Extract text from backup game saves (BAK2)
To convert BAK2 backups to another format, you need Terraria or other Backup software.
To convert other file formats to the "Game Save Rolling Backup" file type, you need software like Terraria or a similar tool.
A .BAK2 file is a second-generation rolling backup, primarily created by sandbox games like Terraria by Re-Logic and Starbound by Chucklefish.
These files act as a failsafe for your game progress. When the game saves, it often rotates files: the active save becomes .bak, and the previous .bak becomes .bak2. The main frustration for users is that these files are not automatically loaded by the game if the primary save becomes corrupted. They are proprietary binary files, meaning you cannot simply double-click to open them in a text editor or media player, and they often sit unnoticed until a catastrophic crash occurs.
To "convert" or use a .BAK2 file, the standard workflow is actually a restoration process. For Terraria worlds, you typically rename the file from worldname.wld.bak2 to worldname.wld (after removing the corrupted original). For Starbound, the target format is usually PLAYER or .SHIPWORLD.
Convert.Guru analyzes your BAK2 file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted BAK, PLR, WLD, TWLD and BAK1 files.
If you want to convert BAK2 file to BAK, BACKUP, OLD, TMP, TEMP, ARC, ZIP, TAR, GZ, 7Z, RAR or ISO, you can use Terraria or similar software from the "Game Save 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 BAK2, try Terraria or another comparable tool in the "Game Save 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 BAK2 converter.