Extract text from HTML Help content files (HHC)
To convert HHC Content files to another format, you need Microsoft HTML Help Workshop or other Developer software.
To convert other file formats to the "Help System Project File" file type, you need software like Microsoft HTML Help Workshop or a similar tool.
The .HHC file is an HTML Help Table of Contents file. It is a plain-text document used by Microsoft HTML Help Workshop to define the navigation tree for legacy Compiled HTML Help (CHM) projects. Inside, the file uses a specific markup syntax with <OBJECT> and <PARAM> tags nested inside unordered lists to link chapter titles to their respective local HTM or HTML files.
The .HHC format is outdated and carries significant disadvantages. It is strictly tied to a deprecated Microsoft software ecosystem. A standalone .HHC file is practically useless because it contains no actual readable text content - only the structural roadmap for a larger document. Furthermore, modern web browsers do not render the proprietary <OBJECT type="text/sitemap"> tags correctly, often displaying a blank screen or a broken list.
When modernizing legacy documentation, users typically need to convert .HHC files to standard XML or clean HTML to import the structure into modern Help Authoring Tools (HAT) like MadCap Flare. You can also convert it to TXT to extract the raw topic titles.
Because this file format is highly specific and lacks actual document content, standard online converters fail to process it. They mistake it for a standard web page and output blank files. Just drag and drop your file to identify the format, view it, and convert it when possible. Since the .HHC is structured in basic UTF-8 text, convert.guru can easily inspect the file, extract the raw code, and show the internal navigation content.
Convert.Guru analyzes your HHC file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted HCW, HHP and CH_ files.
If you want to convert HHC file to SYS, DLL, EXE, DRV, VXD, 386, COM, BAT, CMD, SCR, PIF or LNK, you can use Microsoft HTML Help Workshop or similar software from the "Help Navigation Structure" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert MSI, EXE, REG, MST, LNK, CAB, CAT, DRV, INF, SYS, MSU or DLL files to HHC, try Microsoft HTML Help Workshop or another comparable tool in the "Help Navigation Structure" 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 HHC converter.