]]
|
|-
|.obb
|Android App Data Resources
|[[Android emulators|Android]]
|
|}
{| class="wikitable"
|+Saves
|-
! scope="col"|<abbr title="File extension">File ext</abbr>
! scope="col"|Name
! scope="col"|System
! scope="col"|Notes
|-
|.dsv
|DeSmuME Save
|[[Nintendo DS emulators|NDS]]
|
|-
|.ds1 to .ds9
|DeSmuME Save State
|[[Nintendo DS emulators|NDS]]
|
|-
|.sav
|Save file
|Multiple
|
|-
|.ps2
|[[PCSX2]] Memory Card
|[[PlayStation 2 emulators|PS2]]
|
|-
|.p2s
|PCSX2 Save State
|[[PS2]]
|
|-
|.mcr
|Memory Card Reader
|[[PlayStation emulators|PS1]]
|PS1 emulator memory card
|-
|.mpk
|Memory Pack
|[[Nintendo 64 emulators|Nintendo 64]]
|N64 saves
|-
|.eep
|EEPROM
|[[Nintendo 64 emulators|Nintendo 64]]
|N64 saves
|-
|.st0/.sta/
|Savestate
|Multiple
|
|-
|.srm
|Save RAM
|[[Super Nintendo emulators|SNES]]/[[Sega Genesis emulators|Genesis]]
|Save RAM dump, used with emulators and flashcards
|}
{| class="wikitable"
|+[[Shaders and Filters]]
|-
! scope="col"|<abbr title="File extension">File ext</abbr>
! scope="col"|Name
! scope="col"|System
! scope="col"|Notes
|-
|[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cg_%28programming_language%29 .cg]
|C for Graphics
|
|Nvidia's shader format based on C's syntax.
|-
|[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GLSL .glsl]
|OpenGL Shading Language / GLslang
|
|OpenGL only shader format based on C's syntax.
|-
|[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HLSL .hlsl]
|High-level shader language
|Windows, [[Xbox emulators|Xbox]], [[Xbox 360 emulators|360]]
|Microsoft's proprietary DirectX only shader language, based on C's syntax.
|-
|[https://github.com/shader-slang/slang .slang]
|Slang
|
|Shading language that extends HLSL.
|-
|.slangp
|Slang preset
|
|Lists Slang files and provides parameters for them.
|}
{| class="wikitable"
|+Other
|-
! scope="col"|<abbr title="File extension">File ext</abbr>
! scope="col"|Name
! scope="col"|System
! scope="col"|Notes
|-
|.elf
|Executable and Linkable Format
|[[PlayStation 2 emulators|PS2]]/[[PlayStation 3 emulators|PS3]]/[[GameCube emulators|GC]]/[[Wii emulators|Wii]]
|Typically a homebrew/small application file
|-
|.pbp
|Perl Builder File
|[[PlayStation Portable emulators|PlayStation Portable]]
|Game and homebrew eboot file, also used for PS1 ISO storage (eboot.pbp)
|-
|.dol
|Dolphin File
|[[GameCube emulators|GameCube]]/[[Wii emulators|Wii]]
|Executable
|-
|.xbe/.xex
|Xbox Executable
|Xbox/X360
|Xbox Executable. Usually comes with a folder with game data. X360 ones can be loaded by Xenia.
|-
|.cfg/.ini
|Configuration File
|Multiple
|Use a text editor such as notepad/[http://notepad-plus-plus.org/download/ Notepad++] to edit
|-
|.dll
|Dynamic Link Library
|Multiple
|Typically used for plugins/emulation cores in emulators
|-
|.so
|Shared Library
|Multiple
|Typically used for plugins/emulation cores in emulators
|-
|.xml
|Extensible Markup Language
|[[MAME]]/[[MESS]]
|Contains various information about emulated systems and ROMs.
|-
|.hsi
|XML-like
|[[MESS]]
|Contains various information about ROMs.
|-
|.lay
|Layout
|[[MAME]]/[[MESS]]
|XML-like file used to describe the visual layout of artwork overlays and placement of emulation input/output.
|-
|.nv
|Non Volatile RAM
|[[MAME]]/[[MESS]]
|Created by default to store [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-volatile_random-access_memory nvram] of emulated systems or software in the NVRAM folder.
|-
|.m3u
|Playlist file
|Multiple
|Used to play multiple discs back to back, [http://emulation.gametechwiki.com/index.php/Auto-load_next_disc automates disc swapping].
|-
|.rp9
|RP9
|[[Amiga line|Amiga]]/[[Commodore 64]]
|Packaging format for Commodore 64 and Amiga file formats. Designed by [https://www.retroplatform.com/ Cloanto]. used by C64 Forever and Amiga Forever software.
|}
=See also=
*[[Save disk space for ISOs]]
----
{{NEL}}
[[Category:FAQs]]
