Extract text from CHK files
To convert your CHK file to another format, you need Microsoft Windows or other System software.
To convert other file formats to the "Disk Recovery File" file type, you need software like Microsoft Windows or a similar tool.
A .chk file is predominantly a Recovered File Fragment created by the Microsoft Windows operating system tool, CHKDSK (Check Disk). When Windows detects file system corruption - often caused by abrupt power failures, system crashes, or removing a USB drive without ejecting - it attempts to salvage the data clusters. These clusters are saved as a series of generic files (e.g., FILE0000.CHK, FILE0001.CHK) inside a hidden folder named FOUND.000.
The critical challenge with .chk files is that they lack their original metadata. A single .chk file could be a pristine JPG image, a critical DOCX Word document, or a fragment of an AVI video, but the file extension does not reflect the content. Users cannot simply double-click to open them, as the OS does not know which application to launch. While some are partial fragments (garbage data), many are complete files that have simply lost their identity. In rare cases, a .chk file might also be a firmware update file for Netgear routers or a checksum file for Sophos security software.
To restore usability, users typically need to "convert" these files by identifying their internal binary headers (magic numbers) and renaming them to the correct extension. For document recovery, converting or renaming to DOC or DOCX is common. For media recovery, targets often include JPG, MP3, or MP4. Using a specialized conversion or identification tool is far more efficient than manually guessing extensions for hundreds of files.
Convert.Guru analyzes your CHK file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted JPG, CHCK, DCIM, CHX, 000, PDF, MP4, FME, TMP, RAR, 900, EXE and JPEG files.
If you want to convert CHK file to FCHK, JPG, EXE, ISO, BIN, CUE, PAK, WAD, PK3, PK4, BSP or MAP, you can use Microsoft Windows or similar software from the "Recovered File Fragment" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert MOD, BIN, CFG, SCX, DAT, MPQ, LOG, CUE, INI, EXE, SCM or ISO files to CHK, try Microsoft Windows or another comparable tool in the "Recovered File Fragment" 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 CHK converter.