Extract text from Common Gateway Interface scripts (CGI)
To convert CGI scripts to another format, you need Apache or other Web software.
To convert other file formats to the "Server-Side Web Script" file type, you need software like Apache or a similar tool.
A .CGI file is traditionally a Common Gateway Interface script or executable used by web servers like Apache HTTP Server to generate dynamic content. These files often contain raw code written in Perl, Python, or C, acting as a bridge between a web server and external databases.
For everyday users, downloading a .CGI file is almost always an accident. Because these scripts generate other files (like bank statements or images) on the fly, a misconfigured web server will sometimes serve the resulting file but accidentally leave the .CGI extension attached. This means your downloaded file might actually be a PDF, HTML, JPG, or ZIP archive internally. Attempting to open it as a standard script will fail, and most operating systems lack a default program to handle it.
If the file is an actual text script, you can convert it to TXT to safely read the source code. However, executing it requires a configured local web environment, making offline rendering nearly impossible. If the file is a misnamed download, standard conversion tools fail because they expect a script, not a hidden document.
Because this format acts as a catch-all for both server executables and misconfigured output downloads, standard converters fail to process it properly. Our analyzer will inspect the file's internal signature, identify if it is secretly a PDF, an ELF binary, or an EXE, and allow you to view or convert the underlying data safely.
Convert.Guru analyzes your CGI file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted PDF, JPG, PNG, HTML, AVIF, DOCX, CRDOWNLOAD, ZIP, JPEG, TXT, EXE, CRD and WAV files.
If you want to convert CGI file to PDF, EXE, MSI, APP, DMG, DEB, RPM, PKG, RUN, SH, BAT or CMD, you can use Apache or similar software from the "Web Server Executable Script" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert JAR, APP, SCR, IPA, COM, AAB, PS1, DMG, VBS, EXE, XAPK or MSI files to CGI, try Apache or another comparable tool in the "Web Server Executable Script" 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 CGI converter.