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

CFM file extension

ColdFusion Markup File

Web Files

CPP file extension

C++ Source Code File

Developer Files

DMP file extension

Windows Memory Dump

System Files

EXE file extension

Windows Executable File

Executable Files

ICS file extension

iCalendar File

Misc Files

M file extension

Objective-C Implementation File

Developer Files

OTF file extension

OpenType Font

Font Files

PPT file extension

PowerPoint Presentation

Data Files

PRF file extension

Outlook Profile File

Settings Files

PSD file extension

Adobe Photoshop Document

Raster Image Files

RPM file extension

Red Hat Package Manager File

Compressed Files

SQL file extension

Structured Query Language Data File

Database Files

TAR file extension

Consolidated Unix File Archive

Data Files

TMP file extension

Temporary File

Backup Files

ZIPX file extension

Extended Zip File

Compressed Files