Executables

File Format
Name	Executables
Ontology	Electronic File Formats Executables

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
• 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)
• Olive (executable archive embedding a virtual machine emulating original environment)
• Universal Machine (ICFP programming contest 2006)
• 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