Extract text from BCK files
To convert your BCK file to another format, you need Microsoft SQL Server or other Backup software.
To convert other file formats to the "Application Archive" file type, you need software like Microsoft SQL Server or a similar tool.
A .BCK file is a generic Backup archive created by a wide variety of software applications, ranging from point-of-sale systems like ETPOS to database engines like Microsoft SQL Server. Because this extension is used as a shorthand for "backup," the internal structure varies significantly; it may be a compressed archive (similar to ZIP), a database dump, or a proprietary binary file containing configuration settings for industrial hardware like SMA Solar inverters or Danfoss controllers.
A common issue with .BCK files is that they are not standardized. Users often encounter these files when trying to recover data from an old system or a specific application (e.g., CATIA V5 or Withings Health Mate) but find they cannot open them with standard tools. Attempting to open a .BCK file directly usually results in an error because the operating system does not know which original program created it. Additionally, proprietary lock-in means that even if you can access the file, interpreting the data without the original software - often expensive or obsolete - is difficult.
For users looking to access the contents without the original software, the best approach depends on the file's origin. If the file is a compressed archive (common with ETPOS or general software backups), renaming the extension to ZIP allows for immediate extraction. For database backups, converting or viewing as SQL or TXT is necessary to inspect the schema and data. For archiving purposes or to save configuration logs (like those from Webex or Heidenhain CNC machines) in a human-readable format, converting the text contents to PDF is the most reliable solution.
Convert.Guru analyzes your BCK file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted TNCBCK, DBD, BAK, QRP, BKP, ZIP, PKPASS, JSD, MFL and CDF-MS files.
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 BCK converter.