File extensions – definition and basic information


File extensions are the integral parts of the files that are on each computer. Often, when working on a computer, we encounter a wide range of files, such as docx, ppt, part, mp3 or rmvb. We realize that they are there – but we often do not know what they are for on our computer.

File extension, also known as the filename extension is a suffix added to the name of a computer file, usually consisting of a number of characters placed after the last dot in the filename, which gives us information about its coding. In other words a file extension is a file format. It allows the operating system (e.g. Windows) to recognize what program it should try to open the file.

In the table below you will find a random selection of popular file extensions.


File extension The full name of the file Category

BAT file extension

DOS Batch File

Executable Files

CPL file extension

Windows Control Panel Item

System Files

CUR file extension

Windows Cursor

System Files

FLV file extension

Flash Video File

Video Files

FON file extension

Generic Font File

Font Files

JPG file extension

JPEG Image

Raster Image Files

LOG file extension

Log File

Text Files

ODT file extension

OpenDocument Text Document

Text Files

PHP file extension

PHP Source Code File

Web Files

PL file extension

Perl Script

Developer Files

RPM file extension

Red Hat Package Manager File

Compressed Files

TGA file extension

Targa Graphic

Raster Image Files

TXT file extension

Plain Text File

Text Files

VB file extension

VBScript File

Executable Files

VOB file extension

DVD Video Object File

Video Files