Extract text from Framework IV documents (FW4)
To convert FW4 documents to another format, you need Framework or other Text software.
To convert other file formats to the "Legacy Office Suite" file type, you need software like Framework or a similar tool.
The .FW4 file extension identifies a legacy document created by Framework IV, an integrated office suite originally developed by Ashton-Tate (and later Borland) for MS-DOS. Unlike modern flat documents, Framework files utilize a unique hierarchical structure of "containing frames" that can nest text, spreadsheets, databases, and business graphics within a single file.
A common frustration with .FW4 files is severe obsolescence. Modern office suites like Microsoft Word or Excel dropped support for Framework import filters in the late 1990s. Opening these files directly on Windows 10 or macOS is virtually impossible without specialized emulation software like DOSBox. Users often find themselves locked out of critical historical data or old manuscripts.
To recover this data, the best approach is converting the file to a widely supported format. For text-heavy frames, converting to DOCX or RTF preserves the content for editing. For data frames, CSV or XLSX is the standard target. If the goal is strictly archiving the document's visual layout without editing, PDF/A is the recommended format.
*Note: In rare cases, this extension may refer to an Adobe FrameMaker 4 document, another legacy format requiring specific migration filters.*
Convert.Guru analyzes your FW4 file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted FW3, FM, MIF and BOOK files.
If you want to convert FW4 file to , you can use Framework or similar software from the "Integrated Office Document" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert files to FW4, try Framework or another comparable tool in the "Integrated Office Document" 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 FW4 converter.