File extension SFX
| File type | Self-extracting Compressed Archive Format |
| Developer | N/A |
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What is a SFX file?
File with an .SFX extension contains a compressed archive of one or many files, that unpacks itself if double-clicked in Windows system; it does not require any external decompression program. Files can be decompressed utilising a range of different sorts of algorithms, such as ZIP, RAR or 7Z.
SFX files, because they are executive files, usually use the EXE extension. They can be created in different sorts of programs that are usually designed for standard archiving, for instance 7-Zip, ALZip, WinRAR, WinZip or Smart SFX Pro.
Program(s) that can open the .SFX file
Windows
Mac OS
How to open SFX files
If you cannot open the SFX file on your computer - there may be several reasons. The first and most important reason (the most common) is the lack of a suitable software that supports SFX among those that are installed on your device.
A very simple way to solve this problem is to find and download the appropriate application. The first part of the task has already been done – the software supporting the SFX file can be found in the table. Now just download and install the appropriate application.
Possible problems with the SFX format files
The inability to open and operate the SFX file does not necessarily mean that you do not have an appropriate software installed on your computer. There may be other problems that also block our ability to operate the Self-extracting Compressed Archive Format file. Below is a list of possible problems.
- Corruption of a SFX file which is being opened
- Incorrect links to the SFX file in registry entries.
- Accidental deletion of the description of the SFX from the Windows registry
- Incomplete installation of an application that supports the SFX format
- The SFX file which is being opened is infected with an undesirable malware.
- The computer does not have enough hardware resources to cope with the opening of the SFX file.
- Drivers of equipment used by the computer to open a SFX file are out of date.
If you are sure that all of these reasons do not exist in your case (or have already been eliminated), the SFX file should operate with your programs without any problem. If the problem with the SFX file has not been solved, it may be due to the fact that in this case there is also another rare problem with the SFX file. In this case, the only you can do is to ask for assistance of a professional staff.
Similar extensions
| .a00 | Split Multi-volume ARJ Compressed File Archive (part 2) |
| .a01 | Split Multi-volume ARJ Compressed File Archive (part 3) |
| .a02 | Split Multi-volume ARJ Compressed File Archive (part 4) |
| .ace | WinACE Compressed Ace Archive Format |
| .alz | ALZip Compressed Format |
| .ar | Linux/Unix Command Library Format |
| .arc | ARC Lossless Data Compression And Archive Format |
| .arj | ARJ Compressed Archive Format |
How to associate the file with an installed software?
If you want to associate a file with a new program (e.g. my-file.SFX) you have two ways to do it. The first and the easiest one is to right-click on the selected SFX file. From the drop-down menu select "Choose default program", then click "Browse" and find the desired program. The whole operation must be confirmed by clicking OK. The second and more difficult to do is associate the SFX file extension to the corresponding software in the Windows Registry.
Is there one way to open unknown files?
Many files contain only simple text data. It is possible that while opening unknown files (e.g. SFX) with a simple text editor like Windows Notepad will allow us to see some of the data encoded in the file. This method allows you to preview the contents of many files, but probably not in such a structure as a program dedicated to support them.