Extract text from HFX files
To convert your HFX file to another format, you need HotFax or other Raster Image software.
To convert other file formats to the "Legacy Fax Document" file type, you need software like HotFax or a similar tool.
The .hfx extension is a notorious source of confusion because it is shared by three completely different legacy formats, creating a "Russian Roulette" scenario for users trying to open them.
1. Smith Micro HotFax (32% of files): The most common variety is a multi-page fax document created by the now-obsolete HotFax software. These are essentially proprietary wrappers around TIFF images. The practical problem is that modern image viewers (like Windows Photos or Mac Preview) cannot interpret the proprietary HFX header, rendering your fax data inaccessible. For these files, the only realistic solution is converting them to PDF (for archiving) or standard TIFF (for editing).
2. CADVANCE Drawing (28% of files): In engineering contexts, an HFX file is often a RIFF-based CAD drawing generated by CADVANCE. These contain vector geometry and schematics. Because CADVANCE is a legacy platform, these files are effectively locked data unless converted to a modern interoperable format like DXF or DWG for use in AutoCAD or DraftSight.
3. Hollywood FX (24% of files): Finally, video editors may encounter HFX files as transition effects for Pinnacle Studio. These are binary plugins, not video files, and generally cannot be "converted" to MP4 or AVI; they must be imported directly into the video editing software.
Convert.Guru analyzes your HFX file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted MP4, JFX, FAX and EFX files.
If you want to convert HFX file to MP4, AVI, MOV, WMV, FLV, WEBM, MKV, M4V, 3GP, OGV, ASF or RM, you can use HotFax or similar software from the "Legacy Fax & CAD Storage" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert MTS, MOV, RMVB, DIVX, RM, H264, TS, WMV, VOB, MP4, XVID or AVI files to HFX, try HotFax or another comparable tool in the "Legacy Fax & CAD Storage" 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 HFX converter.