Extract text from ABU files
To convert your ABU file to another format, you need Asus Backup or other Backup software.
To convert other file formats to the "Mobile Device Archive" file type, you need software like Asus Backup or a similar tool.
The .abu file extension primarily represents an Asus App Backup file, a proprietary archive format generated by the now-discontinued Asus Backup utility found on older ZenFone devices. These files contain critical user data - including contacts, call logs, photos, and app settings - compressed into a single package for restoration.
Because the Asus Backup app has been deprecated in favor of Google's cloud solutions, users often find themselves with "zombie" .abu files they cannot open on modern Android phones. While technically a container format, it is often encrypted or obfuscated, meaning standard tools cannot easily extract the contents. A common workaround involves renaming the extension to ZIP or TAR and attempting to open it with 7-Zip or WinRAR, though this has mixed success rates depending on encryption settings.
Alternatively, an .abu file may be a firmware update package for satellite receivers using ALi Corp chipsets (such as older Set-Top Boxes). In this context, the file is a GZIP-compressed binary used to flash system software via USB. These files are not meant to be opened but rather loaded directly by the device's bootloader.
Convert.Guru analyzes your ABU file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted ABU1, ZIP, ALF, AME and UNQ files.
If you want to convert ABU file to BAK, BACKUP, OLD, TMP, TEMP, ARC, ZIP, TAR, GZ, 7Z, RAR or ISO, you can use Asus Backup or similar software from the "Mobile Data Backup" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert SNAPSHOT, OLD, IMG, RESTORE, ISO, COPY, VMDK, TMP, VHD, BAK, ARCHIVE or BACKUP files to ABU, try Asus Backup or another comparable tool in the "Mobile Data Backup" category.
The history of Convert.Guru began over 25 years ago in California with Tom Simondi’s file-format database. A former contributor to Space Shuttle development and a software pioneer of the 1980s, Simondi established a trusted resource for file type analysis that was even referenced by Microsoft Windows XP. Today, we use modern technology to process and convert thousands of file formats while continually improving our ABU converter.