Extract text from CHL files
To convert your CHL file to another format, you need GTMedia Receiver or other Settings software.
To convert other file formats to the "Channel List File" file type, you need software like GTMedia Receiver or a similar tool.
.CHL files are primarily Satellite Receiver Channel Lists used by digital set-top boxes from manufacturers like GTMedia and Viark. These files serve as the device's internal database, storing critical broadcasting parameters such as transponder frequencies, channel names, Packet Identifiers (PIDs), and satellite orbital positions.
For users, the .CHL format presents significant usability challenges. It is typically a proprietary, closed format (often based on JSON or binary structures) that standard text editors cannot render meaningfully. Users often find themselves locked into editing channel orders using a clumsy TV remote control because the file cannot be easily opened on a PC without manufacturer-specific tools like DBEditor. Additionally, these files are often strictly version-dependent; a channel list exported from one firmware version may fail to import into another, causing device crashes or data loss.
To bypass these limitations, the most practical solution is conversion. For users migrating from satellite to IPTV or PC-based viewing, converting .CHL to M3U allows the playlist to be opened in VLC Media Player or standard IPTV apps. For those wishing to sort and clean up their channel lineup, converting to CSV or XLSX enables bulk editing in spreadsheet software before re-importing. Note that a minority of .CHL files may also be challenge scripts for the game Black & White 2 or legacy TV lists for ArcSoft TotalMedia, which are completely incompatible with satellite tools.
Convert.Guru analyzes your CHL file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted SDX, UDID, TOC, ASO and MOC 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 CHL converter.