BSD Converter

Extract text from BSD files

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Drop or upload your .BSD file

Online File Converter

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How to extract text from your BSD file

Click the "Select File" button above, and choose your BSD file.
You’ll see a preview, if available.
Click the "Convert file to..." button to extract text information.

Convert BSD to another file type

To convert your BSD file to another format, you need Xilinx Vivado or other Developer software.

Convert a file to BSD

To convert other file formats to the "Hardware Description Language" file type, you need software like Xilinx Vivado or a similar tool.

About BSD files

The .BSD file extension is predominantly associated with Boundary Scan Description Language (BSDL). These files are essential in the electronics design industry, serving as the digital data sheet for the IEEE 1149.1 (JTAG) testing standard. They describe the boundary-scan logic of an integrated circuit, written in a subset of the VHDL hardware description language.

The Problem: While BSDL files are technically plain text, they are dense with specialized hardware syntax. Opening them in a basic editor dumps unformatted code that is difficult to audit for pin mappings or opcode definitions without syntax highlighting. A significant limitation is the extension collision: .BSD is also used by Nuance Speech Signal Enhancement for binary audio data and by Frontier Developments for game assets in titles like Thrillville. These binary variants will appear as garbled characters if treated as BSDL text, and they often require proprietary, legacy software to access.

The Solution:

For Engineering (BSDL): Convert the raw code to PDF or formatted HTML. This transforms the abstract VHDL syntax into a readable document for design reviews and documentation.
For Archiving: Ensure the file is saved as UTF-8 encoded TXT to maintain long-term accessibility independent of EDA tools like Xilinx Vivado.
For Binary Files: If your file is not readable text, it is likely a Nuance or Game file. These proprietary blobs generally cannot be converted to standard formats like MP3 or JPG without the original engine.

Convert.Guru analyzes your BSD file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.

Users also converted BSDL, BDS, PSD, PDF, ZIP, V and XCI files.

FAQ

If you want to convert BSD file to SYS, DLL, EXE, DRV, VXD, 386, COM, BAT, CMD, SCR, PIF or LNK, you can use Xilinx Vivado or similar software from the "JTAG Circuit Testing Description" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….

To convert MSI, EXE, REG, MST, LNK, CAB, CAT, DRV, INF, SYS, MSU or DLL files to BSD, try Xilinx Vivado or another comparable tool in the "JTAG Circuit Testing Description" category.

The BSD Converter Story

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 BSD converter.