Determining file format for files that are missing extensions

I have a large number of files, created over the past several years, that I need to get access to. The problem is that most of them are missing file extensions altogether. For instance, instead of "extension.wpd" it is just called "extension ". They could be any old version of Office or Word Perfect Suite or any number of other application files. Is there a tool or a way in Windows to analyze the files and determine the application that created these files?
Thanks!

 

What happens if you just double-click on one of those files. ?

If the program exists that created them it should open.

If the program does not exist I believe it should tell what is missing.

BillyBob

 

Open explorer (winkey-e: hold down winkey and tap e)
tools or view
File Options
2nd tab
make nothing hidden

 

When I double click I get like 25 options, including Adobe Acrobat (which will not show the file contents), Word (which says (not enough disk or memory to convert, and this is a brand new Dell Precision 450 with a 3.8 P4 HT and 1GB RAM), Word Pad (which gived a bunch of squares) Word Perfect (which garbles up the text but does preserve images) and others.

What will checking to "hide nothing" provide me - just so I know what to look for?

I wondered if there was a tool for download somewhre to use that will say definitively "this was created in Word Perfect 7" or something to that effect.

 

Any idea how their extensions were removed?
If they are really WP files, then the extension should still be there.

Why do you "need access to them "?

You can try try opening the files in WP. If they are really WP files, they should open.
You said that you tried opening them in Word. What type of file did you tell it to try converting them from?

If you didn't, then go to Tools > Options > General and Select "Confirm Conversion at Open ". Then, when Word opens the file, it will ask if you want to convert it, AND will tell you the type of file that Word "thinks" it is.

 

Your files will lift their skirts and have their extensions exposed.

Control Panel>Folder Options>View tab. Uncheck "Hide extensions of known file types "

 

These files were left over from a previous employee and contain complex equations, among other things. They are required to avoid hours of rework. The extensions were removed manually by this previous employee. So I know that they are not just "hidden from view" by Windows. Word didnt say anything except "not enough memory or disk space to convert ". This is the only application pop up I see whether I choose Word from the list to open with, or if I open Word and then browse to try to open the files. I am not sure what they were created in, possibly Word Perfect, possibly other things. There are many many files, and I have only begun to look at them. The example of the Word Perfect is a representation of what I have discovered so far. Suffice it to say I have probably 100 files that could be anything, and they have no file extensions at all. They are old, some 5 years or more old. I am thinking maybe even the Word Perfect example above could indeed be a WP file but it looks bad since it was maybe created with WP 7 or something, not WP 10, which is what I have on the new PC.

 

So you unhid the extensions and they still don't have extensions? The previous person must have renamed the files by removing them.

I don't know of a program off hand to determine what application produced what file. Maybe a Google Groups search?

 

Johnny5, Open one of them with Notepad and snoop around looking for the program name (or extension) that created it. It's often possible to glean that information from all the jibberish if you're diligent.

Keep in mind that they may be spreadsheets and may require something like QuattroPro or Excel. Those extensions are normally WB* and XLS respectively.

 

If surferdude2's idea with notepad (and it does often work) fails to help, please provide the exact, complete error message you get when trying to open them with Word. Either that or else click on start, on run, key in eventvwr.msc, and OK then check the event logs for specific error information.

While the error you see is obviously mis-reporting the issue we may be able to tell more about it with enough detail.

 

Thanks, I havent had time to mess with these this week, but I will post back when I get a chance to.

 

If you'd like a powerful file viewer to study the files in question download and study list.com which will run in a dos window, and examine files of any OS or program in text or binary (hex).

 

No new solution here, you've already gotten some good advice - but for a little encourgement - I just ran into a similar situation with a new machine I did for an 88 year old woman. At her son's request (good client) I had installed WordPerfect Office V10. She had all of her old docs saved to a CD and when I put them in her new machine - no file extensions. Fortunately, this didn't require any detective work because she knew what they were. They opened fine in WP V.10 and I showed her how to "Save as" which put the proper extension back on her files and converted them to the newer version - not your normal 88 year old, she had all of the work finished in a few hours and is happy as ever.

 

Thanks, I will be plowing through this today. I am pretty sure most of this was done in an earlier version of Word Perfect suite. Thanks for the suggestions, I will post back when I get through it today (hopefully).

 

johnny5--Right click on a file, then Properties. The file type (or at least "Type of File ") may appear.

 

I believe that the type of any file is listed in the first 32 bytes of the file itself. MS programs only read the DOS filename which is why they fall over if the file extension has been removed.

If you can find a hex editor you will be able to read the original file extension. Forensic software uses this principal to find incriminating files that have beed renamed to disguise them

 

I spent a few hours on them, I was able to retrive some semblance of info from all but 2 or 3. They appeared to have been created in an old version of Word Perfect that will not convert to Word properly, they have complex equations in them and the formatting and placement get completely botched. The rest either converted to Word, or else I could get them in a ASCII file or Quattro or WP. Some open a lot better on an old laptop running Win 98 and WP 8. But getting them into a current version of Word seems pretty unlikely seeing how they have responded so far. I tried right click, properties, no file of type shows up. I havent tried a hex editor, I will have to try that.
Thanks for all the replies.....
johnny5

 

If all you're doing is looking, then List (above) is great for showing the hex and text side by side.

 

johnny5--Long shot
http://support.microsoft.com/Default.aspx?kbid=870883
Ignore the references to Quicken. It allows me to open all my old .doc files originally created in Wordpad on Win98 in WinXP Wordpad. (I do not have Word.) Might work for old WordPerfect files.