Executables

Revision as of 15:21, 26 December 2017

Container formats for machine executable code. These often define different sections to be loaded into memory. Some formats may be compatible with different CPU architectures.

Directly executable

• a.out
• Atari ST executable (.prg)
• COFF — The Common Object File Format, an executable format originally designed for use in UNIX System V
• Commodore 64 binary executable (.prg)
• DOS executable (.com) — 16 bit DOS executable
• EXE — MS-DOS, MS Windows, and others
  • MS-DOS EXE
  • New Executable (NE)
  • Linear Executable
  • Portable Executable (PE, actually a COFF variant)
• Executable and Linkable Format (ELF)
• Intel HEX
• iOS app (.app) (see also IPA for archived version, and Mobile Provision file for provision file accompanying apps)
• Mach-O
• Multiboot
• PRC (Palm OS)
• Psion IMG/APP
• Psion OPO/OPA

Shared libraries, chained files, etc.

(can't be run by themselves, but are used at runtime by other executables)

• Borland Graphics Interface (.bgi)
• DOS device driver (.sys)
• Dynamic library (OS X or iOS) (.dylib)
• Dynamic-link library (Windows) (.dll)
• Turbo Pascal chain file (.chn)

Resource data used by executables and sometimes embedded in them

See Resources.

Meta-info files used in execution of programs/packages

• Assembly manifest (Windows) (.manifest)
• Mobile Provision file
• Program information file (PIF)

Virtual machine code

(see Wikipedia:UVC-based preservation for use of virtual machines in archival preservation)

• ART (Android Runtime)
• BEAM (Erlang)
• Bytecode (or p-code) — programs "compiled" into machine-independent code that loads or runs more quickly than raw interpreted source code; runs in an interpreter
• Dalvik Executable (DEX; virtual machine used in Android)
• Java bytecode (aka 'class file')
• Lingo bytecode
• Olive (executable archive embedding a virtual machine emulating original environment)
• PYC (Python bytecode)
• Universal Machine (ICFP programming contest 2006)
• WebAssembly
• Z-code

Macros or automated scripting

• Batch file
• Bourne shell script
• C shell script
• DoItAgain
• Photoshop Action File (.atn)
• Sikuli
• Windows Script File

For additional formats, see Programming Languages.

Executable compression

• UPX

See also Wikipedia:Executable compression.

See also

• Source code, for code in a higher-level programming language that needs to be compiled, assembled, or interpreted
• Programming Languages
• Development, for other files used in the development process, including object and library files that get linked into a finished executable
• Archiving, for some forms of self-extracting archives and installer packages

Links

• Download Wrappers and Unwanted Software are pure evil
• Flappy Bird implementations for various classic platforms
• Library of Congress Recommended Format Specifications: Software/Gaming
• Semantic Analysis of Native Programs, introducing CodeReason
• C++ links: executables