Extract text from backup files (IBK)
To convert IBK backups to another format, you need IncrediMail or other Backup software.
To convert other file formats to the "Application Backup Archive" file type, you need software like IncrediMail or a similar tool.
The .IBK file extension serves multiple, unrelated purposes across different software ecosystems. Most commonly, it is an IncrediMail Backup File created by IncrediBackup to store email archives, contacts, and account settings. It is also heavily utilized as a digital e-book format by ICE Book Reader Professional, and as a database backup or index file by Embarcadero InterBase, Firebird, and Microsoft SQL Server. Finally, some backup utilities like Iperius Backup use it to store compressed archive data.
The primary disadvantage of the .IBK format is its severe fragmentation. Because several completely different applications use the exact same extension, operating systems cannot reliably determine which program should open it. Users are frequently left guessing whether their file contains a classic novel, corporate email history, or a raw SQL database. Furthermore, older software like IncrediMail is now discontinued, meaning users are often stranded with proprietary archives and no official way to read them. Accessing .IBK database backups usually requires expensive, specialized database environments.
Converting these files requires knowing what is inside. Standard online converters fail with .IBK files because they lack the ability to differentiate between an e-book and a database. However, our analysis engine looks for underlying embedded formats. Because IncrediMail backups are often just renamed ZIP archives, and Iperius backups use standard 7Z compression, we can frequently detect this and allow you to extract the raw contents. If it is an ICE Book Reader file, converting to standard EPUB or TXT is highly recommended to preserve readability.
If the file is a complex database backup from InterBase or SQL Server, the format is extremely difficult to open or convert directly. These files are highly compressed binary dumps that do not store plain text. Emphasize that often, only the original database engine can properly read or export the data to formats like SQL or CSV.
Convert.Guru analyzes your IBK file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted IBAK and LM8 files.
If you want to convert IBK file to BAK, BACKUP, OLD, TMP, TEMP, ARC, ZIP, TAR, GZ, 7Z, RAR or ISO, you can use IncrediMail or similar software from the "Software Data Backup" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert SNAPSHOT, OLD, IMG, RESTORE, ISO, COPY, VMDK, TMP, VHD, BAK, ARCHIVE or BACKUP files to IBK, try IncrediMail or another comparable tool in the "Software Data Backup" 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 IBK converter.